Still hooked on Acme

Jefenator

Jefenator

Aug 22, 2008
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#1
The other night I did a last minute thing with a 5-piece Grateful Dead cover band. Figuring space would be tight, I started with my trusty old Acme Low-B1.
It was one of my best tone moments of recent memory. I was maybe a little soft in the mix, but there was this presence & solidity in every register - even way down low.
I was loving the sound, but getting a little nervous about keeping up with just that tiny 1x10 cab. (Great way to fry a woofer - DAMHIK.)
So for the second set, I swapped in a newer neo 2x10 - definitely a safer choice. But I didn't enjoy the sound quite as much. That rock solid low end was missing!
I've had a love/hate relationship with Acme over the years, eventually scaling down to just the one 1x10. My experience from Friday has me wanting to scale back up, get two or three (or maybe even four) of those woofers going.
Anyone else out there still hooked on Acme cabinets? Or have you found another system that let you break away for good?
berg-acme - 1.jpeg
 
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#3
I’ve always wanted to try one of those cabinets!

Sounds like you’re using the rig to carry the house? If that’s the case and you’re considering multiple cabinets, it may make more sense to go with a two-way system using a pro-audio subwoofer, like I did (see link below). It would mean more equipment, such as an electronic crossover of some kind, but would ultimately be physically less than 3 or 4 cabinets. The weight of the sub would be a concern for many people, but being a skinny guy with girlie muscles, I’m used to using a dolly anyway.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Ecclesia: Unique Arrangements of Hymns, P&W Standards, and Original Tunes
Administrator, Pedulla Club #45
Administrator, Official Tobias Club #133
Fretless Club #943
Big Cabs Club #23
My Rig: Stage and FOH Friendly
My Basses
 
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#4
WayneP said:
I’ve always wanted to try one of those cabinets!

Sounds like you’re using the rig to carry the house? If that’s the case and you’re considering multiple cabinets, it may make more sense to go with a two-way system using a pro-audio subwoofer, like I did (see link below). It would mean more equipment, such as an electronic crossover of some kind, but would ultimately be physically less than 3 or 4 cabinets. The weight of the sub would be a concern for many people, but being a skinny guy with girlie muscles, I’m used to using a dolly anyway.
Click to expand...
Once you try an Acme, you will quickly understand that the need (or want) of a subwoofer evaporates like disappearing ink.
And Acme B1/B2 are already three-way designs, so there's really no point in regressing to two-way. You can clearly see the dome tweeter, midrange and woofer in the OP's photo. Add another 10" woofer to make a B2.
 
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#6
abarson said:
Once you try an Acme, you will quickly understand that the need (or want) of a subwoofer evaporates like disappearing ink.
And Acme B1/B2 are already three-way designs, so there's really no point in regressing to two-way. You can clearly see the dome tweeter, midrange and woofer in the OP's photo. Add another 10" woofer to make a B2.
Click to expand...

Most bass cabinet on the market are two-way (mine’s a Genzler BA12), so factually-speaking it would still be a 3-way system. But I do get your point! I need to get a B1 and try it out. I’ve heard that Accugroove also makes full-range systems.

One benefit of a biamped system over the B1 is increased efficiency.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Ecclesia: Unique Arrangements of Hymns, P&W Standards, and Original Tunes
Administrator, Pedulla Club #45
Administrator, Official Tobias Club #133
Fretless Club #943
Big Cabs Club #23
My Rig: Stage and FOH Friendly
My Basses
 
#7
abarson said:
Once you try an Acme, you will quickly understand that the need (or want) of a subwoofer evaporates like disappearing ink.
And Acme B1/B2 are already three-way designs, so there's really no point in regressing to two-way. You can clearly see the dome tweeter, midrange and woofer in the OP's photo. Add another 10" woofer to make a B2.
Click to expand...

Acme has a their 2-way or even single driver cabs.
 
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#9
Jefenator said:
Anyone else out there still hooked on Acme cabinets? Or have you found another system that let you break away for good?
Click to expand...

I'm the owner of 2 B1s, series III, vintage 2014 or so. One is great for low volume gigs, such as theatre pits or most churches. Seriously small and easy to transport, and that sound.. I roll off low end or high-pass it pretty often. High-pass allows me to run the cabs louder without worrying about over-excursion. Two obviously are better for louder bands or bigger rooms.

One B1, coupled with a small head, like my Quilter BB800, it is such a tiny little setup, and usually gets comments of disbelief from audience members and fellow musicians. Easy load-in and out, too. I also use them with Mesa Subway heads (WD, TT) to great effect. The width and depth are just right for the Mesas. I always use an Auralex Baby Gramma for isolation. The Baby Gramma is perfectly sized for the B-1 footprint.

Andy Lewis stands behind his gear. He made me a great deal on these cabs since I bought two of them, selling them to me at the old price as they went up to the current price, and has followed up on any questions or problems I've (thought) I had. I have nothing but great things to say about the B-1.

AcmeB1Stack.jpg


This pic was right after I got the cabs, before I had either the Quilter or Mesa heads. This is a Genz Shuttle 9.2. The cabs sounded terrific with it as well!

I have an assortment of cabs, including a Mesa Subway 115, two Genz Shuttle 112Ts, an EA Wizzy M-line, a couple of Dr.Bass 12s, and more, but the Acmes are my go-to cabs for the majority of gigs I do.

Yes, I'll "Never Go Bacme!" Thanks, @freemont! :)
 
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#14
I’ve thought about getting a powered sub so I could play more through my PA. Probably no need for that with
Michael Vee said:
I'm the owner of 2 B1s, series III, vintage 2014 or so. One is great for low volume gigs, such as theatre pits or most churches. Seriously small and easy to transport, and that sound.. I roll off low end or high-pass it pretty often. High-pass allows me to run the cabs louder without worrying about over-excursion. Two obviously are better for louder bands or bigger rooms.

Coupled with a small head, like my Quilter BB800, it is such a tiny little setup, and usually gets comments of disbelief from audience members and fellow musicians. Easy load-in and out, too. I also use them with Mesa heads to great effect. The width and depth are just right for the Mesas. I always use an Auralex Baby Gramma for isolation. The Baby is perfectly sized for the B-1 footprint.

Andy stands behind his gear. He made me a great deal on these cabs since I bought two of them, selling them to me at the old price as they went up to the current price, and has followed up on any questions or problems I've (thought) I had. I have nothing but great things to say about the B-1.

View attachment 4712520

This pic was right after I got the cabs, before I had either the Quilter or Mesa heads. This is a Genz Shuttle 9.2. The cabs sounded terrific with it as well!

I have an assortment of cabs, including a Mesa Subway 115, two Genz Shuttle 112Ts, an EA Wizzy M-line, a couple of Dr.Bass 12s, and more, but the Acmes are my go-to cabs for the majority of gigs I do.

Yes, I'll "Never Go Bacme!" Thanks, @freemont! :)
Click to expand...
I used to use a B2, way back in the pre + power rack days; been curious about how that would work with 800 watts of class D.
I could see myself doing my final 10 years of gigging with just a couple of B1s.
 
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#16
Jefenator said:
I used to use a B2, way back in the pre + power rack days; been curious about how that would work with 800 watts of class D.
I could see myself doing my final 10 years of gigging with just a couple of B1s.
Click to expand...

As long as you don't try to do two much volume with them, and crank the master way up, you will do fine with the B1s with 800 watt heads. As I said earlier, a good high-pass filter is your B1's best friend, allowing you to turn up further without worry. As deep as these cabs go, you can moderate-slope HPF at 75-80 Hz or so and get lots of bass still. With a steep rolloff, you can set HPF to 45-50 or so and get quite a bit louder. A compressor is also a good idea, to keep big peaks out of the cabs. (No one is going to play heavy-duty slapping with these cabs.)

These are inefficient cabs, that do require a lot of watts to get reasonable volume. They're rated at 90 dBm/1 watt/1 meter with a conservative 175 watt power rating at 8 ohms. A stack of two gives you 93 dbm and 350 watts power rating.
 
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#20
Michael Vee said:
As long as you don't try to do two much volume with them, and crank the master way up, you will do fine with the B1s with 800 watt heads. As I said earlier, a good high-pass filter is your B1's best friend, allowing you to turn up further without worry. As deep as these cabs go, you can moderate-slope HPF at 75-80 Hz or so and get lots of bass still. With a steep rolloff, you can set HPF to 45-50 or so and get quite a bit louder. A compressor is also a good idea, to keep big peaks out of the cabs. (No one is going to play heavy-duty slapping with these cabs, however. I'm fingerstyle and pick all the way.)

These are inefficient cabs, that do require a lot of watts to get reasonable volume. They're rated at 90 dBm/1 watt/1 meter with a conservative 175 watt power rating at 8 ohms. A stack of two gives you 93 dbm and 350 watts power rating.
Click to expand...
Ha ha, yeah, I fried both woofers in my old B2 trying to make it do the work of a 410/115 stack. (It can be all too easy to do because it feels so darn good right up until the lights go out.)
The B|Amp might be good for these, with the built-in HPF & compression. The BB800 has those wattage ratings on the master knob; not sure if keeping that at noon really capped it at 160W or not.
I have found it's best to treat these cabs as a hefty implementation of what they are and not think of them as a substitute for something with more or larger woofers.
 
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