Mesa OS Speaker Comparison

[ArthurD]

Hi guys! I did a video testing the speakers of my Mesa Boogie Cab.
Signal chain: 6505 -> Mesa cab -> Saffire 56
Tell me what speaker you like/dislike the most.
Watch in HD!



You can download the high quality wav files in this link:
http://goo.gl/UUUgwH

Cheers!

 

[Mago]

3 or 4 for me...voted 3 now because less oooomp.

Bottom ones are a lot nicer than the top ones. Totally weird, I got the same cab, amp and mic and it sounds totally different when I do this shootout...
Also in my cab the difference between top and bottom speakers was bigger, but the difference between left and right wasn't as huge as in yours.

 

[Red Phoenix]

With a slant cab i would go for the bottom speakers most of the time. They tend to have more oomph caused by the cab construction. The back of the cab is here parallel to the speaker which results in a resonance build up.
Speaker 3 has a nicer hi-end because of that i prefer it over speaker 4 but i bet with a slightly different mic position on 4 it can be similar there. The top speakers sounded too thin for my tase but would be a better choice for iron maiden style music where you don't want the fat low end.

 

[ArthurD]

Totally weird, I got the same cab, amp and mic and it sounds totally different when I do this shootout...

Mago, what do you mean "totally different"? Now I got a bit concerned... Maybe my cab has different speakers? I bought it used, but I was told it has vintage 30 speakers

 

[brianhood]

I have two Mesa OS cabs, and speaker 3 sounds the best on both of them.

 

[ArthurD]

I have two Mesa OS cabs, and speaker 3 sounds the best on both of them.

Hi Brian! Thanks for the comment! Does it sound similar to my cab?
Anyways, I fan of your job!!! (And I built my studio desk based on yours).
Cheers!

 

[Nimvi]

Hahaha, I vote 3...and see 100% votes for that one so far. Looks like people agree once more.

I too had trouble deciding between 3 and 4. 4 sounds pretty huge...maybe a bit TOO huge. 3 sits in the mix a bit better imo and just sounds cool, so I went with that one. 2 was okay but didn't really do it for me. I had no love for 1.

 

[brianhood]

Hi Brian! Thanks for the comment! Does it sound similar to my cab?
Anyways, I fan of your job!!! (And I built my studio desk based on yours).
Cheers!

that's awesome!

And it sounds similar as far as the amount of bass in relation to the other 3 speakers. Your cab doesn't sound like either of mine, but that's probably because all 8 of my speakers sound totally different, and only 2 of the 8 are usable on my cabs.

 

[JeffTD]

that's awesome!

And it sounds similar as far as the amount of bass in relation to the other 3 speakers. Your cab doesn't sound like either of mine, but that's probably because all 8 of my speakers sound totally different, and only 2 of the 8 are usable on my cabs.

Move two into the same cab and sell the bad one?

 

[Jan___]

Nothing new to contribute, speaker 3 indeed sounds best. However, I did want to point out: the MJ dance section ruled lol

 

[Mago]

Mago, what do you mean "totally different"? Now I got a bit concerned... Maybe my cab has different speakers? I bought it used, but I was told it has vintage 30 speakers

Kind of like Brian said for me too.
Plus what I already said, the difference between top and bottom is bigger in my cab, but L to R isn't as huge as in yours.

here, hear for yourself (of course not scientific since different DIs player etc, but amp, mic, position and cab was the same. Dead center)
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3961577/Mixes/Mesa Cab Shootout/BL .wav
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3961577/Mixes/Mesa Cab Shootout/BR.wav
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3961577/Mixes/Mesa Cab Shootout/TL.wav
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3961577/Mixes/Mesa Cab Shootout/TR.wav

 

[Red Phoenix]

Do you guys have such variations between speakers also with other brands or is it mesa cab specific? Sounds like playing the lottery when buying one..

 

[Frak]

Mago, what do you mean "totally different"? Now I got a bit concerned... Maybe my cab has different speakers? I bought it used, but I was told it has vintage 30 speakers

3 by far, in my opinion.
As far as I can tell, these sound like V30s, so don't worry.

 

[ArthurD]

Kind of like Brian said for me too.
Plus what I already said, the difference between top and bottom is bigger in my cab, but L to R isn't as huge as in yours.

here, hear for yourself (of course not scientific since different DIs player etc, but amp, mic, position and cab was the same. Dead center)
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3961577/Mixes/Mesa Cab Shootout/BL .wav
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3961577/Mixes/Mesa Cab Shootout/BR.wav
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3961577/Mixes/Mesa Cab Shootout/TL.wav
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3961577/Mixes/Mesa Cab Shootout/TR.wav

Thanks mago! It really sounds different! At least they are vintage 30s, almost same midrange! Thanks for posting this!

 

[ArthurD]

Nothing new to contribute, speaker 3 indeed sounds best. However, I did want to point out: the MJ dance section ruled lol

I always imagine my grandpa doing that in a bar