thanks for the help,
-adam
>Hey. I'm looking to buy a cabinet. I've narrowed it down to three.. a 70s
>Hiwatt SE4123 w/ Fane 50watts, a Reeves 4x12 with the vintage purple
>speakers (it seems to be a take on the SE4123), or a Marshall Cab (I'm
>trying out a 1960A w/ Celesetion G12T-75s in a day or two), but from what
>I've been reading the Hiwatt and Reeves blow Marshall Cabs outta the water.
>Any comments/suggestions?
Everybody likes to say something ridiculous about their favorite gear.
Take hype and boasting by enthusiasts with a grain of salt.
>I'll be using the cab with my Peavey VTM-120 head
>and Marshall JPM 2204 MK2 50watt. I'm looking for a dark, sludgey, wirey
>sound.
>
>thanks for the help,
>-adam
Nothing that's dark & sludgey is going to blow a Marshall cabinet out
of the water. Dark & sludgey gets you lost in the mix.
--
This isn't gonna cure anything!
I just thought it'd be fun. --Jake
I use a 70's era Hiwatt/Fane 4x12 with my JMP 2204. The particular
speakers in my cab are darker sounding, and low sensitivity (not as loud
as most speakers, meaning power tube distortion at a lower volume
level). I think it's the IDEAL match for the amp, but they are very
hard to find. Especially for a reasonable price.
Speaking from my experience, the darker sounding Hiwatt/Fane cab is the
PERFECT match to a 2204. The amp has great preamp distortion, the
speakers allow it to sound even better. And I've never had a problem
with lack of volume when I've jammed, even with the less efficient speakers.
"Sludgy" is not my word, and I've never used that term to describe the
Hiwatt/Fane 70's slot back 4x12. Dark, warm, woody? Yes. Muddy,
Sludgy? NO. I'm not sure what "wirey" sounds like.
For kicks, I checked four of my cabs today with pink noise, a calibrated
mic and an RTA. The cab I speak of rolls off earlier than the other
cabs, and has a lower and stronger bottom end resonance. And it's about
3db down from the others I checked (80's Hiwatt/Fane, Vintage 30 2x12,
and an older version of the Rockman Velocity S-112 trap shape ported 1x12).
If you want a darker tone then the Hiwatt cabinet with Fane speakers
would be a good choice. That's exactly how I remember them to be -
dark. And precisely why I didn't like them, but that's the tone you're
shooting for. I have never really cared for the Celestion G12T-75. It
always seemed to need to much volume to sound really good. I prefer a
lower wattage speaker like the G12H30. I think running a 2204 through
a Hiwatt cab is really just squandering a great amp, but you may dig
it.
Peter
> On Mon, 3 Dec 2007 21:53:40 -0500, "adam79" <ada...@toast.net> wrote:
>
>
>>Hey. I'm looking to buy a cabinet. I've narrowed it down to three.. a 70s
>>Hiwatt SE4123 w/ Fane 50watts, a Reeves 4x12 with the vintage purple
>>speakers (it seems to be a take on the SE4123), or a Marshall Cab (I'm
>>trying out a 1960A w/ Celesetion G12T-75s in a day or two), but from what
>>I've been reading the Hiwatt and Reeves blow Marshall Cabs outta the water.
>>Any comments/suggestions? I'll be using the cab with my Peavey VTM-120 head
>>and Marshall JPM 2204 MK2 50watt. I'm looking for a dark, sludgey, wirey
>>sound.
>
>
> If you want a darker tone then the Hiwatt cabinet with Fane speakers
> would be a good choice. That's exactly how I remember them to be -
> dark. And precisely why I didn't like them, but that's the tone you're
> shooting for.
I'm wondering if you've ever really played the combination. I think
that my 70's era rear slot Hiwatt/Fane 4x12 is the IDEAL match for the
2204, because the Fanes roll off the high end, and bring out the bottom.
The Marshall mids come through loud and clear, and any inherent preamp
tube buzziness (which is WAY lower than other amps) is attenuated.
Result: "thick" and "creamy" type of tone, even when relying on preamp
distortion. The harmonics come through, but they don't sound harsh or
buzzy.
It really depends on your style of play. It works GREAT for blues and
classic rock. But it does sound dark for metal or clean.
I use an 80's Hiwatt/Fane front ported cab when I want more edge to the
tone (usually with my Mesa Mark III, or an old Univox tube amp that I
modified). That cab shifts the bottom emphasis up maybe about half an
octave (there's still some thump, but voiced a bit different), and has
much more highs then the 70's Fanes.
For clean, I use Super Reverb.
> I have never really cared for the Celestion G12T-75. It
> always seemed to need to much volume to sound really good.
I find it to be too harsh.
> I prefer a
> lower wattage speaker like the G12H30.
And how does the wattage affect the tone? It's more about magnet and
speaker cone than wattage.
> I think running a 2204 through
> a Hiwatt cab is really just squandering a great amp, but you may dig
> it.
Well, if you're ever in the Seattle area, I'd be happy to try to change
your mind.
Readers of this thread need to know that there are several different
Fane drivers that have been used in the Hiwatts over the years. The
ones that I prefer are the purple back 70's era with a steel frame. Not
the early cast ones, not the newer ones.
>
> Peter
>I've been reading the Hiwatt and Reeves blow Marshall Cabs outta the water.
It's true. That's why you see so many pro players who can afford to
play anything they want using Hiwatt cabs.
Wait a minute... no you don't.
Nevermind.
Peter
Again, I'm wondering about your level of personal experience. When's
the last time you a Hiwatt cab? Which type was it? With what amp?
I'm curious about your choice of speaker cab, and why you like it.
FWIW, most Marshall cabs in my view are too powerful to open up
properly with lower amplification like my 50/50 Peavey...they just
sound cold and lifeless because they aren't running nowhere near their
maximum I guess. Most any speaker of mine from a single 35W Celestion
onwards gives a more pleasant tone than one of those 240W monsters. I
dunno where you could floor them, ever.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=170174645652&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=007
lemme know what you think.
thanks,
-adam
Peter,
Maybe you didn't see this, or maybe you don't want to respond because
you don't want to get in a discussion that really just boils down to
personal tastes.
To date, I haven't found a cab for the 2204 that I like better than my
older Hiwatt. But I'm thinking about a speaker swap for my newer Hiwatt
4x12. You can check my recent post about greenbacks. (I concluded that
the current G12H30 sounds more like what I remember about the greenback
than the current greenback does!).
So I'm honestly seeking opinions of what other 2204 owners like for
speakers. I'm not just inviting you to argue over personal tastes
(which would be foolish, because you like what you like!). The newer
Hiwatt cab turned out to be 8 ohm, instead of 16 as advertised at time
of sale. So I'm thinking reload it with 16 ohm drivers, put two of the
newer Fanes in a 2x12 (16 ohm cab), and sell the other two.
The newer ones are good drivers, just brighter than the older Fanes, and
with a higher resonant point on the bottom.
So far, I'm thinking the Celestion G12H30.
..don't you really mean GREASY ?
you must have wanted it REALLY BAD.
I think that's a lot to pay, especially with shipping (or is it local
for you?). But if it's the speaker you want, it may be worth it to you.
It looks like a good vintage G12-65 regularly sells for $100 or so.
It may be worth about $500 in drivers alone. The new Heritage reissue
costs more, and I've not read how true to tone they really are.
http://professional.celestion.com/guitar/products/pdfs/Heritage%20Series%20G12-65.pdf
I hope all the speakers are good. Let us know how you like it. I tend
to go for the B cab in Marshall, because the A cab shifts the bottom
resonant point up a bit and can give more of a lower mids peak. But
some guys like the A cab, for the very same reason. ...and because they
direct the sound up to the ear for stage fill, when you're close to the amp.
I got curious and checked ebay for Hiwatt sales. One with greenbacks, a
BOGUS sale because of password phishing, went for over $7k (two phished
accounts???). It's back up, but it's been re-tolexed in white (yuck)
and doesn't have Fanes.
The reissue Hiwatt/Fane 4x12 is for sale for $2099 at music123 I'm not
sure what a good vintage one goes for these days.
"Jim" <as...@beforeyousend.com> wrote in message
news:13lbe1g...@corp.supernews.com...
>I ended up buying a marshall 1960a with g12 - 65 celestions. here's the link
>to the ebay auction. what do you think of the cab? it's is rough shape
>cosmetically, lemme know what you think.
Holy shit. You paid $685 for that ragged out cabinet with those
speakers? You could have bought a brand new Avatar cab with much
better speakers for hundreds less. Hopefully you are doing local
pickup and not paying $120 more to have that beater shipped to you.
For that price it would have to have had original greenbacks or G12H30
speakers in it and that still would be on the high side given it's
condition.
Where were you went I was parting out my guitar colection?
Peter
>Holy shit. You paid $685 for that ragged out cabinet with those
>speakers?
Especially after the revelation that Hiwatt cabs blow Marshall cabs
out of the water? Heh.
Peter
> is this a bad deal? should i not get the cab.. one good thing is that i
> don't have to pay shipping.
I'd say it's a bad deal if you had to pay shipping. It's a good deal
without shipping if you GOTTA HAVE those hard to find Celestions.
> i just noticed that the speakers are 15ohms..
> how do you hook those up to a head? my vtm-120 has speakers outputs for
> 2,4,8 and 16 ohm cabs..
More than a couple vintage speakers say 15 ohms. It's perfectly okay to
run these on a 16 ohm tap. Your average 16 ohm speaker may hit 100 ohms
by the time it gets to the resonant frequency.
> any opinions on whether i should nix the deal.
I think you already made the deal. The cab looks ratty, but if it's
solid, it's not a horrible deal. Too rich for my blood for that setup,
but you bought it, so give it a chance.
I probably would've bought a Marshall B cab with a couple of nicks, but
good cosmetics, then dropped in a quad of the G12H30 and sold the 75W
Celestions for whatever I got on Ebay. I'm guessing that would've cost
about $250 less than your deal. I'd have Chinese Celestions and a
better looking B cab. You'd have a vintage cab with vintage speakers.
What makes sense to you is only up to you to decide.
But Hiwatts would've cost him even more. The Reissue cab sells for
$2100, and that's a mail order price.
On Tue, 4 Dec 2007 12:50:59 -0500, "adam79" <ada...@toast.net> wrote:
thanks,
-adam
"PMG" <xxxx...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:lofel3d0jv4u6ch53...@4ax.com...
> Every review about these speakers is a 10. do you think this is a bad deal
> just because i'm paying $685. i don't have to pay shipping, btw. also, if i
> ever need a full stack i plan to buy a reeves 412 or the Hiwatt SE4123 for
> the bottom, straight cab. What are all your opinions on other Hiwatt
> cabinets?
>
> thanks,
> -adam
Be careful about buying Hiwatt gear. Research for more details, but the
name has been under different control at different times. BE SURE you
are buying the real British deal. The logo alone doesn't cut it. And,
as an owner of two vintage straight cabs (one from the 70's, one from
the 80's), I can tell you that different models sound very different.
Also INSIST on inspecting the drivers. Old Fanes are not cheap. I see
Hiwatt cabs for sale all the time with non original Celestions.
> adam79 wrote:
>
>> Every review about these speakers is a 10. do you think this is a bad
>> deal just because i'm paying $685. i don't have to pay shipping, btw.
>> also, if i ever need a full stack i plan to buy a reeves 412 or the
>> Hiwatt SE4123 for the bottom, straight cab. What are all your opinions
>> on other Hiwatt cabinets?
>>
>> thanks,
>> -adam
>
>
> Be careful about buying Hiwatt gear. Research for more details, but the
> name has been under different control at different times. BE SURE you
> are buying the real British deal. The logo alone doesn't cut it. And,
> as an owner of two vintage straight cabs (one from the 70's, one from
> the 80's), I can tell you that different models sound very different.
> Also INSIST on inspecting the drivers. Old Fanes are not cheap. I see
> Hiwatt cabs for sale all the time with non original Celestions.
>
Here's what should be in an 80's vintage Hiwatt:
http://www.seattle-attorney.com/fanelores.jpg
Here's a glimpse of the construction. Notice that 14 ply baltic birch,
a glimpse of the front ports, and the way it is attached to the rear
baffle, with front mounted speakers:
http://www.seattle-attorney.com/hiwattconst_lowres.jpg
This is NOT my favorite of my two Hiwatt cabs. I prefer the 70's
vintage cab, but I don't have any pictures of it handy. It has a slot
in the center bottom of the rear baffle, and rear mounted "purple back"
Hiwatt/Fane drivers.
Caveat on the above. It bears repeating that my cab's model and serial
number plate claims that it's a 16 ohm cab, but it's really 8 ohms. It
is possible that the original owner swapped these Fanes into the cab.
They do date to the correct time period of the cab itself. That could
explain the discrepancy with labeled and actual impedance. So I cannot
say with certainty that those are the correct Fanes for that cab.
--
Where's what? --Towelie
>Here's a glimpse of the construction. Notice that 14 ply baltic birch,
>a glimpse of the front ports, and the way it is attached to the rear
>baffle, with front mounted speakers:
>http://www.seattle-attorney.com/hiwattconst_lowres.jpg
Jim, how big are those ports? They look to be around 2 1/2". I'm
debating whether or not to port my old Traynor 4X12 cabs.
-DC
You got that right. Some were made in upperstate NY, they mostly had
black grills, even a slant cab for the top. Heads had gold silk
screened panels. These amps sucked. Cabs were 'ok' if found cheaply.
New Hiwatts are made by Music Ground (et all) in the UK. Before MG n
Fernandes made up and stopped suing each other, Reeves imported MG built
'Hiwatt' and re-labeled it. Now, I don't know what they are doing, word
has it they were left in the lurch when MG n F kissed and made buddy buddy.
MG makes a real good Hiwatt these days, but are not cheap. Then again,
Hiwatts never really were. Reeves also makes some good amps, but there
are those who don't like the use of Dave Reeves's name on the product.
At one time, full rights to Hiwatt could be had for $500k, in cash.
(Then again, full rights to the name 'VOX' once was for sale for $100k)
>Also INSIST on inspecting the drivers. Old Fanes are not cheap. I see
>Hiwatt cabs for sale all the time with non original Celestions.
Old fanes are the best 'Hiwatt' sound, but then again, my 1/2 stack has
4 Celestion 'PowerCell' speakers, with 3" Voice coils, huge magnets, and
handles over 600 watts true RMS. Moves walls. Weighs a ton n a half.
Contray to belief, old Hiwatts could of been had with Celestions from
the factory, but they just were too brite, and blew up easy. MANY
people put JBLs in them, getting loud and clean at the same time.
Hiwatt cabs are built like rocks, and as all the smart folks know,
cabinets are a major source of good sound. Cheap thin walled, flimsy
cabs sound like shit no matter what speakers you put in them.
IMHO or dealing with Hiwatts (from b4 they were imported thru NYC 2 today)
I feel they are the best built amp in history, and well worth the $$$ if
you find an old one. What was called a 'Bulldog' in the old fart days (.com)
was a 100 watt head placed upside down (some were 50's) in a 1 or 2-12 combo.
Find one of them. They can rock ya world. Get ya evicted. End marriages.
JJTj
Good guess, but closer to 2 5/8. Some metric size no doubt. No tubes,
just the thickness of the 14 ply and four of them spaced between the
drivers.
For a time, I blocked them and lined the cab with the studio type egg
crate foam. Then I went back to stock. I recently checked this cab
with pink noise and an RTA. For kicks, I might do that again with the
ports blocked. Probably not real soon. My RTA check was where all cabs
sat, but with the calibrated mic the same distance away from each.
About a week ago, some woman slammed into the back of my wife's car and
really messed up my neck and back, so I won't be hefting these things
around much in the near future. If I get bored, I could block the ports
and check the response curve, without relining the cab. Of course,
that's only going to help if your cab has the same interior volume, and
to another degree, the same Fanes. But it might be interesting nonetheless.
>>Be careful about buying Hiwatt gear. Research for more details, but the
>>name has been under different control at different times. BE SURE you
>>are buying the real British deal. The logo alone doesn't cut it. And,
>>as an owner of two vintage straight cabs (one from the 70's, one from
>>the 80's), I can tell you that different models sound very different.
>>Also INSIST on inspecting the drivers. Old Fanes are not cheap. I see
>>Hiwatt cabs for sale all the time with non original Celestions.
>
>
> You got that right. Some were made in upperstate NY, they mostly had
> black grills, even a slant cab for the top. Heads had gold silk
> screened panels. These amps sucked. Cabs were 'ok' if found cheaply.
While you see a lot of "salt and pepper" grills, both of mine are black,
and both are true UK production. The early one has a grill cloth that
is very heavy and feels pretty thick. The later one is common nylon
type stuff.
>
> New Hiwatts are made by Music Ground (et all) in the UK. Before MG n
> Fernandes made up and stopped suing each other, Reeves imported MG built
> 'Hiwatt' and re-labeled it. Now, I don't know what they are doing, word
> has it they were left in the lurch when MG n F kissed and made buddy buddy.
>
> MG makes a real good Hiwatt these days, but are not cheap. Then again,
> Hiwatts never really were.
I believe those are the reissue cabs that music123 sells for over $2k each.
> Reeves also makes some good amps, but there
> are those who don't like the use of Dave Reeves's name on the product.
>
> At one time, full rights to Hiwatt could be had for $500k, in cash.
>
> (Then again, full rights to the name 'VOX' once was for sale for $100k)
>
>
>>Also INSIST on inspecting the drivers. Old Fanes are not cheap. I see
>>Hiwatt cabs for sale all the time with non original Celestions.
>
>
> Old fanes are the best 'Hiwatt' sound, but then again, my 1/2 stack has
> 4 Celestion 'PowerCell' speakers, with 3" Voice coils, huge magnets, and
> handles over 600 watts true RMS. Moves walls. Weighs a ton n a half.
>
> Contray to belief, old Hiwatts could of been had with Celestions from
> the factory, but they just were too brite, and blew up easy.
I have heard this, but was not sure whether it was true, and people
obviously prefer Fane in Hiwatt cabs.
MANY
> people put JBLs in them, getting loud and clean at the same time.
>
> Hiwatt cabs are built like rocks, and as all the smart folks know,
> cabinets are a major source of good sound. Cheap thin walled, flimsy
> cabs sound like shit no matter what speakers you put in them.
Agreed 100%.
>
> IMHO or dealing with Hiwatts (from b4 they were imported thru NYC 2 today)
> I feel they are the best built amp in history, and well worth the $$$ if
> you find an old one. What was called a 'Bulldog' in the old fart days (.com)
> was a 100 watt head placed upside down (some were 50's) in a 1 or 2-12 combo.
>
> Find one of them. They can rock ya world. Get ya evicted. End marriages.
>
> JJTj
The good vintage Hiwatt head that I played on were just too clean for
me. But no doubt in my mind that it'd be tough to get better quality at
any price.
Then they are rare if the cloth is original. When I spoke to Dave Reeves
(way back then) he mentioned he never used black grill cloth, yet later
on, I spoke to those on the old UK line, who remembered building a few.
Reminds me when I asked Jim Marshall if he ever built amps on stands
like Vox did, he said no, yet the Marshall Book shows pix of them,
although I'd guess they were one or 2 off's. Just goes to show..
JJTj
I've been a drag racer on LSD,
and I rode bare-assed on top of the sphinx,
I even had a gorilla on the slopes of kismet,
and man, that was fun for a while you bet but...
Bikini girls with machine guns,
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that stuff will kill ya, and it's loaded with fun,
Bikini girls with machine guns
well I savored many foriegn kinds of delicacies,
intoxicated til I can't tell what the hell I could see,
had all the violence and liquor within close reach,
but all bars, pills and threeways lead me back to the beach...
...yeah...
Bikini girls with machine guns,
Bikini girls with machine guns,
that stuff will kill ya, & it's loaded with fun,
Bikini girls with machine guns
now they say that virtue is it's own reward,
but when that surf comes in I'm gunna get my board,
I got my own ideas about the righteous kick,
n you can keep the reward, I'd just as soon stay sick...
Bikini girls with machine guns,
Bikini girls with machine guns,
that stuff will kill ya, it's loaded with fun,
Bikini girls with machine guns