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New cab?

B

Bass_Invader

May 17, 2012
21
0
#1
When my last band packed it in I told myself I was pretty much done with music or at least taking a break. Later on I needed money so I actually sold my amp and cab at the time. Now I am looking at getting back into music (would not call it regret, however it's more of missing playing and creating music for something to do and enjoy.) My local music stores just being honest never seem to have anything good in the price range I can afford or want to spend and our new Guitar Center here has not built up a decent used section yet so I have been looking on their used section on their website. I have used 610's and 810's before, however right now I am more so looking for a decent 410 or trying something new like a 215. A GC I found is selling a nice Mesa/Boogie Diesel 215 road ready 215 cab for $350...good deal? I did some research and found some high praise for the cab and positive reviews.

Transport is not a problem because I drive a truck and I love the road ready option because it should protect everything from damages and also weather riding in the bed of my truck.

Of course money is still an issue, I would love to find a decent 410 at a low price, however not a total POS either. But also something that sounds good and will last a while for me. May seem like a hodgepodge of a post, however hopefully everyone catches my drift.
 
#7
I don't have experience with that cab, but I've ordered through GC used before. If you don't like it, you can return it to your local GC and be out shipping. I believe (not 100% sure) That if something doesn't work on it when you get it, or if the speakers aren't the original electrovoices, then they will also refund your shipping. It doesn't hurt to call the store with the cab and ask them to check it out for you.
 
#8
Yep.

Make sure the speakers are the ones that belong in there and haven't been replaced with something cheap somewhere along the way and that's a good deal on a good cab.

Oh, and always keep at least a small rig around. Life happens...music stays in your blood forever.;)
 
#9
In generally speaking/asking, how does a 215 generally rank up against a 410 in volume and tone wise? I get they are two different animals in their own respects and then you can throw what drivers, brand, etc. But I am just asking in general. I have never used a 215, but am open to new things, however have used 410's in my playing before.
 
#10
15's are more efficient at lower frequencies so they will lean tone-wise towards bottom frequencies. IMO a 2x15 is going to be noticeably louder than a 4x10.

I recently checked out a 250 watt Trace rig (2x15 cab) for a friend (who wound up buying it) and it kicked like a mule. Tons of low grunt, body, fullness, etc. etc. I prefer aggressive mids and more highs but would have bought it if I were the one with the $$ at the time. I was able to dial in some aggressiveness to it but it didn't have the clarity I like; a 2x10 w/horn on top would have done that for me.

Last year I got to play through the identical cab that you are looking at, powerd by a Walkabout Scout. It also sounded great, but again I would rather have had some more high end. It is what it is, a great 2x15 cab.

I'm in the process of selling a Sunn (Fender era) 4x10 cab locally. While it is a nice cab - solid and full sounding, it doesn't have the volume of the 2x15 nor anything close to the kick those big speakers have. Great box, just different.

My main rig consists of two Hartke 1x15's and two 4x10's. Plenty of kick and just enough highs. No horn tweeters in any of the boxes but the aluminum cones make up for that. And, I just picked up a SWR Henry 8x8 for our smaller venues and love it. It doesn't kick like the Trace rig either but has more beef than the Sunn cab and puts out plenty of volume. More than enough lows, too. Not like 15's for sure, but bottom is there if you want it. For my articulation needs it's what the doctor ordered.

I say get the cab, it sounds like a good buy at that price. If you need more highs you can always add a horn to it, or another cab on top (2x10 or similar). Trace did it with their 'bright box'.

Raz
 
#11
If you are handy, the Mesa Diesel is based on a TL606 design... You could build a TL cab fairly cheaply - far less than you could buy one!

Check out Greenboy's designs... You should be able to find something there to suit your needs...

I built a set of TL cabs 12 years ago, and really enjoyed the options of what each cab was capable of, and where they would be appropriate. However, if I were to choose a cab type I prefer, it would be a sealed 2x15 cab...

Lots of hate for the "too small" sealed cabs on this forum... However, they have merit, and deserve a listen... I find a sealed 2x15 (or even a sealed 2x12) works quite well in 99% of my own situations... Many examples of what they sound like... Not to mention 20 years of my own (and others) experiences... And they are quite easy to build...

Just a thought...
 
#12
Razman said:
15's are more efficient at lower frequencies so they will lean tone-wise towards bottom frequencies. IMO a 2x15 is going to be noticeably louder than a 4x10.

I recently checked out a 250 watt Trace rig (2x15 cab) for a friend (who wound up buying it) and it kicked like a mule. Tons of low grunt, body, fullness, etc. etc. I prefer aggressive mids and more highs but would have bought it if I were the one with the $$ at the time. I was able to dial in some aggressiveness to it but it didn't have the clarity I like; a 2x10 w/horn on top would have done that for me.

Last year I got to play through the identical cab that you are looking at, powerd by a Walkabout Scout. It also sounded great, but again I would rather have had some more high end. It is what it is, a great 2x15 cab.

I'm in the process of selling a Sunn (Fender era) 4x10 cab locally. While it is a nice cab - solid and full sounding, it doesn't have the volume of the 2x15 nor anything close to the kick those big speakers have. Great box, just different.

My main rig consists of two Hartke 1x15's and two 4x10's. Plenty of kick and just enough highs. No horn tweeters in any of the boxes but the aluminum cones make up for that. And, I just picked up a SWR Henry 8x8 for our smaller venues and love it. It doesn't kick like the Trace rig either but has more beef than the Sunn cab and puts out plenty of volume. More than enough lows, too. Not like 15's for sure, but bottom is there if you want it. For my articulation needs it's what the doctor ordered.

I say get the cab, it sounds like a good buy at that price. If you need more highs you can always add a horn to it, or another cab on top (2x10 or similar). Trace did it with their 'bright box'.

Raz
Click to expand...


Its been stated here a million times that speaker size has no relation to how low a cab can go. Its all in how the cab is tuned and speaker efficiency. Volume comes from how much air a cab can move, so the more speaker surface area the more volume.
 
#13
Bass_Invader said:
When my last band packed it in I told myself I was pretty much done with music or at least taking a break. Later on I needed money so I actually sold my amp and cab at the time. Now I am looking at getting back into music (would not call it regret, however it's more of missing playing and creating music for something to do and enjoy.) My local music stores just being honest never seem to have anything good in the price range I can afford or want to spend and our new Guitar Center here has not built up a decent used section yet so I have been looking on their used section on their website. I have used 610's and 810's before, however right now I am more so looking for a decent 410 or trying something new like a 215. A GC I found is selling a nice Mesa/Boogie Diesel 215 road ready 215 cab for $350...good deal? I did some research and found some high praise for the cab and positive reviews.

Transport is not a problem because I drive a truck and I love the road ready option because it should protect everything from damages and also weather riding in the bed of my truck.

Of course money is still an issue, I would love to find a decent 410 at a low price, however not a total POS either. But also something that sounds good and will last a while for me. May seem like a hodgepodge of a post, however hopefully everyone catches my drift.
Click to expand...

Yeah, seems pretty decent. Concerns that others have raised are valid & should be checked.

But if you're satisfied that it checks out O.K. …
1. Don't act excited about the cab. Don't get giddy.
2. Ask if they'll negotiate price for cash money. Have cash in your pocket. Start at asking if $250 would work (& don't show them more than the $250). If they don't bite, work up in price slowly.

If they don't budge, at least ask that they throw in a speaker cable. Maybe an instrument cable too, or something else you need. Used free stuff works too.

My 2 cents.
 
#14
All valid responses and points, thanks for those. As for building a cab, it's not that I am not handy, however I would rather just buy something straight out. I was figuring that more speakers would make sense for more volume not matter what the size, however I have heard a friends rig in the past (older Peavey 215) and his cab is plenty loud just generally speaking in reference to the 2 15" speakers. I would love to walk into the GC with cash and haggle them down, however it is out of state. So unless they haggle over the phone then I am kind of stuck. However I talked to a salesman about the cab on the phone and asked some questions about if the front door panel comes with it because it is a road ready model and it does and also if the cab's speakers and electronics are in great working order and he assured me they were. He did not sound like the typical pushy salesman and was pretty receptive to my questions and answered with what I would call a "genuine response"...but of course what salesman does not have that "genuine smile?"
 
#16
Hopkins said:
Its been stated here a million times that speaker size has no relation to how low a cab can go. Its all in how the cab is tuned and speaker efficiency. Volume comes from how much air a cab can move, so the more speaker surface area the more volume.
Click to expand...

And in particular, this 215 doesn't reach very low at all... but because of that, it is VERY loud .

I'd be highly surprised if he could build a comparable 2x TL606 box for this price. He probably could barely get 2 EVM 15L's for this price, and he probably wouldn't build a Road Ready calibre box for that price either.

I say try it out. If you like it and truly don't mind schlepping it around Buy it.
 
#17
I used to have one - great rock cab, insanely heavy, very loud. Matched mine to a 400+. It has a surprising upper mid voicing for fifteens, which in the end did not suit me and I flicked it on. I likes me lows. Sounds like a good deal.
 
#18
As others have said, the lows aren't what I would describe as "powerful" in the Mesa 2x15. (I have the exact same cab, picked it up off CL for 400). It has a lot of mids that allow it to be heard real easily in the mix lending to quite a bit of "volume", but can leave you wanting in the deeper lows.

It's a great cab, just don't go expecting bowel moving lows.

As others have said test it out and see if you like it.

With my Mesa Walkabout it is truly something to behold. The tone is to literally DIE FOR!
 
#19
Thanks again for the responses, however like I said I am out of state so trying it out is almost impossible. However, I talked to the salesman on the phone about it asking questions and he assured me that everything works and it sounds great and is in great condition overall.
 
#20
Bmorefoozler said:
And in particular, this 215 doesn't reach very low at all... but because of that, it is VERY loud .

I'd be highly surprised if he could build a comparable 2x TL606 box for this price. He probably could barely get 2 EVM 15L's for this price, and he probably wouldn't build a Road Ready calibre box for that price either.

I say try it out. If you like it and truly don't mind schlepping it around Buy it.
Click to expand...


I wasn't trying to talk him out of the cab, just correcting bad information. ;)
 

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