Trace Elliot Professional Bass Guitar Loudspeaker Cabinet
$870.00
This price is the approximant value of this part only
This item is part of a package and not sold separately.
The package consists of this item and the Knight Bass
Effects rack Unit. The above link is the price breakdown.
Model# 1818X
Specialist Cabinet primarily designed for Bi-Amplified Systems perfectly usable full range Booming Volume with a built in Passive Crossover that Protects the 10" Treble Speaker
💀 A Blond Melon Favorite
Trace Elliot surprise everyone by bringing out an amp-cab set up smaller than the average semidetached loudspeaker cabinet, the main feature of the sound is the extreme frequency range, from ultra deep bass to crystal clear high frequencies. Depending on the chosen bass sound and style of playing, the 1818X offers a subtly richer sound than the single 15" or 4x10" cabinets.
If you're a bass player, and you don't own anything made by Trace Elliot, it's likely that this is for one of three reasons:
a) You haven't heard it,
b) You haven't got room for it,
c) You can't afford it.
Of these, the third is most likely, and as the prices at the head of the page testify, this amp and speaker combination isn't going to make the marquee any more affordable. But what this 'Compact Stack' does do away with is the need for taking up a lot of space to get a hi-fi sound across. This 350-watt powered version of the GP11 preamp, combined with one of these new 1818X cabinets, measures a total of just over 3'6" high, which is a rather more transportable proposition than some of this Essex company's other offerings. The thinking, presumably, has been to get a bi-amped rig as small as possible, so that it an be used in places where size might be a problem.
This cabinet is exception built to last, which is why it's made from ¾" marine ply and covered in Terion and Dr Marten-proof steel grille. Regrettably this creates the awkward side-effect of extreme heaviness; in fact, each one weighs in at around eight and a half stone. Coupled with their sheet physical bulk and the fact that the speakers make them noticeably front-heavy, moving them any distance is most definitely a two-man job. The amplifier could scarcely be described as a feather-weight, either, since that alone tips the scales at three and a half stone. It develops full power into two of these cabs, but since the advantage of compactness is then lost, so I only have the one cabinet. I have found it to be OK to just leave it in the bottom part of the case, I have never heard the bottom case dolly buzz or rattle when played and its much easer to move it around.
The cabinet has two speakers, one 18" and one 10". The second of these is high pass only (above 250Hz), designed to be linked up to the matching channel on the AH 350X. There is also a passive crossover fitted inside the cabinet to protect the 10" from low frequencies should you... connect it up the wrong way round. The chances of that happening are minimized by the use of XLR sockets for the 18" and jacks for high pass on both amp and cab. All is correctly configured by the speaker connected to amp via the cord that comes with it the signal received by the 18" is in fact full range, but might as well be low pass for all the listener knows.
For optimum low end response, the cabinet is ported with two tubes, each being 3" across by 2" deep, through which white acoustic wadding is just visible. Nothing to do with low end response, but also useful, are four large rubber feet on the base end six plastic 'cups' on the top, to make sure that the units can stack safely. They're also another reminder of the fact that Trace Elliot have designed these slabs to be used in conjunction with their own amplifier.
But even if another make of amplifier is used, connecting these speakers up has a rather strange effect. It suddenly makes you forget what swine’s they are to move... the payoff for the sturdiness and permanence of the 1818X is not just its likely longevity, but its superb sound quality. There are not many bass speaker enclosures that can be wound up to painful volume levels without rattling, but this is one of them:
It's not just the clarity of sound that's impressive, but also the sheer 'size' of it. The 18" speaker delivers tremendous depth and authority, and what it lacks in treble, the 10" more than makes up for with a very bright but smooth response. Players specializing in percussive stuff may not want the depth of the 18", and opt instead for a cabinet of 10" speakers; similarly, those who play exclusively fretless may want to enhance the middle character of the sound by putting it through 12" of 15" drivers. But bassists who just require a cabinet to reflect the sound put into it will have a hell of a job to better this one, methinks.
The amplifier is just as impressive. Obviously designed to be used in conjunction with an 1818X (or two), it's a slightly downsized version of the top-of-the-range AH500X, missing the separate level controls for each output on the rear panel and the necessary switching to be able to run both channels full range if desired. Instead, the lower (full range), output delivers 250 watts into 4 ohms, and the upper (high pass) one delivers 150 watts into 8 ohms. There's only one set of output sockets on the amp, but there are two sets on the cabs for using two at the same time. The lack of separate output volume controls might seem to be a drawback, but in practice the balance seems correct.
All the other familiar Trace Elliot features are in evidence, like the two-speed fan – very handy for cooling the player as well as the transformers. Each speaker output is protected by a fuse, in addition to the fuse by the mains sockets, and ultra-violet lighting (which may appear to be a bit of a gimmick, but which is extremely useful on a dark stage) can be cancelled if found to be the cause of interference in the studio. Round the front is the GP11 preamp – to get the most signal and the least noise, it's essential to make proper use of the red 'overload' LED; once this is done the amp if commendably quiet even when a fair amount of treble boost is set on the graphic eq.
Theoreticians may argue as to whether graphics or parametrics are really best for eq'ing bass, but there is little doubt that graphics are a lot easier to get on with on first acquaintance. The 11-band system employed by Trace Elliot has the beauty of being as subtle or as blatant as the user wishes it to be, and its only real drawback is that it's not easy to change settings in a hurry. For most users, the advantage of having such a clear visual indication of what's going on is ample compensation for any such inconvenience.
Then, of course, there's the pre-shape switch, wired in before the eq to give you instant Funk with its 13dB cut at 400Hz and 5dB boost at 4kHz. Add to that an eq in/out switch so that you can ascertain easily whether your fiddling with the faders has improved the sound or not, and built-in noise reduction (a gating system which takes the hiss without being too obtrusive in action) and you come up with an amplifier which is not only versatile but also user-friendly. Any kind of bass sound from Reggae (I didn't know these foundations moved) to 'snappers delight' can be produced easily and convincingly.
Even though 350 watts isn't that much by modern bass playing standards, the volume levels are impressive, and the degree of clarity even more so. That overload LED helps to ensure that there's enough headroom for both the bass and playing style being used. All in all, the AH 350X performs as well as as classily as it looks like it ought to – both from a cosmetic point of view because that lighting really is a wonderful look on stage.
As a system,
N.B. When used in bi-amplified mode the specifications are:
bass 200 watts (8 Ohms), treble 150 watts (16 Ohms).
XLR and 1/4" jack connections
dimensions: 2'L x 3'H x 18.5"W
weight: 112.5lbs
Used – Excellent
Same Day Shipping - Ships from Blonds personal stash
Located in: New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
Handling Cost:
$20.00 will be added on items over 30lb
$50.00 will be added on items over 100lb
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