stevie

I'd be happy to post a link once I've tidied it up. It needs a good editing.

There's a relationship between cabinet size and sensitivity: all things being equal, a larger cab will be more sensitive than a smaller one. In my experience, the Goodwood is louder than the BF One10, but because it uses neodymium drivers, weighs about the same. I have a smaller cab in the works that is currently undergoing field testing. That could be a contender for your project, @funkle, and I could include you as one of the field testers if you like.

Yes, that's the experience most people have. Odd, isn't it?

The orientation of the horn is one aspect. Another is that the compression driver takes over from below 2kHz, which means you get a controlled dispersion throughout the range of bass guitar frequencies - no matter where you're standing. 

I've written a short article for @Sean and will probably post it on the website once I get some explanatory diagrams done. I already have some frequency response curves that show what is going on.

3 hours ago, stevie said:

I can explain why this is happening and why LFSys cabs have been designed specifically to fix this problem. But I'm sure someone else who's not as heavily invested in LFSys will explain.

Sure, no problem. PM on its way.

I can explain why this is happening and why LFSys cabs have been designed specifically to fix this problem. But I'm sure someone else who's not as heavily invested in LFSys will explain.

7 minutes ago, Mudpup said:

I can confirm that a Monaco fits nicely in the frunk of a Porsche 986 Boxster if you pop the spare wheel out first 🙂

That's always good to know.😀

Here's a BMW 330 convertible with two Monza cabs. The BMW has a 210-litre boot.

Thanks for the recommendations, guys. I can confirm that the Monaco handles a B string with ease. In fact, all the LFSys cabs do - even the modest Goodwood. Unsurprisingly,  the more expensive cabinets go louder - so the Monaco would be the top choice if it fits in the boot.

However, it's not simply a matter of whether it will fit; it's whether you can get it in and out. The handle on all LFSys cabs is at the top. So, if you place the cab in the boot sideways, you'll need enough space on both sides to put your hands in to lift it out (if you follow me). If the Monaco proves to be too big, the Monza is almost certainly going to fit.

The MX5 has a 130-litre boot. Here's a photo of two Monzas in a Honda Jazz, with a 300-litre boot just over twice as big. As you can see, there's plenty of space left over. 

I can paint the baffle any colour you like as long as it's British Racing Green. 😀

Only joking.... if you want a different coloured baffle, you just need to give me the paint reference (RAL number ideally). There's no extra charge.

The wood looks nice. I'd expect a stained finish to look good.

You just beat me to @BigRedX. Absolutely right.

On 13/06/2025 at 20:42, Stub Mandrel said:

 

I bought some cheap powered speakers from Thomann. To their credit they give RMS power as well as the manufacturers claimed power. 

 

"Power: 600 W Peak / 140 W (RMS)"

You can't complain about that.

On 11/06/2025 at 11:50, chyc said:

So true. An obvious tell is when a manufacturer manufactures both active and passive PA cabinets. For some mysterious reason, their active speakers' amps are dispensing watts that their passive lines aren't rated for. 

 

QSC K12: 2000W

QSC E112: 400W continuous, 1600W peak.

It's even worse. The E112 contains higher spec components than the K12 - larger voice coils in both the LF and HF drivers. I'd guess an honest power rating for the K12 would be 300 watts. Problem is, if they published the honest rating, nobody would buy them because the competition are pulling the same trick. 😀

7 hours ago, Obrienp said:

I wasn’t aware of that. I’ll have a look at them to see if the ports are different. I won’t be able to tell about the crossover, although I suppose I should be able to hear the difference. The horns look the same but that doesn’t necessarily mean they have the same compression model driver attached to them. It would be a bit too much hassle to remove the grills and take the drivers out to see if they are the same.

The port size was increased from 4" to 5" some time ago, while the lower crossover point is a recent development, made possible by the adoption of a more powerful compression driver. These are small, incremental improvements, which the average user is unlikely to notice. The sound of the cabs hasn't changed and the larger port will only make itself felt at extreme volumes. 

The changes from Silverstone to Silverstone II were enough to warrant renaming the cab. That's not the case with the Monza - or the Monaco for that matter, which has also benefited from incremental improvements over time.

The link doesn't work, @Phil Starr. I have some, limited experience of painting plastics, as I paint the ports on LFSys cabs. You can't apply normal paint directly; you need to use a special plastic primer. Fortunately, these are available for not much money at most DIY stores. A thin coating is fine. Once you've applied the (spray) primer, you can paint with whatever you like. An acrylic like Tuffcab is a good choice, as it dries quickly and doesn't give off nasty fumes.

I've not tried them myself, but there are a number of products available to fill chips and dents in ABS - the kind of thing the autobody guys use to fix bumpers.

Back to the matter in hand. As others have said, the OP not going to gain anything in terms of performance by swapping the QSCs for any of the cabs mentioned. As far as I can gather, the MK1 K12 used off-the-shelf Celestion drivers which are still available. So, as long as the amp doesn't give out, they have many years left in them.

If they were mine, I'd be tempted to refurbish them. A can of satin black paint will work wonders on the grilles, for example. 

13 hours ago, Jackroadkill said:

 I have the mesh grille and all the fixings, but the one 15" speaker I have won't fit in the hole in the baffle, annoyingly.  I'm not sure at present whether this is because the speaker's chassis is too big or the hole is undersized; I suspect some research may well be due.

 

Does your driver have a cast aluminium chassis? Drivers with a cast chassis tend to be larger in diameter than those with a pressed steel chassis. So, a replacement driver with a pressed steel chassis might fit. Check out the specs provided by the driver manufacturers, where the precise diameter is usually stated.

Please don't expect loads of reviews yet. The first Goodwood has gone out to a customer who has promised to report back, and some beta testers have tried the cabs and will no doubt chime in when they're ready. But shipping won't start in earnest for a month or so.

49 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

 

V. helpful A/B based on the spec sheets, although I guess the proof of the sound has got to be in the hearing?

 

Not sure about the power ratings you've suggested though - the 912A's are stated to be:

LOW FREQUENCIES: 1400 W Peak

HIGH FREQUENCIES: 700 W Peak

 

Which I reckon should translate to 700 + 350 = 1050W RMS per speaker, which is decent?

 

How rugged is plywood typically vs toughened plastic?

 

What matters for power handling is not what the amps are rated at, but what the drivers will take. Both the RCF and FBT drivers have 2.5-inch coils, which limits them to around 300 watts at most. Although some high-end components will handle more, a good 1.75" voice coil compression driver will handle about 50 watts. So, the 700W peak rating for high frequencies is, shall we say, optimistic.

I wouldn't say there's any difference in the roadworthiness of plastic and plywood cabs. What bothers me about plastic cabs is the sound. I appreciate I may be more sensitive than most to this because plenty of people on here are happy with their plastic cabs - and they sell by the bucketload.😀

I've had a look at the published specs of the RCF 912 and the FBT and they're fairly similar. Both bass drivers have 2.5" coils - so they're what you'd call 300W cabs in a non-hyped world. The RCF has a pressed steel chassis and ceramic magnet and I reckon the FBT is the same - otherwise they would mention it. This is budget PA, not high-end.

The FBT compression driver has a 1.4" coil, while the RCF has a 1.75" coil, which puts the RCF ahead on points. However, the horn is likely to make more of a difference than the HF units. RCF horns are normally excellent; I can't comment on the FBT horn, as I can't find any photos.

The kicker for me is that the FBT has a plywood cabinet, as @Phil Starr has pointed out. I can't stand the "boxy" sound of plastic cabs personally.

It looks like they're close. Price and weight are similar. The five-year warranty is another plus point for the FBT. I can't see any downsides for either cabs at the price, although the proof is always in the pudding.

The Seymour Duncan Convertible combo had the option of a solid state or tube rectifier, which may be what you remember, @Dood

49 minutes ago, Phil Starr said:

 

If you are combining two tweetered cabs then it is better to stack them vertically with the tweeters as close together as possible, so  as you say horn>woofer>horn>woofer is not good. There are two approaches, simply invert the top speaker so the horn is now on the bottom and in some cabs very close to the horn on the bottom cab, this approximates to a D'Appolito configuration giving a fairly coherent wavefront but you'll get some phase issues in the vertical plane due to the spacing between the horns.  You've now moved the two mid bass drivers further apart so you'll lower the point where the mids become directional and start beaming so this works best in speakers where the crossover is lower like the LFSys. Radiation in the horizontal plane should be good and a lot beter than a side by side arrangement.

The second method is to stack the speakers but on their sides with woofer above woofer and horn above horn in a classic line array. The problem with this is that the horns are on their side and typically they are designed to radiate a wide horizontal beam which will now be narrow and high. The audence may hear less detail in the bass guitar if they are off axis but the player will benefit from the extra height which will be giving more upper mids to their ears. If you were doing this regularly then you could rotate the horns. LFSys have the horns rotated already though to direct the mids to the bassists ears whilst in the conventional position.

 

Sometimes I bore myself

This is a very good summary of the stacking options available. Classic theory tells us that you should keep drivers as close together as possible, especially when they are reproducing the same frequencies. However, I suspect that a lot of players might be more concerned about having the grille badge sideways or upside-down when using one of these configurations.

Although normal vertical stacking of tweetered cabs isn't ideal because of comb filtering, it doesn't seem to be a problem in practice as long as the cabs are tonally similar.

16 hours ago, Ed_S said:

 

That's fair, I can see how that'd work from an engineering standpoint. I guess 'inferior' is a poor choice of word without a good deal more qualification, isn't it. Better to simply say I personally don't like them for a number of reasons, both practical and aesthetic, and much prefer my cabs to have metal corners and rubber feet.

 

Is your preference for the plastic all-in-ones such that you'd actively avoid metal/rubber?

My overall preference is for the plastic ones because they offer more protection for the corners and allow for easy stacking (in both portrait and landscape formats). There are some horrible plastic ones which look cheap, but I think the small, chevron types can look very smart. To answer your question, @Ed_S, I certainly wouldn't avoid metal corners and rubber feet, and I can understand your preference.

5 hours ago, Ed_S said:

Can only speak for myself, of course, but I think plastic stacking corners will always be a massively inferior solution to metal corners that don't break and rubber feet that give significant ground clearance.

Modern plastic feet/corners are quite tough, but subjected to enough force, they will crack. What may not be immediately obvious is that, by deforming, they act like a crumple zone to protect the cabinet corner - and they're cheap and easy to replace. Because they're more rigid, metal corners  transmit most of the force through to the corner.

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