Silenced Fred Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 I think there is a topic that I don't think gets enough credit, and that is cabinets and cables. People drop thousands of dollars on a guitar, a good chunk of money on an amp (especially heads) then use a cheap cable and a cheap cabinet. How important are cabinets? Construction wise, speaker wise, etc. Same goes for cables. Just a thought... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVOL! Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 Can't speak too much on cabinets since mine is press board. Hey, it was made by Sears in the sixties. Cable wise, I think good cables come into play when you graduate from plug in & play to having a full arsenal of pedals. My goal is to upgrade to oxygen free copper cables by end of year. At the very least the cable from my guitar to pedal board and from my pedal board to my amp are no O2 Cu. I don't think you have to become obsessive with this, but good cables, understanding true bypass & buffering pedals, and pedal order can go a long way to taking your tone from pretty good to killer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwness Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 Great question. I started about 10 years ago buying 2x12 cabs. I now have 4. 2 Marshall 1936's and 2 Orange ppc2x12's. You can not believe the difference in tone. All have different speakers. I have greenbacks in one marshall and 75's in the other. The orange have Vintage 30's and I just put celestion blues in the other. Each one of my heads sounds different due to the wattage they can handle and when they start to break up. I old JTM 50 I hardly used any more because it is so loud (I know you can relate to that). I plug it into the green back or the blues and I don't have to drive it as much. Quieter and much more useable. I know all can't do this but you can buy a 4x12 and put 4 different speakers and 4 inputs. and have 4 different sounds. RockON CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silenced Fred Posted March 30, 2010 Author Share Posted March 30, 2010 Can't speak too much on cabinets since mine is press board. Hey' date=' it was made by Sears in the sixties. Cable wise, I think good cables come into play when you graduate from [i']plug in & play[/i] to having a full arsenal of pedals. My goal is to upgrade to oxygen free copper cables by end of year. At the very least the cable from my guitar to pedal board and from my pedal board to my amp are no O2 Cu. I don't think you have to become obsessive with this, but good cables, understanding true bypass & buffering pedals, and pedal order can go a long way to taking your tone from pretty good to killer. I was just wondering since so much emphasis is put on amp and guitar, how important are the other components? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichCI Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 Cables: Players either the hear a difference between different cables or they don't. Those that do hear differences will seek out what they feel sound for them best; those that don't think that paying a few extra bucks for a cable is a waste of money because they believe they all sound the same. Those that hear a difference believe that those who don't are deaf and those that don't hear a difference believe that those who do are nuts. I fall into the group that hears differences in cables and I'm willing to pay extra within reason. I like George L's because they retain high frequencies better than anything else I've tried and their prices, while higher than average, won't break the bank or make me too upset when they break (and ALL cables fail eventually). Cabinets: Depends on your needs really. I really like the Mesa 3/4 back 2x12 I use with my band - it's relatively light and the back is open enough to make my sound more spacious but it's still tight enough to retain enough low end "whomp." Having it project sound out the back also makes it easier for my drummer to hear what I'm playing no matter where I have my rig set up relative to where he is. I have another 2x12 cab that I've been thinking about bringing in but it is a HEAVY ported one that was actually designed for PA use. However, it's built like a tank, very tight sounding and low frequencies really fly out of those ports; you can bang on it with a hammer and it doesn't resonate whatsoever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silenced Fred Posted March 30, 2010 Author Share Posted March 30, 2010 Great question. I started about 10 years ago buying 2x12 cabs. I now have4. 2 Marshall 1936's and 2 Orange ppc2x12's. You can not believe the difference in tone. All have different speakers. I have greenbacks in one marshall and 75's in the other. The orange have Vintage 30's and I just put celestion blues in the other. Each one of my heads sounds different due to the wattage they can handle and when they start to break up. I old JTM 50 I hardly used any more because it is so loud (I know you can relate to that). I plug it into the green back or the blues and I don't have to drive it as much. Quieter and much more useable. I know all can't do this but you can buy a 4x12 and put 4 different speakers and 4 inputs. and have 4 different sounds. RockON CW Yeah, I am going to be going to a Guitar Center and a SamAsh hopefully today to bring in my amp, and see what I can get for it. I doubt I will sell it to either, but I have seen them going right around 700 for the Sunn on Craigslist and some other sites. If they say they will give me 600, I will take it, but I highly doubt it. I just wanna see what they will sell it for, then base my price around that, probably take out an ad or something somewhere. 50 watts is freaking loud man, and the sound carries! I had my volume on 2.5 and people in the back of the lunchroom (huge room) said the only guitar they could hear was mine! All the others got washed out with cheap solid state distortion and such. If I wasn't sold on tube before, I am now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deepblue Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 I have overkill, as most of us do here. Theres no way that I need a 4x12 cabinet. But, to me it rocks harder and sounds fuller (and of course pushes more air) then a 2x12. The quality of my Orange is second to none...best I have ever seen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffster Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 My Mesa 1X12 3/4 back with a Celestion/Shadow C-90 is amazing, my other two 1X12 cabs do not measure up. The Mesa is constructed with 7-ply marine grade birch plywood and the interior is finished in industrial webbing paint that makes it that more stiff, that and the finger joints make for a tight cab. Like Rich syas with a 3/4 back you get the best of both worlds. This cab is heavy as hell though 50 pounds for a 1X12 is pretty excessive to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Witmer Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 Cables: Players either the hear a difference between different cables or they don't. Those that do hear differences will seek out what they feel sound for them best; those that don't think that paying a few extra bucks for a cable is a waste of money because they believe they all sound the same. Those that hear a difference believe that those who don't are deaf and those that don't hear a difference believe that those who do are nuts. Very well said... and could also be said about the importance of top wood' date=' fretboard wood, capacitors and pick-guard colors! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetMarie Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 How important are cabinets? Construction wise' date=' speaker wise, etc.Same goes for cables.[/quote'] I guess you're going shopping...there is no sense buying a really good amp and then putting it through a crappy cab. Conversely, a good cabinet can make almost any amp sound better! Amp fashions come and go, but a good cabinet is forever... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MojoRedFoot Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 The only additional advice I can give as far as cabs go, try to get one w/ metal handles. If gig out a lot, plastic handles crack easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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