Speaker Cabinets

How to choose the right cabinet for your equipment

There are several ways to amplify the sound of our electric guitar or bass. One of them is to use a cabinet and a head. The cabinet is just a box that contains a certain number of speakers and whose main function is to amplify the sound that comes out of an amplifier.

They usually have 1, 2 or 4 speakers (also called cones) with a specific size (measured in inches) and resistance (measured in ohms). That is why it is common to see these nomenclatures: 1x12, 2x12 or 4x12. The first number specifies the number of speakers and the second the size of the diameter of the cone measured in inches. The different combinations result in different tones and powers, so it is recommended to try several options until you find the one that best suits your tone and needs.

It is important to remark that a cabinet do not sound by itself, but rather amplifies the sound of our instrument previously connected to an amplifier, in this case, called the head. And of course, different combinations of cabinets and head also give different tones.

What size of guitar cabinet should I choose?

Well that will depend on where you are going to use the cabinet. Normally to play at home with a 1x12 cabinet is enough, but at gigs something larger such as a 2x12 or 4x12 would be recommended depending on the size of the venue and capacity.

There are users who, despite playing at home, decide on large combinations (2x12 or 4x12) because they like to feel the power of two or four speakers playing at the same time. In order not to go deaf, it is essential to use attenuators, to be able to play at a reasonable volume at home without losing the quality of the tone.

How do I connect the cabinet to the head?

The first thing is to use cabinet cables, and not regular audio cables. The second thing is to check the number of ohms and watts. If we want to connect a single cabinet to a tubes head, we have to use the same ohms on both cabinet and head. If we are using a solid-state amp, it is very important not to use impedances lower than those indicated by the head. That is, if our head requires 4 ohms, then we must connect it to the cabinet with at least 4 ohms. If you use higher impedances on the cabinet, your amp's output power will decrease correspondingly.

We got you covered

At Fanatic we are committed to the customer. Your satisfaction comes first and, therefore, we offer you a 2-Years Customer Warranty and a 14-Days Money-Back from receipt of the product.

Not only that, at Fanatic we have professionals with several decades dedicated to the world of musical equipment and professional musicians who will be happy to advise you if you need it. To do this, you just have to contact us.