a good 2x12 or 4x12 cab

inverted5150

inverted5150

Member
Hello all.

So I got myself a Digitech 300 Power amp. the price was right and it is actually very good...very transparent.

My Question is that I'm looking for a good Cab to complement my axe fxii. I'm kind of a Van Halen, Extreme, Metallica, Whitesnake type player. I have a Line 6 cab right now that I CAN"T WAIT TO GET RID OF.

What would you recommend for a good Cab (4x12 or 2x12) that won't break the bank but has a good Rock tone.

thank you for your time.
 
I'd recommend spending $38 ($19 x 2) on Ownhammer IR's. Get the 2x12 Vintage cab and the 4x12 Modern cab sets. Tons of fantastic tones for next to nothing.

I've still got a 70's large check Marshall 4x12 with GB's in it I haven't sold off, but the Ownhammer stuff sounds so good, and gives me so many choices of speakers, that I haven't touched the real cab in months
 
If you're on a tight budget, I would recommend heading to the local music shop and seeing what they have for used cabs. You can't go too wrong with a good old V30 cab for rock, as long as they're solidly built and have the right internal dimensions. There's lots of them out there - Mesa, Marshall, Bogner, Engl, etc. - and a few good scrapes in the tolex can bring the price down to practically nothing. When I was getting started I bought a beat up old Ampeg guitar cab (with V30s) for $150 from Daddy's in Boston; that was 10 years ago and the cab still sounds great.

Probably the best advice I can give is to make sure to bring your rack with you when you try cabs. It can be hard to arrange, but the only way to know what a cab will sound like for you is to try it with your rig, your guitar, and at gig/rehearsal volume. As long as you don't play Smoke On The Water, the guys at the shop will probably let you get away with being loud for a few minutes...
 
I can recommend a few from my experience.
Carvin 2x12 with v30, I own 2 and I run them with my Matrix GT1000FX, the sound is a killer! they are very cheap and lightweight compared to other 2x12 out there.
I also use in the studio an old Marshall slant 4x12, its nice / ok, can take an abuse, not more than that.
I have fantastic experience with ENGL 4x12 (v30) I've used it a lot in the studio, MESA Rectifier 4x12 (v30) and MESA Rectifier 2x12.
Whatever you choose, stay away from the MESA 2x12 Compact and the Carvin 412VB 4x12 with standard speakers (not the v30), they sound muffled and dark like someone has put a blanket on them.
Good luck.
 
If you want to take it a notch up - sound wise - the matrix nl212 is the best cab ever! It is absolutely the best passive cab I have tried! I've tried loads of 4x12's and neither of them delivers the same as the nl212!!
 
Many of the older Peavey cabs came with Celestion 80's or 85's. The older peavey cabs are also better built than marshal cabs. I picked mine by taking my rig down to a guitar store and plugging into EVERY 4x12 they had...for ME the older Peavey was leaps and bounds better than every other cab.
 
If your going to go with a traditional guita cab I would look at Avatar speakers, great cabs at very reasonable prices order them with the speakers you want (+1 on the vintage 30's for those tones). If you have a fair amount of cash Port City cabs are killer. The ported 212 OS is huge sounding but you also have to spend a little more...well twice as much.

Personally if you don't gig and just a bedroom player and looking to have a lot of versatility FR is the ticket other wise give Avatar a call best bang for the buck IMHO.
 
I can't recommend the Matrix FR212 enough,
you can then use the full might of FRFR cabs packs,

where as if you go traditional cab cab sims are off the menu !!
but with the FRFR you can have it all lol

G \../
 
Lots of great info so far.....thank you for those who have responded....I am taking notes :).

Whats your opinions on cabs with a mix of speakers...like a 4x12 with two greenbacks and 2 v30s for example?

The Line 6 Cab I have has v30s in it....was wondering if there would be any advantage to just re-speakering it? Also....how much of a difference does the cab box itself make vs the speakers that are in it.

Sorry for such novice questions.

thanks again
 
inverted5150 said:
Lots of great info so far.....thank you for those who have responded....I am taking notes :).

Whats your opinions on cabs with a mix of speakers...like a 4x12 with two greenbacks and 2 v30s for example?

The Line 6 Cab I have has v30s in it....was wondering if there would be any advantage to just re-speakering it? Also....how much of a difference does the cab box itself make vs the speakers that are in it.

Sorry for such novice questions.

thanks again
Click to expand...

It all boils down to what you like in a cab. Some like that mix of speakers some don't. Is the Line 6 cab an open back? If so that will play a huge part in how the cab sounds and for those tones a closed back is going to be a lot better at keeping the low end tight and focused. Everything in a cab build will contribute to how it sounds, speakers wattage, dopped vrs. non-dopped paper used down to the type of wood and grill cloth used.

This can turn into a very large rabbit hole that your getting ready to fall into if your not careful :lol

Do you gig? are you a bed room player... both? what are you looking to accomplish with the cab? Basic questions that will yield some good answers from peps that have been their done that, that can help you fine what your looking for a lot quicker or help you avoid falling in too deep to that hole ;) .
 
Ive always gone back to my JCM900 B cab. I have a splawn 4x12 and played through a mesa oversized v30 cab. But id be lying if i didnt want one of those unpowered FRFR matrix 2x12's
 
waylander69 said:
I can't recommend the Matrix FR212 enough,
you can then use the full might of FRFR cabs packs,

where as if you go traditional cab cab sims are off the menu !!
but with the FRFR you can have it all lol

G \../
Click to expand...

Have to agree on this one. The FR212 is a masterpiece.
 
Avatar makes great cabs. the Mesa Recto 2x12 has been my go to 2X12 for years.
the Carvin Legacy 2X12 is also a very good 2X12 that can be had cheap.
It comes in 2 versions one with green backs one with V30's both are very good for short cash (used)
4X12's the Marshall 1960 cabs can be had for short money off of craigs list 7 days a week.
X pattern V30's and green backs or V30's and G12H30 or (G12H-65) all sound really good.
 
Thank you all for great input and info. Truly great knowledge here!

So now my interest has been aimed at the Matrix Stuff (thanks to you guys). So one last question. I like to play in Stereo....would you all go with 2 NL12s.....or a Single NL212?

Thanks much!
 
I would go 2x NL12 and spread them apart. You also have the option of using just one.

inverted5150 said:
Thank you all for great input and info. Truly great knowledge here!

So now my interest has been aimed at the Matrix Stuff (thanks to you guys). So one last question. I like to play in Stereo....would you all go with 2 NL12s.....or a Single NL212?

Thanks much!
Click to expand...
 
inverted5150 said:
So now my interest has been aimed at the Matrix Stuff (thanks to you guys). So one last question. I like to play in Stereo....would you all go with 2 NL12s.....or a Single NL212?

Thanks much!
Click to expand...

I have been running the NL212 in stereo with the GT800FX every since they arrived and it's a great solution. Plenty of wide stereo definition, plus you only have to haul one cab around.
 
Do you guys use cab IRs with the Matrix NL cabs or are they meant to sound enough like guitar cabs that IRs aren't necessary?
 
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