ALTHOUGH THEY'RE FAIRLY RARE,
powered cabinets open up myriad new
signal-chain options, particularly the
possibility of using a “channel-strip” studio
preamp for flexibility or a fave DI
for unadorned, nearly straight-wire tone.
Illinois-based Bag End has long made
well-regarded high-end cabinets and
drivers in nearly every audio category.
Its designs always show a thoughtful
attention to engineering and significant
innovation. Its new PD10BX-D cabinet
pairs its stalwart 2x10+coaxial tweeter
D10BX with a modular Class D/SMPS
amplifier, the Minima One. The same
amped-up treatment is available with
the other configurations in Bag End’s
bass cab line.
The PD10BX-D was exceptionally
well constructed. Its void-free Baltic
birch cabinetry was well braced, with
one large cross member extending from
the front to rear baffle. The red carpet
is not only a distinguishing feature, but
also a particularly hardy example. The
grille was solidly attached and rattle free.
Two well-placed spring-loaded handles
allow fairly comfortable lifting, although
the cab is well into the heavy side of the
2x10 spectrum, here compounded by
the Minima One’s additional 5.5 pounds.
To accommodate the amp, a rectangular
square is cut out of the Bag End’s
rear baffle. The connectivity is minimal,
with a female XLR jack handling input and
a male XLR functioning as a THRU jack for
parallel output. A 3-position switch controls
a low-frequency roll off at 8, 50, or
95Hz. AC input is via Speakon, not the
vastly more common IEC standard. No
doubt Speakon is a more robust connection,
but the world has yet to get with the
program. Thus, my biggest gripe with the
Minima One: Should you misplace or forget
your power cord, you’re pretty much
done for. (Bag End responds: “Good
point! We're going to look into including
two power cables.”)
The Minima One needs to see a linelevel
input at the +4dB standard to do
its thing and get loud. It’ll work with a
bass plugged-in directly (courtesy a q"
to XLR adapter), but it will only be loud
enough for private practice. What this
means, essentially, is that you can’t plug
a DI directly into the Minima One,
unless it’s active and offers a ton gain (a
DI’s output is the low “mic level” standard).
Even active basses, despite their
onboard preamp, don’t offer a good signal
level for direct interfacing with the
PD10BX-D. You can, however, use any
of the bajillion preamps that output a
balanced line-level signal. This includes
stand-alone bass preamps, although
you’ll want to use the main output (often
a q" jack) rather than the DI output.
I tried the PD10BX-D with a number
of cool preamps, including the Millennia
Media Origin and TD-1, a Kern
IP-777, and even the unusually high-gain
output of a Gallien-Krueger 1001RBII’s
DI. The cabinet sounded incredible:
Fast, natural, thick, and supportive, with
creamy smoothness in the midrange, a
natural and bouncy plushness in the
lows, and a beautiful textured uppermidrange/
treble voice. The Bag End
managed to simultaneously be sizzly and
slap-able without any edgy brittleness.
In short, it sounded superb. It was capable
of stage-sufficient volumes, particularly
with preamps that were well
gain-matched with the input.
The PD10BX-D was seriously killer.
It’s a bit expensive, and I wish the amp
offered more bass-friendly features, but
nevertheless, the resulting tone is well
worth exploring. It was a blast being
able to pull my nice preamps out of
their long-held spots in my home-studio
rack and take them out for a night
on the town.
BAG END PD10BX-D
Direct $1,800
Pros Delicious tone; ability to use high-end
studio-grade preamps.
Cons Speakon power cable is inconvenient;
heavy.
TECH SPECS
Cabinet
Speakers 2x10" Bag End drivers with
coaxial AX-HI titanium compression tweeter
Impedance 4Ω
Power handling 400 watts continuous,
1,600 watts peak
Weight 75 lbs
Minima One amplifier
Power rating 1,000 watts @ 4Ω
DI output XLR THRU jack
Power amp topology Class D
Power supply Switchmode
Made in U.S.A.
Warranty Electronics, 2 years; cabinet, 6 years
Contact www.bagend.com
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