2 Cabs = Twice the tone

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I love 4x12s but I can't haul those around anymore after two surgeries. Maybe I should get two 2z12s down the road to run with my 5150-III
 
cardinal said:
I don't generally enjoy playing a full stack; seems to cause ear fatigue quickly and the top cab sounds shrill without any floor reflections. Side by side 4x12s are ok but one has always been good enough.
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playing packed vfw's and small clubs with no real PA you kind of needed a full stack to get your sound over the wall of people in front, that was my main reason for doing it
 
Smashedguitarist said:
that is interesting. I didn't know that two 4x12s would lose topend...you may have just saved me 800 bones.
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When you change the tap on the ohm selector you’ll find the tone changes a lot compared to 16 ohms. Its like placing a blanket over your amps tone - I’m personally either one 4x12 or I’m bringing my metroplex to act as a slave for the second cabinet to run both at 16ohms.
 
I’m pretty much just a bedroom player these days so I always use two cabs, a 4x12 (with v30’s) and a 2x12 (H75 creambacks). I don’t know why but more cabs just seems to sound wider and bigger. I don’t think I could go back now.
 
I have actually never experienced two 412s at the same time, so ignorance is bliss. Only in the last couple of years have I actually had two 412s, but they are very different as one is a Mesa halfback and the other is a Vox 412 with a trolley.

Ironically I play live with no amp going direct.
 
glpg80 said:
When you change the tap on the ohm selector you’ll find the tone changes a lot compared to 16 ohms. Its like placing a blanket over your amps tone - I’m personally either one 4x12 or I’m bringing my metroplex to act as a slave for the second cabinet to run both at 16ohms.
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Yeah it's like the whole frequency response shifts up or down in EQ depending on the impedance. Mistmatch amp 1:2 to cab and there's more bass/less highs and it won't get as loud, maybe more compressed. Mismatch amp 2:1 to cab (16 ohm out to 8 ohm cab) for example, more open, less compressed, less bass, more mids/treble. It's visceral in a way EQ is not.

Bruce Zinky built this into the Tone Master (and his own name brand amps) where if you're at low volume, run the 4 ohm tap into the 16 ohm cab and don't take the master over 10 o'clock. Need more volume? 8:16. Actually on stage like Dave Grohl in an arena? 16:16. This allowed him to make the goddamn thing so bright you'd NEED TO BE IN AN ARENA FOR IT TO BE "RIGHT" but also be able to jam at lower levels where it's subdued...also using those Russian military 6P3S-E copies called "Sovtek 5881's" that will last forever.

Pure fucking genius. From bedroom to jam room to arena and bulletproof tubes to boot.

So fellas if your amp is taking your head off, mismatch 1:2 or 1:4 amp to cab. Just don't crank it too much!
 
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In my younger days I'd play through a couple of 412s and it was absolute glory! As I got older, I went down to 1x412 and still loved it. These days, I have no 412s as my back does not forgive me for lifting those up the stairs or into my vehicle. Only a 212 and a 1x12. I just don't want to carry around a lot to gigs. I'm running direct so the cabs are when I really want to hear the sound of a speaker to fill in for monitoring.

Things still sound great but nothing will ever be as amazing sounding as a pair of great 412s roaring behind you on a stage or at a gig.
 
glpg80 said:
When you change the tap on the ohm selector you’ll find the tone changes a lot compared to 16 ohms. Its like placing a blanket over your amps tone - I’m personally either one 4x12 or I’m bringing my metroplex to act as a slave for the second cabinet to run both at 16ohms.
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A little top end is lost, but that's nothing that bringing up the presence up a notch or two can't fix, at least in my case. I don't find it a complete tonal shift at all.
 
I've been fighting my guitarist on this a lot recently. He uses two preamps (Helix) into a Mesa 50/50 into one stereo Mesa cab. Even when two cabs are available, he'll run his one cab. I think it's because he gets confused about impedance and doesn't want to mess things up, but one cab per side means no math. It's not a volume thing, it's a saturation thing. More speakers sound fuller.
 
Our old band ran 4 cabs each at practice for a few years. Mic'd drums through the PA.

Massively painful. Kinda ruined it. The last phase of the band we were all using combos and the mix in the room was great.
 
My slant cab has good midrange. My straight cab has better highs and lows. The two together is the sound I usually use.
 
Been using a Friedman 412 (GB top/V30 bottom) with a Marshall straight cabinet with the same speaker arrangement. Liked the tone but just picked up an EVH 212 and run this in conjunction with the Friedman and it sounds awesome. The G12H-30s in the EVH fit perfectly in the mix with the GBs and V30s to add in the right amount of top end and saturation. I have the EVH next to the Friedman with the EVH angled back on the legs and run it like a monitor.

Also found that the speakers in the Friedman and Marshall sounded somewhat different. Friedman cabinet was much more fuller and louder whereas the speakers in the Marshall cabinet sounded quieter and thinner. Maybe older speakers vs new or Chinese vs England made?

Very happy now with the Friedman/EVH 212 pairing.
 
stephen sawall said:
My slant cab has good midrange. My straight cab has better highs and lows. The two together is the sound I usually use.
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Ya, my avatar cab has a slightly slanted front baffle, so it projects all 4 speakers upwards a bit, and it's definitely got the better mids of the two cabs.
 
That gives you more separation to your sound and mixing different speakers covers more ground frequency wise. I think most just find a speaker that sounds good to them and run with it rather than actually trying out different combos.
 
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