Good 1x12 Cab?

[harddriver]

People seem to like the Friedman or the EVH 1x12 cabs from past reviews.

I think all the Mesa single non-theile 1x12 cabs should be marine birch like their 4x12's and you should be able to find those pretty cheap used.

 

[Anje]

If your final goal is to play the speakers in a 4x12, I'd just mount whatever speaker(s) you want to asses in one of those 4x12s, only wiring the speaker(s) you want to try.
It would make it easier and more cost effective to compare several different speakers in the same cab (just switch the wiring to each different type of speaker), and would probably sound closer to the final 4x12 config. You could even make a specific back panel with x4 different jacks, to be able to quickly switch between 4 different speakers in the same 4x12.

 

[The~Kid]

Ok, the cheapest cab I can find, new or used, is a PRS Archon 1x12 for $379 with free shipping. No way am I paying $600 - $700 for a 1x12 though. If the (used) Friedman is that much better than the others, I might grab that one. Not sure if a 1x12 would benefit form a port or not, considering my goal isn't to use the cab for actual playing, just to demo speakers to see if I like them for a 4x12?

PRS Archon: $379
PRS MT: $450
Friedman: $560 (used) or $700 (new)
Hiwatt: (front ported) $475
WEM: (same as Hiwatt) $440
EVH 5150 III: $470
Mesa Rectifier "23": $600
Suhr: $640
Soldano: $700

The Archon is mdf though.


Youre better off getting the 112 by Peavey with a V30 or Greenback.

 

[The~Kid]

People seem to like the Friedman or the EVH 1x12 cabs from past reviews.

I think all the Mesa single non-theile 1x12 cabs should be marine birch like their 4x12's and you should be able to find those pretty cheap used.

EVH 112 or Mesa 112 are nice too.

 

[thegame]

The more speakers in a single enclosure, the more potential for some frequencies to build and for others to be attenuated. E.g even a crappy modern g12t-75 won’t come across nearly as scooped in a 1x12 as it does in a 4x12.

 

[Chris6870]

I have the H&K 1x12 I would sell you.
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...zIY3Q3DYGS4ZBr0av31DMRuMspBvyYsoaAu01EALw_wcB

 

[The~Kid]

I have the H&K 1x12 I would sell you.
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...zIY3Q3DYGS4ZBr0av31DMRuMspBvyYsoaAu01EALw_wcB

It's nice but smaller for most larger heads. The EVH 112 is small too in that sense.


Mesa and Peavey offer slightly bigger cabs that are worth it.

 

[The~Kid]

PRS cabs that use plywood should be the Mark Tremonti model and the Dave Grissom if your looking at 112 options.

 

[FourT6and2]

If your final goal is to play the speakers in a 4x12, I'd just mount whatever speaker(s) you want to asses in one of those 4x12s, only wiring the speaker(s) you want to try.
It would make it easier and more cost effective to compare several different speakers in the same cab (just switch the wiring to each different type of speaker), and would probably sound closer to the final 4x12 config. You could even make a specific back panel with x4 different jacks, to be able to quickly switch between 4 different speakers in the same 4x12.

Actually, not a bad idea.

 

[Braciola]

Actually, not a bad idea.

I load 4 speakers I want to compare in a straight 4X12 cab.
I then have a thick piece of cardboard that fits over the front grill of the cab.
The cardboard sheet has a cut-out exposing one speaker.
I just rotate the cardboard to select which speaker I want to hear.
Been doing this for years to A/ B speakers and it works great.
Just make sure to angle the 4x12 cab against the wall so that all speakers are shooting straight up towards your face.

 

[FourT6and2]

I load 4 speakers I want to compare in a straight 4X12 cab.
I then have a thick piece of cardboard that fits over the front grill of the cab.
The cardboard sheet has a cut-out exposing one speaker.
I just rotate the cardboard to select which speaker I want to hear.
Been doing this for years to A/ B speakers and it works great.
Just make sure to angle the 4x12 cab against the wall so that all speakers are shooting straight up towards your face.

I could also just wire the speakers to a 4-way rotary switch.

 

[FourT6and2]

I think it would yield too many false positive and false negative determinations by testing speakers that way for use in a 412.

How so. You install a speaker and see if it sounds decent. I'm talking about timbre here, not low-end response or how loose/tight it is or anything like that affected by the enclosure. Y'all do realize that many albums have been recorded with 1x12s right? Close mic'd or isolation cabs. A 4x12 isn't needed when all you're recording is an area the size of a quarter right off the dust cap. Same should be true for simply seeing if the tone of a speaker is good enough before committing to buying four of them.

 

[Techdeth]

Jet City cabs make good 1x12 cheap . Also the Blackheart 1x12 is a killer closed back 1x12 cheap

 

[romanianreaper]

Orange 1x12

I have 2 of them. I see them under $300 used often.

Yes it has less bass than a 4x12. But the closed 1x 12 cab reacts and feels more like a 4x12 closed back in the bass. For me the more compressed feel of a speaker in a closed cab is more important than the extended looser bass, breathy feel of a open cab. I have a few of each. Speakers behavior is just very different in a closed cab. Regardless if it is s 1, 2 or 4x12

I feel certain speakers just work better in a open cab. Like the Celestion CL- 80 and Eminence AR-75.

I have the same and love it!

 

[andrewd]

I load 4 speakers I want to compare in a straight 4X12 cab.
I then have a thick piece of cardboard that fits over the front grill of the cab.
The cardboard sheet has a cut-out exposing one speaker.
I just rotate the cardboard to select which speaker I want to hear.
Been doing this for years to A/ B speakers and it works great.
Just make sure to angle the 4x12 cab against the wall so that all speakers are shooting straight up towards your face.

This is actually a very brilliant idea

 

[NinjaRaf]

I've had a few over the years. The Laney IRT 112 is nice because its bigger and more resonant than other 112 cabs. EVH 112 is pretty standard, I guess. Mesa Recto, too, if you just kinda need a 112. But these weren't my favorite. Ironically the best one I've had was from a seller on ebay called capajnr. Great, and cheap. Currently, his cabs are running around $150, all birch ply with tolex.

 

[Greazygeo]

I have a Mesa 1-12 cab with about 2/3 open back. When I want the closed back sound I just set it close to a wall. Same with my open back 2-12’s at gigs. If I need more low end, they sit closer to the wall, sometimes a hardshell guitar case behind.

 

[Music&Chaos]

It is not going to transfer the way you are thinking it is, I have essentially had a friend do this already.

They did it with a single and then a 2x12 and tried to use that to decide what to stick the 4x12 with. Didn't work. Had to experiment with them inside of the cabinet.

You can fill the empty slots with other speakers that aren't connected or connect them all and then individually mic them and listen to them back in the cab possibly but....

The only way I have truly found is in live application in the actual physical cabinet I'm question.

 

[Music&Chaos]

For example, I have a closed back 2x12 and the same exact speakers and everything sound very different in my other 2x12 and I dislike it but love the other....with the same EXACT set of speakers.

 

[The~Kid]

I mean if it's just for testing speakers..... The 112 EVH or Peavey cabs are an excellent value and can't go wrong with either.