The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
  1. #1

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    So back in the spring I decided to use the downtime from Covid to downsize my main guitar amplifier. Sounded good, but weighed a ton -- well, 49 pounds. Part of that is that it has a built-in 12" speaker with a heavy magnet, and part is that the cabinet is made out of MDF, which is very dense and therefore heavy.


    I already have a lightweight home-built 1x12" speaker cabinet with a production-spec speaker for this amp, so I decided to pull the amplifier out of the cabinet and install it into a home-built, lightweight cab. Here's some pics I took along the way:


    Before the job; 50-watt amp in OEM cab with 12" speaker:





    Gluing up the box:








    Box is glued and tight. reinforcing brackets are installed, and cutaway for control-access done:








    Cabinet has been stained and glossed, and mounting ports drilled:





    Amp and reverb tank are installed in the cab:





    Put tweed on the grille and installed it, and powered up. It's sitting atop the speaker cabinet I built a few years back:



    What's really surprising to me, in the few minutes I played it tonight after completing the swap is how it provides a clearer sound. There's less bass response and more treble chime. I'm not sure if it's because the amp and speaker are decoupled, or if it's the change from MDF to solid wood. Either way, I like it, it feels more alive. And though it'll add a trip loading into a club, it'll be easier on the ole bones.
    Last edited by Thumpalumpacus; 11-15-2020 at 12:01 PM.

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  3. #2

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    Great job! And: good to see you Thumbz!

  4. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by TOMMO
    Great job! And: good to see you Thumbz!
    Thanks, Tom. It's always a pleasure to see you too.

  5. #4

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    Good job, Thump! You do nice work. Stay healthy!

  6. #5

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    Quite an impressive accomplishment, there. I enjoyed the photos of your progress, and the final product.

    Quick question - you don't use screws for the wooden frame, only glue??

    Enjoy in good health!

  7. #6

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    The grill cloth runs in different directions on the amp and speaker cabinets.
    Really, very nice job. That's a nice looking cabinet. The other guitarists will be jealous if you ever get to take it out. Here's hoping that can happen soon.

  8. #7

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    What do the two pieces weigh individually?

  9. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by AlsoRan
    Quite an impressive accomplishment, there. I enjoyed the photos of your progress, and the final product.

    Quick question - you don't use screws for the wooden frame, only glue??

    Enjoy in good health!
    The wood is glued, and then I used internal L-brackets screwed into the sides to reinforce the glued joints.

    Quote Originally Posted by sgosnell
    The grill cloth runs in different directions on the amp and speaker cabinets.
    Yeah, I only noticed that after I stapled the grille-cloth onto its frame. Attachment 76937

    Quote Originally Posted by Woody Sound
    What do the two pieces weigh individually?
    I don't know; I don't own a scale.

  10. #9

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    An unexpected bonus: the sound has opened up. I think it's because the speaker now being used has a pine cab rather than the original amp's MDF. At any rate there's more chime while still being able to get smoky.