Pine versus ply for a combo cab...

Moe_Zambeek

I wonder if anyone can quantify in general terms how much weight saving there might be in a pine cab versus a birch ply effort. If it was for a 1x12 combo, something like a deluxe reverb, for example, and assuming you stick with a ply baffle...

 Would it be noticeably lighter?

susbemol

In my opinion, yes, it should be noticeably lighter.

I have a Deluxe Reverb type of amp in a pine cab that is so much lighter than a regular deluxe but you do have to bear in mind that my amp also has no reverb and that my cab is a bit smaller overall.

ICBM

It will be a couple of pounds or so lighter - I’m not sure of the exact weight difference, and that doesn’t sound a lot, but like with fitting a neodymium speaker you really notice it.

Moe_Zambeek

Thanks both. My current amp is 35kg. I love the sound but it’s heavy…my adventures with lighter amps haven’t identified a replacement so I started thinking that if I stripped mine back a bit - lose the convertible back panel, stick a neo creamback in, get a pine cab made, lose the heavyweight handles…maybe it’d be more bearable! I had planned to give up gigging but I’ve missed it so will get back into it but need a portable solution.

Modulus_Amps

A pine 18mm thick 1 x 12 cab is surprisingly light even compared to 12mm thick birch ply cabs.

Some people are using poplar plywood to save weight compared to birch plywood, but pine would still be the winner.

If you change the speaker and cab it would probably put the amp into manageable weight.

stratman3142

I've got an HRD IV which has a pine cab. I previously had an HRD III (ply) but not at the same time to directly compare. The specs says the IV is 41lb compared to HRD III which is 45lb.

My (possibly subjective) impression was that the HRD IV felt a bit more manageable to lift.

Moe_Zambeek

Thanks all. Off to investigate further...

BlackbirdCabs

I definitely emit less of an 'old man grunt' when I pick up my pine combo vs my birch ply combo!

Since diving in to this cab making stuff I've really been won over to the idea of using a head and cab - I'd much rather do two easy trips from the car than one back-breaking journey up a flight of stairs etc.

PAL

The thing is wood is a natural thing so two pieces of would will vary in weight  just like guitar vary.
 I think solid pine would be lighter as ply has multiple pieces of wood.
 If you want a really lightweight cabinet get one custom built this way there will be more control over the wood that is being used.

Moe_Zambeek

The answer has been revealed in my particular case…a weight saving of almost 50%. Together with a speaker swap, this should take me from 35KG to around 24KG, which is ace. 

susbemol

Moe_Zambeek said:

The answer has been revealed in my particular case…a weight saving of almost 50%. Together with a speaker swap, this should take me from 35KG to around 24KG, which is ace. 

While your maths there might be questionable, that should make quite a difference.

Moe_Zambeek

Maths is perfect remember I’m talking about weight reduction in the cab not the amp as a whole   Cab goes from 18 to 9KG. Swapping the blue for a neo saves another 2KG.

susbemol

That makes more sense. Hope the way it sounds now still works for you.