thegame
Well-known member
The chafing must have been quite painful
Shask
Well-known member
Yeah, it is this stuff:
https://www.amazon.com/Weather-Stripping-Sliding-Speaker-Dashboard/dp/B07WGTHBSC/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=3OU1GXRC5UAFA&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.xtVZNXhJgsNQI4fpD6QJZtom1gMPfo-FRAj_73mcQFlZqlnnNAwdVv49Q09Qxt-RkxJ2FvCW1bRPxMa_yLFdFuVOeF0RdwLOLxT223rVZowQzzUt8dWSc1h5hUee2-vvql6XuyWXJN_zT0TIK8kxaJlVAkS1PSRVGeSgurnmKdgisRgfo0qOVMw0BCjkhOnksYbFBCUQZ9g3C2bXpn-Tz_VGnUaB60TusUp3S87iWb-HuEs8XqtrIatUfJLvkmzTaP5wxd0ZW4v-Rx6MXOnMMokq2bc0zUZpSLMYcYRVY44.Q7AL--8-jSo66WM2ri3y1SCmUURscNRCU7dFHBOslTs&dib_tag=se&keywords=1/4+weather+stripping&qid=1779509642&sprefix=1/4+weather+,aps,305&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&th=1
I still have a few boxes of it because I bought several before I realized I didn't like it around the back panels, lol.
Anje
Well-known member
Well, what gauge does that make it actually? 
Joke aside, just a reminder to always check your cables/connections first
Joke aside, just a reminder to always check your cables/connections first
Music&Chaos
Well-known member
I am surprised you didn't wire one series and one parallel and hear the differences. Sounds like a fun experiment to throw on top.
7704A
Well-known member
Has anyone tested how parallel-series washers on the back panel sound?
FourT6and2
Well-known member
UPDATE
So, while I noticed zero change in sound with wiring witchcraft, I did notice an improvement by addressing how the speakers are mounted to the baffle.
Mesa doesn't use washers. They just ham-fist nuts onto the speaker frames with a drill. Here's what I did:
I placed the cab face-down on the ground, removed all the nuts, centered the speakers on the mounting bolts/posts so the posts don't make contact with the speaker frame, used SAE #8 washers, and re-torqued the nuts to 10 in/lbs. Then I replaced the rear panel while the cab was still flat on the ground so I could apply some body weight to it, sealing it up nice and tight.
I now have three new Traditional cabs here and compared side by side. It did make a difference. The low-end response improved a bit. It's subtle, but it's worth doing IMO. So I went ahead and did this some procedure to all three cabs. My theory is it helps couple the speakers to the baffle a little better... a little more consistently. And it prevents bending/dimpling the speaker frame.
So, while I noticed zero change in sound with wiring witchcraft, I did notice an improvement by addressing how the speakers are mounted to the baffle.
Mesa doesn't use washers. They just ham-fist nuts onto the speaker frames with a drill. Here's what I did:
I placed the cab face-down on the ground, removed all the nuts, centered the speakers on the mounting bolts/posts so the posts don't make contact with the speaker frame, used SAE #8 washers, and re-torqued the nuts to 10 in/lbs. Then I replaced the rear panel while the cab was still flat on the ground so I could apply some body weight to it, sealing it up nice and tight.
I now have three new Traditional cabs here and compared side by side. It did make a difference. The low-end response improved a bit. It's subtle, but it's worth doing IMO. So I went ahead and did this some procedure to all three cabs. My theory is it helps couple the speakers to the baffle a little better... a little more consistently. And it prevents bending/dimpling the speaker frame.
thegame
Well-known member
This thread is one of the most overt examples of OS cabophobia I've ever seen. Due to your shaming of plus sized cabinetry, I'd go so far as to label most of you as Mesa Traditionalists. Mesa cabinets are toneful at any size. Selective Cabinetism hurts us all. Stop the hate.
FourT6and2
Well-known member
Trad cab, trad wife
mnemonic
Well-known member
I’m gonna have to buy a torque screwdriver, since any time I’ve ever changed speakers I’m always thinking, how tight should this be? And, are these evenly torqued?
7704A
Well-known member
Nylock?
S̷͖͑m̵͎͂á̵̺s̸͚̈́h̴̬̑
Hack
I have never had trouble tightening the speakers to the right amount. I cant imagine needing a torque wrench. I work with tools every day and have built shit for 20 years. It is super intuitive.
I get it being important not to have it flopping loose or crimped at the screw or nut, but i hope this doesnt evolve into 10 lbs vs 11 lb tone fuckery
I get it being important not to have it flopping loose or crimped at the screw or nut, but i hope this doesnt evolve into 10 lbs vs 11 lb tone fuckery
7704A
Well-known member
Well, it is The Rig Page.
thegame
Well-known member
Dewalt Intervention. All jokes aside, please realize that V30s sound best adhered with Philips screws while Greenbacks and other vintage speakers require flathead ones to bring out their mojo. Pro tip, Robertson screw heads ruin tone.
FourT6and2
Well-known member
lol I'm not like that. I can't hear the difference between 10 AWG and 14 AWG or Brand X or Brand Y of wire inside a cab...
I wanted to be consistent because I'm testing different variables and I already have a torque wrench for lots of other things I work on. I also want to avoid deforming the speakers by going hog wild with a drill. That torque value seemed reasonable for the type of hardware used in the cab.
How a speaker is coupled to a baffle does matter. You can test this in many different ways, but grab a Bluetooth speaker and place it on different surfaces. A granite countertop, a wooden desk, the floor, holding it in the air, etc. Press the speaker down with various amounts of force. The sound absolutely changes.
I work on other things that require very specific, repeatable torque settings. Like 60 in/lb vs 65 in/lb. or 18 vs 22. I've never met anybody who could do that by feel or by "intuition". But hey, if you're that good, I'm impressed. I'm sure Lockheed or Siemens or an F1 team would love to hire someone with your ability.
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Anje
Well-known member
Fully agree again on the importance of the mechanical links/fastening on the overall cab structure & speakers. How the speakers are attached to the baffle in particular is important.
A torque wrench is probably nice to have for speaker mounting but that can’t hurt if you already have one; most important is to make sure they are not overthighten (nor loose indeed, already saw some that were (!)) and better do it in the « X » method step by step as mechanical fastening basic good practices suggest, not to wrap the frame.
I prefer to do it manually and not use an electric drill.
Same for the back panel indeed.
A torque wrench is probably nice to have for speaker mounting but that can’t hurt if you already have one; most important is to make sure they are not overthighten (nor loose indeed, already saw some that were (!)) and better do it in the « X » method step by step as mechanical fastening basic good practices suggest, not to wrap the frame.
I prefer to do it manually and not use an electric drill.
Same for the back panel indeed.
J
Jack Luminous
Well-known member
The more people hate OS cabs, the better. I love them and I'm still looking for a old straight/slant one from the '90s. I cannot find one at a decent price no matter how hard I look around.
S̷͖͑m̵͎͂á̵̺s̸͚̈́h̴̬̑
Hack
I know what a torque wrench is and what it is for. My point isn't that i can torque a motorcycle bolt or lug nut to the same amount all day, it is that working on a tiny screw or lug nut on a speaker is very easy to feel. If you are paying attention, you can feel when the speaker frame is tight or when it is bending. I use and impact to take out the run of the lug and then finish with a socket wrench. It is quite easy to feel when you get there, and really easy to feel when you go past the point of tight and start bending the frame
This isn't really voodoo. People that work with their hands for a long time get a feel for it. Especially something so mickey mouse. There are so many things that are so much more specific out there than a 5/16 lug tightening a speaker to the cab
But I am willing to play along. When you come up with a clip showing the difference between to really close torque amounts on a speaker, i am down to hear it
JonPearson1994
Active member
I'm with you, I love an OS. The trads are great, pretty much any decent 4x12 I think has a place, but the OS is my favorite.
JDs Couch
Well-known member
A few decades of standing next to a china cymbal negates all these subtleties, brothers.
JonPearson1994
Active member
At the end of the day, the only tonal quality that matters is LOUD
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