Head and Horizontal 2x12 Stand/Prop

[treillw]

I have a head and horizontal 2x12 cabinet. I'm trying to figure out the best way to tilt the cabinet back without some sort of rig job that risks the whole setup falling over. I'd like to keep the head on top of the cabinet, as long as its safe there. I want to tilt it back so I can turn it up louder and get the sound out of peoples faces and up into the big open room. Also, I have a hard time hearing myself sometimes with all the sound down at my ankles.

What has worked best for you?

Thank you.

 

[László]

Unfortunately, I can't figure out a way to tilt a cab back and put the head on top safely, unless one uses an old Fender piggyback mounting rig. So here's what I do in the studio; the cab is tilted slightly on an Isoacoustics stand that decouples the cab from the floor and tilts it back (further tilt is possible). The head is simply sitting on a printer stand I have:

 

[Egads]

I use an amp stand that gets the cab about 18" off the ground, and slightly tilted back. On the stand that tilts the most, I hang the feet of the head over the front edge of the cab (with a cloth between the cab and head to help reduce some of the vibrations).

I don't get why Fender's old piggy back attachments and tilt legs never caught on and have all but disappeared. I've never gigged with an old Fender piggy back, so I don't know if there were issues that aren't obvious to me now. I think the tilt legs were/are genius.

 

[László]

I use an amp stand that gets the cab about 18" off the ground, and slightly tilted back. On the stand that tilts the most, I hang the feet of the head over the front edge of the cab (with a cloth between the cab and head to help reduce some of the vibrations).

I don't get why Fender's old piggy back attachments and tilt legs never caught on and have all but disappeared. I've never gigged with an old Fender piggy back, so I don't know if there were issues that aren't obvious to me now. I think the tilt legs were/are genius.

Oh they caught on plenty in the early and mid 60s. Lots of bands used them, including mine. They were hugely popular. But they went out of style in the era of half stacks, etc.

 

[Dancing Frog]

Unfortunately, I can't figure out a way to tilt a cab back and put the head on top safely, unless one uses an old Fender piggyback mounting rig. So here's what I do in the studio; the cab is tilted slightly on an Isoacoustics stand that decouples the cab from the floor and tilts it back (further tilt is possible). The head is simply sitting on a printer stand I have:

I like the award that you are using as ballast.

 

[Egads]

Oh they caught on plenty in the early and mid 60s. Lots of bands used them, including mine. They were hugely popular. But they went out of style in the era of half stacks, etc.

Yeah, I know they were huge...when Fender was the main option (or the aspiration for those that didn't have one). There are and have been (at least since the late 60s) more combos out there. Why no tilt legs? They take up so little space and weight compared to a separate stand, and they are always there!

That's it! I'm bringing them back! And fat ties, too!

 

[CoreyT]

I always drooled over these stands as a kid.

 

[aristotle]

I have a head and horizontal 2x12 cabinet. I'm trying to figure out the best way to tilt the cabinet back without some sort of rig job that risks the whole setup falling over. I'd like to keep the head on top of the cabinet, as long as its safe there. I want to tilt it back so I can turn it up louder and get the sound out of peoples faces and up into the big open room. Also, I have a hard time hearing myself sometimes with all the sound down at my ankles.

What has worked best for you?


Thank you.

I've always had my eye out for something like this, but never found it. I see some of the pics above, but what the OP wants (at least what I want) is the traditional tilt back stand with a couple of arms that go forward for support underneath that tilts the amp up. They're used for combo amps and they have one or more poles going up in the back that supports the amp back. Works fine for combo's, but put a cab and a head on one o those and the whole thing is a cattywampus affair. The support arms in the back would need to telescope high enough that it supports the back of the head so that it doesn't go sliding off.

In the end, I just turn my 2x12 sideways so that it has more vertical dimension which seems to bring the sound off of the floor better... Has the advantage that it takes up less stage space also...

 

[László]

I like the award that you are using as ballast.

Ha! Gotta put it somewhere!

It's an award for a TV documentary I scored. The documentary won an Emmy, too!

 

[sergiodeblanc]

I always drooled over these stands as a kid.

I had a Berkley II with that stand on the cab... I should've just sold the head.:bawling:

 

[CoreyT]

That is for sure.

This is where I first saw Vox amps and the stands.

 

[Daniel]

The Crate "V" series from a few years back had tilt-back legs on the cabs and inserts in the top of the cabs where the head bolted in place via small removable brackets. It was a pretty tidy setup.

 

[Egads]

The Crate "V" series from a few years back had tilt-back legs on the cabs and inserts in the top of the cabs where the head bolted in place via small removable brackets. It was a pretty tidy setup.

Cool! I like it.

At the least tilt back legs need to make a comeback.

 

[Boogie]

The Fender design always seemed to work best. Metal legs on the combos that did the job well. But on the bigger amps (Showman, Bassman, etc.) they had the knurled thumb screws and brackets to attach the head to the cab but no good means of tilting the whole rig. To be fair, the bassman 4x12 cab is like over 4' tall, so it was unnecesary but my Bandmaster cab had the same design on a monstrous 2x12. Totally unnecessary considering it was only a couple of inches shorter than the Bassman 4x12.

The amp stands made for combos are good for smaller cabs but can get really unstable. Anymore, we usually play at a volume level that makes it easier for me to hear myself despite the cab format and orientation. When in doubt, turn up. :biggrin:

 

[CoreyT]

Hey Boogie, my first real tube amp was a Bandmaster head, and I remember the cab was HUGE, but only had 2 12s in it.
Got that used back around '72 or '73, and sold it around late '82.

 

[treillw]

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[TD]So it looks like my best bet is probably to just build one, unless any more ideas come through. I haven't found any for sale that would do what I'm after. I could do it pretty easily - my dad is a machinist and we have all kinds of wood and metal working machines.
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[László]

Here is a stand that looks to be very well made; it also folds up, has a shelf for the amp head, and a built in guitar stand:

http://atlas-stands.com/custom-orders/amp-stands/low-rider/



The only issue for me is that it's very expensive.

 

[CoreyT]

The Atlas stands are very nice.
I use to follow the makers thread over on the Gibson board, as he posts quite often there, and has a ton of designs.
I do not frequent the Gibson board so much anymore.

 

[Egads]

That Atlas stand is sofa king cool!

Corey and Boogie: I, too, had a '60s bandmaster head and cab. If you stood the cab on end, it would put the top 12" speaker at about chest level! I only gigged with it for a brief period before going to a more modern 2x12 combo. Dealing with that bandmaster was almost as bad as a 4x12!

 

[Boogie]

Hey Boogie, my first real tube amp was a Bandmaster head, and I remember the cab was HUGE, but only had 2 12s in it.
Got that used back around '72 or '73, and sold it around late '82.

Corey and Boogie: I, too, had a '60s bandmaster head and cab. If you stood the cab on end, it would put the top 12" speaker at about chest level! I only gigged with it for a brief period before going to a more modern 2x12 combo. Dealing with that bandmaster was almost as bad as a 4x12!

That cab is awesome huge! Cavernous inside, too. I bought it unloaded in about '85 when I bought my Twin II. Only had some Celestion G12M-70s for it. Horrible speakers but still loved the cab. It's about to get reloaded again, but not to gig...I'm too damned old for that!

With that said, the Bassman 4x12 with stock Jensens is the sh*t!! It's bigger (way over 100lbs) and on casters but it is one of my fav guitar amps of all time. The DGT thru it cranked is pure coolness.