Small and not expensive options

[-Asdfgh-]

Currently, I can deploy up to 2 1x15s and an Ashdown class D head as my lightest option. I actually prefer the sound of my old Warwick ProFets, though.

My first goal is to be roughly revenue neutral and have two identical set ups, one for home storage for gigs without needing to collect an identical set up from the practice space.

The second goal is no element more than 30lbs.

Third is nothing too huge.

And four is loud enough for small gigs with one cab, and pub gigs with two. For reference, a 300W Warwick into a single 1x15 of circa 97dB sensitivity works for pubs.

I've narrowed it down to four main options:

- Replace the 1x15s with TC BC208s, possibly adding a crossover and tweeter to one. 22lbs each. I'll then look at what I do with amps. It's a few less max dBs and less LF, but would probably work.

- Replace the 1x15s with 1x10 Ashdowns. 24lbs each, no tweeters. No specs on frequency response or SPL, so a bit of a stab in the dark. Again, maybe lighten the amp load later after seeing how it sounds with the Warwicks.

- Replace amps and cabs with a couple of Positive Grid Spark Cabs. But people report max SPL with bass as being quite low. They look better than standard powered PA units, though. Not being ugly is criterion 5!

- something else...

 

[gtirard]

Althought it's not my favorite brand, I think Markbass offers the best lightweight gear for the money today (I prefer Barefaced and GR Bass but they are pricey).

I would get 2 1x12 and a 500 head.

Also Guitar Sound Systems in France makes a very affordable, lightweight and compact 1x12 (since you are in the UK it should be possible)

 

[-Asdfgh-]

Althought it's not my favorite brand, I think Markbass offers the best lightweight gear for the money today (I prefer Barefaced and GR Bass but they are pricey).

I would get 2 1x12 and a 500 head.

Also Guitar Sound Systems in France makes a very affordable, lightweight and compact 1x12 (since you are in the UK it should be possible)

The cabs look viable, if at the top end of my price range, although the 500W heads look a bit too much, and I have not really liked the sound of Markbass heads in the past.

 

[Wasnex]

A pair of Trace Elliot ELF 110s might scratch your itch.

 

[Nebadon2000]

Althought it's not my favorite brand, I think Markbass offers the best lightweight gear for the money today (I prefer Barefaced and GR Bass but they are pricey).

I would get 2 1x12 and a 500 head.

Also Guitar Sound Systems in France makes a very affordable, lightweight and compact 1x12 (since you are in the UK it should be possible)

What no mention of Barefaced Activier 1 its not that expensive since it includes Amp and you can add on later; I am guessing its capabilities volume , dynamics and tone may surprise many

 

[SJan3]

The cabs look viable, if at the top end of my price range, although the 500W heads look a bit too much, and I have not really liked the sound of Markbass heads in the past.

Seems "nobody" likes the sound of MarkBass amps but they sure do sell like hotcakes. I wonder why?

 

[Passinwind]

What no mention of Barefaced Activier 1 its not that expensive since it includes Amp and you can add on later; I am guessing its capabilities volume , dynamics and tone may surprise many

$1380 USD for the active One Ten T is not that expensive?

 

[Pulverizor]

Did you try any of the newer Warwick amps? The Gnomes or Double Stage amps may sound closer to the Profets?

Just over your weight goal at 30.8lbs but the GK Neo IV 12" would do a better job at replacing 15's than a 2x8 and much better power handling. Or the Hartke HL112 is 24.8lbs and handles 300Watts.

 

[Nebadon2000]

Seems "nobody" likes the sound of MarkBass amps but they sure do sell like hotcakes. I wonder why?

I have heard plenty of Markbass [Combo's, Amp/Cab] in the wild all sounded excellent in mix; why I bought CMD 121P Combo a while back worked fine for me in all situations.

 

[Nebadon2000]

$1380 USD for the active One Ten T is not that expensive?

Correct My response was for #gtirad [one of my favorite TB'ers] knowing his passion and love for Barefaced
also it was mentioned OP was from UK

PS:You are also on my favorites list

 

[SJan3]

I have heard plenty of Markbass [Combo's, Amp/Cab] in the wild all sounded excellent in mix; why I bought CMD 121P Combo a while back worked fine for me in all situations.

Exactly. There's plenty of MarkBass representation on stage. Could they be "haters" too? I think not.

 

[groove pump]

My only check mark against MarkBass is the color of those speakers in their cabs.

I practice with my band in our guitar dude's basement and he has an older MarkBass 102P there that I use instead of carting my own amp/cab. After getting to know it, I have zero complaints with its performance in that setting. Plenty loud if needed and the eq and filters are nicely effective for dialing a solid tone. I have a very mid-forward, aggressive sounding custom P/J that usually needs some mids cut at the amp and one of the filters on this combo (perhaps the VLE) is great for controlling the sound of that bass.

Not quite a 30 lb. box, but I think it's under 40 lbs. including the head and it's easier to carry than most other boxes of that size that I've dealt with.

 

[salmon256]

Kind of replying to all of the people on the Barefaced talk...

Ignoring the active cab from Barefaced, I think they are worth a look. They are "pricey" but honestly I think they are a bang for the buck, you get a lot for what you pay for, good customer service, hand built cab, very helpful shopping assistance an email or phone call away. I think you get more power for what you pay for but that is just me.

Other than that I really only know Phil Jones for small cabs or combos but I think they are niche outside of quiet bands, trios, or jazz bands. Then again with a PA or FOH it can work for most imo!

 

[SJan3]

My only check mark against MarkBass is the color of those speakers in their cabs.

I practice with my band in our guitar dude's basement and he has an older MarkBass 102P there that I use instead of carting my own amp/cab. After getting to know it, I have zero complaints with its performance in that setting. Plenty loud if needed and the eq and filters are nicely effective for dialing a solid tone. I have a very mid-forward, aggressive sounding custom P/J that usually needs some mids cut at the amp and one of the filters on this combo (perhaps the VLE) is great for controlling the sound of that bass.

Not quite a 30 lb. box, but I think it's under 40 lbs. including the head and it's easier to carry than most other boxes of that size that I've dealt with.

The VLE is a variable Low Pass filter. It won't affect your mids until you've basically eliminated all your highs. Most MarkBass heads have both High Mid and Low Mid EQ. If the amp has a VPF filter, that will variably scoop your MIDS. The only current model with VPF is the LittleMark Tube 800.
Most others have a switch for scoop.
Personally, I miss the VPF filter but the same tones are achievable with their conventional EQ.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

A pair of Trace Elliot ELF 110s might scratch your itch.

I'm looking for something that's as near revenue neutral as possible. If I keep the Warwick ProFets I have about £650 to play with. So at £279 the ELF is an option. The Markbass is a little more, but within the realms of possibility. I'm not sure about the specs of the ELF and there's a Markbass option with a tweeter, although I'm not sure I believe 103dB sensitivity really being achievable.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

Did you try any of the newer Warwick amps? The Gnomes or Double Stage amps may sound closer to the Profets?

Just over your weight goal at 30.8lbs but the GK Neo IV 12" would do a better job at replacing 15's than a 2x8 and much better power handling. Or the Hartke HL112 is 24.8lbs and handles 300Watts.

I haven't tried the Gnomes yet. Finding on in a bricks and mortar store might be hard. I went to see if the local one had one and it had closed down. I did consider getting one, but saw the Ashdown used and got it as I was taken in by the effects loop, but it actually seems to be just a split off the input, possibly buffered, whereas the Warwick ProFet is after the preamp. It might not matter much in practice, given I'm not running the preamps into overdrive, but I'd prefer the latter.

I might favour the TC BQ250 as it has a compressor like the ProFets and I've found that useful. I do like the features and sound of the ProFets. The Ashdown is a good amp but sounds like an Ashdown and I'm not 100% sure it's me. Clearly many like Ashdowns and I had a combo many years ago. It was an impulse purchase. However, I haven't tracked down a bricks and mortar store to try a BQ (that's phase two when I have a focused list of things to try) and I wasn't impressed with TC amps of decades ago. I am also wary of the quality of the current TC range given the BAM200 saga.

Even with multi effects, I find it's been useful to have compression on the amp to give (psychoacoustically) greater perceived volume and generally even out the sound. It could probably be achieved with a relatively cheap compressor, though, ahead of the input.

Back in the 90s/00s I played Trace Elliot amps with either a 1x10 or 2x10 cabs based on volume requirements. Then I took a detour in the late 00s via an Ashdown combo which I thought would be convenient but turned out just a bit too heavy loading in and out of cars so got replaced by two Warwick ProFet 300W into the Tech 15s which is duplicated and modular and sounds good. But although lightweight, the Tech cab model (not that I know what it is) is a bit bigger than average, so hence the thread to see if there are revenue neutral options for something sufficient but a bit more compact. The weight per cab is reasonable at about 30lbs. I've never actually needed more than a single 15, so modularity with 10s or 12s might allow me to drop back to one cab at a smaller load for some gigs, but allow the option of two.

The GK cab is twice my budget, unfortunately.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

What no mention of Barefaced Activier 1 its not that expensive since it includes Amp and you can add on later; I am guessing its capabilities volume , dynamics and tone may surprise many

It's most definitely expensive. If I sell everything, it doesn't even fund one.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

Kind of replying to all of the people on the Barefaced talk...

Ignoring the active cab from Barefaced, I think they are worth a look. They are "pricey" but honestly I think they are a bang for the buck, you get a lot for what you pay for, good customer service, hand built cab, very helpful shopping assistance an email or phone call away. I think you get more power for what you pay for but that is just me.

Other than that I really only know Phil Jones for small cabs or combos but I think they are niche outside of quiet bands, trios, or jazz bands. Then again with a PA or FOH it can work for most imo!

If I could get a couple of second hand 1x10s for £400 each I'd consider it as I understand the value proposition but there's still initial cost to consider. I nearly bought in during the early days when I could justify the expense but I have a whole load of pets to keep fed and I'm getting older so it's harder to justify more expensive cabs (although they can be sold when I'm totally decrepit). It's something I keep an eye on, though.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

(p.s. thanks for all the contributions so far).

 

[-Asdfgh-]

I'm looking for something that's as near revenue neutral as possible. If I keep the Warwick ProFets I have about £650 to play with. So at £279 the ELF is an option. The Markbass is a little more, but within the realms of possibility. I'm not sure about the specs of the ELF and there's a Markbass option with a tweeter, although I'm not sure I believe 103dB sensitivity really being achievable.

They are putting out that Ashdown 1x10 at £229, normally close to £300, or would if they had any. My previous experience with an Ashdown without a tweeter wasn't positive. It's hard to test when they don't have any, but it's not a rush. The 12" does have a tweeter at £100 more. It would be a more modest reduction in size but they look pretty.

The same place has the Spark Cab but for rather more than Thomann. But in terms of value, if it did what the slightly curiously cheap version of the Markbass 1x10 with tweeter does, it would be price competitive. However, I suspect it would not deliver.

The Orange 1x12s might be an option, but I would pay the extra for black!