Cheap front loaded 4x12s ?

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the4thlast1

the4thlast1

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Im looking for opinions on front loaded cabs. Im wondering if there is something out there I could find used that is relatively inexpensie and possibly change the speakers. I have a bunch of extra celestions here and would like to load something in a cab. I dont have any front loaded cabs now so it might be cool to have one for a different vibe compare to rear loaded.

So the idea is I want a well built cab that sounds good and is front loaded . I dont care about what speakers came stock. For example it looks like peavey use to make front loaded cabs like the 4x12ms and can be found on the used market cheap. I would imagine there are some old front loaded cabs out there made with good quality solid wood such as birch but I dont know which ones were . They might sell used now for cheap because the speakers werent great or they just arent the hot brand of today.

Any ideas , opinions and experiences are welcome !
 
There's usually 1 or 2 VHT front loaded 412s on Reverb any giving day. You'd have to get lucky and have someone selling near you though...I've yet to see one willing to ship.
 
Cool yeah , Im looking for something thats got the tight punch of frontloading but not directonal or small sounding compared to rear loaded.
 
I had an old Music Man 4x12 that was front loaded and it sounded great. Back was not removable but it was solid as all hell.
 
Krank 4x12s can be had for cheap sometimes. They're oversized and ported. Solid poplar construction.
 
Thanks for all your suggestions, Im checking out those cabs. I also noticed the Peavey 412M was a front loaded they use to make to pair with the Ultra plus heads. Looks like it was at least partially mdf though Im not sure if thats a good or bad thing. Some say mdf is good because it is neutral . I always assumed a design with solid plywood would be better for tone but I cant say for sure.
 
Carvin Legacy, older (90s) Fender Tonemaster...both came with V30s originally.
 
Another vote for VHT. Not "cheap" though. $450- $600 last I saw
 
The VHT's can sound kinda directional. But I will say I do miss my VHT 2x12 I had. It was mint, looked great, and pretty damn light and easy to carry around.

Carvins some are good. I had an older one with celestion 65's. I got more compliments on my Quickrod live sound with that cab more than I ever did playing my QR through a splawn cab.

Some other options are Genz Benz Gflex cabs can be had cheap. Also Engl. But that's spendy, and of course there are some bogner and diezels that are front loaded too.
 
crwnedblasphemy said:
Carvins some are good. I had an older one with celestion 65's. I got more compliments on my Quickrod live sound with that cab more than I ever did playing my QR through a splawn cab.
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i just ordered a couple 65's to put in my vertical randall 2x12 which is also front loaded for some different flavor, this is good to hear
 
Yeah I had a VHT cab years ago that did sound good but was directional. Is that the case with all front loaded cabs or not necessarily?
 
A couple come to mind, but are not easy to find.

First, and I'm still looking for this one: Randall RT412CX. These were front loaded birch cabs that came with 25w Greenbacks stock. Looked like the XL cabs with the expanded metal front. I owned one and have seen them come up for $200-250, which is a killer price

Ampeg SE412 - Front loaded birch ampeg cab that came loaded with G12-65 speakers from the 80's I believe. I've only ever seen one, and I currently own it, haha. Not much info out there on those either. All birch, somewhat light construction, but killer sounding cab!

There are a couple nice Carvin front loaders out there that usually stay in the $300 range, but the speakers aren't always desirable.
 
Bad.Seed said:
A couple come to mind, but are not easy to find.

First, and I'm still looking for this one: Randall RT412CX. These were front loaded birch cabs that came with 25w Greenbacks stock. Looked like the XL cabs with the expanded metal front. I owned one and have seen them come up for $200-250, which is a killer price

Ampeg SE412 - Front loaded birch ampeg cab that came loaded with G12-65 speakers from the 80's I believe. I've only ever seen one, and I currently own it, haha. Not much info out there on those either. All birch, somewhat light construction, but killer sounding cab!

There are a couple nice Carvin front loaders out there that usually stay in the $300 range, but the speakers aren't always desirable.
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Cool thanks dude, will check those out too. Greenbacks work great front loaded. I had a cobra cab (greenbacks front loaded) briefly about 10 years ago. It sounded grear but at the time I liked my splawn cab with greenbacks slightly more so I sold it. The cobra cab looks like a tin can and its probably not built as well as some other cabs i might be able to get .
 
If you are working on a budget, Peavey 412 M and 412MS are plentiful and I've seen them as low as $75, loaded. If you are going to do drop-D or down-tuned stuff, consider adding a wood tie between the front and back of the cabinet in or near the center of the front baffle - should prevent any fartiness. I have also seen Crate and Carvin front-loaded cabs. What kind of amp and music?
 
BlackOut8910 said:
If you are working on a budget, Peavey 412 M and 412MS are plentiful and I've seen them as low as $75, loaded. If you are going to do drop-D or down-tuned stuff, consider adding a wood tie between the front and back of the cabinet in or near the center of the front baffle - should prevent any fartiness. I have also seen Crate and Carvin front-loaded cabs. What kind of amp and music?
Click to expand...

Interesting, was that a design flaw the Peavey 412M ? Do other manufactures do that inside front loaded cabs, it would makes sense becuase they do it with rearloaded cabs .
 
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