Schroeder 1212 - my thoughts

Hi all. Just used my new 1212 on an outdoor gig for the first time (with PA support) and it is great.

Basses used:

Fender Jazz (Marcus miller sig ed) with Dimarzio ultra jazz pickups and a John East preamp
Musicman Stingray 5 with Seymour Duncan Basslines pickups and preamp replacement.
Ibanez Soundgear SR1000 with EMGs

Previous Rig:

Trace Elliot GP12SMX preamp
Tech 21 Sansamp RBI
QSC RMX 1450 Power amp
Ampeg SVT 210 and 115

New rig:

Glockenklang Bass art preamp
DBX 266XL compressor
QSC RMX 1450 power amp
Schroeder 1212

I play a variety of styles from pop and rock to country and jazz. Main gig is on a cruise ship (where I am now) and the venues can vary from a medium sized bar to an outdoor gig on deck. We always use a PA so I don't really need to go too loud indoors but sea winds can be high on outdoor gigs and the sound can just disappear. My previous rig just did not hack it. I was running a crossover from the trace into the QSC so I could run both sides into separate speakers at 8 ohms (not bridged) and I was running it flat out and peaking on the loud finale we do on a big party night.

So I decided to upgrade and the Schroeder looked perfect. I got in touch with Jorg who was able to ship the 1212 to the UK very quickly and I was playing it 3 days after he shipped it.

My first impressions were mixed. I had bought a whole new rack of gear including the Glock and when I played it in the house it seemed quite muddy because of the high amount of low mids. However, a bit of EQing gave me a variety of sounds. The one thing I was impressed by was the power handling. I ran the QSC bridged and the Schroeder took it perfectly without farting. The speaker cabinet is amazing and shows hardly any signs of vibration at high sound levels. Things started falling off the walls with the power I was pushing. But it is very deceiving coz the sound is so controlled and clear.

Anyway, I came on the ship and was immediately blown away on the first gig in the bar. I was only running the QSC at about a fifth of a turn on the main volume. The 1212 is incredibly efficient. Much more than the Ampegs. Also, the bass response is very good. The low mids hide it slightly but on the gig it is more noticable.
The low mid is great on the gig because it sits so well in the mix. You don't need to push the volume as much because it seems to occupy its own frequency range and doesn't get buried by any other instrument. The whole band was impressed and our keyboard player was very happy because he normally gets blown away by my amps being sat at his side but this is a much more agreeable sound and he said "It's not boomy, it's just there"

Next up was the party night I always hated playing with other rigs because I could never hear myself properly. The wind, the brass, the monitors, the kit all made for an incredibly noisy experience. I differentiate between loud and noise. I like loud gigs. Noisy gigs (when everything just becomes on big mush) get on my nerves.
This time, the Schroeder performed perfectly. It cut through as before and I even had to turn down at times. The QSC volume was at 12'o clock maximum all night. It's amazing how the low mids that annoyed me in the initial listening are the main reason for the cab sounding so good on a gig. Because it cuts through so well, volume is not as much an issue. You can even hear it on a loud gig without turning up too much simply because it occupies its own sonic space.

All in all, the 1212 is great. Jorg has designed some great cabs that may not be Hifi like Accugroove but are more of a workhorse. They do the job on a gig like no other cab I've heard. If you like very pretty solo bass tones then this cab may not be for you but if you are a pro bass player that plays BASS in a band then it is definitely worth checking out. Also don't expect that scooped SWR type sound.

Also, Jorg gives the best service of anybody or company I've dealt with period. He will reply to your emails personally within a few hours and he always gives good advice. He actually recommended cheaper stuff for me at the start (1210 not flight ready). How often does a company try and downsell you!!

Just thought I'd share my thoughts. Oh, and the Glockenklang is great.

MArk