Light, compact 2x12 cabs - any tips?

[ICBM]

But it looks like the boxy-ness seems to come from the plywood construction. The H&K is quite a bit smaller and is made of chipboard so there you go...all this stuff about plywood construction being so awesome is clearly a load of balls. I always suspected as much.

If the cab is smaller it may well over-ride the tone characteristics of the material.

It's not balls that ply is better than MDF or chipboard, but the cab dimensions can be more important. It's also possible that the resonance of ply could interact with the dimensions in a bad way, if the cab isn't designed right. The 'advantage' of chipboard and (even more so) MDF is that they're tonally quite dead and therefore take resonance out of the equation - so it's probably better to have a neutral-sounding chipboard cab than a bad-sounding ply cab; but a good-sounding ply cab will be much better.

90% of cabs on the market are made of ply. the rest are generaly ply with a MDF baffle such as the laneys which sound very muddy.

The majority of cabs on the market today outside premium-quality brands are MDF or chipboard.

[ToeKnee]

I'm pretty sure my 1936 was chipboard. The back panel was definitely chipboard. And when I swapped the speakers I remember thinking it was all chipboard.

It may have been. I'll have to examine my friends. I can't see chipboard holding together very well though.

It's interesting if it is and I imagine very heavy.

Regarding you speaker swapping it may have been similar as the PJ will most likely be more efficient than the HK speaker so it will have drowned it out a bit.

It's good that you are experimenting. As you said earlier it sounded great at higher volumes which cabs generally do imho. I'd just keep playing it and get those speakers broken in or swap them for some v30s maybe.

Good luck getting it sorted. I know how annoying it can be when something new doesn't quite work out the way you hoped. It's just a matter of trial and error getting it right. I hate speaker swapping for this very reason.

[Dave_Mc]

If the cab is smaller it may well over-ride the tone characteristics of the material.

It's not balls that ply is better than MDF or chipboard, but the cab dimensions can be more important. It's also possible that the resonance of ply could interact with the dimensions in a bad way, if the cab isn't designed right. The 'advantage' of chipboard and (even more so) MDF is that they're tonally quite dead and therefore take resonance out of the equation - so it's probably better to have a neutral-sounding chipboard cab than a bad-sounding ply cab; but a good-sounding ply cab will be much better.

The majority of cabs on the market today outside premium-quality brands are MDF or chipboard.

+1

Good luck getting it sorted. I know how annoying it can be when something new doesn't quite work out the way you hoped. It's just a matter of trial and error getting it right. I hate speaker swapping for this very reason.

+1

[ICBM]

I'm pretty sure my 1936 was chipboard. The back panel was definitely chipboard. And when I swapped the speakers I remember thinking it was all chipboard.

Modern (JCM900 and later) 1936s are all-MDF. The JCM800s and possibly the very earliest 900s (I think I've seen one) are ply with a chipboard back. It's also possible there could be transition ones with MDF and chipboard.

NB - chipboard and MDF aren't the same thing. Chipboard is chips of wood mixed with resin; MDF is general 'fibrous material' (recycled wood, cardboard and cloth) mixed with resin. Chipboard is a tonewood compared to MDF . Both for good and bad - if you actually want an acoustically dead material (eg for a hi-fi cab or a studio monitor) MDF is better.

Chipboard cabs tend to be made from thicker material - and hence are much heavier - than MDF, because it's not as strong, as ToeKnee said. Ply can be thinner and lighter than either for the same strength, but thin ply tends to resonate a lot... which can be good, but possibly not always.

[ToeKnee]

If the cab is smaller it may well over-ride the tone characteristics of the material.

It's not balls that ply is better than MDF or chipboard, but the cab dimensions can be more important. It's also possible that the resonance of ply could interact with the dimensions in a bad way, if the cab isn't designed right. The 'advantage' of chipboard and (even more so) MDF is that they're tonally quite dead and therefore take resonance out of the equation - so it's probably better to have a neutral-sounding chipboard cab than a bad-sounding ply cab; but a good-sounding ply cab will be much better.

The majority of cabs on the market today outside premium-quality brands are MDF or chipboard.

Fair point. I've never come across one that's all. Just ply/pine/mdf

[rockmonster]

Best sounding low powered 2x12 I've ever had was the Matchless ES212 cost a bloody fortune but even at 45lb it seemed quite small light and compact.

[ICBM]

Fair point. I've never come across one that's all. Just ply/pine/mdf

Chipboard has definitely fallen out of favour a bit now - probably for non-premium (ply or solid wood) cabs because MDF is cheaper. It used to be the most common material until MDF became widely available around the early 90s... pretty much all those weighs-a-ton second-rate brands you remember from the 70s and 80s were chipboard. (HH, Laney, Carlsbro, Peavey etc).

The interesting thing is that HH did specifically pick it for its tonal properties, according to their brochures - although they still used ply baffles mostly. Theirs was about an inch thick and is the main reason their cabs are so heavy - and makes me think they did genuinely do it for tone (although I think mistakenly) and not cost.

[GearAddict]

I wonder if chipboard is actually better for small cabs then...perhaps the resonance of plywood is counter-productive. The Roadkill cab is small for a 2x12 - the speakers are actally offset because they wouldn't fit if they were in line. In a crowded cab like that, having a resonant material might make it sound much boxier than if it was made from chipboard or MDF. Especially with it having a closed back.

[ICBM]

Yes, that's certainly a possibility - if they've been unlucky and created a cabinet where the resonant frequency of the air space is about the same as that of the box it could sound really bad. Try putting some acoustic wadding in it, the same sort of thing you find in hi-fi and PA cabs for similar reasons.

[chillidoggy]

I had a think about the RK cabs, and have decided I may well be persuaded to go for a Badger (that sound like a euphemism for something disgusting!). "Can't stop now, I'm off for a Badger, nod, nod, wink, wink". Anyway, a black version with white piping should suit, but I will ask how much they weigh first.

So, having dragged my fat sorry arse around Youtube, and listened to various speaker comparisons, I think my head is now about to explode, as I'm totally confused as to which one to select. It's fair to say that despite being a hi-fi buff, I was staggered by the differences in sounds. First I thought the Eminence PJ was nice, but then the V30 came in, and I changed my mind. Having then surfed on to a shedload of other comparsions, I'm buggered if I know which one is for me. I feel like Indecisive Dave from the Fast Show.