Cab Sugegstions for 5150

Melodeath

Moonbow
Feb 6, 2004
3,045
2
38
Northern VA
Ok, so I've had a 5150 (block letter) for about 4 years now, and I've just been using this Fender cab that my friend has let me borrow for these 4 years. It's a vertical 2X12, and I have no idea what model this cab is, and the speakers seem to just say Fender on them.

Anyway, I think I can probably greatly improve my tone if I buy a cab.

I don't know too much about cabs or speakers.

You can probably guess I play primarily death metal. I see a lot of bands using Vader cabs, but I've also heard good things about Avatar and Orange. I'm trying to spend less than $1k. I have also heard V30's are good speakers, but I really have no clue. Are there such things as V60's? Are those better? Is the best sounding cab necessarily the one that will sound best in a recording? In other words, maybe one speaker sounds better in person, but maybe another speaker works better for recording?

I appreciate your input.
 
Im not sure of conversion rates etc. but I'd recommend getting a Mesa cab with v30's. Most of my favourite tones have come from that combination and I'd suggest trying that one out for sure. I use Marshall cabs (got them cheap through a useful connection ;) ). I quite like the G12T75 character matched with a 5150, but its certainly different to that of v30.
 
Yeah, you've definitely gotten amazing results with 5150 & T75's, Machinated :headbang: That being said, I'd still go for a V30 cab and maybe do an X pattern with T75's - one thing to keep in mind is it's really hard to change the speakers in a Mesa cab because they're front mounted and the grille isn't removable, unlike with an Engl 4x12, which is another AWESOME cab. Then there are cabs like the Orange, Bogner, and Marshall 4x12's that have the speakers rear-mounted, thus making them easier to switch. Apparently there's a tonality difference between front- and rear-mounted speakers, but I've heard great results from both - that being said, Mesas and Engls I tend to think are heard on more metal recordings than any other, and they're both front-mounted. :)
 
one thing to keep in mind is it's really hard to change the speakers in a Mesa cab because they're front mounted and the grille isn't removable,

The speakers are rearmounted and attached to the baffle by nuts/bolts that are built into the cab that come through from the front. You just pop open the back of the cabinet, undo the hex nut, pull the speaker out, put the other one in, tighten the hex nuts back on, and wah-lah.

That said, the Mesa cabinets sounds amazing as-is, and don't need the speakers to be changed out.
 
Well I definitely know how to change the speakers in a rear mounted cab (having done it a few times before), but I could've sworn Mesas were front-mounted - hmm...

And of course they sound great, I was just going with the idea of having two T75's in an X pattern
 
I just got a 1 year old mesa cab with v30s for $450 US on craigslist. (Only thing wrong was a little tear in the bottom of the grill cloth about the size of a coin) I live in an area where a lot of people use craigslist so it was easy for me to find a cheap cab that is totally bad ass.

Just thought I would bring that up as an option.
 
On the other hand, I would probably not recommend Avatar unless you're just trying to save money. They're cheap, but not in the same league (construction-wise) as the other cabs mentioned here. A friend once got a bass cab with several of the mounting bolt holes all torn out; we had to rotate the speaker and drill a whole new set of holes to make it stop rattling. Boo.
 
orange cabs are exeptional, very well constructed and they sound amazing!