2x12 combo OR head and 2x12 cab?

[Uk Ant]

Re: 2x12 combo OR head and 2x12 cab?

I wouldn't want to buy a 2x12 combo, they start getting quite heavy as a single item.
I find it actually eisier to lug around an amp and a seperate cab than one single heavy item.
Plus it means that I can upgrade to a better amp at some point without having to buy a new cab as well.

 

[Simon_F]

Re: 2x12 combo OR head and 2x12 cab?

The issue for me is not so much head/cab vs. combo as open back vs. closed back. Whilst the extra thump of a closed back rig is nice, I find that for the small gigs I mostly play I prefer the wider sound dispersal I get from open back - I can hear myself better on stage and so can the rest of the band.

 

[wahwah]

Re: 2x12 combo OR head and 2x12 cab?

I love combos. My custom made open back 2x12 combo also has a closed back 2x12 extension cab, and the combination of the two is better than any head/cabinet combination I've ever owned or played. Now when I play through a head/cab, it sounds clinical and detached to me. Combos seem to generate an organic, integrated quality that I love. Except when it comes to Marshalls, although I do have a 1990 1x12 Marshall JCM900 4101 combo with a 1x12 extension cab that I really enjoy.



Cheers...............................wahwah

 

[Forbes]

Re: 2x12 combo OR head and 2x12 cab?

I use a 2x12 combo, i like the fact i don't have to make the extra trip to the car, and it is the heavyiest thing ever, but its equipped with a decent set of wheels so i can ride it down the ramp to the practice space.

While i wouldn't say no to a bit of extra low end, the fact that i'd have to make an extra trip really kills it for me.

 

[Sludgenutz]

Re: 2x12 combo OR head and 2x12 cab?

I love combos. My custom made open back 2x12 combo also has a closed back 2x12 extension cab, and the combination of the two is better than any head/cabinet combination I've ever owned or played. Now when I play through a head/cab, it sounds clinical and detached to me. Combos seem to generate an organic, integrated quality that I love. Except when it comes to Marshalls, although I do have a 1990 1x12 Marshall JCM900 4101 combo with a 1x12 extension cab that I really enjoy.



Cheers...............................wahwah

Yes, the openness/shimmer of a rear combo can't be denied. I was cab shopping, and and ened up with the closed back Mesa, in post #14. I was looking seriously at Mesa's older halfback with a C90 in the open top, and an EVM12L in the sealed bottom, but the ones I was seeing though were really beat up (and looked like they smelled). I have heard nothing but great reviews of this cab.

One heavy tone I'm not getting anymore, that I was getting with a single open back EV, is the huge guitar intro to A.I.C.'s "Sludge Factory". The tighness/bigness of the bottom is an overall plus though.

Making a new cab real panel with a slot to let some of the "magic" out, is a cheap project that should be at the top of my list....and that surely is a greater possibilty than trying to close a combo amp up.

 

[Simon_F]

Re: 2x12 combo OR head and 2x12 cab?

While i wouldn't say no to a bit of extra low end, the fact that i'd have to make an extra trip really kills it for me.

Anyway, low end is what the bass player is there for. (Plus making tea/coffee, fetching beers etc.)

 

[BFahz]

Re: 2x12 combo OR head and 2x12 cab?

I cant say enough about the JSX combo. Best amp Ive ever owned.