Do casters make a difference in sound?
 

Hello all, I have a question. My bass cab is on casters, but I was told by someone that if the cab was directly one the floor, it would give more bottom to the sound? Does anybody have any experience on this matter?

Lifted off the floor it projects more. On the floor, is more in the floor sound with maybe less projection. Depends on the floor and the height off the floor on casters or without.

Also....
 

Removing FOH assistance from the equation here....

Also, placement of the cabinets can be even more advantageous than the consideration of casters (on or off). As one example: Placing a 2x10 over a 2x12 into a corner can add another +6db as a result of the corner adding to the projection and/or accentuating the lower frequencies.

There are many, many variables here that can impact your sound (good or bad) and I realize placement is usually not an option, however, I'd suggest experimenting with placement and see what works for you.

I have found that when off the floor there is a more even sound, less "boomy," and when on the floor that depending on the room size and characteristics, it will do anything from simply damping the treble response to really resonating, almost to the point of unusable standing waves, certain frequencies from the "coupling" of the cab to the floor.

Thanks guys, where I play, my cab is on carpet, and the carpet is cushioned, so I will just leave the casters on.

castors
 

Hey Desmund,
I used an Eden Metro Combo for a few years (with factory castors) and I would often remove the rear set of wheeels to give the rig a little "tilt-back". This helped me hear myself better and avoided the "coupling" effect a bit.
Any help?
Later, Kirk

It can. The cab will try to move in opposition to the cone motion. This motion can have an effect on low frequencies. One of the reasons for Hi-fi enthusiasts for using spikes. Though casters can reduce mechanical coupling with the floor. If you have casters, better if they lock. You can experiment. You can put the heaviest thing in the house on top of the cab (ask her first) and see if it makes a difference. If you don't notice a difference in the low end with and without casters, nothing to fix.