Rig report: from 15's to 12's

[Pings Bass]

I like my GK Neo 112 a lot, mostly for the size and weight, but it's pretty full sounding and capable of being "too loud" for my ears, even with just a little mb-200. It'll maybe carry the room for a 50-seat cafe with drums but I really only ever use it as a "more me" monitor so I can hear if I'm playing in tune.

 

[Stylee Mousse]

What matters is displacement, frequency response, motor strength, cone stiffness and mass, and a properly tuned cabinet.

But people listen with their eyes, so bigger speakers are said to sound deeper.

Oh definitely!

My favorite 215 rigs were pure midrange satisfaction, with a solid but tight low end.

The main one was D140s in Sunn style 115 cabs. And almost as great an 80’s Sunn 215b with 100 watt square backs.

 

[Toptube]

I bought a GK 112 Neo II in 2012----and hated the tone. It's been years but, I remember it having none of the warmth and growl im used to. And it had strange, unpleasant peaks in the high mids and highs.

I replaced the speaker with an Eminence Basslite S2102 (it's another Neo speaker). And also found the cab was completely unlined inside. So I line it with a layer of high loft batting. And a layer of a thin foam mattress pad.

It sounds beautiful.

The speaker and cab probably are not getting perfect efficiency from the pairing. But, it hasn't been a problem.

It also works well with GK's built in tweeter if it's at a modest setting. And one of my basses really speaks well with that.

And with the tweeter off, the speaker gets really bouncy and interesting in the mids. And another of my basses really likes that!

 

[Swerve]

I use a Hartke HyDrive HD112 cab with the switch turned to 4 ohms into a GK 700rb-ii head and it's plenty enough for my country-rock band. At our last gig I had the volume at noon at one point and it was too loud. Not bad for a rig that cost me less than a grand. I use a milk crate to get it off the floor and it hasn't disappointed yet.

In my last band I actually ran it with two Hartke 112's but I find I prefer the 112 setup.

 

[Afc70]

I love 12’s, I have a 4 ohm Lowend 2/12 cab that really sounds great, with any of my amps- a Quilter bass block V803, or GK 400Rb. I used to play 10’s & they work fine, & still have a Glockenklang Quattro 4/10, but I prefer the bottom end that 12’s deliver. I have a pair of Quilter 12’s that I sometimes use with my bass block.

 

[j3ffr0]

I do a lot of recording. Also do some live sound. I usually prefer what I hear out of 12s -- something that will punch through the mix without mud. When I record my bass, the 12 is my preferred cabinet. Of course either a 12 or 15 can be dialed in with EQ but the 12 seems more ready to punch through the mix out of the gate.

So my mixer's ear usually wants the 12s, but sometimes as I player I might want to feel the substance of 15s.

 

[ctmullins]

I do a lot of recording. Also do some live sound. I usually prefer what I hear out of 12s -- something that will punch through the mix without mud. When I record my bass, the 12 is my preferred cabinet. Of course either a 12 or 15 can be dialed in with EQ but the 12 seems more ready to punch through the mix out of the gate.

So my mixer's ear usually wants the 12s, but sometimes as I player I might want to feel the substance of 15s.

So you’re saying that an Eminence Beta15 has more “substance” than a BP112?

 

[60bass]

I started playing bass guitar in 1969. At that time I used 12s either Fender 212 bassman cabinets or believe it or not standard Marshall 412 cabinets. Then I moved to 15s because that's what bass players were supposed to use. Then after a few years I switched over to 18-in Vegas in big W boxes because that's what bass players were supposed to use.

Then I added a 610 cabinet to my 18 and bi-amped it because separate low end and high-end cabinets were what bass players were supposed to use. Then this company named SWR came along with this cabinet that had four 10-in speakers and a small horn in it. So I switched to using 410 cabinets because that's what bass players were supposed to use. Never mind that ampeg had been making 810 cabinets forever. the 410 cabinet was the cabinet of choice. When I discovered Genz Benz equipment I purchased an Uber 212 cabinet and a gbe 1200 head. That setup was easily able to keep up with half stacks and loud drummers with zero problems. That rig really made me ask myself why did I ever move away from 12-in speakers to begin with? In fact if my back hadn't have went South on me I'd probably still have that rig. The sound of that cabinet pushed me back to the 12-in speaker it had all the bottom I needed with a punch and transient response that rival 10-in speakers.

After all the back problems I wanted a smaller more compact rig so I ended up with a TC RH450 head with two TC RS112 single 12s. Nowadays 1 or 212s is more than enough for any gig. My current rig is now a Mesa WD 800 atop a GK neo IV 212 cabinet. It is a small relatively easy to transport rig that really slams. I can't see going back to any other speaker except for a 12-in speaker now. They say what goes around comes around in the case of the 12-in speaker for me that is true.

 

[takeout]

Driver diameter is a cosmetic parameter.

What matters is displacement, frequency response, motor strength, cone stiffness and mass, and a properly tuned cabinet.

But people listen with their eyes, so bigger speakers are said to sound deeper.

Took me a long time to break out of that thinking.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Over the last 10 years, I've used SVT 15 cabs (2) with a CL or 3pro. Switched to a 700RB few years ago and thought it was an improvement.

Awhile back I picked up a pair of used. GK NEO 1x12's. I ended up blowing both speakers. IIRC I've seen some reports of a bad run of 12" speakers. I decided to replace both with the correct GK speakers.

I was hesitant to use these live, and kept them in the basement as practice units. I bought a Fusion 550. Played a smaller room last week and decided to use the NEO cabs with the 550. I was pleasantly surprised. The rig was much warmer sounding. I play aggressive Classic Rock (1 gtr, bass, drums, vocals) but we do our best to watch the stage volume. I did not hear the GK grind that I was used to, but my band mates said it was definitely there. I could also hear myself much better than before.

For the first time, in many years, I had a few guys inquire about my bass tone. My brother, a sound man but not my bands sound man, said the rig carried the room and perhaps sounded better than the 700 with the 2 15's. I don't use an PA support. It's all bass rig.

My guess is the 550 had a lot to do with the tone. But I will say that I would have never expected 12's to sound that good with bass. I do turn the tweeters all the way down. They are not necessary for what I do. I will use the rig in bigger rooms, and hopefully come away with the same impression.

It’s all about the cab design these days much more than the size of the speakers. I have a 210 cab that can put out up to 127 dB with plenty of low end that can carry a room seating up to 700.

Congrats on finding your sweet spot, some of us have looked/looking for decades for this.