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Yesteday I ordered a THD UniValve and the THD 2x12 cabinet.

 

I've also been looking at the Avatar cabinets.

 

So I've got a couple of questions.

 

1. would it be worth while to add an Avatar 2x12 to the rig? It is an interesting design.

 

2. I sometimes play some small places, or in situations where portability is helpful. In terms of having a small rig, has anyone used the single 12 inch Avatar cab?

 

Bill

"I believe that entertainment can aspire to be art, and can become art, but if you set out to make art you're an idiot."

 

Steve Martin

 

Show business: we're all here because we're not all there.

 

 

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Can't comment on the THD stuff :( but I currently use a single Celestion speaker in a wedge cab for many of my applications. If there is a loud drummer I may use two of those and it works fine if you have full PA and monitor setups. I used to use a Marshall 4x12 back in the day as well as some custom made 2x12's modeled on the Marshall cabs and they all seemed to work well in the situations at hand. If you are close micing it, it probably doesn't matter a whole lot what you use. ;)

Lyrics. Wasted space between solos.

I can't tell you, but I can play it for you.

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Bill, I can't speak of the single 12" guitar cab though I would thing it would be an outstanding choice for a cab to complement that THD Uni.

 

Though I don't have an Avatar Guitar cab, I do have a pair of Dave's PA loudspeakers from before Avatar discontinued producing them. I can say that the quality is second to none and I would expect the guitar cabs to be no less.

 

Our Joint

 

"When you come slam bang up against trouble, it never looks half as bad if you face up to it." The Duke...

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Hey Bill, my Univalve should be here on Monday - after hearing and playing through one at the Musicplayer BBQ we did here on 8/1/04, I had to have one. :) Anyway, I'm going to run mine through a 2 X 12" cabinet. From what I've read on the www.univalve.net forums, everyone seems to think the Avatar 2 X 12 ( http://www.avatarspeakers.com ) is the way to go. Of course, a 2 X 12 is going to move more air than a 1 X 12, and the Univalve is not the most powerful amp in the world... although it is surprisingly loud for the wattage - at least with a 6550 in it - and probably the same could be said for an EL34. Guitplayer's rig (the one that was here at the BBQ) was the Uni going into a 2 X 12 and it absolutely rocked.

 

The tubes you use, as well as the efficiency of the speaker(s) you pick will both have an effect on the SPL the Uni puts out, so I imagine it's going to come down to finding a combo of tubes and cabinet that works well for you tone wise as well as volume wise. In my case, I'm getting it more for a studio tool - I don't really plan on gigging a lot with it.

 

One other possibility - you might consider getting two of the Avatar 1 X 12 cabs and bringing what you need, depending on the size of the gig. A couple of people over on the www.univalve.net forums mentioned they're doing that and seemed happy with it.

 

Congrats on the new rig - please let me know what you think about it once you've had a chance to play with it a bit.

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Originally posted by daklander:

Bill, just an aside, don't want to highjack the leaf but it looks like Avatar is finally starting to get the recognition they so much deserve.

I don't know the line, other than it seems to get a lot of talk on the net, and all of it is good. I've not read one bad word about the company.

 

As far as the combined open/closed back design, that is no (or not much) different functionally than the old Music Man 2x12 cab, which had a big old slot port across the bottom;or the Silvertone Twin 12, which had the port in the back, up under where the amp head was stored for transport. Pressure is pressure. If the port is tuned, you get an advantage. Since Avatar offers so many different speakers for the same cab, the port can't be tuned in the conventional sense. But the idea... some back pressure and some release... is still there.

 

Handsome looking boxes, too. And it is hard to quarrel with the price. I've got access to pro wood shops, and the woodworking "chops" (hehe...) to build a cabinet quickly and easily out of what these guys throw away. But given the price of the Avatar cabinets, it's not worth it for me to make it myself.

 

Bill

"I believe that entertainment can aspire to be art, and can become art, but if you set out to make art you're an idiot."

 

Steve Martin

 

Show business: we're all here because we're not all there.

 

 

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Originally posted by Philip O'Keefe:

Hey Bill, my Univalve should be here on Monday -

 

.....Anyway, I'm going to run mine through a 2 X 12" cabinet.

 

... In my case, I'm getting it more for a studio tool - I don't really plan on gigging a lot with it.

 

Yeah, you guys talking about it is what finally got me up off of my duff.

 

I opted for their 2x12 cabinet, as I believe that the manufacturer knows best what goes with his rig, and in the case of boutique manufacturers, (where price is usually not the market driver...) I would expect that to be the best option for the amp. But at a price of around $300, I thought that it might be fun and affordable to try that Avatar, too.

 

I have a "Wall O' Amps" in the studio now, so I've got all sorts of options when it comes to speakers. I could have saved significant money and just used the mid 60s Bandmaster 2x12 cabinet. I'm curious to try it with my 2x10 Marshall combo speakers. I like 10s. (Give me a Vibrolux over a Deluxe...)

 

The idea behind the single 12 cabinet is simple.... Pittsburgh has a lot (a whole lot) of "Working Man" bars. They were built in the 20s and 30s, usually from a sinlge width storefront, and consist of a small front bar and a small back room. They are all over the place, and most have been converted into rock or blues or alternative clubs. On the South Side strip, there must be 30 or 40 of them. The back rooms now house the entertainment.

 

I occasionally get called out to be a hired gun for a night, and since there is very little room in these places, a single 12 appeals to me. My old Cube amp is loud enough, so I expect the THDs 15 watts to cover it. (I'm no hot shit guitar player, far from it. But I noodle around and don't play like anyone else, and some people find that appealing.)

 

Like you, I got mine for the studio. I may never drag it out. I hardly play out at all anymore.... only a handful of times a year.

 

But I am also thinking in terms of 'get small'. I may dump some of the old guitars and amps. It is wonderful to have them, but I'd like to see them getting more use. So, if the THD fullfills my studio needs to the point that it can replace an amp or two, then I will get rid of those amps. I'm already planning to lose a late 60s Super Reverb that I never play. (Stock casters, blue Fender Special Design speakers.)

 

I'm just happy that things are as small as they are today. Back in the day I had pair of Marshall stacks, then moved to 10 speaker cabs (2x12 and 1x12+1x10, all Gauss and JBL)with Crown amps preamped by Marshalls. My custom-built effects took up most of a 14 space ATA case. Why did I EVER think that was cool??????

 

Bill

"I believe that entertainment can aspire to be art, and can become art, but if you set out to make art you're an idiot."

 

Steve Martin

 

Show business: we're all here because we're not all there.

 

 

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I've always been more of a combo amp guy than a stack kind of guy. Twins, Bandmasters, Princetons, Bassmans, Boogie combos - stuff like that. It has been years since I've been in an actively gigging band, but even back then I never cared to haul around more than I absolutely had to.

 

So you're getting the THD 2-12 cab? What do they load into that for speakers?

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Originally posted by Philip O'Keefe:

...

 

I've always been more of a combo amp guy than a stack kind of guy.

 

...It has been years since I've been in an actively gigging band,

 

...So you're getting the THD 2-12 cab? What do they load into that for speakers?

Yeah, I grew into loving combos, but that came after I was doing Thin Lizzy-type stuff and before I really understood that I didn't need to be "...the Shatterer of Worlds". (sigh...)

 

I left my last band a couple of years ago, too. But I'm still thinking about putting together a band to play old Yardbirds, Kinks, Animals, etc. The sort of music that got us from rockabilly to here.

 

As for the cabinet, here's the link:

 

http://www.thdelectronics.com/products/cab.htm

 

Bill

"I believe that entertainment can aspire to be art, and can become art, but if you set out to make art you're an idiot."

 

Steve Martin

 

Show business: we're all here because we're not all there.

 

 

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I did some scouting around the web, and found a picture of a paisley THD cabinet that was loaded with Celestion 16 ohm 80 watt lead speakers.

 

That paisley cabinet was cool, and would have been a great choice for my band plans. (oh, well...)

 

Bill

"I believe that entertainment can aspire to be art, and can become art, but if you set out to make art you're an idiot."

 

Steve Martin

 

Show business: we're all here because we're not all there.

 

 

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http://members.cox.net/bsavage/univalve/thdcab/thdcab.htm

 

No idea what is stock in the THD cabs, other than what we can see in the paisley cab, which may or may not be stock.

 

Bill

"I believe that entertainment can aspire to be art, and can become art, but if you set out to make art you're an idiot."

 

Steve Martin

 

Show business: we're all here because we're not all there.

 

 

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