Guitar Amp Speaker Size

**monkmiles** · 02-12-2015, 10:38 AM

Originally Posted by HighSpeedSpoon

I just pulled the trigger on an EarCandy Bailey 2x8. It comes in at 22 pounds loaded with a pair of Hoosier Cats, and it's wide enough for any head I might sit on it. I've heard good things about EarCandy, the price was right, and I wanted to try the closed, ported design. Mine will take a little longer to get here because I opted for Diablo cloth and a Diablo front baffle with a Wheat grill.

BTW Tim @ EarCandy was extremely helpful.

One thing: The add page says 4 or 16 ohms, but you can get 8 ohms too (2 x 16 ohms in parallel).

Nice! Seems like it will have two 100 watt speakers then for 200 total power and I think he does that Hoosier Cat in 4 or 8...so I guess it's however you want him to wire it up and do it.

I pulled the trigger on an Ear Candy 1x8" with the Hoosier Cat speaker. It'll have a transparent mahogany front and back. I bought a nice 1x12" cabinet with the same front/back from Ear Candy a couple months ago and am really happy with it. I agree that Tim is easy to work with and responsive via Reverb.com. I've generally been a combo amp player, but recently started using a head (a Frenzel tube head which is portable too at 15lbs and 40watts) and I'm psyched to be able to use my 1x8" for rehearsals and small sessions, the 1x12" for gigs or bigger sessions, and the possibility of using both at the same time. I might even grab a Quilter Tone Block to occasionally use with these cabs.

**HighSpeedSpoon** · 02-12-2015, 12:36 PM

Originally Posted by Klatu

I use my extension cabs exclusively with solid state amps, so I don't usually sweat the ohms as I can plug just about anything into my Acoustic Image Clarus without repercussion.

Originally Posted by hallpass

Nice! Seems like it will have two 100 watt speakers then for 200 total power and I think he does that Hoosier Cat in 4 or 8...so I guess it's however you want him to wire it up and do it.

I pulled the trigger on an Ear Candy 1x8" with the Hoosier Cat speaker. It'll have a transparent mahogany front and back. I bought a nice 1x12" cabinet with the same front/back from Ear Candy a couple months ago and am really happy with it. I agree that Tim is easy to work with and responsive via Reverb.com. I've generally been a combo amp player, but recently started using a head (a Frenzel tube head which is portable too at 15lbs and 40watts) and I'm psyched to be able to use my 1x8" for rehearsals and small sessions, the 1x12" for gigs or bigger sessions, and the possibility of using both at the same time. I might even grab a Quilter Tone Block to occasionally use with these cabs.

Congrats to you hallcat. That should be pretty slick looking. I seriously considered the 1x8, which is probably all I'll ever need and lighter too. In the end, I felt like a 2x and the EarCandy was within my budget and weight limit. Somewhat à propos of both yours and Klatu's comments, I will be powering the cab mainly through a Quilter Mach 2 head, which is solid state and pretty flexible about impedance. My backup is a smaller tube head. It can also do 4,8, or 16 ohms, but I've had enough tube issues to really appreciate solid state.

If I can digress a bit: I thought very hard about four other options ...

Henriksen JazzAmp 2 channel Head > EarCandy 2x8
A Mach 2 combo
Ethos Overdrive Amp w FX loop <> reverb > EarCandy 1x8
Ethos clean w FX loop <> reverb > Tone Block > EarCandy 2x8

I became persuaded that any of these rigs would be a beautiful instrument, but I didn't want to deal with too many pieces, power supplies, and weight. At the end of the day I overbought power (I'm quite amateur), but I picked the Mach 2 because that was the instrument I most wanted to learn. I went with the head/cab to leave open the option of different cab personalities.

Okay. Forgive me for running off at the mouth guys. I don't get new gear days very often, and it seems I wanted to talk about it.

**monkmiles** · 03-07-2015, 10:18 PM

Got my Ear Candy 1x8 Mr Watts yesterday. Only got to play it a short time so far and used it with my Frenzel head and Eastman archtop. Impressed so far but I'm looking forward to trying it with the band to see how it reacts at louder volume levels.

**Klatu** · 03-07-2015, 11:01 PM

That's adorable!

**Hammertone** · 03-08-2015, 01:57 AM

Less adorable, definitely bigger and heavier, but oh so swell:
Open-back Stone Age cab w/1x15" Altec 418A, Powered by 20-watt Class A Koch Studiotone head.
While I am a big fan of small/light/portable (I've been using a 1x8" Polytone Babybrute for @30 years) I think that bigger speakers in suitably sized cabs just sound better. 10"/12"/15" for me. YMMV.

**monkmiles** · 03-08-2015, 11:16 PM

The 2x8 Ear Candy cab looks great, as does the Quilter Micropro head!

I played my Quilter Tone Block into my 1x8 today. Firstly, it really sounded good! Secondly, it makes for an ultra portable rig. The speaker can handle 100w and the Tone Block can be set not to go over that. I just use a reverb pedal with it. I really love both my amp heads.

My 1x12 cab is what I use for most gigs and have been using for rehearsals too. But I hope to be able to use the 1x8 at rehearsal sessions since I bring my gear back/forth every week and it is so portable...I need to weigh it but it should be about 17lbs.

**hans halmackenreuter** · 03-09-2015, 07:15 PM

This is my Diy 1x8 cab with a beta 8 by eminence and this little fellow sound extremely big with good definition. Most people laugh, when they see me coming with this little cab, but they are always positively surprised when they hear it. Guitar Amp Speaker Size-cab-jpg

**vernon** · 03-09-2015, 09:06 PM

I sense a theme here... RE Twin 8 sounds wonderful!

**HighSpeedSpoon** · 03-10-2015, 01:56 AM

Originally Posted by vernon

I sense a theme here... RE Twin 8 sounds wonderful!

Yes, I sense a few themes too.

Lots of 8" speaker love, and lots of Quilter, EarCandy, and Raezer's Edge love too.

How is the dispersion with the RE Twin 8? The EarCandy product page for the Bailey 2x8 claims "You will notice a 180 degree sound dispersion so when you walk around the room the cab will sound the same ..." My experience so far with the Bailey is that the tone standing in front of the cab (with my body between the guitar and the cab) is the same with the cab directly to my left. The cab is clear in either case too. However, there is a small drop in volume when the cab is directly on my left - and I actually prefer it this way.

**monkmiles** · 03-10-2015, 01:29 PM

Originally Posted by HighSpeedSpoon

Sweet hallpass. There is no shortage of tasty rigs in this thread, but the Tone Block w 1x8 has got to be close to the ultimate in portability. If you ever get a chance to A/B the Tone Block with the Ear Candy and a Raezer's Edge 1x8, I would be very interested in hearing your reactions. (I wasn't quite sure from your earlier post #18 what kind of hands-on time you may have had with Raezer's Edge.)

I used to own a Raezers Edge 1x10 but no longer do. I liked it alot and used it with an AI Clarus head for a short time. It was well made and sounded great. I sold it because I went back to the combo amp route at the time. I haven't tried their 1x8 model though. I think Raezers Edge use an 8" Eminence Beta. The Ear Candy I have uses their 8" Hoosier Cat speaker.

Still my 1x12 cab is what I will use for gigs unless the gig is very small.

**vernon** · 03-10-2015, 02:06 PM

I haven't had the RE Twin 8 very long and have only played it in my practice room... but the dispersion seems good and fills the space well. My 1x12 and 1x15 are much more directional than the 2x8.

**entresz** · 03-11-2015, 01:10 AM

I'm very partial to 15'' speakers- one of my favourite jazz guitar amplifiers is a 1976 Peavey Session 400. It combines a very warm tube-like sound with incredible fidelity and headroom. It's extremely heavy though, but the sound is worth it.

I've found my next best amp is my Quilter Aviator Twin Ten. Has a comparable amount of headroom and the tone is superb. It would make a good amp for almost any style in fact- but for jazz it's great. Nice sweet low end, and the tops are smooth and clear.

**Fidelcaster** · 03-11-2015, 08:36 AM

Roland has in the past produced several combos that used multiple 8" speakers, like the GC-408 from the '90s.

**TheGrandWazoo** · 10-07-2015, 10:17 AM

Can someone offer any knowledge about the benefits of having a 2X8 over a 1X8? I'm contemplating going with a EC 1x8 or 2x8 and getting a Quilter Mini 101. But, if I use a 2x8, then why not just get a 1x10? I play mostly smaller gigs but also want something that I can use for my Big Band. I have a 50w 1x10 combo that I use successfully with the Big Band

**Klatu** · 10-07-2015, 11:00 AM

The benefit of a 2x8 over a 1x8 would be that of speaker surface area creating greater volume and headroom. In my experience, the main difference between a 2x8 and a 1x10 would concern tone. I find that 1x10 cabs typically reproduce the tone with less coloration than 8" cabs. I would go with a 1x10 if I were planning on primarily amplifying acoustic instruments and the 2x8 if I wanted a smokier electric bebop tone.

Keep in mind that the differences are marginal, so the reality is that either cab will work well in most situations.

**vernon** · 10-07-2015, 01:04 PM

Klatu is spot on in his comments... I would only add that the 2x8 puts out more bottom end than the 1x8 (RE Cabinets).

**HighSpeedSpoon** · 10-07-2015, 10:08 PM

Dispersion may be a factor too. I don't know about the 10" speakers, but the QSC 8" have wider dispersion than the 10" and 12". My Bailey 2x8 also has excellent dispersion. An old QSC document that I downloaded years back refers to the QSC 8s as "short throw" speakers because they fill a room nicely but the sound therefore dissipates at shorter distances than a beamier speaker. (Obviously speaker wattage and sensitivity will affect this too.)