Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I don't know if this has been asked but what speaker size is best suited to the Ric bass.I am thinking in terms of combo's,or is it just down to personal taste.I have always used 15" speakers,but i have been reading reviews on combo's with 12" speakers that have said the sound was better.

What is a "better" sound?

It really depends on the venue. The 10's are the most versatile indoors IMHO, and 8 of 'em kick outdoors! I see a lot of folks with a 2x10 and a 15. I once had 2 x 12 but thought it a bit "flappy". The larger speakers need more room to move the air(develop the sound). A 15 (for bass) in our little church sounds like mud!

So here's a vote for a 4x10!

Shawn, that is strictly a personal preference type of question. The best choice is what sounds best to you.

Of course there will certainly be a post that says an SVT with an 8x10 is the only option.....ever. So be prepared for that.

The reason i ask that i am on the lookout for a new combo and during my dinner hour i have been,reading reviews on loads of combo's.There was the Behringer BXL3000A,Ampeg BA115,and one review said that the Crate BT50 with a 12" speaker sounded better than the BT100 with the 15" speaker.

I've mostly used 12's and occasionally 15's. I think Lars point is valid, better sound is so very subjective.

I think cabinet as well as driver design and quality count more to a good sound, in Charly's case the reason the 12's sounded poor to him could be down to poor cabinet design

As for one size being better than another, I don't feel that the diameter alone is the sole factor, nor is the size of the venue linked to the size of the drivers. I've a pair of Klipsch La Scala's for my home Hi Fi, they have 15" drivers and horns and are in a room that's about 25x15, they sound amazing.

When I got my current 4x12 cabinet it came as a sealed box, took me a couple of hours to calculate the dimensions for adding two ports to it which vastly improved it's mid and low end response. I've used these everywhere from outdoors to small bar's with great results.

10s and 15s are very popular for bass ... 12s are very popular for guitar ...

also consider the manufacturer of the cabinet and speakers ...

I am a fan of ported cabs and Eminence speakers ...

Jim is right, it is a synergistic combination of cabinet design, driver quality, and venue in which you play.

In the early 70s I would sometimes bring 8x10 original CTS-loaded SVT infinite-baffle cabs and sometimes original V4B cabs with a pair of white Altec 15s in a rear-loaded W-cabinet (common-center driven folded horns). Personally, I liked the near-field sound of the 8x10s. But our sound guy said that past about 30 feet away from the V4Bs, they "coupled" and really sounded much better far-field than the 8x10s!

So I quit using the 8x10s in larger halls, used V4Bs, and added an Altec 811B horn with a higher-than-normal cutoff freq in the crossover, and a handful of those little piezo tweeters that were so new at the time, in a little PA cabinet, to let me hear the higher freqs that the 4001 Rick is so good at creating

Worked so much better for larger halls, and I kept the 8x10s for little clubs.

Cab design definitely makes a difference!

You have good taste in speakers, by the way, Jim Glen! I am sitting listening to one of my favorite Yes CDs right now on a pair of Klipschorns through the McIntoshes

In my case Elys my Klipsch's are driven from my an Arcam -Alpha CD via an Audio Alchemy DAC into a Quad 44, and Quad 606

I like 10's.

Now THAT's high-end, Jim

Quad was my "dream" HiFi, my Grandfather had an old Quad system when I was growing up.

I was able to get my Quad system (FM4-44-606) when I worked in Hong Kong in 1989 where I also got my Linn Sondeck, they've all worked flawlessly since then.

The only addition I'd consider now is swapping the 606 for a pair of the new Quad 40 tube amps.

I like my Magneplanar Ics driven by my Aragon 24K and 2004, in conjunction with a Definitive Technologies Super Cube II subwoofer with it's LP filter set at 40Hz amd the Maggies running full range. Talk about high resolution! Along with amazing width and depth to the soundstage.

Oh yeah, I use 15" speakers and get a great full range sound without needing any horns or tweeters.

I have 3 2 x10 cabs, 2 1x15 cabs and one 1x18 cab they are all 8 ohms so I can mix and match them for the sound I want and still have an 8 ohm load off of my ampeg b2r ...

I was using a couple of Phil Jones cabs for a few shows last years. I was blown away - 15 5's between the two cabs. Sounded awesome. Articulate, yet full, rich lows.