• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join freeLog in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

So what did I do wrong while building these cabs?

Could it just be the cheap speakers you used?
Maybe not, the OP hooked them up to my amp. And they were a little louder (not as loud as my cab mind you). Still a bit lacking in the low end though. But they still required a lot of power to get anywhere near a "useable" volume. Since the cabs are ported and lined, I have this feeling the cab is too big. Especially since the insulation would slow sound wave movement, possibly tricking them to think they were in a larger cabinet.
 
Thank you all very much for your feedback. I'm gonna basically go down the list will33 gave me.

You know, I didn't really take into account that flaring a part would be different than rounding it off. So that's a really good point Astro.

To clarify; the cab produces plenty of low end. Honestly, aside from the volume difference, they sound just like my Aguilar GS412 when I'm right up in front of them. It's just that the bass doesn't project in the slightest.

Here's the cabs themselves. The front baffle got kinda messed up because the T nuts I was using just gave up after mauling everything for a bit. And the front baffles are screwed in on the top and bottom now.

E911ALk.jpg
 
Last edited:
well, even if there's something to be desired sonically, they do LOOK nice. That said, maybe one of the speakers is out of phase - you guys say it's been checked already, but if you guys are novices at this like you seem, perhaps double checking isn't a bad idea. Otherwise, maybe you just missed some port info, other than that I can't think of much.
 
Lack of projection can also be speaker unloading due to incorrect port tuning. Unloaded will move lots of air up close but not at the audible frequency, the speaker is uncoupled from the room. Easy to check, play at volume with ports open then cover them. If you get more volume out front with them covered you can bet it is port tuning (possibly also cab internal volume (cubic inches).
 
Unfortunately, the cabs themselves are about two hours away, so no battery test in the immediate future. Plus I kinda took off the tip of my left middle finger on a planer, so I shan't be playing too much for about another 10 days (AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG I can actually hear my basses mocking me for my brief loss of concentration)

Worth it though, cause I injured myself making the cabs in this picture

aElbW8b.jpg


Sorry for the instragram filter; the other dudes in my band took that picture when I wasn't there.

The 2x15 is actually stained with my father's blood on the inside of the front bottom lip. How metal is that?
 
Are Invalid Link Removed the speakers in question.

They are. I ordered four initially, and two arrived with the cones totally frozen. So I ordered some more, and half of those arrived with frozen cones. I can see why they discontinued them.

And B-string, that's nothing. One time I played a show on three mile island while being mauled by a seven-armed cyborg bear that was sent from the distant future and possessed by the spirit of a super racist hybrid clone of Lee Harvey Oswald and Sirhan Sirhan. And I'm pretty sure the bear was on PCP.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Stealth Fighter
Cool thank you for the helpful feedback

Maybe you can stick around and show me how to be cool
Well, I was going to elaborate. If you had followed any of the plethora of threads on this very topic, you would've known, going in, that cabinet design is a pretty technical science, and the chances that a tyro would get it right on his first try would be very slim. So while you can read up on Thiele-Small parameters and the like, you're probably going to end up building a bunch of cabs before you get it right. My advice would have been to get some plans from someone like greenboy or BFM and save yourself the anguish of trial and error. Maybe you can salvage this project by following the advice of others in this thread, but you may be pouring good effort/money after bad, in which case it still may be a good idea to procure some plans from a professional and start afresh. By building a few properly-designed cabs you would surely gain insight in which paths not to go down.

That is all.
 
Well, I was going to elaborate. If you had followed any of the plethora of threads on this very topic, you would've known, going in, that cabinet design is a pretty technical science, and the chances that a tyro would get it right on his first try would be very slim. So while you can read up on Thiele-Small parameters and the like, you're probably going to end up building a bunch of cabs before you get it right. My advice would have been to get some plans from someone like greenboy or BFM and save yourself the anguish of trial and error. Maybe you can salvage this project by following the advice of others in this thread, but you may be pouring good effort/money after bad, in which case it still may be a good idea to procure some plans from a professional and start afresh. By building a few properly-designed cabs you would surely gain insight in which paths not to go down.

That is all.

Word. If I were to do any build I'd definitely use plans or make sure I do it with a homie who knows his shtuff and has confidence in my ability to absorb whatever basic wisdom I need especially after checking this thread. I'm no wunderkind.