Mesa Recto vs. Marshall Mode-IV vs. ?

Mr. Moon

Force of Naked
Hi.

I've been looking for a 4x12 cabinet to use for gigging, for "band" practice (with a *LOUD* drummer and bass), and for recording. As I already have a Marshall 1965B 4x10 cab, I am looking for something that will cover the low-end better and not sound as "brittle" at higher volumes as the Marshall 1960-series 4x12 cabs I've used in the past. I will be using a Marshall JCM2000 DSL 100 watt head to power the cab. I use a 7-string guitar tuned down a half-step from standard tuning (Bb-Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb), as well as 6-string guitars also tuned down a half step (Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb), including "drop-tuning" on all guitars from time to time (i.e.: Db-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb).

I have been looking at many brands, including Behringer, Crate, H&K, Peavey, etc., just to name a few. I've pretty much narrowed my search to either a Mesa Boogie 4x12 Recto standard, or one of the Marshall Mode-IV 280 watt cabs. Either way, I will be going with the straight-faced version, rather than slant version, to increase the low-end response.

Any opinions about either of these cabs? Reliability? Durability? Even though I know they both have Celestion V-30's in them, any differences worth noting (i.e. speaker fatigue, etc.) between the different brands of cabs?

Another thought I had was to get a less-expensive Behringer 4x12 cab, which appears to have a tad bit more internal cab volume (30.25" x 32.25" x 15") than the Mesa Recto standard (32.875" x 30.25" x 14.25"), and replace the drivers with a set of 4 Celestion V-30"s purchased from Mesa. That way, I could save a bit of money while still getting the larger sized cabinet and Mesa-ized versions of the Celestion V-30s. How much of a difference would the cheap press-board material of the Behringer cab make compared to the "solid" wood of the Mesa and Marshall cabs?

Any suggestions or any other options out there I should look into?

TIA!

-mr moon
 
Update!

OK. Here's an update, FYI.

I went into the local Guitar Satan, on a "slow" weekday, and they locked me in a "quiet" room with a Marshall DSL100 head (same model I have), a Marshall Mode-4 280 watt cab, and a Mesa Recto standard 4x12 cab. I A/B'd between the Cabs for at least 1/2 hour or so, at moderate volumes, both clean and overdriven. I found that even thought the Marshall Mode-4 had more low-end response than the standard Marshall 1960a or 1960b cabs, it still had a bit too much mid-range "bark" for my taste. The Mesa was creamy and smooth across the entire frequency range.

Needless to say, I went home with the Mesa.....

-mr moon
 
rvdsm said:
The Marshall 1960 TV 412 might be what you are looking for.

Thanks for the suggestion, but the Mesa is EXACTLY what I was looking for. This thing has "THE" sound that I was after, and sounds better the louder it gets! ...I can't wait to hear what it sounds like in a few months, once it has broken in a bit more!

-mr moon
 
That was a good call. I was running my old Fender Bandmaster head through a Marshall 1960B 4x12 and found that the brighter tones seemed to lack sustain. I switched to a Mesa 2x12 open back with the black Celestions and it is not only much easier to transport, but I get both the low end and lots of sustain on the brighter tones.

I think that some of it may have to do with the open back cab vs the closed back on the Marshall.
 
Sonic Misfit said:
That was a good call. I was running my old Fender Bandmaster head through a Marshall 1960B 4x12 and found that the brighter tones seemed to lack sustain. I switched to a Mesa 2x12 open back with the black Celestions and it is not only much easier to transport, but I get both the low end and lots of sustain on the brighter tones.

I think that some of it may have to do with the open back cab vs the closed back on the Marshall.

The 4x12 Recto I got really covers the highs well too, but in a nice "creamy" way. ...I never knew what people meant by a "creamy" tone, until I tried this cab out. :)

I dread the day I have to gig with the Mesa cab, due to its size... :( I'll probably first try using the 4x10 I have, and see how that works being miced and all. Actually, I'll probably take both to see which one works better, and gets the sound I want. If I have to lug around that huge @ss Mesa cab to get "the" sound, so be it! :)

-mr moon
 
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