MESA 80's half-back 4x12's

Fusionbear

Fusionbear

Well-known member
Any idea who designed these cabs? How did they come to the final design?

I find them more direct and punchier than traditional 4x12's. Sometimes I need that, other times not...

I own one and am on the fence as to keeping it or not....lol...
 
True, they have insane punch and gobs of low end but they don't sound very woody or warm at all. As far removed from a 60's Marshall cab as another 4x12 can be.
 
I love mine with mc90s and evs in the bottoms. I did add some panels on the top section so only a third is open. This cab sounds good with any amp I throw at it.

No idea who designed them or the 212 version. I did have the 212 version, but found it very lacking compared to the 412.
 
I took a piece of 3/4 Baltic and made a closed back panel for mine ....... you should hear it with the close back ....

I have two black shadows and two GT-75's in an X .....

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Not sure who designed them, from their catalog they say it’s for punch and generally sounding big. You might find this interesting, it’s from the 84-85 catalog.

THE HALF-BACK CABINETS

Two-Twelve and Four Twelve cabinets have been around for a long time. But if you think MESA/Boogie just imitates the others . . , take a closer look, and listen to the difference First, all our speakers are front mounted for better projection and easier accessability. Second, each cabinet is made entirely of solid "void free" Ma-hagony ply wood. Third, our special "dado" construc tion mounts all the internal pleces- including speaker baffles--into snug fitting grooves for a tighter sound and tremendous road wise durability But there's more: Both the 2 x 12 and 4x 12 are split into separate upper and lower speaker chambers. The upper compartment operates open-back and slopes upward for better projection.

Meanwhile, the lower unit is closed back and in the new 2 x12 it's also ported. The half-open/half-closed Half Back" combination produces a brighter, punchier sound and combines it with plenty of deep, low-end fundamental power. The blended sound produced try these cabinets is a big improvement over standard performance because the low end has more balls and the high end sounds mote open and spacious,

We've taken the idea of blending sounds one step further. by combining different speaker types inside the cahinets. The standard configuration for 2 x 12 and 4 × 12 places our very special Celestions) on top running open back with our Black Shadow (s) in the bottom sealed back section. And by porting the lower section of the 2 x 12, we're able to make this little champion sound much big ger than it looks. And it even looks more intimidating than it is big This new mini-stack is catching on fast with players who want more than a single speaker but less than the quad-box burden . plus it's rated for 240 watts of power! And for a slight extra charge we can install the EVM-12L in place of the Black Shadow. By leaving in the Celestion, a perfect blend of

"Eat-clean plus crunch-mean" is pro-duced. And there is a substantial savings of cost and weight. This is the Neil Schon type combination and it delivers stunning, massive sound. The Half-Back Cabinets are setup to accept an upper back panel--ibich can be attached with just a screwdriver.
 
I screwed up royally a few years back.

I saw one of those 1/2 back metal grill Boogie 4x12 cabs in almost mint condition in a pawnshop for $180, and I passed on it.

I just couldn’t justify having it in my studio.

Stupid me should’ve just bought and flipped it.

Oh Well !!
 
Chubbs said:
Not sure who designed them, from their catalog they say it’s for punch and generally sounding big. You might find this interesting, it’s from the 84-85 catalog.

THE HALF-BACK CABINETS

Two-Twelve and Four Twelve cabinets have been around for a long time. But if you think MESA/Boogie just imitates the others . . , take a closer look, and listen to the difference First, all our speakers are front mounted for better projection and easier accessability. Second, each cabinet is made entirely of solid "void free" Ma-hagony ply wood. Third, our special "dado" construc tion mounts all the internal pleces- including speaker baffles--into snug fitting grooves for a tighter sound and tremendous road wise durability But there's more: Both the 2 x 12 and 4x 12 are split into separate upper and lower speaker chambers. The upper compartment operates open-back and slopes upward for better projection.

Meanwhile, the lower unit is closed back and in the new 2 x12 it's also ported. The half-open/half-closed Half Back" combination produces a brighter, punchier sound and combines it with plenty of deep, low-end fundamental power. The blended sound produced try these cabinets is a big improvement over standard performance because the low end has more balls and the high end sounds mote open and spacious,

We've taken the idea of blending sounds one step further. by combining different speaker types inside the cahinets. The standard configuration for 2 x 12 and 4 × 12 places our very special Celestions) on top running open back with our Black Shadow (s) in the bottom sealed back section. And by porting the lower section of the 2 x 12, we're able to make this little champion sound much big ger than it looks. And it even looks more intimidating than it is big This new mini-stack is catching on fast with players who want more than a single speaker but less than the quad-box burden . plus it's rated for 240 watts of power! And for a slight extra charge we can install the EVM-12L in place of the Black Shadow. By leaving in the Celestion, a perfect blend of

"Eat-clean plus crunch-mean" is pro-duced. And there is a substantial savings of cost and weight. This is the Neil Schon type combination and it delivers stunning, massive sound. The Half-Back Cabinets are setup to accept an upper back panel--ibich can be attached with just a screwdriver.
Click to expand...
I knew they weren't birch plywood, but I'm surprised Mesa used mahogany.
 
I have mine loaded with Scumback H75, M75 on the bottom half and Scumback J75PVC, M75 on the top half. It sounds ferocious with my Splawn Competition! Perfect for hard rock and metal...:rawk:
 
I had one of these Mesa Mark Series 4x12s for most of my club / cover days. Mine was loaded with 90 watt Mesa Black Shadows, and I had the optional upper panel installed - I thought it was just too bright with the top speakers open back.

Truth? I absolutely never, ever bonded with that cab. Always sounded brittle and cold. I remember a/b ing my head (Mark-III) between that Mesa cab and a Bogner straight-front with UK V-30s in it. This was in the early 90s at Andy Brauer’s Make’n Music in North Hollywood. Literal Night and Day difference. The Bogner was so much warmer and fuller sounding - without touching a knob on the amp. I sold that Mesa cab the very same week and bought the Bogner.

I’ve always preferred straight front to slant cabs - I like the feel of having all 4 speakers moving air in the same plane, so to speak. And I‘ve always preferred closed back to open back cabs. So going with a smaller, more compact cab, separating the top from the bottom, slanting the top, and going open back just checks every ‘no thank you’ box on my list.

And I stipulate, that old Mesa cab may have sounded much better with different speakers in it.
 
Chubbs said:
Not sure who designed them, from their catalog they say it’s for punch and generally sounding big. You might find this interesting, it’s from the 84-85 catalog.

THE HALF-BACK CABINETS

Two-Twelve and Four Twelve cabinets have been around for a long time. But if you think MESA/Boogie just imitates the others . . , take a closer look, and listen to the difference First, all our speakers are front mounted for better projection and easier accessability. Second, each cabinet is made entirely of solid "void free" Ma-hagony ply wood. Third, our special "dado" construc tion mounts all the internal pleces- including speaker baffles--into snug fitting grooves for a tighter sound and tremendous road wise durability But there's more: Both the 2 x 12 and 4x 12 are split into separate upper and lower speaker chambers. The upper compartment operates open-back and slopes upward for better projection.

Meanwhile, the lower unit is closed back and in the new 2 x12 it's also ported. The half-open/half-closed Half Back" combination produces a brighter, punchier sound and combines it with plenty of deep, low-end fundamental power. The blended sound produced try these cabinets is a big improvement over standard performance because the low end has more balls and the high end sounds mote open and spacious,

We've taken the idea of blending sounds one step further. by combining different speaker types inside the cahinets. The standard configuration for 2 x 12 and 4 × 12 places our very special Celestions) on top running open back with our Black Shadow (s) in the bottom sealed back section. And by porting the lower section of the 2 x 12, we're able to make this little champion sound much big ger than it looks. And it even looks more intimidating than it is big This new mini-stack is catching on fast with players who want more than a single speaker but less than the quad-box burden . plus it's rated for 240 watts of power! And for a slight extra charge we can install the EVM-12L in place of the Black Shadow. By leaving in the Celestion, a perfect blend of

"Eat-clean plus crunch-mean" is pro-duced. And there is a substantial savings of cost and weight. This is the Neil Schon type combination and it delivers stunning, massive sound. The Half-Back Cabinets are setup to accept an upper back panel--ibich can be attached with just a screwdriver.
Click to expand...

Gotta love Mesa ad copy.
 
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