2 Jack 12's 3012HO loaded, with 8x melded array

[cboogie1]

Here is my new bass stack. I finished the full-range Jack 12cab first, with 8 piezos as recommended in the plans for bass. I then wanted MORE of everything, and commenced on #2. Bill recommends increasing the piezos to full strength when combining 2 cabs, and I may get to that some day. Anyway, I will be hitting the road with these Friday night, I posted a gig on the "come hear them" forum.
At first I was underwhelmed by the combination, I expected much more punch and low response from the additional cab. But
I've been tweaking the eq and getting closer to what I think will work. One strategy I want to try is to spread the cabs out on stage, putting one on the other end away from me. This will hopefully give me a better feel for the projection of the sound, rather than standing in front of the stack, aimed at my knees.
Rig= Fender Geddy Lee j bass; LM3;Tech 21 VT (aka the secret weapon); Jack 12 and another Jack 12.

[Tom Smit]

Very good sir! Nice job.
BTW, did you break in the drivers? If not, they will improve after a few events.

[loupey]

Nice work!

With a G.Lee bass and a Tech 21 I guess you're modeling after Geddy's sound, a bit? I'd be curious to find out how the 8 piezo works out with that setup/sound. I too was confounded with how to EQ my J110 versus direct radiators but settled on something close to flat all the way. And ditto, speakers will loosen up after some use and increase bass end.

[cboogie1]

Thanks for the response. The drivers were broken with a 50hz test tone, about 7 volts for 24 hrs. I've been playing through the one for a few weeks, so it should be pretty well there.
Re: the Tech 21, this is not the Sansamp DI type thing that Getty Lee uses, but rather a preamp/gain boost/character pedal that adds a whole range of sounds and stuff. If you play bass, you need to check this out!

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

One strategy I want to try is to spread the cabs out on stage, putting one on the other end away from me.

That's usually a bad idea, the rules of sub placement also apply to bass cabs. Just tilt the upper cab up; one of Leland's tilt rigs is perfect. Add a couple of rubber feet to the rear of the top of the cab, to keep your amp from sliding off.

[cboogie1]

Thanks Bill, that's good to know. What I need to be careful of, and we spend a fair amount of time as a band talking about, is playing at the right volume. A big part of that, we've come to realize, is not placing our amps on the floor, aimed at our knees, and then turning them up until we can hear ourselves. Meanwhile.....hey where did everybody go? Oh, they're all in the back with their hands over their ears....waht's up with that?
Anyway, maybe I put the whole stack at the opposite end of the stage so I am 10-15 feet away and getting the full effect. I don't know...any ideas out there?

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

Thanks Bill, that's good to know. What I need to be careful of, and we spend a fair amount of time as a band talking about, is playing at the right volume. A big part of that, we've come to realize, is not placing our amps on the floor, aimed at our knees, and then turning them up until we can hear ourselves.

That's mainly a problem with guitar amps, as commercial offerings have the worst possible dispersion. I can hear my J112 fine when tilted back, with a pair and the top cab tilted you should have no difficulty at all. Placing it away from you on stage would probably have the opposite of the desired effect.

[cboogie1]

I've gigged with my new speakers a couple of times now, and they are really starting to grow on me! Last night I really experienced the full impact of a BFD cabinet. We played in a bar which has a layout I would describe as a "split level". The entrance is upstairs, the bar is down a short flight of stairs, and the band set up down below. The room is wide open, the upper floor is only a balcony type walk around, and people can look down to the lower area. The whole place is pretty small, it's at one end of a strip mall. (For those of you in New England, it was the former Rynborn Blues Club) Any way, it so happens that the manager double booked 2 seperate bands. We were almost finished setting up, when this other band-actually 2 bands-shows up and says they were booked to play that night! Obviously much chagrin and angst ensued, but the outcome was that we graciously offered to let the other band play a short set on our gear. They agreed, grabbed their guitars and stuff, and plugged in. The bass player has a J bass much like mine, so I did not think much of letting him plug right in to my settings. The only difference, was that he played more aggressively (but still fingerstyle like me) and he must have had his guitar volume up all the way, while I usually play at 1/2 to give myself a little headroom. So they started playing and HOLY CRAP is that thing loud! I ran right over and turned the master volume down some because it was almost deafening. The bass player wasn't used to it of course, and standing directly in front of the cabs does not do it justice. I have a 2x4 that I stand on edge to prop the upper cab up at about a 20 degree angle, so it points more at my face. But here I am, back in the audience section of teh room, and the bass is killing! It was even louder upstairs, while the guitar was practically inaudible (due to the guitar player not knowing the amp, I guess)
Anyway, I sat back and listened to my speakers for an hour or so, and they never clipped, or dropped off, they handled every frequency of bass, from low E to C on the 17th fret, always extremely clear, not muddy or broken up. And loud . It's true, they get louder at a distance!
After we took the stage, I carefully turned the gain and master down, and asked friends to tell if mine was too loud. They said it was fine, so we carried on.
The moral of the story is that I will try to put some distance between myself and the cab in the future, to get a better idea of the true sound and volume. I will also seriously consider building a J10 pair, I think that would be better suited to the venue.

[cboogie1]

Oh and 1 other thing, even though I broke in the driver per the recommendations, I have noticed a distinct improvement, more richness, better lows, since I've worked it a little. It's been said a thousand times in this forum, but worth repeating: give 'em time, they really will loosen up and just get better

[Grey Owl]

Awesome Choogie. A sweet revenge in a warped sort of way

[DJPhatman]

The drivers were broken with a 50hz test tone, about 7 volts for 24 hrs.

You answered your own questions. Since 50hz @ 7 Volts would not give the suspension much movement, you have not really broke in the driver yet.

[cboogie1]

You answered your own questions. Since 50hz @ 7 Volts would not give the suspension much movement, you have not really broke in the driver yet.

What can I do differently on the next one? Cause there will be a next one, oh yes.

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

You answered your own questions. Since 50hz @ 7 Volts would not give the suspension much movement, you have not really broke in the driver yet.

What can I do differently on the next one? Cause there will be a next one, oh yes.

25-30Hz is where you should be for driver break-in.

[spongebob1981]

The burn in process, AFAIK, is done with 10v at 30hz. Read somewhere that means about 10~12 watts, but at that frequency my vintage head would be burning hot after a couple of hours, so I had to make 6 or 7 runs of 2 to 3 hours each.
Be sure to connect them out of phase and hanging in open air to minimize the otherwise kind of loud sound you will be making.
Nice review! see ya!

[cboogie1]

Thanks as always. I could use some clarification on the process of reading the voltage during burn-in. Can someone direct me to the appropriate discussion thread?