I am looking for a lightweight portable rig. Schroeder and Flite are two companies that might work for me. I have a Modulus Flea bass, Eden WT-400 Amp and mainly play rock music (anything from U2 to VH). I am willing to sacrifice a little bit on the tone side for portability, but still want to make sure I am able to cut through the mix. I am looking at the Mini line from Schroeder (two mini 12 or 12+) or possibly a Flite 115 with a 110. Since I am not close to any place where I can try these cabinets out in person I was wondering what your experiences were with either of these lines and what would be the best for my setup/style of music.
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Schroeder or Flite Cabinets?
- Thread starter cincybass88
- Start date
I've done research into both. Owned a schroe mini, schroe mini + and a schroe 1210. I also seriously considered Flyte, but heard their tone is pretty mundane.
Take this for what its worth, but I'd recommend an EA Wizzy stack. Very portable, loud and sound fantastic. Epifani cabs are also great, though larger and more expensive. The UL 112 is the same weight as the Wizzy but the UL 112 is bigger. I am guessing the UL 112 has more lowend and volume to it versus the wizzy due to its size, but thats only from what I have read. Never heard a UL112 in person.
Personally, I sold all my cabs (or am selling) and bought an epifani UL310. The ultimate in portability and tone. It really comes down to how much cash you want to spend.
Oh yeah, dont forget the bag end s15D. I own(ed) that one. Very loud and very portable cab. It has a very in your face, ballsy tone. You just need one. (ignore siganture ; )
Take this for what its worth, but I'd recommend an EA Wizzy stack. Very portable, loud and sound fantastic. Epifani cabs are also great, though larger and more expensive. The UL 112 is the same weight as the Wizzy but the UL 112 is bigger. I am guessing the UL 112 has more lowend and volume to it versus the wizzy due to its size, but thats only from what I have read. Never heard a UL112 in person.
Personally, I sold all my cabs (or am selling) and bought an epifani UL310. The ultimate in portability and tone. It really comes down to how much cash you want to spend.
Oh yeah, dont forget the bag end s15D. I own(ed) that one. Very loud and very portable cab. It has a very in your face, ballsy tone. You just need one. (ignore siganture ; )
The Wizzy would be a good option, only problem is it's 4 ohms so you could only use one cab wih the WT400. I had a number of Flite cabs and really wouldn't recommend them if tone is important to you, but they are light. I haven't heard great things about the Schroder Mini 12 either. I agree with the Bag End recommendation. You can pick those up for $300 used and I think they would work very well with your Eden. And of course my favorite is the Bergantino HT112.
I have a Mini 12+. I bought it last spring off a fellow TB'r. I've used it with a three piece cover band. I used it on three gigs, one of which was a wedding for 60 people. I used it for a 40th birthday party in a large auditorium for 200 people.
The cab has a mid range focus. It's extremely portable, which at the time was key for me as I had painful tendenitis and a string of gigs. I have the 4ohm model and power it with a Markbass head, sapping all 450 watts.
The cab is very loud. It's a not terribly deep sounding. At 28lbs, it's a pleasure to load out at 2am with it. Our drummer is loud. With the master volume set at full, the preamp volume has never gone beyond 2 our of 10.
I'm not convinced any 12 inch cab will replace a 2-10 or 3-10 or 1-15. It has it's place and works just fine in the right musical environment.
If you want portable, light and powerful. The Schroeder is fine.
The cab has a mid range focus. It's extremely portable, which at the time was key for me as I had painful tendenitis and a string of gigs. I have the 4ohm model and power it with a Markbass head, sapping all 450 watts.
The cab is very loud. It's a not terribly deep sounding. At 28lbs, it's a pleasure to load out at 2am with it. Our drummer is loud. With the master volume set at full, the preamp volume has never gone beyond 2 our of 10.
I'm not convinced any 12 inch cab will replace a 2-10 or 3-10 or 1-15. It has it's place and works just fine in the right musical environment.
If you want portable, light and powerful. The Schroeder is fine.
hey bmc,long time no see.glad the 12+is still working well for you.
i agree about the portability.the schro is hard to beat.i use a 1212 light for most of my gigs.lightweight and i love the way it sounds.as deep sounding as my old 410 and plenty punchy.
i agree about the portability.the schro is hard to beat.i use a 1212 light for most of my gigs.lightweight and i love the way it sounds.as deep sounding as my old 410 and plenty punchy.
I own a Flite 112 and a use to have Schroeder 1212. Loaded with a neo speaker the Flite weighs in at 16lbs! The Schroeder was extremely loud and midrangey. For rock I think the Schroeder would be better. If portability is really important one of the bigger Flite cabs would work though it wont have the kick of the Schroe.
These cabs all sound so different, that you need to take into consideration the tone you are looking for.
Wizzy... nice and small and light, but no tweeter. Nice upper mid extension due to the Wizzer Cone thing, but surely not the 'sparkle' of a tweeter.
Flite Cabs.... quite frankly, I don't have much good to say about them other than they are light. Some have had good luck swapping the speakers out if you do a search.
Bag End.... I wouldn't really call them lightweight. The SD15x is a nice, mid punchy small cab, but the lack of a tweeter attenuator can be an issue if you don't like lot's of sizzle.
Schroeder Mini112.... I am a fan of Jorg's cabs, but this is my least favorite of his line. Small, light, EXTREMELY loud... but just WAY too mid-range humped for me. The 1212L is wonderful though... about 45 pounds, but you can do a gig that usually would take a 410. It does have that low mid sort of punch to it, but is much more even sounding than the 1210.
HOWEVER... danger.... I really do not like the pairing of Schroeder cabs with Eden heads.... IMO the Eden voicing brings out the worst in the Schroeder.... they can get very nasally sounding with the WT line of Eden heads.
Epifani 112UL.... You should consider this cab.... it's among the lightest 112's out there, and is very warm, punchy, but still even sounding, and has a great sounding tweeter. This cab sounds great at any tweeter level... it can go old school with the tweeter down, and sound quite modern and hi fi with the tweeter at around 10 o'clock or so.
Another cab to consider... the new version (not on the web yet) of the EA NL-210.... only 37 pounds, and a GREAT, full range sounding 210.
Wizzy... nice and small and light, but no tweeter. Nice upper mid extension due to the Wizzer Cone thing, but surely not the 'sparkle' of a tweeter.
Flite Cabs.... quite frankly, I don't have much good to say about them other than they are light. Some have had good luck swapping the speakers out if you do a search.
Bag End.... I wouldn't really call them lightweight. The SD15x is a nice, mid punchy small cab, but the lack of a tweeter attenuator can be an issue if you don't like lot's of sizzle.
Schroeder Mini112.... I am a fan of Jorg's cabs, but this is my least favorite of his line. Small, light, EXTREMELY loud... but just WAY too mid-range humped for me. The 1212L is wonderful though... about 45 pounds, but you can do a gig that usually would take a 410. It does have that low mid sort of punch to it, but is much more even sounding than the 1210.
HOWEVER... danger.... I really do not like the pairing of Schroeder cabs with Eden heads.... IMO the Eden voicing brings out the worst in the Schroeder.... they can get very nasally sounding with the WT line of Eden heads.
Epifani 112UL.... You should consider this cab.... it's among the lightest 112's out there, and is very warm, punchy, but still even sounding, and has a great sounding tweeter. This cab sounds great at any tweeter level... it can go old school with the tweeter down, and sound quite modern and hi fi with the tweeter at around 10 o'clock or so.
Another cab to consider... the new version (not on the web yet) of the EA NL-210.... only 37 pounds, and a GREAT, full range sounding 210.
Ken pretty much nailed it as usual.
The OP said he'd sacrifice tone for portability. Sounds like the 1212L is probably the best option then as its one of the lightest, loudest single cab solutions available. The schroe sound is different, but not necessarily bad. Many people love them. They just emphasize the low mids to a very high degree which makes them loud, but certainly not flat sounding. In my experience, I prefer flat-ish sounding cabs. Then add in whatever colour with the amp, if I choose. Its harder to take the colour out of a cab then to add it.
Epifani is great. They are larger than some others, but have low weight. From my experience with the UL310 its a fairly flat cab too.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isnt EA making 8 ohm wizzys now? I think I read that somewhere.
The OP said he'd sacrifice tone for portability. Sounds like the 1212L is probably the best option then as its one of the lightest, loudest single cab solutions available. The schroe sound is different, but not necessarily bad. Many people love them. They just emphasize the low mids to a very high degree which makes them loud, but certainly not flat sounding. In my experience, I prefer flat-ish sounding cabs. Then add in whatever colour with the amp, if I choose. Its harder to take the colour out of a cab then to add it.
Epifani is great. They are larger than some others, but have low weight. From my experience with the UL310 its a fairly flat cab too.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isnt EA making 8 ohm wizzys now? I think I read that somewhere.
I know you didn't ask about them, but Eden's D112XLT cabs are great, and cut through the mix very well. A little heavier then the Flyte, Wizzy and Schroeder, but I really like mine. I switched to EA gear, using an iAmp 500 head and 2 x Wizzy cabs for a while, and have just switched back to Eden. I just missed the sound too much.
A single D112XLT tends to have really aggressive mids, which I like for my fretless playing anyway. But, 2 x D112XLT cabs sounds extremely good ... the lows really fill out when the cabs are combined.
Best of luck!
Liam
A single D112XLT tends to have really aggressive mids, which I like for my fretless playing anyway. But, 2 x D112XLT cabs sounds extremely good ... the lows really fill out when the cabs are combined.
Best of luck!
Liam
My first Schroeder cab was an angled Mini 12+. I love this cab since it is so light and loud and can do the job for all my small gigs. I've got the new front-fired Mini 12+ and love it too. These cabs rock and can cut through whether standalone or stacked.
Also check out the new Mini 10+. I love mine and have used it mostly at home, on jazz duo gigs, and stacked with my Mini 12s.
Also check out the new Mini 10+. I love mine and have used it mostly at home, on jazz duo gigs, and stacked with my Mini 12s.
I'm still very happy with my mini12+ walkabout combo. I haven't tried any of the other cabs mentioned though.
I much prefered the mini 12+ over the mini 12 (non plus). The mini 12+ is a great cab, but the wizzy was slightly more appealing to me tonally.
Thanks for all the replies. I think I am going to pass on the Flites mainly due to the fact that they might not be loud enough compared to some of the other cabinets that would suit my style. I am really looking for something that is 30 lbs or less (I know will this will sacrifice some tone). The Epifani UL-112 is one I am considering from your suggetions as it sounds like it is loud enough with a good lower end. The Schroeder Mini 12+ or Mini 12 are the ones I am still leaning towards as it seems like they would be loud enough, lite enough and sound good with my Modulus. From the posts I will be careful in judging whether an Eden amp will sound good with the Schroeders, but the carbon fiber neck of the Modulus can make something sound totally different than a wood neck. I didn't consider the Wizzy due to it being 4 Ohms and I didn't see an 8 Ohms one on their website.
I would like to ask the Schroeder users who like their cabinets is can they cut through a rock situation with a distorted guitartist well enough to be heard? It sounds like jazz, funk or pop would work well with the Schroeder Mini 12, but I just want to make sure they can do the job for a rock band situation (not metal).
I would like to ask the Schroeder users who like their cabinets is can they cut through a rock situation with a distorted guitartist well enough to be heard? It sounds like jazz, funk or pop would work well with the Schroeder Mini 12, but I just want to make sure they can do the job for a rock band situation (not metal).
Jorg himself is in different blues/rock/fusion bands. I've heard his bands/guitar players and they play loud with a lot of effects and distortion. The bass cuts through perfectly in this kind of setting.
I am using 1210 with Acoustic Image Focus 2R Series III head. Sometimes I add an EBS Valvedrive Millenia TD-1 pre to get the tube sound out of my rig. Just played 1210 in a rehearsal with a loud rockband. My 1210 cut through like a sharp knife through butter. I like Schroeder cabs more and more.
M
M
That's their job. I use a 1210+Mini12. I could just hear myself with the 1210 only fed with 500W, but we're a really loud metal band - no other cab I've tried can do that... Of course, there is a price: the sound get a little compressed and boxy when you push it that hard, plus the mid bump that allows you to be heard means it's not such an even cab as the epifani for example - still, the 1210 is much more balanced than the mini12, which I didn't like for home practice... that mid bump sounds pretty annoying to me at solo situations. I haven't tried it with the band, as it's 8 ohm and I know it wouldn't cut it, but I'm sure it's much better there - that's what these cabs are design for, to cut through in a small and light package. If you decide to get a Schroeder, based on my experience and comments here, I would recommend at least a 1212L if you think that the 21012L is too big. But, if size is the #1 factor, it doesn't really get any smaller than the mini12... might not cut it in a loud metal situation, but for rock, if fed enough watts, I think it could make it.
Edit: I should add that my Mini12 is the tweeterless version, I guess with a tweeter it would be better for solo use. So, if you go that route, get a Mini12+.
If you use two mini 12+s you will definitely be heard. just remember that these are small boxes and you can only get so much out of them. The epi UL112s weigh very close to the same but because of their much larger dimensions the sound will be much more full.
If you took a poll I am guessing that most TBers would prefer the UL112s over the schroe mini 12+, but then again it will cost more too.
If you took a poll I am guessing that most TBers would prefer the UL112s over the schroe mini 12+, but then again it will cost more too.
+1... the EpiUL's are awesome.. but expensive.
If I was considering two mini 112's, I would really recommend the 1212L... less expensive than two mini's, still very small and light... smaller than most 210's and about 43 pounds, much more low end extension than two mini's, but still that 'schroeder punch' that allows a small cab to punch through a mix. Also, I've recently been able to check out Jorg's latest tweeter/crossover revision. While it still does not have the sweetness of the Epi circuit (very few things do!), it is another improvement to the cabs... very nice... crisp, but less 'sizzly and intense' versus the last interation.
IMO as always.
K
Problems with Flite Cabinets ...I ordered and paid six (6) months ago....still have not received by cabinets...tried calls....emails...Gerry Suprenant stopped communicating with his customers....his site went dark for a while, now its back up....buyer beware! You are in for a difficult relationship....
- Mar 8, 2011
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