please educate me on vintage Marshall cabinets

[antosimoni]

Im interested in understanding the difference between two late 60s Marshall Bottom Cabs : the tall one (a la Hendrix or early Cream) and the immediately after short one, woods used are the same? also the speakers were the same ??
thanks for any info

[neikeel]

Early tall cabs (late 66-67 IIRC) had leather handles, pinstripe cloth and came with G12H25 speakers then G12H30s.
They then grew metal handles in early 68 before the basketweave cloth took over. There were some tall cabs with basketweave and G12Mshttp://www.mylespaul.com/forums/vintage ... post201802 as well as G12Hs.

Bigger sound, heavier etc.

[antosimoni]

thanks but if we consider both cabs having same speakers do you know the tonal differences between the 2 ??
thanks a lot for your help

[neikeel]

I have only just acquired an old tall B cab so until it is loaded etc can't tell you.

I did have a Marshall TV cab that sounded huge with much more pronounced (but tight) bottom end than standard cab with the same speakers. A little heavier and more unwieldy to gig with and although I put a set of G12H heritages in it it was too immaculate for me to take it out to gig with - I could not justify keeping it so sold it on.

My favourite cab is from late '68/early '69 (speakers codes were Dec 68). It is a straight cab with plywood back, triangular lower baffle supports and basketweave fret cloth. It has a quad of 'prerola' coned G12H T1217 speakers (30 watt, 75Hz) and it sounds so 'right' in all respects with a good 100watt head. I still have an A cab of the same year/specs which is nice but just is not so together (and yes I have tried the same speakers in it ).

Whether there is ever going to be a better cab than this I do not know, probably have to ask Jim at Scumback with his extensive experience of cab/speaker combinations.

It will be interesting to compare the tall cab with this one when it is finished although I may put the EC pinstripe cloth on that instead which might make direct comparison difficult. Funnily enough I also have a '76 B cab with Blackbacks which also sound very very good but 4 75Hz speakers or 4 55Hz speakers sounded harsh to my ears but a 2x2 mix of each really gives a good dynamic cab (plus I added a quality plywood bacK).

So, I personally think that a 42 year old cab with thin levant/basketweave and a 34 year old cab with elephant covering and chequerboard cloth can still have quite a lot in common, good basic design and old wood

[antosimoni]

wow! thanks a lot for all the infos, I once had a '71 Marshall cab loaded with its G12H30 55hz (Pulsonic cones), it was an impressive woody sounding cab, lovely sound smooth but yet defined like a Marshall has to be, the thing that surprised me most was that comparing it with modern repros (1960AHW) the HW is a bit heavier and definitely more spikey&tight sounding (using same speakers), comparing the 2 cabs the modern one is very stiff&tight (modern computer aided machine tools I think) and the back panel fits in very very tightly while the vintage one has a bit lighter wood and the back panel fits in loosely, in the end I sold the '71 and put a quad of rare '69 preRolas (all originals taken from same cab) G12M 55hzs (my fav speaker), the combination of the 55hzs with the tight&spikey sound of the cab is unbelievable, best cab Ive ever had, I love 25w 55hz preRolas as they are a bit less woody/bassy sounding than Rolas (I owned lots of 55hzs in last years)
so my goal was to understand if late 60s cabs are more stiff than 71-72 ones

[908ssp]

My bet is that comparing late 60s to early 70s construction [except for the back panel] is futile. There is as much deviation from day to day as there was year to year. In other words their techniques were just not that consistent. Things changed in materials before the advent of CNC machinery tightened up in tolerances.

[Scumback Speakers]

The wood on an old cab is going to be more dried out, giving it a bigger sound, with more resonance, and "knock" value. They just ring differently than a newer cab.

As for the HW tight/treble sound vs the old one, that would work with the right speakers. When the cab ages, though, it will sound deeper, and more resonant which may not work out later.

I'm sure by the you'll have lots of cabs and speakers to swap, just to make sure...right?

[antosimoni]

well, I have some (I had many in the past) but I hope not to give up )))))))))))))))
thanks a lot guys for the infos