Has anyone modded their Kemper Kabinet so that the back can be used both opened and closed? If so, would you be interested in sharing how you did that?
Kemper Kabinet open back mod?
- Kaschko
- Thread is marked as Resolved.
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What country do you live?
On every continent there are skillful cabinet makers that create such constructions to your liking. The trick is to use gaskets, when the cabinet is closed.
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What country do you live?
On every continent there are skillful cabinet makers that create such constructions to your liking. The trick is to use gaskets, when the cabinet is closed.
ckemper Norwegian countryside and far away from the next city. That's why I was thinking to go the DIY route.
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If you choose to DIY, I suggest making no modifications to the original back of the Kabinet. Remove it, and make new back panels. If you do that, you will always have the ability to return it to original condition.
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The Crate GT112SL 1x12 Cabinet I had was a great sounding open back 1-12 cabinet.
The back of it looked like this:
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The trick is to use gaskets, when the cabinet is closed.
ckemper Do you mean the gaskets have to be taken off when going open back? I'm not 100% sure what your advice meant.
Couldn't I just saw the back of the Kabinet into 3 pieces and take out the middle one? And for a closed-back, I would put the middle piece back in? I basically would want to make the back look like a Fender.
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If you choose to DIY, I suggest making no modifications to the original back of the Kabinet. Remove it, and make new back panels. If you do that, you will always have the ability to return it to original condition.
Best case would be to have only one back but a middle piece that can be taken out. There are cabinet manufacturers who offer that option.
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ckemper Do you mean the gaskets have to be taken off when going open back? I'm not 100% sure what your advice meant.
Couldn't I just saw the back of the Kabinet into 3 pieces and take out the middle one? And for a closed-back, I would put the middle piece back in? I basically would want to make the back look like a Fender.
If you do this, you'll have bare wood showing on the edges and the tolex will almost certainly sustain damage in that process. Sooner or later, the tolex will peal up. Plus, you'll never actually seal the back with the piece you cut out due to the kerf created by the saw blade. A pretty permanent way to get what may end up being a 'meh' change.
Making a separate piece (or pieces) to swap in and out would be WAY simpler. Even bare wood would look nicer than chopping the existing piece up.
You'll also have to contend with the jackplate. Either leave that portion installed, or (more simply in my mind) place a new one in the 'open' mod. -
If you do this, you'll have bare wood showing on the edges and the tolex will almost certainly sustain damage in that process. Sooner or later, the tolex will peal up. Plus, you'll never actually seal the back with the piece you cut out due to the kerf created by the saw blade. A pretty permanent way to get what may end up being a 'meh' change.
Making a separate piece (or pieces) to swap in and out would be WAY simpler. Even bare wood would look nicer than chopping the existing piece up.
You'll also have to contend with the jackplate. Either leave that portion installed, or (more simply in my mind) place a new one in the 'open' mod.I see what you mean but I don't care so much about the esthetics. Having some visible wood wouldn't bother me since it's the back of the cab. I guess when you wrote about the tolex peeling off you meant the back plate of the Kab, right?
I don't really use any profiles that require a closed-back. They're all open-backs in "real life". So not being able to revert it 100% might be a non-issue for me. However, I still don't understand what gaskets do here.
Open back cabs are never really completely open back. Does anyone know if that does a lot to the sound or is open = open? I mean, I could also go a very simple way and do this here: LINK
But I guess that would kill the bass completely?
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As I said - the simple and easy thing to do would be to cut a piece of wood (or two) to replace the factory back. Heck, you could even have the lumber yard cut the board(s) to size. Then all you need is to drill holes for the screws and make a cut out for the jackplate.
If aesthetics don't matter to you, an all wood back makes no difference. You also won't destroy the value of the Kabinet should you decide to sell it down the road.
As far as leaving the back off, plug it in and try it. Stick a piece of wood over the back to test and see if it does what you want. Sounds like a fun little experiment. -
As far as leaving the back off, plug it in and try it. Stick a piece of wood over the back to test and see if it does what you want. Sounds like a fun little experiment.
You're right, I will try to do that. It would give me a good feel for how much wood I need.
you could even have the lumber yard cut the board(s) to size. Then all you need is to drill holes for the screws and make a cut out for the jackplate.
See, the problem is buying the tools to do that would cost me more than using the backplate that I already have (cutting it into three pieces can be done with a handsaw but I don't have the tools to make a cutout for the jack plate here). There are also no lumber yards around here since I'm living behind the ice walls that these flat-Earthers talk about (in Norway that is...). But I will ask around and I'm sure some friends have all the tools I need. It might be the most sensible thing to do.
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You're right, I will try to do that. It would give me a good feel for how much wood I need.
See, the problem is buying the tools to do that would cost me more than using the backplate that I already have (cutting it into three pieces can be done with a handsaw but I don't have the tools to make a cutout for the jack plate here). There are also no lumber yards around here since I'm living behind the ice walls that these flat-Earthers talk about (in Norway that is...). But I will ask around and I'm sure some friends have all the tools I need. It might be the most sensible thing to do.
If you don't have the tools - hand sawing the existing back panel will most likely come out.....very bad. That, and if you make a mistake....now you're well and truly screwed.
Has to be a carpenter, cabinet shop, wood worker nearby you could call. Norwegians don't live in igloos, right?
Cutting the wood might take 5 minutes. Instead of a hole for the jack plate, drill a hole for a 1/4" jack and wire that in. You'd be surprised at how kind craftsman and contractors can be. I was working on a small project and needed a piece of aluminum the local stores didn't have. The sheet metal shop had some, cut it to size and wouldn't take my money for the material or the cutting. -
Norwegians don't live in igloos, right?
Only high up in the north.
Has to be a carpenter, cabinet shop, wood worker nearby you could call. Norwegians don't live in igloos, right?
I don't think a carpenter would bother with cutting a single piece of wood here but there are some shops an hour or so away. I already started asking around for tools as well. That will be the easiest solution.
Instead of a hole for the jack plate, drill a hole for a 1/4" jack and wire that in.
Thanks for the advice! I think I could also just drill four bigger holes in each corner and then use a small hand saw to cut out that square. It will work out eventually.
I'm still wondering what the deal with the previously mentioned gaskets is though.
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However, I still don't understand what gaskets do here.
The gaskets are required to make the closed back version work. Without gaskets, air escapes so the cabinet isn’t closed. i believe CK was trying to give you a means of making a convertible cabinet that could be either open or closed. As Ruefus said, of you cut an existing back into three pieces they will all be slightly smaller by the width of the saw kerf so why you put the middle panel back in to make it closed back you will have a noticeable air gap between the midd and outer panels which will stop it working as a closed back cabinet. Gaskets can be used to seal the gap.
The easiest and best solution is definitely to make new open back panels. You said that you don’t have the tools but actually, the tools required are the same a cutting the existing one in 3 pieces. A basic hand saw with do the trick. -
Top section is a rectangle. It, or the same size bottom section should have the jack plate. Use a rectangular middle piece that is wider than the gap between the top and bottom sections. The middle section should have two thin vertical cleats at the sides of the opening.
A gasket should form a ring to seal the opening. It should cover the vertical cleats with horizontal strips along the top and bottom sections. That will seal the back when the middle section is fitted over the opening.
I’d use threaded inserts in the top and bottom sections with bolts to connect the middle section in place. Use knobs on the bolts to enable quick close / open changing.
The sections must be cut with precision. Otherwise air gaps will be caused due to poor fit. Use a table saw or a track saw. These are not tools that should be used without caution and safety instructions. I’d pay to have the job done properly. It’s cheaper than losing a finger.
