Closed back cab for projecting sound

billando

I have and used to use a 4x12 closed back cab but lately been using smaller open back combos. At our gig yesterday i used a jcm 900 dual reverb 1x12 50w combo (our amps are unmiced). I thought it sounded mega next to my amp but after hearing a video from the audience my sound was weak. In a 5 piece band with hard hitting drummer unmiced would you say using a closed back 4x12 cab would be the way to go for providing the punch to compete? Or maybe the 1x12 combo was just to little and boxy.

Nerine

If the cabinet and speaker is the same size and type as the one in my recently departed Jubilee (original not reissue) 50w combo then you’re gonna struggle. That sounded boxy and small, and I found it kinda got lost at gigs due to the abundance of low midrange buildup. An EQ pedal in the loop, removing/notching a load of 270Hz helped, but YMMV. I didn’t try it again with the band with this solution, I just sold it. 

My Two Rock open back 1x12 cab however, both projects and fills the room easily. 

So to answer the question, a 1x12 configuration can work, but it needs to be a bigger cabinet. The box (and speaker) matters a lot. 

You don’t necessarily need a 4x12. 

You might find a 1x12 closed back extension cabinet to run underneath your 900 to be the solution that helps balance out the combo speaker and gives you a bit more size and authority. 

ecc83

There are good, historical acoustic reasons why a 4x12 'projects' sound better than a smaller (it is SIZE that matters!) cab. Open or closed back I would say was less important but then I have never seen or heard of an open backed 4x12? The big cab also gives you perhaps 3 or 4dB 'gain' over a single speaker of the same type. Almost like having a 100W instead of a 50W amp.

Dave.

ICBM

1x12”s always sound ‘small’ out front, to me - even when fine next to the amp - the only exceptions I’ve heard are Mark series Boogies with an EV or the Marshall 6101 30th Anniversary combo with Celestion’s equivalent, and both of those have very small cabinets, so I think the massive speaker is more important.

Not sure you need a 4x12” though, all the 2x12”s I’ve used have had the ‘big’ sound in the room. A 1x12” extension cab for the combo - especially if it’s closed-back - should give you the same sort of boost, and the option of using one or both without taking up more stage space.