Cabinets. Should we collect those over amps?

[bodia]

My first cabinet was a DIY I purchased with my tube amp top acoustic Amplification G100T. The speaker was a Celestion G12S 50.

Later I owned a Hughes & Kettner Statesman 4×12 (with four Celestion V30).

Former - more than two decades employee - Hughes & Kettner sound designer Thomas Blug started his own business with BluGuitar.
I bought his miniaturized 100 watts amp Amp 1.

Depicted is the Mercury Edition (on top of the cabinet). Although Blug offers 1×12 cabinets (Nano- and FatCab), but those 60 watts afraid me of colouring the sound of the amp (break-up). Therefore I decided to buy the TwinCab with 150 watts (mono). Mounted are BG-12 speakers.

Enjoying to tour Afghanistan a second time I spend my off duty time somtimes with watching YouTube regarding guitar gear. And I discovered a GBR based company named Barefaced with their innovative Augmented Vent Diffractor back, which supports surrounding sound.
I ordered one and went my own way regarding the speaker. I wanted a neutral speaker (low/no break-up), so the amp could breath his voice.
Barefaced cooperates with Celestion, and the Neo 250 Copperback was the speaker which fulfilled my requirement perfect.

(On top is the Iridium Edition of the Amp 1. Later I sold the Mercury Edition, because I like the overdrive sounds of the Iridium Edition more.)

I compared sounds of the Barefaced with the TwinCab with the Statesman. The smallest offered the richest sound, the biggest was second best. The medium sounded harsh. I sold it to a guy, who liked to get a second TwinCab. Two guys lucky.

End of 2021 we had arranged a local PRS owners meeting. That was the point I got the right push to be straight ahead concerning cabinets.
Two of the guys had their Kammler cabinets with them, one 12" and 10". Kammler is a German based engineer who started to build cabinets a decade ago in Hamburg. Aswell delivering surrounding sound, but with totally different engineering approach. The cabinet and speaker are stiff connected with a construction named Tunator. They sound huge aswell.
Having sold my 2×12, I had a lack of that format.
I asked Dietmar for building me a 2x12 (Big-Bi) with the Celestion Neo 250 Copperback.
But having already a cab with a Neo, it slightly bored me, to have something nearly comparable sounding cabinet.
Dietmar Kammler spoke about his Fusion named cabinet (a housing for a 12" and a 10" speaker). This attracted me, but there was no 10" Neo 250 Copperback available. Which 10" speaker would fit best. We met in Hamburg and partnered different speakers to the Neo 250.
I chose the EVM-10M. Aswell a neutral sounding piece, 200 watts, 8 ohms.

I let paint it with my tag and the scorpion my luthier designed.

W/o grill:

Back:

This is my cab for lifetime.
Old, small, and heavy speaker and new, big and light speaker turned out be perfect to me.

That cab is really nice!

 

[chrisdb]

I got a used ugly speaker loaded with an EVM12L from the 80's or 90's (date label 828, 28th week 1988 or1998). It sounded pretty good with my new PRS HDRX20 but I knew it would look and sound better with the right cabinet. I found a builder ([email protected]) who built the case for a bespoke double stacked Thiele cabinet. The design is for a single speaker and I basically stacked two Thiele cabs one on top of the other. The speaker plans are available open source from ElectroVoice. I loaded the lower speaker with the vintage EVM12L speaker because it weighs about nine pounds more than the Classic. The case made from pine with dovetail finger joints. I finished with the exterior with Tolex and put feet and handles salvaged from the previous cabinet and WOW! It looks and sounds great and the dimensions are ideal for the PRS head..

I have more than a few amps and most of them I will never let go. I can't say I have a favorite because they are all different but this PRS-HDRX and twin EVM12L in a stacked Thiele cabinet is a marriage made in heaven.

 

[RickP]

Speakers/cabs are always going to make a huge contribution to your sound. It is, after all, what you’re actually hearing!

I’ve been a Greenback fan for years, and the Creambacks have that sound (the 65s, I haven’t tried the 75s). Recently, I’ve really been enjoying the tone of Alnico based speakers, such as Celestion Blue and Alnico Cream, and especially the 100w Jensen Blackbird 12s.

For years I used heavy EV speakers because it was the only way to get a loud clean tone without breakup, but now the higher wattage Alnicos cover that ground for me. It’s great how speaker tech keeps advancing.

 

[chrisdb]

some pics

 

[chrisdb]

Speakers/cabs are always going to make a huge contribution to your sound. It is, after all, what you’re actually hearing!

I’ve been a Greenback fan for years, and the Creambacks have that sound (the 65s, I haven’t tried the 75s). Recently, I’ve really been enjoying the tone of Alnico based speakers, such as Celestion Blue and Alnico Cream, and especially the 100w Jensen Blackbird 12s.

For years I used heavy EV speakers because it was the only way to get a loud clean tone without breakup, but now the higher wattage Alnicos cover that ground for me. It’s great how speaker tech keeps advancing.

those EVM speakers are heavy indeed and handle way more power than the PRS-HDRX20 can put out. All of my amps have the speakers they came with-CTS, Jensen, MOJOTone and Weber. When I got the PRS-HDRX20 it was just a head ( reminds me of a joke about a head showing up at a bar..) and I was free to choose, or in my case design my own speaker cab. I was swayed by a youtube speaker "shootout" review from Andertons UK that led me choose the EVM12L . I never played through a Greenback or a Creamback but I've heard a lot of good things about them, in particular the Creamback
BTW- the punch line was "he should have quit while he was a head"

 

[DreamTheaterRules]

I found a builder ([email protected]) who built the case for a bespoke double stacked Thiele cabinet. The design is for a single speaker and I basically stacked two Thiele cabs one on top of the other. The speaker plans are available open source from ElectroVoice.

Cool cabs! Whose choice was it to leave the middle section of the port open? That is what Mesa does, but is not the original Thiele spec. Just curious if it was your choice or the builders.

 

[chrisdb]

Cool cabs! Whose choice was it to leave the middle section of the port open? That is what Mesa does, but is not the original Thiele spec. Just curious if it was your choice or the builders.

good observation...
the builder shipped them with removable blocks in the middle section of the port. I did a quick test run with and without, and I preferred the more open sound with them off. I have them should I want to close the middle port on one or both speakers, but for now I'm quite happy with my tone.

 

[DreamTheaterRules]

good observation...
the builder shipped them with removable blocks in the middle section of the port. I did a quick test run with and without, and I preferred the more open sound with them off. I have them should I want to close the middle port on one or both speakers, but for now I'm quite happy with my tone.

That's great that he did that! Mesa (Randall) said they preferred it without as well, but original spec was with, and some prefer it that way as well. Extra good to have a choice!

 

[Bogner]

I Wish 4x12 Cabinets Would Compress Down To Pedal Size When You Aren't Using Them So You Could Reduce The Square Footage Of Your House By 50% And Still Have All Your Cabs.

 

[Wyzard]

My drinks cabinet is pretty full.

I could see myself getting another one to go with the first; then maybe getting a third, just in case the second one gets close to capacity

 

[Lewguitar]

Cool thread. Fun seeing those old EV's and learning a little about Thiele designed cabs.

I spent the afternoon with Ted Nugent once on his farm in Hell, Michigan.

He hadn't taken on the "kill 'em and grill 'em" right wing persona he later adopted as his identity. He was still cool.

Anyways, he had a '62 brown Fender Deluxe amp with an Electrovoice SR0 12 in it.

And that speaker was so deep he couldn't put the back panels on the amp.

That big white speaker just stuck out the back of the amp an inch or two.

It was his favorite recording amp tho.

I bought one after that.

I liked it too!

 

[Sonic Blue 55]

Dan Armstrong - Man & Guitars

www.danarmstrong.org

I have the Armstrong 15g and 12g. The Cerwin Vega in the 15g disintegrated. The used Chinese Celestion 15" was a good buy but I find it too bright.