Considering a purchase...

[jobedissectional]

I recently saw a Behringer 8 10 cab in a local store on clearance for $315. I know this is a lower end cab, but that is really cheap for a new 8 10! My first concern is that the aluminum drivers will not be able to handle very good bottom end (I had a bad experience with a hartke 15" a few years ago. I use an Ampeg svt-4 pro, and I have a good eminence kappa 15 I could use as a sub to suppliment the behringer, but then I would not be able to use the mono bridge from the amp. I like a dirty sound with lots of mids when I use a pick or slap, but I want some nice bottom end for sliding around with smooth and powerful finger picking.

I am going to go try it out this week, but I would like some input if anyone has some.

Thanks

[GearJunkie]

a) you're right about the aluminum cones, they're not the best for low end.
b) no behringer. ever. EVER.
c) there is no point for an 810 cabinet. Unless you have someone to help you carry that thing, you'll hate it in 3 months, guaranteed.

I have yet to meet anyone, in a touring band or otherwise, who's been happy about their purchase of an 810 cabinet. They suck going up a flight of stairs, they're horribly awkward onstage if you need to move stuff around between sets, and overall they're a pain.

If you need that loud of a cabinet, look into a 6x10, but for the love of god, that's just as bad.

[jobedissectional]

I used to play out of a really old ampeg 8 10, so I realize what I am getting into with size and weight... I am more interested in your comments about behringer, I am not familiar to the company so any specific comments would be helpful, thanks.

[dagosto]

Behringer stuff is very cheap and the workmanship can also be shotty. Their spec sheets are mostly misleading because they are based off tests that purposely make their stuff look better. For example they use white noise instead of pink noise to test the wattage capability of their loudspeakers which yeilds skewed measurements towards being more powerful than they would be handling program material.

I would not be suprised if some of the speakers in this cab come wired out of phase or they get blown easily. They do tons of business in the US and Europe though. People keep buying their stuff.

That being said, if you play it and it does what you want it to do than it might be a good buy.

[jobedissectional]

I found another dealer that has 10 svt driver replacements for 45 dollars... even in replacing all eight, I would still be at about half the cost of the ampeg cab. Howver, I have also read that behringer uses lower grade wood in their construction, and this leads me to believe that some of the other componants may be as well. I guess I will still go back and check it out, I will inquire on the warranty, and how dificult the wiring would be for a complete replacement( I have never done more than a twospeaker replacement, and that was years ago.


thanks for all the comments, please keep them coming!

[Whoopysnorp]

You'll never turn a Behringer cab into an Ampeg cab. Even if you upgrade the drivers, you're still dealing with particle board instead of plywood construction, and who knows how good the wood joints are. I think you'd approach the 8x10 sound a lot closer with an Ampeg SVT410HLF, which is a few hundred more dollars, but it's a quality piece and much easier to transport. Nothing quite sounds like an Ampeg 8x10, and if you want to be pummelled into submission onstage by pure monster bass tone there is no substitute. However if you can live with a little reduction in the visceral aspect of the thing, a good ported Ampeg 4x10 like the SVT410HLF will do you very well.

Or to put it succinctly: buy cheap, buy twice. That's a lesson most musicians, me included, have had to learn the hard way.

[jobedissectional]

Well, I guess it seems pretty obvious that it is just not worth it. I was really tempted by an 8 10 cab for 300 bucks, but it seems like there is going to be a lot of failure in the construction .

Thanks for all the replies.

[Whoopysnorp]

Phew. Crisis averted, guys!

Seriously, you'll be glad you didn't go for it. To have a lemon of an 8x10 cab sitting around your house would get real old, real fast.

[bassliner]

can tell you another story about Behringer. You know they have those incredibly cheap FX pedals? I tried the whawha for about a week, every rehearsal wondering what was wrong with my amp; I was lacking a great deal of volume, and the overall sound was just muddy. Ofcourse, after a while I realised it wasn't the amp but the wha in my instrument-to-amp line.
I went back to the shop and wanted to exchange the pedal for some strings or something, because it clearly wasn't what I was looking for.
The guy at the counter wasn't surprised, and told me I didn't have to take anything; Instead, I got my money back.

Behringer's prices are CHEAP. Incredibly cheap. Too good to be true cheap
You get what you pay for, I realised this about Behringer. Can't blame them for this though. And for the record, I do own a Behringer 8 channel mini mixing board. Not too unhappy about that one.

This still didn't change my affection for cheap copy basses. Once in a while you might really find a gem among those Tokai's (got one of those ) Maya's, Squiers, OLPs.. etc etc. Blabla were talking about a cheap 8x10, not cheap gear in general hehe.

[Whoopysnorp]

Originally Posted by bassliner

This still didn't change my affection for cheap copy basses. Once in a while you might really find a gem among those Tokai's (got one of those ) Maya's, Squiers, OLPs.. etc etc. Blabla were talking about a cheap 8x10, not cheap gear in general hehe.

I hear you there. I have an SX quilted maple top J-bass copy that cannot be beat for the price I paid. I intend to take it to a shop sometime and have them give the frets some attention so I can get rid of the buzzes it has, and probably upgrade the bridge, electronics, and tuners, and then I'll have turned a decent bass into a killer bass.