RedPlated
Well-known member
So a few days a local gear head that I have done several gear deals with sent me a message. He wanted to let me know he had a killer vintage Marshall 4x12 for sale. This guy is 20 years old but has had more vintage Marshall gear pass through his hands than most guys 2 or 3 times his age. He knows his stuff and always has great amps and cabs in his possession or for sale.
I received some photos of the cab - a stripped down, bare wood 1973 Marshall with no grill cloth. You immediately think Eddie Van Halen when you see it. Well, the cab has some extremely interesting history. It appears it was used by Eddie back in 1978 on stage during their tour. It is allegedly one of the infamous 8 or 10 (don't know the exact number) stripped down cabs that were used on that tour, supplied to him by Chris Holmes of WASP.
The story behind this cab is that after it was loaned to Eddie for the 78' tour, it went back to Chris Holmes. Then, in the 80's it was purchased from Chris by a local guy in Pasadena who also knew Eddie. That buyer also bought various gear items directly from Eddie over the years.
When the buyer in Pasadena bought the cab from Chris Holmes, he also bought a 1973 Super lead with factory white tolex that was also tour used by Eddie. So he ended up with a tour used half stack. The stripped cab was apparently the original matching cab to the white Marshall and also had white tolex before being stripped to bare wood. The white Super Lead is signed by Eddie inside the head shell. It says "Enjoy!" with his signature next to it. Not sure who it was addressed to, but it helps solidify the story.
The local guy I know made contacts with the guy in Pasadena who bought this stuff in the 80's. He's obviously much older now and decided to move the head and cab and sold them to him.
The cabinet has a quad of Celestion G12M grey back 25w 75hz speakers. And they have all 4 original Pulsonic cones, not the RIC's. The quad is original to the cab and it appears they've never been removed or desoldered from the original wiring. The cabinet itself is definitely 1973. It has the old school 60's type construction with the groove for the piping on the top of the cab. But it has plastic caster cups which started in 73'. There are no holes where corner protectors would have been. So it's definitely 73 as they went to those the next year. It does have newer metal handles on it. It would have come from the factory with plastic ones.
I sent some photos of the cab and speakers to Jim at Scumback and he said the speakers appear to be original Pulsonics. They have the "3" written in chalk on the cones to denote the Pulsonic cone.
I picked the cab up last night and it is so damn cool. The seller also showed me that white 1973 Super Lead, signed by Eddie. Still with the original Sylvania 6CA7's!
I played through the cab for a few minutes last night and wow. It sounds so 3D. Those Pulsonic grey backs are ridiculously good. Amazing clarity and definition.
This was a super cool gear find. I don't have any paperwork, COA's etc...to prove to the absolute degree that it's a stage used cab. But based on the evidence presented I think it's highly likely. I also sent photos of it to Dave Friedman who said it's most likely the real deal. The seller and I made a really fair deal on it, with the understanding that it's not 100% documented as Eddie used.
I'll attach a bunch of photos of the cab. Included are a photo of the cab with the white Super Lead from the seller. Also, old photos of Van Halen with that white Super lead and this cab before it was stripped. It's the photo with the white head and white cab with checkerboard grill cloth.
I'd be interested to hear if anyone else has any info on this cab or similar type experiences with them. There are apparently others out there from the 78' tour in private collections.
I received some photos of the cab - a stripped down, bare wood 1973 Marshall with no grill cloth. You immediately think Eddie Van Halen when you see it. Well, the cab has some extremely interesting history. It appears it was used by Eddie back in 1978 on stage during their tour. It is allegedly one of the infamous 8 or 10 (don't know the exact number) stripped down cabs that were used on that tour, supplied to him by Chris Holmes of WASP.
The story behind this cab is that after it was loaned to Eddie for the 78' tour, it went back to Chris Holmes. Then, in the 80's it was purchased from Chris by a local guy in Pasadena who also knew Eddie. That buyer also bought various gear items directly from Eddie over the years.
When the buyer in Pasadena bought the cab from Chris Holmes, he also bought a 1973 Super lead with factory white tolex that was also tour used by Eddie. So he ended up with a tour used half stack. The stripped cab was apparently the original matching cab to the white Marshall and also had white tolex before being stripped to bare wood. The white Super Lead is signed by Eddie inside the head shell. It says "Enjoy!" with his signature next to it. Not sure who it was addressed to, but it helps solidify the story.
The local guy I know made contacts with the guy in Pasadena who bought this stuff in the 80's. He's obviously much older now and decided to move the head and cab and sold them to him.
The cabinet has a quad of Celestion G12M grey back 25w 75hz speakers. And they have all 4 original Pulsonic cones, not the RIC's. The quad is original to the cab and it appears they've never been removed or desoldered from the original wiring. The cabinet itself is definitely 1973. It has the old school 60's type construction with the groove for the piping on the top of the cab. But it has plastic caster cups which started in 73'. There are no holes where corner protectors would have been. So it's definitely 73 as they went to those the next year. It does have newer metal handles on it. It would have come from the factory with plastic ones.
I sent some photos of the cab and speakers to Jim at Scumback and he said the speakers appear to be original Pulsonics. They have the "3" written in chalk on the cones to denote the Pulsonic cone.
I picked the cab up last night and it is so damn cool. The seller also showed me that white 1973 Super Lead, signed by Eddie. Still with the original Sylvania 6CA7's!
I played through the cab for a few minutes last night and wow. It sounds so 3D. Those Pulsonic grey backs are ridiculously good. Amazing clarity and definition.
This was a super cool gear find. I don't have any paperwork, COA's etc...to prove to the absolute degree that it's a stage used cab. But based on the evidence presented I think it's highly likely. I also sent photos of it to Dave Friedman who said it's most likely the real deal. The seller and I made a really fair deal on it, with the understanding that it's not 100% documented as Eddie used.
I'll attach a bunch of photos of the cab. Included are a photo of the cab with the white Super Lead from the seller. Also, old photos of Van Halen with that white Super lead and this cab before it was stripped. It's the photo with the white head and white cab with checkerboard grill cloth.
I'd be interested to hear if anyone else has any info on this cab or similar type experiences with them. There are apparently others out there from the 78' tour in private collections.
Last edited:
