got that old JCM800 cab today!

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soc_monki

soc_monki

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he didnt know exact year, but its probably between an 83 and 85 cab, lets just say 84! original G12m70s, tolex is rough on the back, few places on the front, but other than that its solid! lighter than my Laney (wasnt expecting that...), has casters (yay!), but plastic handles. ill deal with the handles, because the cab rocks! i know lots of people hate the M70s, "Celestions worst speaker" and all that. in my Laney they were just ok, i never really had a problem with them, but in the Marshall its a WHOLE 'nother story. the only similar sound to the 70s i had is the midrange...which is weird. it was always weird with my Laney cab, not bad, just unusual compared to other speakers. the top end on the Laney could get tiresome (front loaded cab) but the bottom end was always tight.

with the Marshall, i guess being rear loaded makes a difference. the top end is ratty (i like!), but not too piercing, mids are about the same, maybe a little softer, and the bottom is not as tight, but a little deeper, more defined. weird, but hey, different cabs, different resonance, rear vs front loaded. the thing is, this cab sounds GOOD! of course, im going for a high gain, metal sound. 80's type, with a little modern edge. this cab works for that, the speakers work for it, and the Ultra Plus is on the money. :rock: i was thinking i may have to put in 2 different speakers to balance out the 70s, but i dont think that will be necessary. im pretty happy with it as it is! and of course, the obligatory pic!

marshallcab.jpg


btw, stupid photobucket keeps rotating the pic...sorry! ill try to fix it! already tried once...blah!
 
those speakers are shit IMHO!

and, for the record, my 800 cab is all original, and had celestion 100 watters in them. i have no idea what marshall may have sent different cabs out with back then though.

you should try something diffferent in there for 100$ (like vin 30's, t75s, even 80's) and my guess is you'll dump those 70s.
 
Are there better speakers? Yes. I would have liked the 75s but im not gonna complain. This cab isnt bad with them! I have 2 wgs 75s in my laney and theyre nice, i may end up throwing some in this cab too. But at the moment im happy. Well see how it goes!
 
yeti":9urh6sob said:
those speakers are shit IMHO!

and, for the record, my 800 cab is all original, and had celestion 100 watters in them. i have no idea what marshall may have sent different cabs out with back then though.

you should try something diffferent in there for 100$ (like vin 30's, t75s, even 80's) and my guess is you'll dump those 70s.
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just an update, while the 70s are certainly usable speakers, ive decided to replace them. i used to dig the tone i got with them, but ive been enjoying my WGS HM75's in my Laney cab much more. found 2 Celestion g12t75s on ebay, and have ordered 2 WGS Retro 30's to complement them. im taking a stab in the dark with the Retro 30s, i hope i like them, but if i dont ill exchange them for HM75s, no harm done.

so this cab should really be rocking in a short while. what really opened my eyes was not only the difference of tone with my Laney cab and this cab, but also a speaker shootout i came across on HCAF. V30, T75, Lead 80, Sheffield 1230 (i have one in the Laney) and 1200, the M70, and the Veteran 30. all the speakers sounded good, except the M70. all mids, no top or bottom at all. the Shef 1200s were pretty high endy, the 1230 not so bad (and i could get them for cheap but...) the WGS and T75s were the best. and listening to clips of the Retro 30 vs. Vet 30, i went with the Retros. well see how it goes!
 
If you like 75's, then you'll love the Retro's. The Retro is like a 75 and V30 melted together. Only the highs are smoother than the 75, and the mids are less grating than a V30. The Retro's lows are deep and tight as well.
 
cool! sounds like i made the right choice. just kills me not to play on this old cab, simply because it doesnt sound as good as my other cab. it has wheels though...lol
 
Glad you are dumping the G12M70's, about the only thing IMO they are good for is sending them to scumback for a recone. :)

As for the handles, scumback has some nice metal handles if you don't want to deal with the plastic ones. http://www.scumbackspeakers.com/handles.html
 
Hmm does reconing make them better? Lol. Ill keep an eye on the handles. Since this cab has wheels they probably wont be under much stress. Still, if they break at least there are alternatives!
 
soc_monki":2h4jozna said:
Hmm does reconing make them better? Lol. Ill keep an eye on the handles. Since this cab has wheels they probably wont be under much stress. Still, if they break at least there are alternatives!
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Jim will recone the speakers into M75 types, the G12M70's are not on his list, but I bet they would work. May not be worth it though as reconning is $100 per speaker, might be better to just sell them and move on. :)

http://www.scumbackspeakers.com/recones.html
 
blackba":im3y2xqh said:
soc_monki":im3y2xqh said:
Hmm does reconing make them better? Lol. Ill keep an eye on the handles. Since this cab has wheels they probably wont be under much stress. Still, if they break at least there are alternatives!
Click to expand...

Jim will recone the speakers into M75 types, the G12M70's are not on his list, but I bet they would work. May not be worth it though as reconning is $100 per speaker, might be better to just sell them and move on. :)

http://www.scumbackspeakers.com/recones.html
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good to know...but yea, not worth it when i can get WGS speakers (i really love the HM75s!) for 70 a pop brand new. and Celestion G12T75s for 50-60 on the bay. went with Celestions this time, and the Retro 30s, to have something different than whats in my Laney, even though they are similar! hmmm i wonder what i could get for 4 G12m70s on the bay...? 40 bucks a pop maybe? LOL
 
Metalone72":1rbfxeu0 said:
Just get some scumbacks :thumbsup:
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i may try them later, but i really do like the WGS speakers. always open for different options though!
 
my 84 JCM800 cab is all original and has G12T75 Celestion's in them...great soundign cab paired with a 2203 w/6550 's
 
soc_monki":y00iw9d1 said:
hmmm i wonder what i could get for 4 G12m70s on the bay...? 40 bucks a pop maybe? LOL
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oddly enough,
those m70's go for more than 40$ a pop on ebay. i've seen them go for 75$ for just one.

i've debated putting mine on ebay, but, i have them in a combo amp that i converted to an extension cab (it was a crate amp scored for 10$ at a garage sale a while ago). and, again, oddly enough, with open back and that front ported open spot, they really breathe at higher volumes and dont sound bad at all.
 
They dont sound bad at high volume, but you need to push them hard! Lol
 
soc_monki":8dgo4uoe said:
They dont sound bad at high volume, but you need to push them hard! Lol
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you are right there, but they are lacking in everything but mids!

lower volumes, it seems like they only sound decent with clean sounds.....and with solid state setups at any volume....maybe they were designed with that in mind, to make up for the harsher frequencies of solid state power and preamp combinations.

still though, i'd just sell them on ebay!
 
funny you say that they are lacking in mids...i find them to be ALL mids! i even have a speaker comparison that says the same...not on my comp at the moment, but when i get home ill post the link. its nuts how deficient in highs and lows, and how prominent in mids they are. i found the same with my experience. and i used to run the mids at 7 on my 5150 with them. i shake my head now, because my tone ideas have changed...still love lots of mids, but man...i guess i was just used to too much! LOL

as for the solid state thing, i think i read that Marshall used them because they were a more neutral speaker, and since they were putting out SS amps they chose a speaker that would work for both tube and SS, to save costs or something like that. ive heard a lot of people got good SS tones out of them, and maybe they work great for that, but i dont have a SS amp to try! good to know they can be sold for a good chunk...might make me a little dough! :rock:
 
update...not at home, like i said, but couldnt sleep and looked up my tracking for my WGS speakers. theyre already at the house...they arrived yesterday :-o talk about fast shipping. my G12t75s still havent arrived, and wont until at least monday. maybe ill load up the 2 speakers and see how they sound tomorrow night? haha!
 
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