Omni 10.5 bass stack

[Wes Whitmore]

I've decided it's time to write a little review of my omni 10.5s. I have been using them for our band's FOH mains for a couple of years with great results. We usually plays neighborhood bars and outdoor parties, and they work great. We play rock covers. These things have great vocal and acoustic guitar projection, and the sweet spot is very wide. We usually use a pair of JBL 418S for subs, and put the 10.5s on sticks. I decided to try these cabs for their #1 intended purpose, bass guitar. I know, I know, you thought I would have tried them before (I've had these for 3-4 years), but I build them for FOH, so that's what I used them for. Besides, you would think that 8 1167 piezos crossfired would be too much highend for a bass cab. Well, I have been liking the results of these so mch that they are now my rig of choice for bass guitar, replacing a GK RBH210, which is a $600 cab. The smooth midrange that pours out of these cabs is great! Bass extension is perfect in the living room, or in the band setting on stages at volumes more believeable from a 4x10. They cut through.

I use a GK 1001RB head. The EQ is flat. The EQ on my Warwick Corvette $$ and my Spector neck thru is flat too. It's balanced across all for strings. It sounds good with fingerstyle or pick. I don't slap well, but it's super punchy. These are with beta10s. They don't bottom out at high volumes, and the D string rings with authority. My 2 cab stack is about the height of the Ampeg SVT410-pro, but each cab weighs under 30 lbs. I have almost no money in them, and they have lasted for years! Talk about getting return on your money. What did they cost me...maybe $180 for the stack? I can't say enough about them. They were a simple build too. I highly recommend them. Build them with deltalite 2510s to save a few pounds. I assume the deltalite's get louder, which is always good, for just a little more. Thanks Bill!

Wes

[Harley]

The smooth midrange that pours out of these cabs is great!

An O10 with an O10.5 on top ( 3 x O10.5 ) - if your amp can handle 2ohms - is an even nicer treat for elect bass.

[Wes Whitmore]

I know that you have been a fan of the 3 10s for a long time for electric bass. I can only go down to 4 ohms with this amp. I've been looking around at other amps, some that are 2 ohm stable.

Here are a few pictures:
2 omni 10.5s and a GK RBH 2x10 combo


2 omni 10.5s and a GK SBX 4x10

This 4x10 is 23.5X23.5". It's a small sealed 4x10.

Wes

[joelc1319]

Wes, these look fantastic! I love the red carpet. I'm planning on my second Omni 10.5 Extension cab to be built this winter during the long break from college. I currently use just one 10.5 for most gigs, and even that's more than enough most of the time...

I noticed you commented on the "living room" bass extension. I think that's what sets these cabinets apart from anything else I've ever used in the past - they sound just as good at very low volumes as they do at very high volumes (and everything in between, naturally). My 10.5 serves as an excellent practice amp AND live rig. I'm glad to see you finally used them for bass after all this time; I'm sure you see what you were missing! Thanks for the review also.

[Wes Whitmore]

I had an outdoor gig with the 2 omni10.5s yesterday. This was the first gig test since I made the switch. I played my Spector neck-through and my GK 1001RB. EQ was flat across the boad, with a little bit of the bass knob cut. No boost. Preamp volume was half, master woofer volume was on at 10 o'clock (just under straight up). Gobs of headroom...to say the least. We were playing outdoors, had huge PA support, and we were on one of those 10 x 20 ft covered stage trailers. I was on the right side of the stage with the stack up against the back wall, probably 6 inches from the wall. I played a little before the gig to get a level for the soundman, who was DIing right out of the amp. As soon as I played, it sounded different than my GK stack does as a monitor. It just cut through so well, but still had a ton of bottom end. It was smooth, with a midgrange growl that just sounds good with guitars in rock music. The snare was buzzing like crazy, and it just sounded "full", and it was obvious that it needed to be turned down if I was going to use the PA support, so I did. The sound guy said that it was loud enough at the board (50ft out) that he didn't need to add any in the mains until after I turned it down. I told him that I would prefer for the audience to get most of the bass from the PA. I honestly think that those who don't get PA support could get by with just the two 10.5s. I want to try the deltalites, but I don't know if I want to mess with these cabs much. Why would I? These things are seriously light already. I would like to have 1 more cab in the stack, just to get the stack height up, not for SPL. I put guitar hangers on my old rack so I could hang the bass, and this rack is too short for that. Not carrying a guitar stand is nice. My GK wont support less than 4 ohms, so I would need to buy 16 ohm speakers, which are pretty hard to find. Right now, I have a bass guitar in a bag, two omni 10.5s, and a small SKB effects rack with my head. I was set up in less than 5 minutes.
Seriously guys, you really need to try these for yourself and make the decision. They are such an easy build, and the sound is just great. Plus, they are a conversation starter for other bass players in the crowd! Maybe it's the maroon carpeting...
Wes

[joelc1319]

That's great to hear, Wes. I'm really, really looking forward to my second 10.5 now! Question: have you noticed any "port chuffing" on the lower notes with both cabs hooked up? I notice some on my single 10.5 when I crank the volume (I have the Deltalite II 2510)...Bill says that the 6dB added by a second 10.5 would cause chuffing only at absurd volumes...any experience with this?

[Wes Whitmore]

None. When I first built them, I didn't have enough space between the woofer and the baffle (mine are an old design that fires through a slot baffle), and the cone would slap at boosted EQ levels. I put a spacer in there as a recommended fix and it's been fine for years. I have the same port as the plans. Maybe it has something to do with less excursion of the beta10 compared to the deltalite, and less air being pushed out at higher volumes? I don't know, but it isn't an issue for me. There is a night and day difference between one and two cabs in terms of output, so Bill's solution to your port chuffing makes sense, especially if you find yourself boosting the bass EQ knob.
Wes

[joelc1319]

That all makes a lot of sense. I noticed that the chuffing wasn't as bad in the beginning (or I guess "bad" isn't the right term; it's not really audible unless you're close to it), but has become more noticeable the more I've used the cabinet. My thought is that since the "bedding" process of the driver can add a little bit of bass response, having the EQ the same as before will cause a little more chuffing? Not sure, but I didn't bed it beforehand, so that might explain this. This cabinet certainly gets extremely loud for a 1x10 though, so two will probably be perfect (and your review proves that that is the case!)

[Wes Whitmore]

My port is just a rectangle cut into the baffle, and I carpeted the front of it. I have the foam under the port as well, glued to the bottom of the inside of the box. Neither box chuffs. The xmax is really barely any different between the two drivers in the grand scheme of things. Maybe round the edges over a little on the inside of the port and see if it makes a difference. Are you boosting the EQ in the bass region at all? I'm cutting mine...
Wes

[joelc1319]

The cabinet chuffs when the EQ is flat (Ampeg B2-R). I realized that the cabinet dish in the back is leaking pretty badly with a 30Hz test tone through the 1/4" locking jack. I am considering getting rid of that jack and plugging the hole because I also have a Speakon jack in the plate as well. I don't know if getting rid of this leak will make the cabinet chuff any less...I just wish there were a way to fix the leak since the 1/4" locking jack is not a sealed jack...

[LelandCrooks]

The cabinet chuffs when the EQ is flat (Ampeg B2-R). I realized that the cabinet dish in the back is leaking pretty badly with a 30Hz test tone through the 1/4" locking jack. I am considering getting rid of that jack and plugging the hole because I also have a Speakon jack in the plate as well. I don't know if getting rid of this leak will make the cabinet chuff any less...I just wish there were a way to fix the leak since the 1/4" locking jack is not a sealed jack...

http://www.speakerhardware.com/proddeta ... =mh58125-b
1st class mail for freight. They work.

[joelc1319]

http://www.speakerhardware.com/proddeta ... =mh58125-b
1st class mail for freight. They work.

Thanks Leland. However, my problem occurs when the 1/4" plug is already plugged into the jack...I need to somehow seal it from the inside. Will these plugs do the trick here?

[Rick Auricchio]

The jack plugs only close up an unused jack. If you have air leaking through the jack, they won't help.

On my omni15TB I built a small wood "cigar box" that I installed inside the cab. Wires are sealed where they pass from the jacks through the wall of the box, so there's no worry about sealed jacks.

[joelc1319]

The jack plugs only close up an unused jack. If you have air leaking through the jack, they won't help.

On my omni15TB I built a small wood "cigar box" that I installed inside the cab. Wires are sealed where they pass from the jacks through the wall of the box, so there's no worry about sealed jacks.

Thanks for clearing that up, Rick. I was able to fix most of the leak by tightening the jacks (go figure). It is pretty minimal right now; I'll address the actual hole in the back at another time. Sorry for hijacking your thread, Wes!

[Wes Whitmore]

Not a problem, Im just glad you are getting yours to sound better.