paulflan0151 Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 What the title says really. Anybody have the knowledge of how to design cabs for guitar and/ or bass? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPJ Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Well there are some esteemed 'experts' on this here board with both Alex Claber of barefaced and Bill Fitzmaurice posting regularly. If your a PC user you can download WinISD for free and play around with different speakers, cabinet volumes, port sizes etc to your hearts content. It isn't difficult but remember that the cabinet volume refers to the internal volume of the cab calculated using the internal dimensions and not the external dimensions, so you need to make allowance for the material you are going to use, your chosen bracing and anything else that will protrude inside the cabinet (handles, crossovers, hf horns, wheels etc. I've 'designed' and built a few cabinets using WinISD and obtained very favourable results. I know the programme only simulates the performance of a given speaker in a given cabinet volume and doesn't consider speaker alignment, acoustic coupling etc etc but it really depends what you are trying to achieve. Both Alex and Bill produce 'neutral' cabinets that come as a bit of an aural surprise after using stock manufacturer branded boxes. But its horses for courses in that department. Its a bit like the lightweight versus old school debate - use your ears and choose what produces your sound and fits your budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Foxen Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 I can give a hand with most stuff. Retuning existing cabs is mostly what I've done. Got the hang of making charts into sounds that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balcro Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 There are quite a few who have done a build-it-yourself as well as those with the technical knowledge to match a speaker drive-unit to its enclosure. If you haven't already, take a look at the "DIY cabs" and "lightweight cabs" sub-forums. Why not elaborate on what you have in mind and we'll get you started. Advice will soon come flooding in. Balcro. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 [url="http://www.billfitzmaurice.com/"]http://www.billfitzmaurice.com/[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musky Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 [quote name='Balcro' timestamp='1381596378' post='2241234'] Why not elaborate on what you have in mind and we'll get you started. Advice will soon come flooding in. Balcro. [/quote] +1. As it stands, the answer to your question is 'yes'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Starr Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 I think you may have come to the right place, think hard about what you want and a budget and we'll all help. I'll do the usual warning, if you think this is the best way of getting a cheap cab then you'd be better off buying something decent quality second hand, which will also be easier to sell to get some of your money back. You also won't know what your cab is going to sound like until you've finished by which time it is too late to change your mind. You won't make technical errors though if you take the advice from here, and people are very helpful. If this is about learning how cabs work and the pride in using something you have created then it's a great experience. You can get a good quality cab for a very good price too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulflan0151 Posted October 13, 2013 Author Share Posted October 13, 2013 Hi guys, Thanks for the advice. I make guitars and basses and have been looking at getting a few amps made so I need to start looking into cabs too. Also a mate of mine wants to start building guitar cabs so I thought I could pass on some knowledge to him. That Bill Fitzmaurice site looks cool so I think asking him would be a great start. I'm not looking to go into making cabs or change the amplifier world or anything so designing cabs maybe a step too far for now, I'm busy enough making guitars! Anybody have any ideas of what they'd like to see in a amp or cab? Wattage, EQ options, speaker size? Thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Foxen Posted October 13, 2013 Share Posted October 13, 2013 [quote name='paulflan0151' timestamp='1381661522' post='2241859'] Anybody have any ideas of what they'd like to see in a amp or cab? Wattage, EQ options, speaker size? Thanks again [/quote] Very few have an idea what they want, but it doesn't stop them saying so anyway. Biggest way it shows is when they talk in 'wattage', not a useful figure at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brensabre79 Posted October 14, 2013 Share Posted October 14, 2013 I think unless your aim IS to set the amp/cabinet world on fire by doing something 'different' you're not really going to get anywhere. As a guitar maker, you might be better off partnering with some of the smaller amp / cab makers and recommending a product you strongly feel you can get behind, maybe even talk to thm about doing some custom models for you, to be co-branded... Think of it this way, if Marshall decided to bring out a strat copy do you think it would be respected/revered enough for them to sell in decent numbers (by that I mean enough to justify the cost of producing such a thing)..? or do you think they would partner up with a respected guitar manufacturer and make big news about the fact that they have worked together to develop a unique product that Marshall product users would appreciate...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikey R Posted October 14, 2013 Share Posted October 14, 2013 Stormshadow Guitarworks in Sheffield got togerther with MJW to produce some high gain guitar amps - its a business model that worked for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Foxen Posted October 14, 2013 Share Posted October 14, 2013 [quote name='brensabre79' timestamp='1381749091' post='2243035'] Think of it this way, if Marshall decided to bring out a strat copy do you think it would be respected/revered enough for them to sell in decent numbers (by that I mean enough to justify the cost of producing such a thing)..? [/quote] They totally did that. Not seen a strat actually, but teles and Rick 4003 copies (I have two). They branded them CMI, made in Japan, pretty good instruments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brensabre79 Posted October 14, 2013 Share Posted October 14, 2013 [quote name='Mr. Foxen' timestamp='1381756588' post='2243179'] They totally did that. Not seen a strat actually, but teles and Rick 4003 copies (I have two). They branded them CMI, made in Japan, pretty good instruments. [/quote] Really not the same though Oli, they imported them, and used a different name. So a bit like as I was suggesting, get someone else to build to your spec and rebrand / co brand them... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulflan0151 Posted October 14, 2013 Author Share Posted October 14, 2013 That's sort of the idea I am going for. It's all just ideas now not sure weather it will pna out yet, watch this space. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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