Perfect cabinet

  • I know this has been discussed so many time...but I am still not sure what to get. All my experiments with real guitar cabinets were not satisfying.
    Now I want to get the perfect cabinet/speaker for my Kemper Power Amp.


    I want to leave that speaker in my rehearsal room. The Kemper will travel between Home and Rehearsal room once a week.
    I want to use my Adam AX5 studio speaker to tweak sounds at home and they should sound good in the rehearsal room as well.
    Ideally the speaker is available in Germany (including warranty etc.).


    What would you recommend and why?


    THANKS!


    Rainer

  • Since you're tweaking on monitors, I'd suggest getting an FRFR speaker/amp like the Atomic CLR. If you're on a budget, the Tech21 Power Engine can be set up to give you transparent tones as well.


    On the other hand, you have a power rack: perhaps you'd be more motivated to play through a traditional cab. I'd say try and demo some before you choose, since everyone's idea of a good tone differs. Just make sure the ohm rating matches what you've got. And higher power is better, since you don't want the KPA to blow it up.


    Have fun choosing, I love shopping for new gear!

  • Full german ;) :
    - 1x12 cab: custom tt cab
    - speaker : Monacor SP-30PATC


    That's exaclty what Ihave (as a 2x12 though) and I'm happy with it..
    Make sure it is a closed cabinet

  • Its very difficult to choose, as has been said before there is no "perfect"cabinet,the "perfect"cabinet is the one which sounds best to you.


    I'll have to disagree on this! :)
    Your statement is true in the guitar cab world, but not when it comes to FRFR, where the "F" and the "F" factors are measurable.


    The CLR is currently the best linear cab available under 2,500 $ ATM. Several users have reported that the Adams translate very well on the CLRs. They are available both as passive and active cabs/wedges.


    As for buying, the European store is in GB, an email to Tom King is enough to order. You have several days for testing them and return in case yo don't like them :)

  • I'll have to disagree on this!
    Your statement is true in the guitar cab world, but not when it comes to FRFR, where the "F" and the "F" factors are measurable.

    This is my understanding as well. With guitar cabinets I had many different sounds (some bad some good) but none of them was close to the sounds I have with studio monitor.
    I want to tweak sounds/settings in the home studio and then bring them to the rehearsal room w/o tweaking again.
    That's why I am looking for the perfect cabinet. Looks like the Atomic CLR is the only good choice out there.
    I did send them an email regarding shipment to Germany...

  • While the CLR certainly IS a good choice I'd like to stress it is not the only one.
    The Matrix Q12a yielded great results side by side to a CLR, as well as the Camper112CX.
    Also cheaper (compared to the ones above) solutions like the Yamaha DXR 10 don't sound vastly inferior and translate studio monitors well.

  • Looks like the Atomic CLR is the only good choice out there.

    No, that's not true, even there are a lot of CLR-fanboys around here, there are two other companies: Matrix and KPA-solutions . I could play and test all three FRFR-cabs (CLR, Matrix Q12a , Camper 112 CX ), CLR and Q12a are on the same -high- level. There's also a passive version available and a new one with 2 x 12" (FR212).


    Shipping within the EU is very easy, no extra costs and my Q12a arrived a few days after my order, I am VERY satisfied with it.

    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    first name: Guenter / family name: Haas / www.guenterhaas.de

  • Well guys, taste is taste, but nothing beats the CLRs in terms of specs and technology.
    This translates into a sound which of course may not appeal some, but in terms of fidelity not Matrix nor KPA-Solution offer a comparable product.


    The OP asked for the best FRFR option, he did not talk about personal preferences (stronger bass, hyped mids, milder highs or the like). And while the marginal improvement per $ unit may appear negligible to some, there's no doubt that the CLR is the most linear and transparent cab under 2500 $ which is also capable of producing a serious SPL for live use or band context. In this sense it does is "the best".
    What remains is just personal taste; namely, this linearity might be useless for some, others may not appreciate it, others might prefer a different amplitude response. What each of us like is respectable, measures are measures tho.


    Peace and axes

  • Gianfranco, please, I think you should put away theory for once.
    You keep repeating this like a mantra recently.
    I really think you need to hear them side by side like we did.
    Then you would come to more valid, i.e. non- theoretical conclusions.
    It has nothing to do with taste.
    To both of us, Günter and me, experienced enough to be able to judge this, they both sounded very close.
    And it seems to me we're the only ones on this planet who did this.
    This, for me, is called evidence.
    No further proof needed.

  • Let me throw a spanner in the works.


    I've yet to test a FRFR powered speaker that sounds better than a real guitar cab when using a powered Kemper...not even close.
    It's like saying a tube amp sounds better through the PA than it does through a guitar cabinet.


    Keep in mind, MisterB says he has a Powered Kemper...why would he waste money paying for another poweramp in a FRFR speaker...if anything he needs a passive FRFR speaker?


    MisterB
    How many different tones/amps/Profiles do you need at rehearsal or when your band gigs?

  • So Lance, tell me, have you tested with the highend solutions discussed above?
    Or only the average available active wedges?
    There is a difference and it should be discussed here.
    While the profiler sounds awesome through a good guitar cab it actually defeats the main purpose to have a complete meticulously crafted signal chain available wherever you play, with consistent results.

  • @ Ingolf: fair enough. I never said you have to like the CLRs over anything else. As for the mantra thing it sounds funny, but I'm just expressing my ideas when the subject pops up. I'm not trying to sell the product, nor I endorse it or get paid by AA.
    I can't see why you seem disturbed by me expressing my opinions. I never criticized you when you reported your use experience, which I deeply respect.
    Please smile more, and give me the freedom to write what I think :thumbup:


    It's like saying a tube amp sounds better through the PA than it does through a guitar cabinet.

    I'm not sure I'm following you here. A profile is not a tube amp. What we are rather saying is that a mic'ed amp sounds better through a better PA.
    Having said this, I don't doubt for a moment that the Profiler can sound spectacular through a guitar cab. But it's a matter of the use you make of it. If you're interested in reproducing different profiled cabs' sounds, I doubt a single physical guitar cab is versatile enough to faithfully reproduce a 1x8', a 1x12' and a 4x12', not to mention the huge differences which exists among cabs of similar configuration.

    Quote

    Keep
    in mind, MisterB says he has a Powered Kemper...why would he waste
    money paying for another poweramp in a FRFR speaker...if anything he
    needs a passive FRFR speaker?

    Maybe you're missing that the CLR comes as a passive cab as well? :)

  • I'm guessing this is very true..... and in fact, I'm in the process of doing some testing on this. I have a pair of full range cabinets AND several guitar cabs and I'll be doing comparisons with over the next few weeks.



    Let me throw a spanner in the works.


    I've yet to test a FRFR powered speaker that sounds better than a real guitar cab when using a powered Kemper...not even close.

  • Sorry Gianfranco if you feel offended. Wasn't my intention and actually smiled a lot when writing that post.
    Also you clearly don't get the humour with my mantra analogy so let's screw that. And I'm not disturbed at all. ;)
    My point is, you keep saying that (according to published data) the CLR is the best FRFR solution under €2500.- and of course you're totally entitled to your opinion.


    But I'd like to differentiate a bit more.
    Günter and me were able to evaluate three of the highend solutions side by side.
    And it became clearly evident that the differences between them were negligible enough to state that there simply is no best in the sense that you seem to propagate.
    The differences were so negligible to a level that you could imagine two world class mixers stating their personal preferences to mix on a certain set of monitors.
    Are the monitors Bob Clearmountain prefers better than Chris Lord-Alge's choice?


    Actual evidence can't be devaluated by theoretical data.


    It becomes a moot discussion at this point.
    I encourage everyone to listen and compare when shopping for amplification solutions.