I feel the same. I think there won't ever be a question about amps, guitars, etc that some could ask and johan hasnt already made a very good video about it!
The interesting thing here is that when Jim Marshall designed the angled cab it had nothing to do with acoustics. The reason for the angled cab was just because Jim Marshall wanted the head and speaker to line up better. With the straight cab the head does not sit as neatly on top of the cab. Jim Marshall angled the top of the cab so that the head would fit neatly on top without a lot of room left over.
Overall, I prefer the sound of the straight 1960B cabinet. It is profoundly different than the slanted 1960A, especially with just the room mic. Another excellent video, Johan! \m/
Using my earbuds here, I noticed that the Straight cab (B) has a harsh/sizzling top end . The Slanted cab (A) seemed much balanced to my ears since I prefer warm/dark tones usually.
Yeah that's what I've realised few month ago while comparing an A vs B cab. In a straight cab, the standard G12T75 sound even more horrible as they usually do. Harsh top end and no mids.
@@stefanpratsch1670 I had some of them and thought they sounded bland. I see comments where some people think they are the best. Talk about subjectivity.
Great that you revisited this topic with a set of identical speakers and compared them back to back with your trademark attention to detail, Johan, so that we could draw our conclusions as usually! You have a talent to ask the right questions. I was surprised how much they differed overall, especially given the similar close mic sound. I prefer the fuller sounding B cab, but wonder what it would be like in a band mix... Rock on!
This is a very good comparison of the two styles of cabinets Marshall has available past and present. The dynamics of the two cabs show without a doubt the lows/mids and highs expected from them. That is why a full stack is the best of both worlds for the ultimate full Marshall experience.
I'd say two main effects: Single flat baffle will vibrate at a lower frequency than the two smaller half panels locked together. The speakers all in line in the same plane and will couple together somewhat like a line array where all the lower frequencies are phase aligned and enhanced and as you go higher more cancellation and interaction occurs. With the two rows set at an angle there will be more phase cancellation in the lower frequencies and this will vary more depending on listening position.
Wow, I didn't think there would be that much of a difference! Very cool, I like them both, they both sound great but just different enough to use for different applications... Rhythm/lead. Thanks a bunch for the video bro!!
B cab is always for me...I play high gain Stoner-Sludge-Drone-Doom-Folk-Viking Metal tuned in A# with 14-68 and C# with 13-56. Even though our music tastes and styles are completely different I find a lot of value in your videos, so thanks, Johan.
Wow! To my ears the B cab sounds brighter! Louder, too (which was expected). All other things being equal, slight mic displacement must be accountable for the brightness. Definitely more open sounding on the B cab. But the A cab sounds right to me for an SG+plexi. Cranking a Marshall full stack is certainly one of life's rarer guilty pleasures!
@@yallevereatenbeans2723 - understood. I would suggest taking a hard look at anything that is taking space that isn’t a stack of 4x12’s and toss it out. Like the wife and kids. 🤣
Straight 4x12 has alway been my go cabinet for recording, depth, even tone, for home recording i suggest hanging thick blankets in front of the 4x12. Use short thick cables to connect the cabinet. While mixing and mastering use headphones and you will be able to hear the huge difference between a slanted cabinet vs a straight with blankets. Also, midrange is very important in recording it's easy to remove it while mixing, your better off having a nice even tone. I found keeping the bass down a little mids and high end up gives a lot better final result. My guitar sound i use for recording is very nasty full of high end and midrange nothing like what i would use live. Taking away from the tone in mixing reduces the noise floor and is a lot easier to shape. Great trick for a guitar solo, Copy and paste and off set the track by milliseconds pan the tracks L/R with the copy track volume reduced so it makes it into the mix but doesn't cause distortion in the over all mix. Straight amp for rhythm guitar you lose a lot of tone with every connection. Great rhythm trick, play one track with heavier distortion and record a second identical track with less distortion creates a very full rhythm track with great tone. This is a endless subject, and if some kid reads this i'm sure they will say i just plug my guitar into my computer and it sounds great. Yes that is true, no noise floor no delay, but were talking about recording with cabinets junior.
I agree 100%. Except for the blanket over the cab, sounds weird but ill try it sometime! But for sure, modeling doesnt come close to the real deal! Otherwise we wouldnt be cranking our marshalls anymore
I agree with Riccardo’s comment. It is very visually sexy to see the cab never move and the mics never move between the two different cab clips but because the speakers are actually in different positions on the baffle from cab to cab it makes it quite inaccurate. The close Mic’d clips sound way different. I’ve performed a slant vs straight test with the same speakers and my close Mic’d results were no where near as drastic as yours.
I have a 1960A myself and I must say I prefer that cab to the B cab. The B cab's sound is a lot more "focused", but I feel that the increased midrange on the A cab just sounds a lot better to my ears (as heard through jbl 55 headphones) . Great vid!
My kind of video, instant "Like" ! Very noticeable differences. A-cab for me, every time. The Only Room Mic segment leaves no doubt, I'm surprised as most of the replies seem to prefer the B-Cab. I also confirmed I'm not a big fan of the e906. :)
I had one for a while, I bought it new. It made my cabinet sound like it had a blanket over it. So I sold it and kept looking for different alternatives till I settled for an old MD421, my current favourite. I'd love to one day try the Unidyne 548 you are using but it's hard to find anymore...
Now we've that we've seen how differently they can sound with same mic placements and no eq/parameter changes to the amp, it would be cool to see how closely you could match their sounds. Can a slant cab sound the same with some eq adjustments? Nice comparison, enjoyed.
I played through a B cab yesterday at practice and almost had a hard time hearing it compared to my A cab. i wonder if it had something to do with the speakers not being angled up
I want to build a stereo wet/dry/wet cab. The left and right pair would be slightly angled outward to disperse the stereo image. They would be chambered to provide more isolation. A 6x9 speaker, maybe 2 in the center of the cab if they will fit. I plan to design it and make one. I want to possibly try some different materials.
Johan Segeborn Hi Johan! Great vids and awesome tone as usual. I've also got an Ampeg V-4. It was a little beat up so someone threw it out. i picked it up and restored it. I installed 4 vintage 30's. I'd love to hear your tone through a V-4! They are great cabs! They weigh a ton!
Thought for sure the upper close mics would sound different but those were the most similar I thought. Close mics altogether, passable as the same either way, but when you start recording big room sounds, the A cab makes a big difference in filling a room.
The Guitar Tone-Circle Jerk never ceases -- It either inspires you or it does not -- and too many look for emotional support for what they already own or wish to obtain -- for me after years of buying I am blessed enough to find my grooves in Guitars and Amps .. I was never much into the Circle Jerking.
Great comparison, Thank You Sir. Myself, I'm an "A" cabinet guy. This just goes to show you, a proper Marshall Stack consists of both the 1960A and 1960B cabinets (best of both worlds if you will).
Dude . You’re really cool. Some you may encounter in day to day life, may think your weird or nuts. But I get it. And value you. Thanks for being you man. Im grateful for you, that you can afford this stuff. Thats awesome bro. Wish you tons of enjoyment and peace. As you get the thrill of using your favorite equipment. Totally loved the ocean and sunset view next to opening of video. Loved it. Beach inspires me to play. I love being in the ocean all day. 🏄🏼
I like the straight cabinet sound best. The slanted cabinet may create its own phase alignment issues at specific frequencies due to asymmetrical design which would only cause slight audible differences randomly. Hence the difference in sound.
@@JohanSegeborn Interesting Johan. I preferred the Slant cab but evidently it was because of the way the room mic was picking it up. great job on the video.
@@JohanSegeborn room mic way brighter on the B cab, but if you put mic at ear height, I think you may have a completely opposite result where the A cab may be brighter.
Hi, Johan! I prefer the B-Amp with only lower mic. This is a kind of "Pantera" sound, and actually, like Dime, I have my own Washburn which never was really settuped. But here is much better than my, and all the best ones - Riffs and solo are working good with B-Amp. Nice video! See you! Zigfrid
Slant is more warm sounding. Johan, you are a unique youtuber who make slant vs straight comparisons. If I bought cab before watching your vids I'd bought slant rather than straight cab.
@@JohanSegeborn Although a difficult choice. Although the slant has more pleasant high end, in the rest of the range it sounds more muddy than straight. Perhaps it makes sense to use a straight cab, and cut the top on the record.
I prefer the tone of the slanted one. I made the experience here with my cabinets: 1960ax 1960b 1960bv Greenbacks G12M25 I really prefer with the slanted cab, on the straight cab Greenbacks sounds too shrill for me, they lack of bottom end to fill up the cab with resonance. The G12T75 I didn't like with the slanted cab, they sound distant, you know what I mean? They seem to like the straight cab(I really love the tone of 1960b, already a classic cabinet). The v30 from 1960bv sounded great on the slanted cab, really a nasal sound, great for leads, but they sound more "Slashy" on the straight one, on the slanted they sound too "good", I like the wildness of them on a straight cab hahaha My conclusion is... A speaker with more mids deals better with slanted cabs, darker speaker likes more the straight ones. Eric Johnson uses straight cabs with the G12-80 and slanted cabs with Greenbacks G12H30, John Norum uses straight cabs with g12t75 and slanted with Greenbacks G12M25/G12H30, Michael Schenker same thing. Thank you so much for the job you're doing for the guitar community. Greetings from Brazil!
Great insight with your comment! You seem to have a lot of experience with speakers! I have a question for you, sir! What are your thoughts on swapping out the speakers in my Bugera 412ts cab for some Celestions (T75's)? I'd like to know what you think! Thanks!
Not my experience at all.... straight always sounds fuller. Especially with Greenbacks. G12M sounds way better straight. Had two Pre Rola cabs with G12M T221 003 the straight was so much better
In Jim Marshalls book the angled cab a was just a cosmetic exercise to match the amp, i often wondered if it helped the player in Half stack as it angled the speaker Up Toward you, these cabs are more directional than you think, I wonder what the difference is with the backs off?
There is a 3rd version of the 1960 4x12 as well, and I bet it sounds a bit different to both of these. My early 1980's JCM800-labeled 1960A slant cabinet has a fake slant from the factory, all the speakers are in the same plywood chassis like a B cab has, but it is tilted backwards to allow for the slant look. There is a horizontal frame built where the slant behins to make the cab look exactly the same as a normal 1960A.
Appreciated this comparison greatly as im about to mic for recording. Great sounds with both cabs Johan. I think i like the slanted one best, sounds more "finished", and probably better in the mix. The slanted has smoother highs and more mids. But it's all subjective of course and depends on the song/mix as far as recording goes. I think it would be cool if you compared the lower and top positions within a slanted cab, also switching the top/bottom pairs of speakers when switching mic positions (to exclude speaker tone difference). Cheers Johan! ;)
Hi Johan! When you do a demo of modern cab vs. vintage? also crossing speakers, modern cab with vintage greenbacks vs. vintage cab with modern greenbacks. It would be funny to see how sound depends also on cab woods and construction.
I was actually going to ask a similar question. There are loads of cabs from various manufacturers at very different price points. Many people have opinions about this, saying that certain cabs sound "bad". I'm not an expert myself, and I don't really see how a wooden box with basically the same dimensions can sound so different. Would be interesting to hear someone knowledgeable (i.e. Johan) shed some light on this. Perhaps test cabs from different manufacturers, such as Zilla, Palmer, TT Cabs etc. and see how speakers perform in those different cabs. Skål!
Strange. When close miced and room mic are used, the slanted sounds like it would cut through better but with just the room mic the straight one sounded more like the slanted with close mics.
I made the one comparison with the 10inch version of those cab. I prefer the Straight and still have it (1965B with G10L-35). :) Thanks for this video!
Johan Segeborn not a dig as i find it very interesting, it’s just that a few mm can have a big impact on the recorded sound so i guess its hard to accurately match the 2 cabs together
The bottom close mic is the exact same place made sure by physical references. The top close mic is harder due to different cab geometries but certainly close enough here. I’ve made a couple of videos about mic placement. It’s not as sensitive as one may be led to think reading the guitars fora. In multi mic setups where the mics are very close to each other a few mm may matter though. That’s not the case here though, in terms of phase cancellations. ruclips.net/video/OR5mFI88ZKk/видео.html ruclips.net/video/QvkLhjydixg/видео.html
I’m still learning more about how Amps, cabs affect the sound but I’m a classic Les Paul into a Marshall guy. Both sound great, when they say full stack, that’s two cabs right? So essentially couldn’t you stack a slanted on the straight one and have the best of both worlds?
The A cab sounds better somehow. Your mike is placed in the lower left speaker on both so maybe the cab design (how the cabinet pushes the sound out ) makes a big difference? Very interesting test Johan....Thanks
Straight cabs are ideal for rhythm tones; slant cabs are ideal for lead tones. For rhythm you want the bigger spread with huge lows and articulate highs- pronounced mids can get in the way and compete for space with vocals and keys. But for the lead guitar parts, you WANT it to compete with the other lead instruments. Slant cabs all day if you have to play a lot of solos.
When compared separately I always found that straight cabs sounded a little better than slanted ones, maybe that 's because all four speakers are on the same plane. I once played a vintage Marshall 100 watt full stack with both type of cabs and it souded great!
Would have liked a third reference cab - the straight cab slightly tilted ;-) Anyway, for me the takeaway is this: slant your cab if you want to let the room influence your recorded sound more. Another tool in the box !
interesting thing is that Jeff Beck in his "truth" album era used two slanted cabs (the upper turned upside down) and gave the other two straight cabs to the bass player (Ronnie Wood)... who knows why? what's certain is that Jeff Beck was a great innovator and nothing was left to chance
There is a significant amount of reverb in the right channel but not the left.It's not actual analog room I'm hearing. a 1973 Super lead does not have reverb as far as I know. So where is this reverb on the right channel coming from.A rack unit? a plugin? Are both mics being panned down the middle or did you pan them hard left and right?
The A cab did have a noticeable bit more tone; in the midrange. I am surprised as I always believed A cabs had more treble then their B brethren. I definitely hear a different on the lower mic, vs. the higher one. What makes it sound so different, if it's the same speakers in both cases? As an aside, you should try different stack combinations - A+B, A+A, B+A, B+B, using the same speakers throughout!
Without the room mic they are very similar indeed - but not identical. I wonder how much is due to tiny mic placement differences and how much is cabinet construction. Thanks, great video and great playing as always!
There are certain situations in this video where I prefer the straight cab- probably mostly for the rhythm work. Leads, I give the edge to the angled cab. On the close mic only examples, I prefer the straight cab across the board, especially when comparing the upper mic. Since this is 90% of how I'll use my cabs, I think I'll add a straight cab to my arsenal. This surprised me. Didn't expect the difference to be so big.
👍🇺🇸❤GOOD DEMO........ROOM MIC ONLY (was what I was most interested in)......WHAT A BIG DIFFERENCE (bottom stack is much brighter / harsher & louder....less rounded off)......this demo is better , I'm strongly considering loading up my top cab....thx👍(I believe Jim Marshall favored the slant cab & was most fond of JCM 2000 amp head design ?)
To my ear the mids in the A cab are juicier and great for lead tones, but the B cab has great clarity on the chordal stuff. It would be cool to hear a band where the Rhythm player had only B cabs and the Lead player just A cabs.
Timely video for me to see as I'm deciding between a 212 slant or straight...different animal to these but I would expect similar results. Overall I preferred the A mic'd to the B mic'd, especially with just the lower speaker mic'd. A seemed balanced and transparent. Also slight preference for A over B with the room mic in the mix too. The room mic solo didn't impress me as much with either cab but there's certainly a lot of difference between them in that instance. A sounded less boxy to me than B. I guess the solution is stack em up and let 'er rip!
Straight 4x12 cabs beam sound in a narrow dispersion path. Directly in front is bright, and loud. Off axis is difused. At least slant cabs spread the sound a little. I went with Mojotone's 2x12 Vintage cabs. They look like 4x12's, but a bit smaller. They spread the sound out better IMO.
The angled cab eliminates a lot of standing waves as the internal reflections are different than a straight cab. Also, more interior volume on the straight cab. I tried building audio cabinets once and learned all about this crap...I gave up. It does make difference but it varies.
I suspect that the slant is so that a guitarist playing with the cabinet in a room can hear how the speakers will sound pointed directly at him so he doesn't have to kneel down to hear that. Slant back for me!
Yeah but when an A cab is on top of a full stack it points to the ceiling. And when it was invented you needed two cabs to play a Super Lead. But for a 50 or 30W you may be right.
@@JohanSegeborn Aaah I see! Then that wouldn't make sense. I like the idea of the speakers pointed at the roof, cause then it might bounce down off it onto the heads of the crowd \m/
I almost always pick B cabs in these side by side comparisons but the A sounded pretty good in some of the recordings. Does the different grill cloth material make a huge difference in the overall projected tone of a cabinet?
I think the B cab sounded fuller and more present. I have a slanted Marshall 4x12vintage (v30’s-g12t75’s x-pattern) and i dont record but play live, and im interested in swapping for a straight cab,but dont want to sacrifice mids.My goal is to get a tiny bit more bottom thump response.Johan,based on your experience,would this be a wise move? Also,Im not sure what speakers to use either. I like ALOT of mids w,tight gain and thump. I do have some EVm12L’s,English celestian V30’s and sum C90’s laying around. Or just stick with my x-pattern? Im happy with my tone but trying to get a BIGGER tone with deeper palm mutes..Thanks,thoroughly enjoy your comparison videos,its saved alot of people alot of time and money!
So b cab for rhythm and turn ur guitar tone and volume on ten for a solo. Or step on a treble booster to get a little more cut........ I find it easier to add treble then to add bass so I'd rather start thicker
How bizarre. I wouldn’t have thought there would be any difference. I assume you placed every speaker in the same location so you were miking the exact same speaker in the exact location?
The amount of times a question like this pops into my head and then I find Johan already has a video on it, is simply astounding. Great work my man
ISN'T HE AMAZING!!!
Hes even bigger fan than we are, and we sleep thinking about Marshall Stacks
I feel the same. I think there won't ever be a question about amps, guitars, etc that some could ask and johan hasnt already made a very good video about it!
There's a video of everything nowadays.
They both sound like 4x12s, I'll take one of each.
The interesting thing here is that when Jim Marshall designed the angled cab it had nothing to do with acoustics. The reason for the angled cab was just because Jim Marshall wanted the head and speaker to line up better. With the straight cab the head does not sit as neatly on top of the cab. Jim Marshall angled the top of the cab so that the head would fit neatly on top without a lot of room left over.
The choice is clear. A for live, B for studio. Thank you for this comparison
Overall, I prefer the sound of the straight 1960B cabinet. It is profoundly different than the slanted 1960A, especially with just the room mic. Another excellent video, Johan! \m/
Thanks Ty! 🤟
I agree. I've always prefered straight cabs but my big Marshall days are long gone. Lol
So much work goes into these videos. Thank you man
Using my earbuds here, I noticed that the Straight cab (B) has a harsh/sizzling top end . The Slanted cab (A) seemed much balanced to my ears since I prefer warm/dark tones usually.
Yeah that's what I've realised few month ago while comparing an A vs B cab. In a straight cab, the standard G12T75 sound even more horrible as they usually do. Harsh top end and no mids.
thats definitely because of the microphone getting knocked around while changing stuff up, nothing more
@@gamesandguitars3901 possibly
@@stefanpratsch1670 I had some of them and thought they sounded bland. I see comments where some people think they are the best. Talk about subjectivity.
@@qua7771 it's all subjective of course. However everyone can use what he likes best. I cannot even remember writing the above comment btw 😂
Did not expect to like the A-cab so much more!
Thanks JB
Great that you revisited this topic with a set of identical speakers and compared them back to back with your trademark attention to detail, Johan, so that we could draw our conclusions as usually! You have a talent to ask the right questions. I was surprised how much they differed overall, especially given the similar close mic sound. I prefer the fuller sounding B cab, but wonder what it would be like in a band mix... Rock on!
Thanks man! Yeah in a mix all bets may be off. I think A cab cuts through better
Johan Segeborn thanks again for the effort you put into this.
This is a very good comparison of the two styles of cabinets Marshall has available past and present. The dynamics of the two cabs show without a doubt the lows/mids and highs expected from them. That is why a full stack is the best of both worlds for the ultimate full Marshall experience.
Looks like I'm looking for a straight cabinet to go with my slant.
I like the girthy sound of a straight cab but always gig with a slant cab so I can hear myself if I don't have a good monitor mix. Good video, thanks.
I'd say two main effects:
Single flat baffle will vibrate at a lower frequency than the two smaller half panels locked together.
The speakers all in line in the same plane and will couple together somewhat like a line array where all the lower frequencies are phase aligned and enhanced and as you go higher more cancellation and interaction occurs. With the two rows set at an angle there will be more phase cancellation in the lower frequencies and this will vary more depending on listening position.
Best explanation yet
Wow, I didn't think there would be that much of a difference! Very cool, I like them both, they both sound great but just different enough to use for different applications... Rhythm/lead. Thanks a bunch for the video bro!!
B cab is always for me...I play high gain Stoner-Sludge-Drone-Doom-Folk-Viking Metal tuned in A# with 14-68 and C# with 13-56.
Even though our music tastes and styles are completely different I find a lot of value in your videos, so thanks, Johan.
Thanks man, I’m glad to hear that!
ugh. no wonder i hate doom metal. yall have shitty palates for tone
They both sound amazing!
Thanks Josh!
Wow! To my ears the B cab sounds brighter! Louder, too (which was expected). All other things being equal, slight mic displacement must be accountable for the brightness. Definitely more open sounding on the B cab. But the A cab sounds right to me for an SG+plexi.
Cranking a Marshall full stack is certainly one of life's rarer guilty pleasures!
It is indeed! ;-)
if you sold an impulse response pack of your marshall cabs and fender combos I've buy it in a heartbeat
Just get a real 4x12 and quit tweaking lol
@@PapaWheelie1 I'd love to but don't have the space. I know, heartbreaking isn't it.
@@yallevereatenbeans2723 - understood. I would suggest taking a hard look at anything that is taking space that isn’t a stack of 4x12’s and toss it out. Like the wife and kids. 🤣
Gayyyyyyyyy. At least get a 2x12
Not only should he be shooting IR's, but amp "tone captures" (Kemper/Mooer, etc.), as well. He could have a huge and very lucrative library by now!
Straight 4x12 has alway been my go cabinet for recording, depth, even tone, for home recording i suggest hanging thick blankets in front of the 4x12. Use short thick cables to connect the cabinet. While mixing and mastering use headphones and you will be able to hear the huge difference between a slanted cabinet vs a straight with blankets. Also, midrange is very important in recording it's easy to remove it while mixing, your better off having a nice even tone. I found keeping the bass down a little mids and high end up gives a lot better final result. My guitar sound i use for recording is very nasty full of high end and midrange nothing like what i would use live. Taking away from the tone in mixing reduces the noise floor and is a lot easier to shape. Great trick for a guitar solo, Copy and paste and off set the track by milliseconds pan the tracks L/R with the copy track volume reduced so it makes it into the mix but doesn't cause distortion in the over all mix. Straight amp for rhythm guitar you lose a lot of tone with every connection. Great rhythm trick, play one track with heavier distortion and record a second identical track with less distortion creates a very full rhythm track with great tone. This is a endless subject, and if some kid reads this i'm sure they will say i just plug my guitar into my computer and it sounds great. Yes that is true, no noise floor no delay, but were talking about recording with cabinets junior.
I agree 100%. Except for the blanket over the cab, sounds weird but ill try it sometime! But for sure, modeling doesnt come close to the real deal! Otherwise we wouldnt be cranking our marshalls anymore
@@patrickrosington1174 Record with and with out a blanket and listen with headphone. Huge difference in the noise floor.
Just a matter of time until they will invent USB guitars to plug in straight to your macbook
I agree with Riccardo’s comment. It is very visually sexy to see the cab never move and the mics never move between the two different cab clips but because the speakers are actually in different positions on the baffle from cab to cab it makes it quite inaccurate. The close Mic’d clips sound way different. I’ve performed a slant vs straight test with the same speakers and my close Mic’d results were no where near as drastic as yours.
Hi Johan! Just Gotta say I Love them Both! Well done and thanks for sharing brother! Be Well Johan!
Thanks Brother! Cheers!
Johan's sonic voodoo demystified. Great video my friend. Your tone as always is unmatched. God bless and rock on 👏🎸😎
Thanks my friend :-)
I have a 1960A myself and I must say I prefer that cab to the B cab. The B cab's sound is a lot more "focused", but I feel that the increased midrange on the A cab just sounds a lot better to my ears (as heard through jbl 55 headphones) . Great vid!
Thanks!
Did you do any phase alignment here? Doesnt sound like it...
Both sounded great, a little different but nothing to write home about. Thanks for putting that to bed 😊
I listened while not watching the video and I could not really tell any significant change
My kind of video, instant "Like" !
Very noticeable differences. A-cab for me, every time. The Only Room Mic segment leaves no doubt, I'm surprised as most of the replies seem to prefer the B-Cab. I also confirmed I'm not a big fan of the e906. :)
Thanks man! Interesting, what’s your experience of the e906?
I had one for a while, I bought it new. It made my cabinet sound like it had a blanket over it. So I sold it and kept looking for different alternatives till I settled for an old MD421, my current favourite. I'd love to one day try the Unidyne 548 you are using but it's hard to find anymore...
I agree with this. People are nuts. A cab sounds way better
Now we've that we've seen how differently they can sound with same mic placements and no eq/parameter changes to the amp, it would be cool to see how closely you could match their sounds. Can a slant cab sound the same with some eq adjustments? Nice comparison, enjoyed.
I played through a B cab yesterday at practice and almost had a hard time hearing it compared to my A cab. i wonder if it had something to do with the speakers not being angled up
I want to build a stereo wet/dry/wet cab. The left and right pair would be slightly angled outward to disperse the stereo image. They would be chambered to provide more isolation. A 6x9 speaker, maybe 2 in the center of the cab if they will fit. I plan to design it and make one. I want to possibly try some different materials.
A worth while comparison. Thank you
Thanks! Glad to hear it
I seem to get very dark sounds from my straight cab, and overly bright from my slant cab, with identical mics & placement. Does my head in.
Fantastic comparison! would love to hear you demo an old ampeg v4 sometime.
Thanks Isaac! Yeah I would really like to do that too!
Johan Segeborn
Hi Johan!
Great vids and awesome tone as usual. I've also got an Ampeg V-4. It was a little beat up so someone threw it out. i picked it up and restored it. I installed 4 vintage 30's. I'd love to hear your tone through a V-4! They are great cabs! They weigh a ton!
Thought for sure the upper close mics would sound different but those were the most similar I thought. Close mics altogether, passable as the same either way, but when you start recording big room sounds, the A cab makes a big difference in filling a room.
The straight cab sounded “dryer”, not in terms of fx, but just more “raspy”.
I'm suprised at the difference in sounds. But the best sounds to my ears appeared when you played c414 only, and E906 only. Full on vintage vibe.
Thanks Jason
The Guitar Tone-Circle Jerk never ceases -- It either inspires you or it does not -- and too many look for emotional support for what they already own or wish to obtain -- for me after years of buying I am blessed enough to find my grooves in Guitars and Amps .. I was never much into the Circle Jerking.
Great comparison, Thank You Sir.
Myself, I'm an "A" cabinet guy.
This just goes to show you, a proper Marshall Stack consists of both the 1960A and 1960B cabinets (best of both worlds if you will).
Yeah, they do complement each other indeed
Dude . You’re really cool.
Some you may encounter in day to day life, may think your weird or nuts.
But I get it. And value you. Thanks for being you man.
Im grateful for you, that you can afford this stuff. Thats awesome bro.
Wish you tons of enjoyment and peace. As you get the thrill of using your favorite equipment.
Totally loved the ocean and sunset view next to opening of video. Loved it.
Beach inspires me to play. I love being in the ocean all day. 🏄🏼
I think they both sound great and your plane sounds even better rock on bro
Thanks Benny! :-)
I like the straight cabinet sound best.
The slanted cabinet may create its own phase alignment issues at specific frequencies due to asymmetrical design which would only cause slight audible differences randomly. Hence the difference in sound.
It was shocking how similar they sound close miced and how different they sound room miced. what was the height of the room mic off the floor?
The room mic faces a he center of the cab at 10 feet distance, so it’s no wonder the room sound differs.
@@JohanSegeborn Interesting Johan. I preferred the Slant cab but evidently it was because of the way the room mic was picking it up. great job on the video.
@@JohanSegeborn room mic way brighter on the B cab, but if you put mic at ear height, I think you may have a completely opposite result where the A cab may be brighter.
johan is great muscician and teacher thanks buddy ive learned alot from your vids!
That purple Marshall head looks more attractive than world peace !
Hahaha! Cheers Mitchell ;-)
It is a real world peacemaker ✌🏼😎👍🏼
Thanks Johan for doing this! I prefer the A-cab. But also Checkerboard sounds different from Basket weave. Less treble with basket weave.
Thanks Daniel, they have Checkerboard and 80s Black which are sonically identical
Johan Segeborn ah, my bad! 🙃 It really looked like basket weave.
Love the quack of the B cab. The A cab sounds muddy in comparison.
Hi, Johan!
I prefer the B-Amp with only lower mic. This is a kind of "Pantera" sound, and actually, like Dime, I have my own Washburn which never was really settuped. But here is much better than my, and all the best ones - Riffs and solo are working good with B-Amp. Nice video! See you!
Zigfrid
Thanks Zigfrid! Yeah the B cab is more aggressive sounding
@@JohanSegeborn This is it!:-)
Can I make a full stack using 2 slanted cabs?
I'm about to purchase my second MG412A 8 ohms cabs in a mg100hcfx.
Could you please do a video with a stack consisting of 2 straight cabs vs. a traditional straight/slant setup?
Slant is more warm sounding. Johan, you are a unique youtuber who make slant vs straight comparisons. If I bought cab before watching your vids I'd bought slant rather than straight cab.
Thanks
@@JohanSegeborn Although a difficult choice. Although the slant has more pleasant high end, in the rest of the range it sounds more muddy than straight. Perhaps it makes sense to use a straight cab, and cut the top on the record.
I prefer the tone of the slanted one. I made the experience here with my cabinets:
1960ax
1960b
1960bv
Greenbacks G12M25 I really prefer with the slanted cab, on the straight cab Greenbacks sounds too shrill for me, they lack of bottom end to fill up the cab with resonance. The G12T75 I didn't like with the slanted cab, they sound distant, you know what I mean? They seem to like the straight cab(I really love the tone of 1960b, already a classic cabinet). The v30 from 1960bv sounded great on the slanted cab, really a nasal sound, great for leads, but they sound more "Slashy" on the straight one, on the slanted they sound too "good", I like the wildness of them on a straight cab hahaha
My conclusion is... A speaker with more mids deals better with slanted cabs, darker speaker likes more the straight ones.
Eric Johnson uses straight cabs with the G12-80 and slanted cabs with Greenbacks G12H30, John Norum uses straight cabs with g12t75 and slanted with Greenbacks G12M25/G12H30, Michael Schenker same thing.
Thank you so much for the job you're doing for the guitar community.
Greetings from Brazil!
Great insight with your comment! You seem to have a lot of experience with speakers! I have a question for you, sir! What are your thoughts on swapping out the speakers in my Bugera 412ts cab for some Celestions (T75's)? I'd like to know what you think! Thanks!
@@robgarcia6770 It will sound great man, but try to sell your Bugera and buy a Marshall 1960a or b, on the used market It's pretty cheap.
Nossa você e animal. Obrigado pela informacao. Vou comprar uma 1960b para usar com o meu bogner UBERSCHALL. Obrigado abracao.
Not my experience at all.... straight always sounds fuller. Especially with Greenbacks. G12M sounds way better straight. Had two Pre Rola cabs with G12M T221 003 the straight was so much better
For me it makes more sense to use the A as a single half stack on the floor and two Bs for a full stack but it wouldn't look as cool...;-)
Go the Paul Kossoff route - 3 full stacks side by side, 2 of them stacked 1960B's, 1 of them a slant 1960A on top/1960B bottom
So you've never seen AC/DC live
I’m a straight cab guy but I think the slant sounded better.... Nice job as usual!!
Thanks!
In Jim Marshalls book the angled cab a was just a cosmetic exercise to match the amp, i often wondered if it helped the player in
Half stack as it angled the speaker
Up Toward you, these cabs are more directional than you think,
I wonder what the difference is with the backs off?
What were your thoughts? Was waiting to hear
There is a 3rd version of the 1960 4x12 as well, and I bet it sounds a bit different to both of these. My early 1980's JCM800-labeled 1960A slant cabinet has a fake slant from the factory, all the speakers are in the same plywood chassis like a B cab has, but it is tilted backwards to allow for the slant look. There is a horizontal frame built where the slant behins to make the cab look exactly the same as a normal 1960A.
Cool I didn’t know about those!
Appreciated this comparison greatly as im about to mic for recording. Great sounds with both cabs Johan. I think i like the slanted one best, sounds more "finished", and probably better in the mix. The slanted has smoother highs and more mids. But it's all subjective of course and depends on the song/mix as far as recording goes.
I think it would be cool if you compared the lower and top positions within a slanted cab, also switching the top/bottom pairs of speakers when switching mic positions (to exclude speaker tone difference).
Cheers Johan! ;)
Hi Johan! When you do a demo of modern cab vs. vintage? also crossing speakers, modern cab with vintage greenbacks vs. vintage cab with modern greenbacks. It would be funny to see how sound depends also on cab woods and construction.
I actually have done those:
ruclips.net/video/rFHoGErdOm8/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/AnE3ta671PQ/видео.html
I was actually going to ask a similar question. There are loads of cabs from various manufacturers at very different price points. Many people have opinions about this, saying that certain cabs sound "bad". I'm not an expert myself, and I don't really see how a wooden box with basically the same dimensions can sound so different. Would be interesting to hear someone knowledgeable (i.e. Johan) shed some light on this. Perhaps test cabs from different manufacturers, such as Zilla, Palmer, TT Cabs etc. and see how speakers perform in those different cabs. Skål!
@@Ollonskog - pro has more to do with the speakers
Strange. When close miced and room mic are used, the slanted sounds like it would cut through better but with just the room mic the straight one sounded more like the slanted with close mics.
Yeah the room adds the missing mids to the more scooped B cab
I made the one comparison with the 10inch version of those cab. I prefer the Straight and still have it (1965B with G10L-35). :) Thanks for this video!
Nice job! Have you tried to compare plywood to particle board backs? That's the main criticism of later 70's Marshall cabs...
Not yet. Most of my cabs are plywood backed but my favorite has a particle board back. :-)
pretty hard to test this on youtube with the 2 different mic placements
Feel free to elaborate Tom
Johan Segeborn not a dig as i find it very interesting, it’s just that a few mm can have a big impact on the recorded sound so i guess its hard to accurately match the 2 cabs together
The bottom close mic is the exact same place made sure by physical references. The top close mic is harder due to different cab geometries but certainly close enough here. I’ve made a couple of videos about mic placement. It’s not as sensitive as one may be led to think reading the guitars fora. In multi mic setups where the mics are very close to each other a few mm may matter though. That’s not the case here though, in terms of phase cancellations.
ruclips.net/video/OR5mFI88ZKk/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/QvkLhjydixg/видео.html
I’m still learning more about how Amps, cabs affect the sound but I’m a classic Les Paul into a Marshall guy. Both sound great, when they say full stack, that’s two cabs right? So essentially couldn’t you stack a slanted on the straight one and have the best of both worlds?
This is THE tone.
The A cab sounds better somehow. Your mike is placed in the lower left speaker on both so maybe the cab design (how the cabinet pushes the sound out ) makes a big difference? Very interesting test Johan....Thanks
Thanks John!
Straight cabs are ideal for rhythm tones; slant cabs are ideal for lead tones. For rhythm you want the bigger spread with huge lows and articulate highs- pronounced mids can get in the way and compete for space with vocals and keys. But for the lead guitar parts, you WANT it to compete with the other lead instruments. Slant cabs all day if you have to play a lot of solos.
100% I agree .. the slant sounds way better for leads !
I feel like the recording is different than what it feels like in the room. The straight doesn’t provide more low end/thump?
When compared separately I always found that straight cabs sounded a little better than slanted ones, maybe that 's because all four speakers are on the same plane. I once played a vintage Marshall 100 watt full stack with both type of cabs and it souded great!
Always the best!
Cheers Chris!
I really didn't expect to hear that much difference. The B cab sounds much, much better to me.
Thanks Willy
Would have liked a third reference cab - the straight cab slightly tilted ;-) Anyway, for me the takeaway is this: slant your cab if you want to let the room influence your recorded sound more. Another tool in the box !
Cheers
interesting thing is that Jeff Beck in his "truth" album era used two slanted cabs (the upper turned upside down) and gave the other two straight cabs to the bass player (Ronnie Wood)...
who knows why? what's certain is that Jeff Beck was a great innovator and nothing was left to chance
There is a significant amount of reverb in the right channel but not the left.It's not actual analog room I'm hearing. a 1973 Super lead does not have reverb as far as I know. So where is this reverb on the right channel coming from.A rack unit? a plugin? Are both mics being panned down the middle or did you pan them hard left and right?
The A cab did have a noticeable bit more tone; in the midrange. I am surprised as I always believed A cabs had more treble then their B brethren. I definitely hear a different on the lower mic, vs. the higher one.
What makes it sound so different, if it's the same speakers in both cases?
As an aside, you should try different stack combinations - A+B, A+A, B+A, B+B, using the same speakers throughout!
I also love the mids of the slant cab. Yummy.
how much of the difference is the slant vs straight, as opposed to, in general, just being two different cabinets?
This is mostly A vs B. But the other aspect isn’t negligible
B is more scooped in the mids for sure,the A has more bite and feels crunchier to me
Without the room mic they are very similar indeed - but not identical. I wonder how much is due to tiny mic placement differences and how much is cabinet construction.
Thanks, great video and great playing as always!
This reflects my experience of these two types pretty well
Which one do you prefer and why?? Buying a cab soon and need help!!! Please respond Thank You!!
G12 M25 75Hz A cab - Great top end ring.
B cab has to be G12 H 55Hz 🤘
Power stack right there.
Thank you very much !
There are certain situations in this video where I prefer the straight cab- probably mostly for the rhythm work. Leads, I give the edge to the angled cab. On the close mic only examples, I prefer the straight cab across the board, especially when comparing the upper mic. Since this is 90% of how I'll use my cabs, I think I'll add a straight cab to my arsenal. This surprised me. Didn't expect the difference to be so big.
👍🇺🇸❤GOOD DEMO........ROOM MIC ONLY (was what I was most interested in)......WHAT A BIG DIFFERENCE (bottom stack is much brighter / harsher & louder....less rounded off)......this demo is better , I'm strongly considering loading up my top cab....thx👍(I believe Jim Marshall favored the slant cab & was most fond of JCM 2000 amp head design ?)
I like the A cab here but in person I always liked my B cab a bit more. It's ideal to have one of each since they sound a lil different.
A cab has more mid range.and I would prefer it to record.
Whereas the a has more upper mids and treble to my ears
To my ear the mids in the A cab are juicier and great for lead tones, but the B cab has great clarity on the chordal stuff. It would be cool to hear a band where the Rhythm player had only B cabs and the Lead player just A cabs.
Yeah that’s how I prefer it too
Timely video for me to see as I'm deciding between a 212 slant or straight...different animal to these but I would expect similar results. Overall I preferred the A mic'd to the B mic'd, especially with just the lower speaker mic'd. A seemed balanced and transparent. Also slight preference for A over B with the room mic in the mix too.
The room mic solo didn't impress me as much with either cab but there's certainly a lot of difference between them in that instance. A sounded less boxy to me than B. I guess the solution is stack em up and let 'er rip!
Great vid...B-cab all the way for me (okay, I could only really tell the difference in the room mic, but I greatly preferred it).
Thanks! Glad to hear it!
Straight 4x12 cabs beam sound in a narrow dispersion path. Directly in front is bright, and loud. Off axis is difused.
At least slant cabs spread the sound a little. I went with Mojotone's 2x12 Vintage cabs. They look like 4x12's, but a bit smaller. They spread the sound out better IMO.
you are the best johan
Great demo! Have you ever compared a Marshall 4x12 series / parallel VS parallel / series wiring ?
Thanks! I have :-)
ruclips.net/video/LvAa2PTvalo/видео.html
The angled cab eliminates a lot of standing waves as the internal reflections are different than a straight cab. Also, more interior volume on the straight cab. I tried building audio cabinets once and learned all about this crap...I gave up. It does make difference but it varies.
Gotta have both!
;-)
I suspect that the slant is so that a guitarist playing with the cabinet in a room can hear how the speakers will sound pointed directly at him so he doesn't have to kneel down to hear that. Slant back for me!
Yeah but when an A cab is on top of a full stack it points to the ceiling. And when it was invented you needed two cabs to play a Super Lead. But for a 50 or 30W you may be right.
@@JohanSegeborn Aaah I see! Then that wouldn't make sense. I like the idea of the speakers pointed at the roof, cause then it might bounce down off it onto the heads of the crowd \m/
Depending on the venue that may actually be a good point :-)
I almost always pick B cabs in these side by side comparisons but the A sounded pretty good in some of the recordings. Does the different grill cloth material make a huge difference in the overall projected tone of a cabinet?
I think the B cab sounded fuller and more present. I have a slanted Marshall 4x12vintage (v30’s-g12t75’s x-pattern) and i dont record but play live, and im interested in swapping for a straight cab,but dont want to sacrifice mids.My goal is to get a tiny bit more bottom thump response.Johan,based on your experience,would this be a wise move? Also,Im not sure what speakers to use either. I like ALOT of mids w,tight gain and thump. I do have some EVm12L’s,English celestian V30’s and sum C90’s laying around. Or just stick with my x-pattern? Im happy with my tone but trying to get a BIGGER tone with deeper palm mutes..Thanks,thoroughly enjoy your comparison videos,its saved alot of people alot of time and money!
So b cab for rhythm and turn ur guitar tone and volume on ten for a solo. Or step on a treble booster to get a little more cut........ I find it easier to add treble then to add bass so I'd rather start thicker
Indeed, I agree!
How bizarre. I wouldn’t have thought there would be any difference. I assume you placed every speaker in the same location so you were miking the exact same speaker in the exact location?
Slanted sounds with more bottom, doesn't it?
The difference can only be heard through the room mic.
Nice tone, got that early Black Sabbath sound to it 🙂