This might be a daft question: Combo vs Head/ cabinet....

[philh27]

Is there any 'scientific' reason that a valve (sorry I'm British!) combo might be noisier- in terms of buzz and hum- than the equivalent head and cabinet arrangement?

I'm posting this on the Egnater forum as I'm pretty sure that I'll be purchasing a Renegade sometime soon, but I'm not sure whether to go for a 2 x 12 combo or the head and 2 x 12 Tourmaster cab.

The reason I ask about noise is that pretty much from day one as a guitar player (30 years ago) I've used a head and cabinet- usually Marshall. My last amp purchase was a combo- a Marshall TSL122- about 10 years ago and it has always displayed more hum and buzz than any other amp setup I've owned. I'm aware of the 'problems' associated with this particular amp and it has had the mods and upgrades done by Marshall. It performs well, but it is still 'noisy' to my ears.

I'm not a techy, but it seems fair to believe that in a combo, the presence of power amp valves just a few inches away from a speaker magnet just might be a source of unwanted noise. Is there any truth whatsoever in this assumption?

I'd be interested to hear any 'facts' or 'best guesses'!

Thanks!

 

[racerevlon]

A combo amp is like a motorcycle. From the time it's first turned on/started its sole purpose is to rattle itself apart.

 

[Len Rabinowitz]

I am certainly no engineer, but possibly closer proximity of parts in a combo might cause some noise problems, maybe grounding things? One of the best sounding things I ever heard was the Renegade head with the Tourmaster cab. On the other hand, I have the Renegade 2 X 12 combo and love it!

 

[Waxhead]

Is there any 'scientific' reason that a valve (sorry I'm British!) combo might be noisier- in terms of buzz and hum- than the equivalent head and cabinet arrangement?

I'm posting this on the Egnater forum as I'm pretty sure that I'll be purchasing a Renegade sometime soon, but I'm not sure whether to go for a 2 x 12 combo or the head and 2 x 12 Tourmaster cab.

The reason I ask about noise is that pretty much from day one as a guitar player (30 years ago) I've used a head and cabinet- usually Marshall. My last amp purchase was a combo- a Marshall TSL122- about 10 years ago and it has always displayed more hum and buzz than any other amp setup I've owned. I'm aware of the 'problems' associated with this particular amp and it has had the mods and upgrades done by Marshall. It performs well, but it is still 'noisy' to my ears.

I'm not a techy, but it seems fair to believe that in a combo, the presence of power amp valves just a few inches away from a speaker magnet just might be a source of unwanted noise. Is there any truth whatsoever in this assumption?

I'd be interested to hear any 'facts' or 'best guesses'!

Thanks!

Only if the combo cabinet is not made securely so it developed vibration rattles over time.
But it ain't hard to build a really solid cabinet .... and... you got exactly the same issue with a dedicated speaker cabinet anyways so.....