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The Acoustic Club

#1,801
Regarding the fiddlin' of knobs, this is a nice article by Robert Dennis on equalization. Interesting that proper EQ is as much (or more) about taking certain frequencies away as it is about boosting others.

Link to it here:
http://www.recordingwebsite.com/articles/eqprimer.php

Although written for the full EQ board/sound engineer and a bit technical (especially the first part regarding "Q"), I found the "Expanded Frequencies Chart" very useful in understanding which frequencies add or subtract from clarity of sound.

The following section listing 4 Equalization Techniques is also helpful to understand how to boost harmonics or help an instrument (like the bass) stand out against another instrument of similar sound (like the foot drum).

Finally, I used the suggested settings from the "Typical Example" chart to "fiddle" with the knobs on my B200 (a bit more expansive than the bassist who discussed his B20) to let my bass stand out in our rehearsals (when we don't use a mixing board).... and always get compliments on how the bass seems to "cut through" the other instruments.

Our church's sound engineer uses these same techniques when mixing the sound going through the PA system on Sunday mornings.

Hope this helps some of you!

Merry Christmas to all!:bassist:
 
#1,803
GatorDogDoc said:
Joe, are you a linguist or speech therapist by trade? Or maybe just well-read? Or even possibly a former cast-member of Monty Python's Flying Circus?

Not many would be able to pull off the "bilabial fricative" reference so smoothly!:D
Click to expand...

I wanted to be an English Lit teacher, high school, inner city level with a minor in Surfing and Surf Music.

The ref is really from Cheech & Chong's skit, but thanks for a accolades and I feel better now knowing some of my material is accepted.
 
#1,804
GatorDogDoc said:
Regarding the fiddlin' of knobs, this is a nice article by Robert Dennis on equalization. Interesting that proper EQ is as much (or more) about taking certain frequencies away as it is about boosting others.

Link to it here:
http://www.recordingwebsite.com/articles/eqprimer.php

Although written for the full EQ board/sound engineer and a bit technical (especially the first part regarding "Q"), I found the "Expanded Frequencies Chart" very useful in understanding which frequencies add or subtract from clarity of sound.

The following section listing 4 Equalization Techniques is also helpful to understand how to boost harmonics or help an instrument (like the bass) stand out against another instrument of similar sound (like the foot drum).

Finally, I used the suggested settings from the "Typical Example" chart to "fiddle" with the knobs on my B200 (a bit more expansive than the bassist who discussed his B20) to let my bass stand out in our rehearsals (when we don't use a mixing board).... and always get compliments on how the bass seems to "cut through" the other instruments:
Click to expand...

Thanks. That's a nice article. I'm the guy who was discussing the EQ on a B20. I want to work/experiment more with doing the EQ via my VT Bass so I wanted to know exactly what the "flat" settings were on the amp. Thanks to all who responded.
 
#1,805
I have a buddy that said he would sell me an Acoustic B410 and B115 for $160.....both are about a year old...tolex is in good shape. he said there is a whistling noise coming out of the horn 'on/off' button on the back when they are being played but that you can tape them off or seal that...does this sound like a good deal? I just need something to play at my house and short on funds right now. He said they sound as good as the day he bought them minus the whistling from the cabinet. The reviews on GC's site tend to say the same thing about the noise..but that it is easily fixable.
 
#1,807
sleepy_monkey said:
I have a buddy that said he would sell me an Acoustic B410 and B115 for $160.....both are about a year old...tolex is in good shape. he said there is a whistling noise coming out of the horn 'on/off' button on the back when they are being played but that you can tape them off or seal that...does this sound like a good deal? I just need something to play at my house and short on funds right now. He said they sound as good as the day he bought them minus the whistling from the cabinet. The reviews on GC's site tend to say the same thing about the noise..but that it is easily fixable.
Click to expand...

I RTV siliconed a Tupperware bowl over the whole external jack position, including the Piezzo Horn switch - no possible way for it to make noise.

Of course - the bowl is on the INSIDE of the cab.

Simple preventative measure when I was in there the last time putting pigtails on the driver connex.

The B-410 is @ $300.00 and the B-115 is about $200 new - so see fer yerself if they sound good and don't look too roach'd out.
 
#1,808
Got them! They look brand new...a few dimples and 1 tear in the bottom of the 410 tolex but a little glue fixed it right up. They sound great...I ran my Modulus Q5 through them and dropped the low B and I didn't hear any of the rear cabinet noise he was talking about...but good to know it is an easy fix. He also sold me an amp he wasn't using for a song...which is great since I sold all of my stuff a few months back.

Overall a great purchase and the tone is really nice. I was pleasantly surprised...I have used Ampeg stuff exclusively for the last 5 years...so it was tough for me to consider something else..but then I realized I was being narrowminded. This thread helped me a good bit...I read back several pages and figured all you guys couldn't be wrong!!

$150 for 2 new looking/sounding cabinets AND an amp....I will take that any day.

I will post pics whenever I can find my SD card.
 
#1,810
If you can pop for it - don't mess around and go straight to the B-600H.

600 Watts at 2Ω - and it'll kick some serious butt. I ran mine on an Ampeg 8-10 and it ran just as good as the Ampeg head that I tried at mucho less-o bux-o too.

The Acoustic drivers aren't the best in the world and they will run just fine - but the amps are killer.

So far in over a solid year of cranking the Acoustic gear I have been running - I've not had anything requiring sending it back for a refund or replacement yet.

If you get any oddball sounds, let me know and I'll try to help. I'm getting to know the Acoustic gear pretty good by now.

When/if you get that B-600H - let me know as you might need a little help getting a dual-pedal to work on it correctly. The factory has no idea how it works and just tells you to put a pedal in the TRS 1/4" and Presto!

It has less chance of working unless you get the correct pedal and know how to make it work correctly.
 
#1,812
Of course, that's just if you go with the current crop of Acoustic stuff. Their older stuff from the original company is a whole other bag. Besides the wattage limitation, I don't know that the current Acoustic stuff is going to be any better than the Hartke.

That being said, my understanding is that the Acoustic cabs are pretty generic and should work well with most heads on the market.
 
#1,813
Actually - I like the Acoustic gear (modern-type) for a couple of reasons. The price is good - but that's not a great criteria and can even be condemnatory if it goes too far.

The sound is very obviously Olde School - and for me, that's the sound I like as I was raised on it, musically - Class of '64.

The iconic value isn't really existent though, as even I know it's not the same company. They weigh quite a bit and I also equate heft with quality - and even if the cabs are made of pressed Mother's Oats, I'd like them as they do for me what I want and need.

The B-600H and the B-450 with the same head are really quite powerful and they have such a great EQ area that I can sculpture what I need even without a MXR80 or any other pedals unless I want some Fuzz or Echo.

I'm not gigging any more - at least not for pay. I play for free and food - but that's just icing on my cake as I am totally retired and don't need gear that can obviously fall from a 747 from 10,000 feet to a runway and still operate.

I get about five or six shows a month even in the bad weather - and some 10-15 hours of just friendly jamming and then about 3-6 hours a day practicing and just learning new things that I've missed in 47+ years off the road.

So - I buy gear for MY reasons and even if they don't favorably compare to someone's needs like Jimmy and (other's names escape me here) --- 'others' who are working the road for a living, I am not in that venue at all.

Stigma-wise - the Acoustic brand has a lot of hate here on TB - and I can understand that as the big guns aren't running it at all and wouldn't consider it like they also wouldn't consider appearing with a Squier or Harbor Freight bass either.

That's OK with me - as I don't run that race any more and just really really enjoy my playing for me and the small combos and bands in which I get to play.

This is the hill upon which I will prolly die - but I'll be smiling.



.
 
#1,817
rdwil191 said:
Acoustic says you can use B115 or B410 cab with the B100 combo. Anyone use this set-up? Thank you in advance! Can I get a #? Love my B100!!!
Click to expand...

Officially I have had a B-100/B-115 online together - not that I owned it, but I got to try it for a bit a couple of months ago at a fire station in Yucaipa. It was good but not up to the power that my B-450 or my B-600 and a pair of B-410s can pump.

That's to be expected - but the B-100/B-115 were kicking some upper butt and only when pushed hard and exceeding their overhead did they fall into distortion - up to that point they were pretty good though.

I cannot speak for the B-100/B-410 though - never seen that combo.
 
#1,819
My name is Mudd said:
Mostly out of curiosity, I tried a B110/B410 stack in GC when I was test-driving cabs a couple of months ago...it does work, but I was left with the impression that it wouldn't be the idea setup.
Click to expand...

I tend to agree - as what I usually run if I team a cab with another is to run my B-450 (2x10 + horn) and my B-115 and that's a pretty sweet sound, but that's at a lot more Watts too.

The B-100 and that B-115 were pretty good like I said - but the B-410s would be a little too much cone area I feel and not enough power.
 

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