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Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 5:15 am
by OzzyGreg
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Sorry guys, but I can't see any other forum section that suits my enquiry.......


Please forgive me for asking this, I know how you speaker builders dislike bass quad boxes, and Bill, you apparently don't reply to PMs but .....


You have probably forgotten all about this, but a couple of years ago you mentioned, in reply to a question from me in Talkbass (at least I think it was Talkbass), that IF you were to build a 4 x 10 bass quad box you would use some brand/model of 10" bass speaker. I can't for the life of me remember what you said and I can't find the posting using the Search function in TB.

Which 10" speaker was it?

Disclaimer: (After building a pair of 1 x 15" cabs and a 2 x 12" fEarful, I want to now complete my collection with a LOUD bass quad box.)

Thanks for any advice in advance,
Greg

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 6:48 am
by Bill Fitzmaurice
OzzyGreg wrote:.
Sorry guys, but I can't see any other forum section that suits my enquiry.......


Please forgive me for asking this, I know how you speaker builders dislike bass quad boxes, and Bill, you apparently don't reply to PMs but .....
Yes, I do, according to these guidelines:
http://billfitzmaurice.info/forum/viewt ... =10&t=5541
IF you were to build a 4 x 10 bass quad box you would use some brand/model of 10" bass speaker. I can't for the life of me remember what you said and I can't find the posting using the Search function in TB.

Which 10" speaker was it?
One cannot recommend any driver without knowing the cabinet specs. And I would not build a 4x10 in any event, being one of the worst cab alignments. IMO if you're going to build a cab build the best one you're able to, not the worst.

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 5:40 pm
by OzzyGreg
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Ok, thanks. ( I was sort of expecting a response like that! :wink: )

No, you definately chimed into a topic with a comment along the lines of "I wouldn't build a 4 x 10" bass cabinet, but if I did I'd use (fill in the blank) 10" speakers."
There was no mention of cabinet dimensions. Obviously one would design the cabinet to best suit the four speakers in this situation anyway.
This may have been around the time when I was experimenting with single 15/10 combination cabs, I'm not sure.

Not to worry, thanks anyway. I'll keep searching.

Greg

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 6:26 pm
by Bill Fitzmaurice
If you really must have a 4x10 for whatever reason you can't build one for the price you can buy one for, due to the price that manufacturers pay for the components and the Asian sourced cabs, so you might as well buy one. If you want to build your own cab you should take the opportunity to build something better than a 4x10. Which, IMO, isn't a major leap.

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2012 7:01 pm
by OzzyGreg
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Bill,
I've already successfully built a pair of single 15" cabs using WinISD to suit the Kappalite 3015LFs within.
I've also built a fEarful 212 sub.
(BTW I still have and use all three of them.)

I just want a 4x10 quad box because I've never had one and every time I go to a rehearsal studio and other bassists are using them they simply sound louder, both inside the room and outside.
I just want to try to build one.

Greg

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 12:57 am
by Rune Bivrin
Most likely they sound louder because they're too small for the drivers, which means the lower mids will be more pronounced over the bass. In a sealed box excursion (and bass response) will be severely limited when size goes down, and the resulting low-mid hump will sound louder.

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 2:50 am
by OzzyGreg
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Most likely they sound louder because they're too small for the drivers, which means the lower mids will be more pronounced over the bass.
Possibly, but surely, (dumbing it right down) if the four speakers combined move more air than say, my two 15s together, then couldn't this be the reason they sound louder?

Each 10" driver may not have the same excursion individually as a single 15", but in combination with three more 10" drivers maybe they do?

Greg

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 3:23 am
by Rune Bivrin
Yes, but the issue with a small box is that the limited volume of air reduces cone excursion due to the increased resistance created by the air "spring". This could mean that the drivers come closer to being limited by thermal power rather than Xmax, which may enable a higher max output in the mid bass range. Not that different from turning down the bass control on your amp to reduce speaker "farting"...

However, the dispersion issues with a 4x10 are so severe that it's still a crappy idea.

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 3:50 am
by SeisTres
bp102 :clap:

Disclaimer: i'm not a bass player nor do i own any bass rigs, but figured if you wanted a driver named, then i named one :D

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 1:25 pm
by elliott
[quote="OzzyGreg"].
Bill,
I've already successfully built a pair of single 15" cabs using WinISD to suit the Kappalite 3015LFs within.
I've also built a fEarful 212 sub.
(BTW I still have and use all three of them.)

Having modeled your own box before you could order the xf 4-10 guitar cab plans. Use the baffle layout but model what you need to do for chamber volume and ports. just my two cents.

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 1:29 pm
by Bill Fitzmaurice
elliott wrote: Having modeled your own box before you could order the xf 4-10 guitar cab plans.
xf 4-10 guitar cab

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 3:25 pm
by SirNickity
I haven't taken my SWR 4x10 apart to check, but I'm told they're Eminence BP102s.

I never really have liked the sound of 4x10s. I'm with Rune. The design goal seems to be to tune them for most output at 100-500Hz or so. It's all about volume of sound, and cutting through. That's why I got one at least. I don't like playing with it alone, but with an 18 underneath, it's OK I guess. I much prefer to use in-ears or the PA though.

As just a stage monitor it does the job, though the typical issues with my ears not being attached to my knees does present some difficulty. I'm pretty much set on selling mine (and the Big Ben it sits on) and building a fEarful 12/6/1 instead.

IMO, the flaws in their design are either a problem for you, or they're not. For whatever reason, lots of people like 4x10s so I see no issue with building one if that's your thing. So there ya go. BP102 would work.

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 4:01 pm
by Bill Fitzmaurice
SirNickity wrote: BP102 would work.
There's a reason why we only use BP102s as subs in our cabs. It's clearly seen on the manufacturer data sheet.

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 5:53 pm
by OzzyGreg
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There's a reason why we only use BP102s as subs in our cabs. It's clearly seen on the manufacturer data sheet.
Fs of 35Hz and X-max of 6.2mm mainly I guess.

Greg

Re: Which 10" for a bass quad box?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2012 6:24 pm
by Bill Fitzmaurice
OzzyGreg wrote:.
There's a reason why we only use BP102s as subs in our cabs. It's clearly seen on the manufacturer data sheet.
Fs of 35Hz and X-max of 6.2mm mainly I guess.

Greg
Look at the SPL chart.