Restoring a Coral 6-12

[Son of Celts]

Greetings,

I may be getting a chance to restore a 1968 Coral 6-12 cabinet. It has no speakers in it at all but the cab is in great shape. I'm on a budget but I'd like to be able to either play a 5-string (w/low B) or convert one of my 4-strings to do drop B or drop A tuning thru it. I was thinking of ordering the Eminence Legend BP112s from Sweetwater but their only listed to go to 35hz. Would this work or are there any other recommendations for low yielding speakers for this sealed cabinet?

 

[two fingers]

Measure the inside dimensions, as well as any ports, and call U.S. Speaker. They will plug those dimensions into software and spit out several options for you to choose from.

Bass speakers aren't like guitar speakers. For the most part, you can string up guitar speakers in a milk crate and they won't sound much different. Bass speakers are designed with the physics of the cab in mind. You can actually damage a bass speaker if you put it in a cab for which it was not designed.

Be sure to tell them your goals regarding the low B.

https://usspeaker.com/homepage-1.htm

 

[abarson]

Aren't Coral a hifi brand? If so, they won't hold up for bass amplification. Also a speaker from the '60s may not be designed for low B. I suggest you do more research.

 

[BassmanPaul]

My memory, which granted is not all that reliable, tells me Coral was a cheap brand from Japan. It might very well work at it's best with no drivers in it.

 

[rogypop]

Do you have pic of the cabinet? There are VERY few bass guitar cabinets on the market that can reach down to 35hz, let alone play 35hz at gig levels. The good thing is that you do not need to go that low, 60hz and above is where the money is.
Being from 60's my guess is that the cabinet is shallow, low volume with poor or non existent bracing. If you want to throw money, khm, experiment with it your best bet would be to add bracing, stuff the heck out, keep it sealed and slap 6 eminence beta 12's in it.

 

[basscooker]

..... Or make it a 4x12, covering 2 of the cut-outs, possibly even adding ports. Expecting any lower than good 60ish and up is just hunting for unicorns, and turning your mix into mud. It will certainly need bracing as well.

Follow @two fingers advice here. Get your measurements and give US Speaker a call.

Good luck

 

[Son of Celts]

Measure the inside dimensions, as well as any ports, and call U.S. Speaker. They will plug those dimensions into software and spit out several options for you to choose from.

Bass speakers aren't like guitar speakers. For the most part, you can string up guitar speakers in a milk crate and they won't sound much different. Bass speakers are designed with the physics of the cab in mind. You can actually damage a bass speaker if you put it in a cab for which it was not designed.

Be sure to tell them your goals regarding the low B.

https://usspeaker.com/homepage-1.htm

Good Word Bro, I have measured and sent a message in.

 

[Son of Celts]

I'll attach some photos here,
Coral was made by Danelectro and it was a bass Cab but I think you guys are probably right, getting down to 30hz may be a bit too ambitious, but it won't hurt to research it further. I have a few Guitar player buddies that want to get their hands on it so I won't lose anything either way. I really do appreciate the comments and support!

 

[two fingers]

I'll attach some photos here,
Coral was made by Danelectro and it was a bass Cab but I think you guys are probably right, getting down to 30hz may be a bit too ambitious, but it won't hurt to research it further. I have a few Guitar player buddies that want to get their hands on it so I won't lose anything either way. I really do appreciate the comments and support!

So, it looks like there's a baffle in between each pair of 12" speakers.... unless I'm seeing the pic incorrectly.

What that means is you need to send U.S. Speaker the inside dimensions of EACH SEPARATE SPEAKER CHAMBER. In essence, what you have is three separate 212 cans stuck together in one box (very similar to 4 210 sealed cabs in most Ampeg 810 cabs). That is the physics each driver will be dealing with. Not the total dimensions of the whole cab.

In that case, I'm guessing Eminence Legends will he a good option. But I would hold out for recommendations from a pro.

Again, be sure to let them know you are planning on running a low B string through this baby.

Looks like a fun project!

 

[JimChjones]

Hmm. My not very trained eye thinks it looks awfully low (physical) volume for all those 12s. I've got to say that my first thought is that its a "I wouldn't start from here" project. I do kind of wonder what the numbers would be like if you had only 1 12 in each of those compartments making it a 3*12.

 

[basscooker]

I can see a couple 1/4" connectors there, but what is that third component on the right?

 

[AGCurry]

It appears that the baffle is 1/2" plywood, and, as others have observed, inside volume is low.
Buying six drivers expecting a useful bass cabinet looks to me like a costly experiment. My advice is to find a guitarist who wants it as is.

 

[Son of Celts]

So, it looks like there's a baffle in between each pair of 12" speakers.... unless I'm seeing the pic incorrectly.

What that means is you need to send U.S. Speaker the inside dimensions of EACH SEPARATE SPEAKER CHAMBER. In essence, what you have is three separate 212 cans stuck together in one box (very similar to 4 210 sealed cabs in most Ampeg 810 cabs). That is the physics each driver will be dealing with. Not the total dimensions of the whole cab.

In that case, I'm guessing Eminence Legends will he a good option. But I would hold out for recommendations from a pro.

Again, be sure to let them know you are planning on running a low B string through this baby.

Looks like a fun project!

That's exactly what I did (took the measurements of each chamber separately, I was hoping that was the right thing to do and you confirmed it. I really appreciate the help

 

[Son of Celts]

I can see a couple 1/4" connectors there, but what is that third component on the right?

I can see a couple 1/4" connectors there, but what is that third component on the right?

That kinda threw me at first, but it is a fixed cord with a 1/4" male on the end and it wraps around a set of bungs on the back. I'm wondering if the other 2 female jacks were either for parallel outs or a tap into different speaker configurations (2x12, 4x12, 6x12)? And if so I'm gonna have to try to figure out how that would wire up. There's a note from the previous owner on how the green and brown wires terminate but that's it.

 

[Pilgrim]

That's a cool old cab. It would make a nice practice or small venue tool. Given the age of the cabinet and the expectations when it was designed (and how much design went into it is rather questionable) I think expecting performance down to the low end of a 5-string bass is a pipe dream.

That cab was designed to work with four-string guitars. My advice is: don't try to make it something it's not and isn't capable of becoming. Restoring it to something it was designed to be and you can be successful.

At this point, IMO that cab should be refurbished to be a decent small venue cab for a 4-string bass. Expecting more than that is likely to be a waste of money, especially if you're playing with multiple speakers.

 

[JimChjones]

My advice is to find a guitarist who wants it as is.

On the other hand would any sane person want a guitar player in their neighbourhood to be armed with a 6 x 12?
Given a desire to reuse a kinda cute vintage cab, which looks to me as if its been significantly modded inside already, it makes some sense to ind what drivers would work best in it, but I wouldn't confine the search to 6 12s. What about 6 10s? Or 3 12s? Or remove the partitions and 2 15s? Key thing is to get the numbers and see what works.

 

[AGCurry]

On the other hand would any sane person want a guitar player in their neighbourhood to be armed with a 6 x 12?

Great point!

 

[abarson]

"Coral by Danelectro" is a big hint.
The 1969 catalog shows a S126 for "Super Base" which had 6 12" speakers, but was rated for a full 100 watts RMS. I would say you should have zero expectations of getting a good B out of this enclosure, regardless of drivers.
Vintage 1969 Danelectro Coral Guitars Full Line Catalog Hornet Sitar Amps

 

[rogypop]

If you post the internal volume of one of compartments we could run couple of different drivers through simulation so you could see if it would fit your tonal goals.
Just by eyeballing it it looks like there is 60-70 liters per compartment.
With six beta 12's or even beta 12 lta's it would be a very loud old school cab with f3 in mid 70's to low 80's hz, gentle roll off down low and 2~3 db bump from 100-150hz. Not a sub-low deep digging type of tone but very phat otherwise.

 

[Son of Celts]

Thanks for all of the input, I really appreciate it! I measured the inside of the cab and sent an email off to www.usspeaker.com.
(And got an almost immediate response). For your enjoyment, I'll give you the same info:
"The cabinet is sealed with 3 chambers containing 2- 12" speaker openings each (forming a 6x12 cabinet).
Each chamber is 25"wide x 12"tall x 10.5"deep And separated by pressed paper dividers approx 1/2" thick."
I got a reply from "AL" with a recommendation to either run;
A) Eminence Legend BP122s ("the better of the 2") or
B)Eminence Basslite S2012s
C) He recommended using carpet pad to insulate all 3 chambers and possibly bracing between each set of speakers from front to back inside each of the 3 chambers).

Also, he stated that the speakers "would handle the low bass tones well" but I see what a lot of you are saying about the age and design of the cabinet not being intended for that so my expectations aren't very high. I play 4 string fretless in standard tuning for a Celtic Folk/Rock band most of the time anyway so it should work fine and offer a cool old vintage feel either way!

Thanks again for your help.