Which 2x12 Closed Back Cab for my marshall JCM 900 50w?

[everdrone]

I just bought a Marshall JCM 900 4500 Dual Reverb head, which is 50watts, Im not sure what type of tubes. I PLAY DOWNTUNED HEAVY ROCK - think Alice in Chains, Queens of the Stone Age, Kyuss, Black Sabbath. Dozens of my demos are in my signature. I like using my RAT II pedal. I cant deny that I do appreciate a good chugga chugga type riff.

What 2x12 guitar cabinet should I get for that type of tone? I downtune to c# like black sabbath. I know some cabs are not compatible with some heads. I got my head for $500. I am considering mainly:

1) Orange Amplifiers PPC Series PPC212-C 120W 2x12 Guitar Speaker Cabinet
2) Mesa/Boogie 2x12 Horizontal Rectifier

Will either of these work with my head and my downtuning/playing? what other cabs should I really consider? Any feedback/insights are much appreciated.

[baytamusic]

I think either cab would work. Orange is better though.

Might wanna try a regular 1960 Marshall cab too. Those g12t75 Celestions are good for metal IMO. I don't play heavy music myself but a lot of my friends do and they tend to use the regular 1960a or b cabs. They have a lot of low end when needed. I do know you can score those things all day long for $300 used.

[everdrone]

I think either cab would work. Orange is better though.

Might wanna try a regular 1960 Marshall cab too. Those g12t75 Celestions are good for metal IMO. I don't play heavy music myself but a lot of my friends do and they tend to use the regular 1960a or b cabs. They have a lot of low end when needed. I do know you can score those things all day long for $300 used.

thanks much

I cant fit 4x12 in my corrolla, and 4x10 wouldn't look proper with the big marshall head. I dont like moving my 80 pound ampeg bass cab around but for the 2x12 with me using a back brace and it being a little less bulky I should be good.

Im a little worried about how the orange 2x12 pairs up with my marshall and my c# tuning; seems like it would work but I dont know... the mesa recto 2x12 seems to be tried and true and pairs up well with marshall heads according to harmony central http://www.harmonycentral.com/products/121868" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ...but I may have a lead on an orange 2x12 used for good price.

[jason41224]

it depends really on what speaker you want. i'm pretty sure both those cabs have Vintage 30's in them, which can be used for metal, but i've found Vintage 30's and marshalls don't really mix. V30s are extremely bright sounding speakers, and Marshalls are pretty bright sounding amps, so you might jsut end up with too much treble for your taste. i would second that suggestion to check out a regular 1960A cab.

[everdrone]

it depends really on what speaker you want. i'm pretty sure both those cabs have Vintage 30's in them, which can be used for metal, but i've found Vintage 30's and marshalls don't really mix. V30s are extremely bright sounding speakers, and Marshalls are pretty bright sounding amps, so you might jsut end up with too much treble for your taste. i would second that suggestion to check out a regular 1960A cab.

cool man, thanks, that makes sense, could be alot of treble for my ears, I need to see if guitar center will let me crank up their 212 mesa rectifier cabinet; yep - both those cabs have vintage 30's...I dunno

[Randy Bass]

I would go with the Mesa if it has MC-90s in it. The M*rshall 1936 would probably be my first choice with that amp though. I have a 100-watter (4100) and I have a hard time getting decent bass response unless the speakers are tight/scooped sounding like the G12T-75s.

[baytamusic]

I'd just try a V30 loaded cab (Mesa or Orange or whatever) and then try a regular Marshall cab and see what you like speaker wise. There are 2x12 Marshall cabs. What sucks is they tend to sell for more used than the 4x12 cabs. More in demand I guess.

We can make suggestions, but honestly if you have access to trying out the gear, that's the best thing to do. You'll get all kinds of opinions on the internet as you probably already know. At the end for the day, If it sounds good, it is good.

[everdrone]

Thanks all for the posts, very helpful

I have not owned a guitar amp stack in 12 years! looking forward to it. My first was jcm800 2203 and it was loud as murder so I could not crank it, and the preamp with pedal sounded horrible and it had horrible feedback even with noisegate; so I refuse to repeat that again!

I got the jcm900 for $500 so that I would not worry if it got beat up or stolen, might get a thunderverb 50 in years to come though...

I would go with the Mesa if it has MC-90s in it. The M*rshall 1936 would probably be my first choice with that amp though. I have a 100-watter (4100) and I have a hard time getting decent bass response unless the speakers are tight/scooped sounding like the G12T-75s.

Thanks - much appreciated, I did not know the G12T-75s characteristic versus the v-30 characteristic

4100? Thats pretty spot on! 100 watts - decent bass response? hmm...thanks for your insights

I think boomy type cab is best for me in that case; I played my jcm 900 with the 412 marshall cab for 20 minutes at volume level "8" and was not that satisfied with the bass however... my ears are different, and then it sounds different in a band setting etc etc too many variables lol this is a problematic question it seems, best to get one and go, buy less play more

thanks for the insights

I'd just try a V30 loaded cab (Mesa or Orange or whatever) and then try a regular Marshall cab and see what you like speaker wise. There are 2x12 Marshall cabs. What sucks is they tend to sell for more used than the 4x12 cabs. More in demand I guess.

We can make suggestions, but honestly if you have access to trying out the gear, that's the best thing to do. You'll get all kinds of opinions on the internet as you probably already know. At the end for the day, If it sounds good, it is good.

very cool man - I see your post above - there are a ton of factors in this - I wish I could play at band volumes with a band and check this shiz out to see how it sits in the mix but in the end Im gonna blindly chance it lol not sure if Ill get an orange head later on...people on the marshall forum really like the orange cabs from the threads I read there so that is a good indication

I honestly just dream about orange amps/cabs alot during the day so I might need to just feed my orange gas monster a little and pull the trigger on the orange cab cheers

[jason41224]

(warning, avatar plug incoming.)
OR, you could order a 2x12 cab from avatar styled after a marshall 2x12 with G12T-75s for half the price of any of the cabs being mentioned. and this way, you won't throw out your back

[Randy Bass]

(warning, avatar plug incoming.)
OR, you could order a 2x12 cab from avatar styled after a marshall 2x12 with G12T-75s for half the price of any of the cabs being mentioned. and this way, you won't throw out your back

This is a very good idea. You could even mix speakers to try to compensate for some of the uncertainty about which one is ideal for you.

[everdrone]

Thanks for all the feedback guys,

way too many factors to try out a cab - band volume, speakers broken in, acoustics of room, mix of the band you are in etc

the marshall 1936 is the obvious choice. I tried the mesa 2x12 at guitar center at low volumes with my head and it sounded awesome to me. very detailed and 3D.

... so I pulled the trigger and got the Orange 212 closed back cab since it was on sale


Honestly I really love the thunderverb though I have not played it, and really love the sound and look of orange rockerverb that I have heard/played when cranked, so I could not resist the orange cab

no rhyme or reason to my reasoning I know, I appreciate orange forumite words of wisdom very much

thanks so much yall for the feedback, I guess my biasness toward orange took over - maybe Ill switch heads later on or maybe not good thing is I will always sound like me lol

[Randy Bass]

Congrats on the Orange cab! I think it would be a wise approach to see how you get along with the JCM900 and think about trading up to a Thunderverb or Rockerverb down the road. The Oranges will give you way more low end than the JCM900, since it was really voiced for trebly 80's lead sounds more than anything else.

[Frank H]

Congratulations on the amp. I've been using the same amp (2/12 open back combo version ) for 17 years and it's still kickin ass.
I'm sure no matter what you run it through you will be happy with it. Can't go wrong with an Orange either. Looks like you've got the best of both worlds.
Enjoy.