mahogany cabs, 10" speakers, cab construction

[drew_half_empty]

alright got a couple questions

I've been seein some mahogany cabs pop up recently. Anyone got any expirience with em? how do they compare to birch ply?

aaand about the 10's, a year or so ago i kept reading about this 10" that sounded like a g12h30, obviously had a lower SPL though, anyone know what that is?

lastly, i'm thinkin about building a cab after i get this project guitar done, so.... school me in all things related & how they affect tone, the depth of the cab, gauge of wire, thickness of wood, height, different woods, how the speaker mounts to the baffle itself, insulation, how having those little insulation walls that seperate the speakers that you see on a lot of blonde cabs affects tone, just everything. And i've always been told that open backs let out some bass but not really any of the other frequencies, buuut i'd like someone to verify that just in case

thanks guys

 

[doveman]

Re: mahogany cabs, 10" speakers, cab construction

One man's opinion: i built my cabinet about 30 years ago ... birch plywood ... tongue and groove with glue and screws for strength ... dowels covering the screw heads ... corner pieces and retractable handles to get you through the years. I covered mine with black toilex ... probably the hardest part but well worth it. Covered 3 of the inside surfaces with insulation. I used a sealed cabinet and have been very pleased ... doing it over again I might take a page from some of the modern builders and make a removable partial back panel ... so you could do either.

Most speakers have data available on recommended sizes for the interal "box" which I think is the most important thing ... given solid construction ... and of course good speakers. I used the data that was avaiable at the time for my EVM-12L.

Not to start an argument ... because I know there are other opinions. Just take this one for what it is and share your own. I think people make too much of the type of wood ... mahogany is way overkill in my opinion ... good solid birch plywood is fine. I think two 2x12s sound like one 4x12 (usually that one will raise the roof). Smaller cabs and more of them give you a lot of options. I think cabs that resonate are a problem ... they should hold speakers that resonate and be silent ... no buzzing wood is good. I don't think you really need panels between the speakers. I used good quality speaker wire that you would use to hook up a set of stereo speakers.

It was easy to build my cabinet and several others ... but the time I had a radial saw (table saw will do) a router for the rounded edges and a dado blade to cut the grooves for the sides and back. It would be hard to do it right without those tools. I have actually seen pre-cut kits on the internet that look pretty good.

Again one man's opinion ... but one from a guy who has been satisfied with his rig for 30 years now.

Here's a picture of my 30 year old home-made cab.

 

[drew_half_empty]

Re: mahogany cabs, 10" speakers, cab construction

cool, that gives me some confidence, i think my dad has all those tools

anyone else for the other questions?

 

[d1dsj]

Re: mahogany cabs, 10" speakers, cab construction

I'll post some pics and dimensions of mine later... just gotta dig it out of the garage. If I had never took a chance on this cab I would never have believed how good a solid wooden cab can sound. Of course speakers are the main part of the sound of a cab.. but the construction will give you projection and spread of sound. Although I have 2 other cabs... An Orange 4 x 12 with greenbacks from the 70's, and a Cornford with V30's... the 4 x 10 EASILY has the best tone and spread of sound. It cost a lot of money as I brought it new, I normally get my cabs second hand but you just don't see these very often. Anyway, well worth it and no matter what anyone else tells me, I DO believe that the wood adds to the tone. After all, electric guitars have pick ups to give you the sound, yet different woods give you different variations on that sound. I'll post pics later.

 

[d1dsj]

Re: mahogany cabs, 10" speakers, cab construction

Here's the pics.... the dimensions are 640mm wide x 655mm high x 260mm deep... 18mm thick. The speakers are Celestion Vintage G10's. Check out www.mongotone.co.uk

This is the actual cab that was reviewed in Guitarist mag here in the UK.

it's finished in nitro-cellulose so it'll age nicely with the L.P's. I can assure you, this cab may look like a piece of furniture.... BUT IT ROCKS!!!!

 

[stonabus]

Re: mahogany cabs, 10" speakers, cab construction

/\ nice work!

 

[MVI]

Re: mahogany cabs, 10" speakers, cab construction

Maybe not much help here - and comes off snobby, just like me - but I live within a few miles of the Mesa headquarters, and they often dump new stuff at the local music store " on consignment " , for dirt. That's how I got my 4X10. Similarly, the local folks on craigslist always have killer used stuff at a fraction of cost. I love working on my own gear, and it always saves me a ton, but sometimes it's easier & arguably cheaper / faster for me to score it backdoor off someone else with a little Wiley Cayote craftyness. Nothing like a crime of opportunity to increase my musical equipment armada.

 

[Fresh_Start]

Re: mahogany cabs, 10" speakers, cab construction

Here are a few places to do research:
AX84 - just finished a 1x12 cab design project
18-Watt back up & running w/ really knowledgeable guys in the Cabs & Speakers section
Hoffman Amps forum - Cab & Speakers section (good stuff, not all that active)

Here's a site with plans for several production speaker cabs: http://archives.telex.com/archives/EV/Builders Plans/

Hope that puts you on the right track

Chip