Taking a Bugera 333 combo down from a 2x12 to 1x12....

[75lespaul]

May sound silly, but I want to at least try it. The Badcat Couger 50 combo I got sounds so good, that I figured wth. The 333 would be lighter, and I can pull one speaker from another cab instead of two, leaving me either an extra, or one more to sell to help pay for my recent expenditures. So to do this, would you (A) Just pull one speaker, leaving a gaping hole? (B) Bolt a piece of wood over the hole (C) Do something I've never done, which is to try and construct a new baffle with the speaker in the middle for even weight distribution, or some kind of effect on the tone?

Cheaper and lighter. I don't want to spend much more, or any more cash, but option D is to just pull the speakers out completely, and some fella is selling an EVH 1x12 for $130 empty. That would give me another piece of gear to lug though, which I'm also trying to cut down on. I'm really not good with woodworking/tolexing, so I'm not going to try to build a head cabinet. Probably the best I would be able to do is hack the bottom off the combo and angle bracket or glue a board to the bottom, lol. Real hack job.

 

[ehdwuld]

Re: Taking a Bugera 333 combo down from a 2x12 to 1x12....

make one



take measurements of the Control Pan

you'll wanna make the head portion to width and depth
height will give you more leeway for the speaker

sketch out a box the right width and depth
make it the same height as the original
shelving boards should work if you can find the right width

or you can order a shell to house it

over at mojotone
they probably have one that fits
but again you'll need the measurements

 

[Darg1911]

Re: Taking a Bugera 333 combo down from a 2x12 to 1x12....

You may have a hard time finding a single 12" that will handle the 120 watts. I wouldn't use the amp with a single Bugera speaker. They are probably overrated anyway. If they aren't they probably aren't very efficient. You wont save all that much weight either. If the baffle is MDF, you'll probably save a couple of pounds with plywood. Speakers don't weight all that much. Most of the weight is the ceramic magnet. You might save 10 pounds, probably less, total, if you replaced baffle and used a single speaker.

 

[75lespaul]

Re: Taking a Bugera 333 combo down from a 2x12 to 1x12....

You may have a hard time finding a single 12" that will handle the 120 watts. I wouldn't use the amp with a single Bugera speaker. They are probably overrated anyway. If they aren't they probably aren't very efficient. You wont save all that much weight either. If the baffle is MDF, you'll probably save a couple of pounds with plywood. Speakers don't weight all that much. Most of the weight is the ceramic magnet. You might save 10 pounds, probably less, total, if you replaced baffle and used a single speaker.

I've pulled the two middle tubes, so its now 60 watts. Was going to use either a V30 or WGS equivalent, both of which I have already. I was also thinking of just putting casters, which I have, on the amp, but I'm afraid that all the rolling and bumping around could damage the amp at some point as Bugeras aren't know for their sturdiness.

 

[Darg1911]

Re: Taking a Bugera 333 combo down from a 2x12 to 1x12....

I've pulled the two middle tubes, so its now 60 watts. Was going to use either a V30 or WGS equivalent, both of which I have already. I was also thinking of just putting casters, which I have, on the amp, but I'm afraid that all the rolling and bumping around could damage the amp at some point as Bugeras aren't know for their sturdiness.

I wouldn't worry so much about the sturdiness. More the longevity of components. Probably cut the most corners on the transformers. That would be my guess anyway.

I'd try it with the speakers you are considering. If you find that you want to go with a single 12", you can always build a new baffle and probably save those few pounds or so, and keep it balanced with a centered speaker. You can make a perfect copy with a router and flush trim bit. You'd just have to manipulate the original baffle to center one of the speaker cutouts on the new baffle so you can use it as a template. Jigsaw or circular saw would be helpful to get the new baffle down to with 1/4" of the original. Also a drill. Takes longer than a table saw but it's easy and makes a perfect duplicate of the original. Recently did this to replace a baffle in a 4x12. Installing new grill cloth was the only challenge. I hadn't installed a stiff, weave type cloth before that.

 

[75lespaul]

Re: Taking a Bugera 333 combo down from a 2x12 to 1x12....

I wouldn't worry so much about the sturdiness. More the longevity of components. Probably cut the most corners on the transformers. That would be my guess anyway.

I'd try it with the speakers you are considering. If you find that you want to go with a single 12", you can always build a new baffle and probably save those few pounds or so, and keep it balanced with a centered speaker. You can make a perfect copy with a router and flush trim bit. You'd just have to manipulate the original baffle to center one of the speaker cutouts on the new baffle so you can use it as a template. Jigsaw or circular saw would be helpful to get the new baffle down to with 1/4" of the original. Also a drill. Takes longer than a table saw but it's easy and makes a perfect duplicate of the original. Recently did this to replace a baffle in a 4x12. Installing new grill cloth was the only challenge. I hadn't installed a stiff, weave type cloth before that.

After reading the replies and giving this some serious thought, I think I'm going to scrap the single speaker idea and try a few different speaker combos in this amp. I'll just deal with the weight, and I'll put the casters on to make rolling it around easier. Guys, thank you SO much for the responses. I think the main thing that I considered was how infrequently I'm going to have to move this amp around, because it will mainly be in my basement to jam on unless we have a bigger gig where I'll use two amps at once. Seriously, if that's twice a year, its a lot.

 

[Darg1911]

Re: Taking a Bugera 333 combo down from a 2x12 to 1x12....

After reading the replies and giving this some serious thought, I think I'm going to scrap the single speaker idea and try a few different speaker combos in this amp. I'll just deal with the weight, and I'll put the casters on to make rolling it around easier. Guys, thank you SO much for the responses. I think the main thing that I considered was how infrequently I'm going to have to move this amp around, because it will mainly be in my basement to jam on unless we have a bigger gig where I'll use two amps at once. Seriously, if that's twice a year, its a lot.

Best choice, I think.

I assume the cabinet is MDF? If so, you may want to consider using small squares of plywood inside the cabinet to screw/bolt each caster too. Or, at least use T-nuts and bolts instead of screws if you don't want to bother with the plywood backers.

 

[skyydogg01]

Re: Taking a Bugera 333 combo down from a 2x12 to 1x12....

IF I were to make such a conversion, it would be to make a new baffle. I'd also do some sort of a 3/4 back for it ... Mesa widebody style.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Taking a Bugera 333 combo down from a 2x12 to 1x12....

Very interesting idea. I owned a 333XL Combo and loved the clean and Drive/Crunch channels. I do prefer 1x12 Combos though. Best of luck and please keep us posted!