Silent Or Recording Cabs

[PUCKBOY99]

Has anyone ever tried these type of cabs???

The Demeter Silent cab

The AxeTrak

http://www.jlhproducts.com/axetrak/main.asp


I like the idea of the Demeter with being able to change the speaker & mic, but the idea of the AxeTrak is pretty cool too.

:beerchug:

 

[vinterland]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

I never even knew those existed. Now I'm curious.

 

[Jay 77]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

Not a bad idea for a home studio application. I wonder how it actually sounds though.

 

[PUCKBOY99]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

The clips on the AxeTrak site are very good.

Seems like a perfect alternate to using an attenuator.

Amp into AxeTrak...into a mixing board...into headphones.....Fully cranked amp with the mixer controlling the headphone volume.

Run it into a sound card into the computer & crank the crap out of your amp without ticking anyone off.

Sounds like a great idea to me.

 

[SlyFoxx]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

Actually folks use 'em live too. I know Alex Lifeson has done it recently. Great way to achieve isolation for the guitar.

 

[PUCKBOY99]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

Hey Sly, have you used anything like this before?

I like the port on the AxeTrak....you can let some extra sound out if you want.

Drawback being a fixed speaker & fixed mic...75w max 8 ohm load.
Plus is the size & no messing around with cables or anything interior

Not sure what the drawback of the Demeter would be other than being heavier & needing to provide your own speaker & mic, which means it'll be pricier.

 

[PUCKBOY99]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

Anyone else got .02 to add ?

 

[myxolidian]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

Reviews show that they sound like azz and I think I would have to agree from the soundclips I've heard.

Problem with those cabs is that you're isolating the mic inside a box. You get weird standing waves and reflections so it's not the same as mic'ing a regular cab. Also, a lot of reviews have mentioned that they are not really "silent".

I must say that I've never used one myself. But the standing waves issue makes a lot of sense. If you need to get a cranked amp sound a lower levels you're probably better off going with a Hotplate and mic'ing a conventional speaker cab.

 

[PUCKBOY99]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

Reviews show that they sound like azz and I think I would have to agree from the soundclips I've heard.

Ya' think?

I thought the Marshall bluesy single coil/bluesy lead clips were pretty damned good.

I know it won't be silent...I wouldn't want silent...but instead of or combined with an attenuator, I think they'd be a pretty useful tool.

All of my amps are under 50w, so the 75w limit on the AxeTrak doesn't worry me.

The Demeter would be more versatile, but I have the feeling buying speakers & mics would become a habit, which ain't cheap

 

[Jeff_H]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

My wife likes it when I use my "silent cab", she says I sound better that way.....wonder what she means?

These things look cool if you have the need for them.

 

[PUCKBOY99]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

My wife likes it when I use my "silent cab", she says I sound better that way.....wonder what she means?

These things look cool if you have the need for them.

:laugh2:

NEED???

No...I've been looking for something for practice without being yelled at & basically f*cking up the flow.

I've tried PODs & crap like that & didn't really care for them.

The AxeTrak looks like a good alternative for what I would do:

guitar...pedals...amp....cab...mixer....headphones, with the mixer controlling the headphone output.

Cranked amp at headphone volumes sounds like a winner to me....plus, the ability to capture that in recordings without having to d!ck around with mic placement, cables etc etc.....


NEED....nah.

WANT.....thinking about it :wink:

 

[Jeff_H]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

You're right Terry, what was I thinking. We don't NEED anything. :lmao:

 

[PUCKBOY99]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

hahahahaha....let's face it, "Smoke On The Water" on a Fuchs sounds about the same on a Crate

 

[Jeff Dunne]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

The standing waves are going to make it sound like ass, unfortunately. Same problem with the Randall ISO cab.

 

[myxolidian]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

Ya' think? I thought the Marshall bluesy single coil/bluesy lead clips were pretty damned good.

The cleaner stuff sounded ok thru the AxeTrak. It seems the more gain there is, the worse it sounds. It seems to add a sizzle that shouldn't be there(?). :dunno:

 

[TheArchitect]

Re: Silent Or Recording Cabs

Reviews show that they sound like azz and I think I would have to agree from the soundclips I've heard.

Problem with those cabs is that you're isolating the mic inside a box. You get weird standing waves and reflections so it's not the same as mic'ing a regular cab. Also, a lot of reviews have mentioned that they are not really "silent".

I must say that I've never used one myself. But the standing waves issue makes a lot of sense. If you need to get a cranked amp sound a lower levels you're probably better off going with a Hotplate and mic'ing a conventional speaker cab.

Thanks for sharing but as you said you haven't used one.

I use the Randall version of this similar to the Demeter. Are they silent? No they aren't but volume reduction is dramatic. If you dime a 100 watt plexi in an apartment you will still piss off the neighbors.

As for how they sound, the design is different from a traditional cab and certainly it will influence what you hear. That said, just like a traditional cab mic placement, selection and experimentation are necessary to dial in what you want to hear. The standing wave issue is addressed via the extensive amount of sound absorbing material used in these cabs to achieve the volume reduction. Standing waves exist in the room with a regular cab as well. They just cause a different set of problems because the "room" is a different size. A more direct influence on tone IMO is the fact that with a sealed enclosure the speaker incursion is restricted somewhat. Unlike a normal cab in a room, the air in front has no where to go and creates more resistance to to the speakers movement.

Do they sound exaclty like a 4x12? No. Can they sound good with proper mic technique? Absolutely.