Question Which arrangement is better?

[Powman]

Hi folks...

Finally got around to taking some pictures of my 6 week old Sterling H and 2 week old Markbass combo and cab.

But I am wondering...which arrangement of speakers is better...

Stacked or side by side?

 

[Grand Wazoo]

One on the left of you and the other on the right with a long speaker cable and you playing in the middle. On stage no one can loose your bass sound!

 

[Powman]

One on the left of you and the other on the right with a long speaker cable and you playing in the middle. On stage no one can loose your bass sound!

Really??? I never thought of that. Whats the longest cable length you can get without losing sound? Should I get those Neutrik Speakon cables?

 

[MrMusashi]

30th feet with good speaker cable should not be a problem. as for neutrik... get anything except those cheap chinese copies. ive had an f1 act weird because of a crappy neutrik copy plug..

MrM

 

[Powman]

30th feet with good speaker cable should not be a problem. as for neutrik... get anything except those cheap chinese copies. ive had an f1 act weird because of a crappy neutrik copy plug..

MrM

Hmmm...I just picked up a 5 foot length from Long and McQuade in Toronto, but I don't know where it is made...

I have not opened the package yet since I am now going to go back and exchange it for a longer cable as per this excellent sugestion, but I will double check on where it is made.

 

[MrMusashi]

if its a neutrik plug the name will be on the plug..
http://www.neutrik.com/fl/en/audio/204_184671/speakON_Cable_Connectors_productlist.aspx

MrM

 

[Powman]

Yes it does, thanks!

(This is a great forum...everyone is helpful, informed and I bet really good looking...)

 

[Grand Wazoo]

Yes it does, thanks!

(This is a great forum...everyone is helpful, informed and I bet really good looking...)

Not me, I am ugly as sin, me... I was a looker as a young man, but not no more. lol

 

[Smallmouth_Bass]

I depends on the venue. If you are playing on a wood stage, the bass will really carry and you might want to stack them on top of each other to reduce the bass (and sometimes mud). Splitting them up is an idea. You'll just have to experiment and see what works best.

 

[oli@bass]

I'd stack them because my ears are somewhere on my head, and my knees are pretty deaf...

 

[maddog]

I'd put the extension cab on its side and then the head cab on its side on top of the extension cab.

a fan of putting things on top of other things,

(lets see anyone get that MP reference.)

 

[Bass Control]

I'd put the extension cab on its side and then the head cab on its side on top of the extension cab.

a fan of putting things on top of other things,

(lets see anyone get that MP reference.)

MaxStax or something else?

 

[Fuzzy Dustmite]

Love the MP ref!
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1f-kfRREA8M"]YouTube- Monty Python Royal Society for Putting Things on top of other things legendas[/ame]

 

[maddog]

Fuzzy!

Kudos my Phoenician friend.

How is Arizona these days?

 

[smallequestrian]

Nice rig.

For bass, the most optimal way to arrange speakers is to have vertically aligned drivers. Putting a speaker on either side of the stage sounds good in theory, but can present phasing issues.

 

[five7]

+1

 

[Rick Auricchio]

+1 to stacking. It always improves dispersion of mids/highs. Horizontal arrangement causes loss of dispersion.

Spacing the speakers across the stage is bad because it causes cancellation in the hall. Some people hear too much bass, others hear very little.

See this page for a graphic demo: Sound Wave Interference Applet

 

[DaddyFlip]

I concur with a stacked arrangement. Since you are dealing with a mono output signal, any separation of the output transducers (speakers) will result in a reduction of volume as waveform cancellation will occur. The ideal output transducer would be a single point in space, but since this is not practical, placing your cabinets as close together as possible, regardless of their proximity to you, will give the best results. A soundcheck definitely helps.

 

[Powman]

Huh, this is very interesting...that applet was neat...

The sound part didn't work very well on my cheesy computer speakers, but the diagram drives home the point. However, does this applet take into account reflected sound? Or is it assuming an anechoic environment?

So it appears that the best arrangement is stacked after all. I guess that's why you always see things stacked on stages anyways...

Just to clarify one more thing however. I can stack it in the verticle arrangement as shown in my photo. Or I could put the cab on its side and the combo on top of that. My guess is that the arrangement should be perfectly verticle so that the actual speakers are in line with one another.

 

[maddog]

easiest is to try and see what you like.

stacked vertically, CG is kind of high. Seems easier to knock over to me.

at the wavelengths bass guitars work at, a couple inches of misalignment isn't going to matter. Especially since the cone centers are already at least 12" apart.