Markbass Mini CMD 121P

[Powman]

If later I want to add an extension cab, which one would pair well with this? If you recall, the CMD 112H has a 12 inch speaker and a tweeter. Someone suggested another set of exactly the same speakers. Ie the Traveller 112...

Does this make sense?

 

[azzy_wazzy]

If later I want to add an extension cab, which one would pair well with this? If you recall, the CMD 112H has a 12 inch speaker and a tweeter. Someone suggested another set of exactly the same speakers. Ie the Traveller 112...

Does this make sense?

I've seen suggested that the new New York 121 pairs quite nicely with it - would let you put out the full 500w.

 

[Powman]

Ah yes, I see that on the Markbass site now. I am a little confused...the amp in the combo is a LMIII rated at 500W at 4 Ohm. The speaker is rated at 400 W. Is that not going to blow the speaker?

 

[azzy_wazzy]

Ah yes, I see that on the Markbass site now. I am a little confused...the amp in the combo is a LMIII rated at 500W at 4 Ohm. The speaker is rated at 400 W. Is that not going to blow the speaker?

I'm terrible when it comes to hooking up amp stuff, so I'll let the more knowledgeable answer, however Peter from Markbass said the following above:

If you like the Mini CMD 121P, you should try hooking one up to the New York 121 extension cabinet. This is my favorite rig! Turns the combo into a 500W 2x12 rig... small footprint, incredibly portable, and great sound. Okay, I have to stop there, I might have gushed more than is appropriate!

I trust Peter to know

 

[meeder2]

The CMD 121 by itself is running at @ 8ohms Is 280watts.
with and extention cab rated 8ohms, will be running at
4ohms when paired together, giving you 500watts with the
LMII. I have this combo and use a Markbass CL108 cab.
I disconnect this speaker cable on the combo and use the 8-10
cab at 4ohms for large venues. I have all I need for now.

 

[Manfloozy]

Ah yes, I see that on the Markbass site now. I am a little confused...the amp in the combo is a LMIII rated at 500W at 4 Ohm. The speaker is rated at 400 W. Is that not going to blow the speaker?

I am by no means an expert... nor an authoritative source of information on this ... BUT

That is 400 watts AES standard... its peak input will be higher (most likely substantially). So theoretically if you sent a butt load of signal to it continuously for a period of time... it "might" go kaboom in the bad sort of way.... but if you don't dime the volume and gain knobs, it is much more likely to just go "kaboom" in the good sort of way (i.e. not blowing out, just lots of glorious bass volume)

I think it is pretty safe, and probably according to Markbass a perfect application to use the 121p/h combo with a NY extension cab. I think this is even how they "market" the NY cabs.

Short answer: the combo + the NY extension is a good thing, and is unlikely to blow up on you.

Hope this helps.

 

[Powman]

Cool, thanks!

By the way someone locally is selling a used Markbass 15 inch cab. He paid $800, then with taxes it was about $1000. So he wants $800 Canadian total. Now, I already talked him down to $650 CDN, He claims he bought it for a studio in case bass players forgot their cab or something. Turns out, it never got used so they have decided to sell it.

But the Canadian dollar is trading at 0.97 US and may be worth more than the US dollar by the end of the week.

With that in mind, I checked Musicians Friend and that cab brand new is $599 US which right now is only $611 CDN! I could drive to Buffalo and pick it up there. I will probably have to pay taxes and duty, bringing it up to over $700 at least.

I think I will meet with this guy, check it out, then offer him $500 firm. Show him my research...

Does this sound like a good idea, or crazy?? (I have never bought used gear privately before...hence my hesitation)

 

[Peter Murray]

Cool, thanks!

By the way someone locally is selling a used Markbass 15 inch cab. He paid $800, then with taxes it was about $1000. So he wants $800 Canadian total. Now, I already talked him down to $650 CDN, He claims he bought it for a studio in case bass players forgot their cab or something. Turns out, it never got used so they have decided to sell it.

But the Canadian dollar is trading at 0.97 US and may be worth more than the US dollar by the end of the week.

With that in mind, I checked Musicians Friend and that cab brand new is $599 US which right now is only $611 CDN! I could drive to Buffalo and pick it up there. I will probably have to pay taxes and duty, bringing it up to over $700 at least.

I think I will meet with this guy, check it out, then offer him $500 firm. Show him my research...

Does this sound like a good idea, or crazy?? (I have never bought used gear privately before...hence my hesitation)

Hi, I'm not going to comment on your negotiations, if you can get a good deal, that's great!

But just to comment on the cross-border shopping issue.

Some Canadians are seduced by the idea of buying Markbass gear in the US because it's often cheaper. However, keep in mind the following:
- you will not have a warranty (the warranty only applies in the country of purchase)
- you will have to either pay duty, stay for longer than 48 hours, or smuggle the cab back in without declaring it and risk getting busted
- the trip will take time (time=money) and the gas cost alone might be more than the money you're saving.

Just some stuff to keep in mind.

Cheers,
Peter

 

[Peter Murray]

If later I want to add an extension cab, which one would pair well with this? If you recall, the CMD 112H has a 12 inch speaker and a tweeter. Someone suggested another set of exactly the same speakers. Ie the Traveller 112...

Does this make sense?

The Traveler 121H has a 12" and a 1" compression driver with custom horn.
The New York is a smaller cab, with the same speaker and a piezo tweeter.
The different tweeter gives the cab a different character in the high end.
The Traveler is a bigger cab, so it will give you a somewhat "bigger", fuller sound, but then it's not as portable as the New York 121.

Either cab is a good match for the Mini CMD 121P, you just have to decide whether the extra oomph of the bigger cab is worth it to you relative to the sacrifice in portability, and I guess price.
I have both cabs, and I think that the Traveler 121H is a better sounding cab overall, but the New York 121 is just fantastic when you add it to the combo.

Cheers,
Peter

 

[Powman]

Hi, I'm not going to comment on your negotiations, if you can get a good deal, that's great!

But just to comment on the cross-border shopping issue.

Some Canadians are seduced by the idea of buying Markbass gear in the US because it's often cheaper. However, keep in mind the following:
- you will not have a warranty (the warranty only applies in the country of purchase)
- you will have to either pay duty, stay for longer than 48 hours, or smuggle the cab back in without declaring it and risk getting busted
- the trip will take time (time=money) and the gas cost alone might be more than the money you're saving.

Just some stuff to keep in mind.

Cheers,
Peter

Good advice Peter...the lack of warranty is of concern.

I have ordered a New York 121 from my local shop and they suggested that they will might give me a better price in light of the allure of cross-border shopping. I told them I would be happy to give them my business still if they improve on their prices...they seem willing to play.

This will better in light of what you have said Peter.

 

[Powman]

The Traveler 121H has a 12" and a 1" compression driver with custom horn.
The New York is a smaller cab, with the same speaker and a piezo tweeter.
The different tweeter gives the cab a different character in the high end.
The Traveler is a bigger cab, so it will give you a somewhat "bigger", fuller sound, but then it's not as portable as the New York 121.

Either cab is a good match for the Mini CMD 121P, you just have to decide whether the extra oomph of the bigger cab is worth it to you relative to the sacrifice in portability, and I guess price.
I have both cabs, and I think that the Traveler 121H is a better sounding cab overall, but the New York 121 is just fantastic when you add it to the combo.

Cheers,
Peter

Thanks again for the advice, Peter.

I am considering both. I want to try out both side by side, but I actually may be leaning towards the Traveller 121.

Is it a bad idea to mix a 15 inch speaker the CMD 121H? Is it better to stick with a 12 incher?

 

[mrpackerguy]

I've owned both and kept the Walkabout Scout. If they didn't make a Walkabout Scout, I'd own the 121p, but there's just something magical about the tone you can dial up and out of the Walkabout. The 121p is easier to tote and a great combo amp suitable for small and medium sized venues like the Walkabout. If you are patient, they come up on TB used around the $750 range, same as the 121p.

 

[Deaj]

I demo'd a CMD12 when I first took notice of the Markbass amps. The little 1x12 combo seems like the perfect grab & go bass amp - small, lightweight, ultra portable, and fantastic tones! I really like 12's for bass too. After demo'ing most of the Markbass amps, however, I found I preferred the 1x15 Jeff Berlin signature combo. It's front ported with a larger enclosure and no tweeter/horn. It sounds like a loud, clean Ampeg B-15 N - perfect fit for me. I'd still like to get a CMD12 someday.

 

[Peter Murray]

Thanks again for the advice, Peter.

I am considering both. I want to try out both side by side, but I actually may be leaning towards the Traveller 121.

Is it a bad idea to mix a 15 inch speaker the CMD 121H? Is it better to stick with a 12 incher?

There's nothing "wrong" with mixing speakers... obviously every recipe will have a different "flavour" in the end. The 15 will add low-mid warmth, will take it in a less aggressive, less pointed direction. Good for more old-school stuff, not so good for most rock or pop (in my opinion). Many people feel that there is a sonic benefit to sticking with one speaker size, that the cabs match up better that way. It's what I tend to do, but there's no rule. Adding a 12 to a 12 will simply give you more "12ness"... Adding a 15 will add 15ness to your 12ness, and adding 10s will add 10ness to your 12ness!

Cheers,
Peter

 

[Evangelos]

issues with a Markbass CMD 121P LM3

Hi there,

I recently bought a Markbass CMD 121P LM3 combo amp.

It looks alright, yet I'm having a couple of issues with it.

1. The cooling fan: it runs the whole time (as soon as Ι switch on the amplifier) and it sounds rather loud to me - that said, I don't really know what is considered loud and what not. You can definitely hear the fan running in a quiet average size room. This is my biggest concern/issue with this amp - i wish the fan would be quieter...

2. A hissing tweeter: it makes a hissing sound even with the volume turned completely down. I could put a piece of insulation foam between the tweeter and the protective grille, in order to muffle it. I think the foam will absorb the hissing noise.

Have you had any such issues with this amp. Are you generally happy with it? I mostly use it for practice at home and I am thinking of returning it and getting some other (smaller) amp, given that I have a 30 day satisfaction/return guarantee. It would be a shame as I find the CMD 121P to be a combo amp with lots of possibilities.

Cheers,
Evangelos

 

[spencer]

That fan is not loud.. Go grab a db750 that's loud! N

 

[Evangelos]

That fan is not loud.. Go grab a db750 that's loud! N

Thanks for the quick reply!

Do you mean that this level of fan noise is normal for an amp of that much power?

Does it not bother you when you practice/study? Do you just get used to it?

Cheers,
E

 

[spencer]

It has never bothered me, I never thought about fan noise with it. Only two times I actually thought about a fan and it was with the gk1001 because it wasn't on at first and then came on which I noticed.. When I first hot the db750 I thought it was loud I don't hear it anymore

 

[Evangelos]

It has never bothered me, I never thought about fan noise with it. Only two times I actually thought about a fan and it was with the gk1001 because it wasn't on at first and then came on which I noticed.. When I first hot the db750 I thought it was loud I don't hear it anymore

Well, it is probably a matter of getting used to it - or getting a small practice amp without a fan.

By the way, do you think I could use the "tuner out" or the "effects out" to connect a pair of headphones? I haven't dared to do so yet as I wouldn't want that anything happens to the amp...

 

[spencer]

I would just try it keep volume in bass low and slowly increase, however I doubt it will put out serious volume..