Let's Talk Gear...

[Mike]

Exactly. I need to fit most of our PA (2 - 15" speakers, board, mic stands, bags of cables, and monitors) as well as 2 basses and the amp in the back of my Pontiac Vibe.
Plus I fell in love with the tone out of that little cabinet and couldn't really justify anything bigger. It keeps right up with a drummer at practice without even having to crank it.

I tried the Behringer head that you have one time. That thing is pretty sweet as well. Plus you really can't beat what you get for the money there.

[Johnny 5]

Yeah, here's my rig at current, it's too much considering it's mostly a stage monitor now. It was great before I was in a band with a dedicated sound guy:

[lowestfrequency]

My current rig is great for bigger venues but overkill in smaller venues. I play a Spector 5-string through an Ampeg SVT-410HLF cabinet with an Ampeg SVT3-Pro motor.

Admittedly, I'm not a tone freak. I've probably spent a total of ten minutes tweaking the knobs - "Oh, it makes noise....sweet!"

I'd like to get into something I could use at the medium-to-smaller venues but money is tight so I don't have the flexibility right now.

[Johnny 5]

I love those SVTs, they're real nice. You could try something like I'm doing. I'm keeping my head and building a small 12" wedge cabinet for smaller clubs. I'm thinking it'll cost me about $150 in total.

[lowestfrequency]

That might be the way to go. Occasionally I borrow a Trace-Elliot combo from the guitar player but it doesn't have the guts of an Ampeg.

I used to have a nice Ampeg B3 combo that would've done the trick but something fried in the amplifier and I never had it fixed.

Oh, well.

What kind of speaker are you loading the wedge with?

[Johnny 5]

I'm not 100% sure yet. I'm still looking around. Any suggestions?

[Mike]

Bag End?

[Johnny 5]

mike said:

Bag End?

I thought about that. I think Darik from the Funbags uses one. Not sure, it needs to handle 300-400 watts and, since it's for bass obviously, it needs to handle decent low end.

[Mike]

So...I suppose the important parameters are. Impedence, power handling, size, and how much throw it has. Your gonna want to push some air around.
I had 4 10" bag end speakers in an old SWR and boy, did they move. My guess is that that's what's in your 2x10 now depending on how old it is.

[Johnny 5]

SWRs in the 2x10. They're kinda old and I blew one once before using it as my sole cab, so I don't think I want to use those again. Plus I want to put a 12 in there.

Also, keep in mind it doesn't have to be crystal clear sounding. I just want to be able to tell what notes I"m playing, haha. No one but me will hear it.

[Mike]

In that case, check out Carvin.
Check This: www.carvin.com/products/single.php?ItemNumber=BR12-8X&CID=GSPK
It's the same speaker that they are using in their new 2x12 bass sub combos. It's 8 ohms so you could wire in a jack for another extension cab in line with that if you want but it should be plenty loud enough with the right amp.

[Johnny 5]

Cool, thanks. I'll check that out.

[Mike]

Or, if you are on more of a budget:
www.carvin.com/products/single.php?ItemNumber=PS12&CID=RSPK
This is their basic 12" it says 300 watts at 8 Ohms but interestingly, the speaker says 200 Watts right on the back of it.
I'd definately go with the first one if I could afford it. Neodymium is definately a better magnet choice over the rare earth magnet in the basic model.

[Johnny 5]

That first one is actually cheaper than the parts express ones I was looking at. Granted they were 400 watts, but my amp is 350 watts. The odds of me reaching the full 350 are pretty slim. I may just have to pick up that carvin. Thanks.