2x12 bassman cabinet: which speakers???

[bon viesta]

thinking of using a mojotone bassman 2x12 cabinet for a smaller, cool looking bass amp set up. i’ve heard all kinds of stories about how the original 2x12 cabs weren’t very good for high volumes, and the speakers were simply not that good for bass guitar. i’m thinking if i can put in more powerful, bass capable speakers i can spare myself from the issues associated with the original fender bassman cabinets. maybe i can put in eminence 12a beta speakers in there?? the dimensions of the cabinet are in the image below.

 

[GreyBeard]

I had a small Bassman 2x12 sealed cab. It had 2 Jenson speakers and would not play very loud before farting out. If the small bassman cab is what you are writing about, calculate the internal volume and look for 12" bass guitar speakers designed for a sealed cab of that volume.

 

[CTBassGuy]

Looks like someone did this in this thread using Deltalites (neo speakers) for a lightweight cab to reasonably good result:
Generic cabinet and neo speakers

I used 4 Basslites in my Ampeg V4 cab and it sounds great.

Just make sure you check the cabinet volume vs the specs of the speaker to ensure it is good for that size/type cab. Anthony at Eminence will help find the right speaker for your cab if you call them.

 

[Bill Whitehurst]

As long as you don't require huge amounts of deep lows 2512 Deltalites will work OK.
I have a pair of 112 cabs that are built to be 1/2 of the old 212.
I was joking about doing that and found they are right in the middle of the sealed cab volume range that Eminence suggests.
Useful as small bas cabs, guitar, keys, floor monitors, etc.
Not earth shattering at anything, but at least OK at everything.

 

[Chickenwheels]

For the same look but astronomically better sonic results and performance, why not get a Fender Rumble or Pro Neo cab?

 

[bon viesta]

an idea: what if i put 10 inch speakers into the 2x12 cabinet to give the speakers more room???

 

[MattZilla]

I’d put 15’s in there.

Just sayin.

 

[two fingers]

Call these guys.

https://www.usspeaker.com/eminence index-1.htm

Give them the interior dimensions. They'll offer you several options and tell you the differences. Great customer service.

 

[bon viesta]

I’d put 15’s in there.

Just sayin.

i wish!!!!! on the webs, there are zero cabinet shell manufacturers that make a closed back fender style cabinet. if there are….. any pointers??? i’d rather have a vintage fender style 2x15 cabinet (ala dual showman cabinets) than a 2x12 bassman cabinet. only examples i found are old, dodgy looking custom order sites where you have to email to order and they don’t have any pictures of the individual products.

 

[MattZilla]

Is it the dimensions or just the cloth and tolex/tweed which you’re after?

 

[bon viesta]

Is it the dimensions or just the cloth and tolex/tweed which you’re after?

it’s specifically vintage fender aspect of it that i’m after. i’m a really stubborn when it comes to anything that isn’t vintage-y with my music gear if i can have a say in it. i’m basically obsessed! but at the same time, i can’t say that the dimensions (being rather small as compared to a giant fridge) aren’t pretty desirable. but i really do wish i could find a dual showman 2x15 spec cabinet clone out there on the webs. after doing some research, people say that bassman 2x12 cabinets are the worst you’ll ever hear. meanwhile my entire bass set up is 20 tube watts (from a guitar head) and a 12 inch speaker monitor and even that seems to be plenty loud. the enclosure is about 12 inches deep, in a triangle shape. and 17 inches tall. pretty small. that’s all to say, the bassman cabinet on its own doesn’t seem to be such a horrible thing for bass if you can get the right speakers into it. and also if you aren’t trying to play with mr john henry bonham to your side.

 

[2saddleslab]

I've owned many Fender Bassman 212 cabs over the years. Originally I used them because they would fit in the trunk and were pretty easy to transport.

I had MojoTone make me a cab in the mid 90's to Fender specs. I used EV Force 12's which sounded amazing, but heavy. Fast forward to last year, fellow TB'er, @treyandres, who owns a similar MojoTone cab, suggested Eminence Neo speakers to save some weight. These are the front vented versions. Not sure if they are still available.

These speakers sound amazing and save lots of weight bringing the cab in at a svelte 45lbs.

If you're interested in the EV's, let me know. And good luck on your search!

 

[agedhorse]

The series 1 eminence neos have been discontinued for maybe 15 years.

There are new Fender Bassman style cabinets that are far better suited for bass guitar. Do you care about performance or only looks?

 

[bon viesta]

The series 1 eminence neos have been discontinued for maybe 15 years.

There are new Fender Bassman style cabinets that are far better suited for bass guitar. Do you care about performance or only looks?

both! of course. but all the bassman style cabs are both more expensive than the price of this hypothetical cabinet and also not really the layout i want for this this. small and loud enough to practice with and use more quietly without drums is all i need, and this cabinet can get me there without having to be fine tuned to the exact speaker like most TB folks say is required to happen or the world will explode.

 

[Redbrangus]

The 212 cabs from the blonde and blackface eras suffered both from inadequate drivers and from being much too small for the drivers they had. Any number of custom builders could build you a vintage-y looking cab, either as a 212 or as a 112 or 115 box; with modern drivers, it seems like that might work for your limited purposes. If it's a custom build, it could be made somewhat deeper than the original Fender cabs and still keep the vintage look.

 

[StatesideRambler]

Don’t assign too much value to an existing cab. We’ve come a long way in sixty years and shoehorning substitute speakers into a cab that was under designed at the outset will yield an underwhelming result. Unless you’re in a tribute band put that time and money into better performing gear.

 

[andrus108]

I'll join in and ask: which 12" speakers would suit a 2x12 sealed cab that's roughly 140L / 5 cu. ft. of internal space? To be run with Ampeg B25 (50 watts).

 

[2saddleslab]

The series 1 eminence neos have been discontinued for maybe 15 years.

There are new Fender Bassman style cabinets that are far better suited for bass guitar. Do you care about performance or only looks?

both! of course. but all the bassman style cabs are both more expensive than the price of this hypothetical cabinet and also not really the layout i want for this this. small and loud enough to practice with and use more quietly without drums is all i need, and this cabinet can get me there without having to be fine tuned to the exact speaker like most TB folks say is required to happen or the world will explode.

Yes, performance & looks are the ultimate goal. I always respect & appreciate @agedhorse's technical prowess and generosity to share. Not having any of that myself I can only go by my ears the the continual compliments from my bandmates.

 

[bon viesta]

Yes, performance & looks are the ultimate goal. I always respect & appreciate @agedhorse's technical prowess and generosity to share. Not having any of that myself I can only go by my ears the the continual compliments from my bandmates.

i really do appreciate the “critical” mentions of the simple fact that the fender cabinets back then were pretty poorly designed for bass, physics wise. they had no idea what they were doing. but they look cool, and most of the problems associated with them were the crappy speakers and subpar power. i’ve seen all kinds of praise from them when people put in more powerful and appropriate speakers, and that gives me some hope that the cool little shallow fender cabinets aren’t a complete lost cause for very basic purposes.

 

[agedhorse]

both! of course. but all the bassman style cabs are both more expensive than the price of this hypothetical cabinet and also not really the layout i want for this this. small and loud enough to practice with and use more quietly without drums is all i need, and this cabinet can get me there without having to be fine tuned to the exact speaker like most TB folks say is required to happen or the world will explode.

Are you asking a sincere question here, a question that you want to receive an accurate answer for, or are you simply seeking confirmation that a bad idea is good?

The size of that cabinet is simply too small for all of the drivers that I am aware of that would work well in a sealed cabinet. Nothing can change that fact.

If you were to simply remove one driver and seal off the opening, the box would better support a single suitable driver with almost no loss of performance and quite possible better low end characteristics.

As an example of a cabinet that actually performs well (an order of magnitude beyond your current cabinet) is the Rumble 112 extension cabinet, and has the vintage fender look too: