Anyone using the RA 2x12 Cabinet?

[djw]

Hey people, I'm really curious about the Royal Atlantic 2x12 speaker cab (this one: http://www.mesaboogie.com/Product_Info/Guitar%20Cabinets/RoyalAtlanticCABS/RA2x12-LG.htm)
Does anyone here have it? Do you like it? What's the scoop?

 

[iceman]

I'm curious too. I'm going to see if my local boogie store has any to try. I've been trying to find the right cab and speaker combo for the RA. I love my port city 2x12 OS for the Mark V (loaded with vet30 and et65), but for the RA it was too boomy on the clean channel. Boomy in the low mids. My roadster can actually get the same way.

At first I thought it was the OS cab or the et65. I swapped the et65 for a v30 and still boomy. Then I put a black shadow with the et65 and it actually sounded really good. So it seems to be a cross between the v30s, the RA and the OS cab. When I used the roadster 2x12 cab (2 v30s) with the RA it wasn't as boomy.

In the end I actually think I preferred the black shadow and the et65 in the OS cab. It did lack a little punch but really nice detail. The v30s were smoother though. The transatlanic cab has 2 black shadows, while the RA cab has 2 v30s. The TA is 3/4 open back while the RA appears to be 3/4 closed back.

If I get a chance to try the RA cab out I'll report back. It would be nice to have a matching cab aesthetically speaking, but that is secondary.

 

[djw]

Yeah, I'd be keen to hear your review. I'm interested for my Lone Star and my Mini Rec. There's a lot of good 2x12s out there, but this one looks pretty killer, like an improved 3/4 back. However, I don't know if we can take it for granted that it will sound as good, pound for pound, as the old 3/4 back 1x12 and I assume the RA 1x12... seems like, from what I've heard, some of the Mesa 2x12 cabs within those basic dimensions (27" x 18" x 11") sometimes either suffer from phase issues or something else that makes the enthusiasm a little quieter than it is for the 1x12 in that box shape. I don't know, I have not tried any of the 2x12s, but I do know the 3/4 back 1x12 is a killer. I like the aesthetics of the RA cab better though, and it seems like it would have even more thump.

The ET65 is a phenomenal speaker, by the way. I have one in a compact Freda 1x12, which is sort of like a slightly bigger Thiele front-ported design and it sounds amazing. If I were to get one of these 2x12s I'd probably swap out the C90s and put in an ET65 and had been planning on a Veteran 30 (WGS's take on the V30). But maybe one speaker at a time, eh? Perhaps the C90 is good with the ET65 as you say.

 

[iceman]

I'm not planning on keeping the C90 and the ET65 together. It was just an experiment that turned out quite well. I think I may look into the WGS liberator, seems like it had a little bit more punch than the ET65. The V30 was providing all the crunch and punch, so I'm looking for a cross between the two, or at least something to replace the Vet30 that adds nice crunch.

 

[iceman]

So I stopped by my local boogie dealer, but no luck they didn't have any RA 2x12 cabs in stock. I did try out a 4x12 OS Rectifier and a 2x12 RoadKing cab. I thought the RoadKing cab sounded good. I'm starting to think it is mostly the V30s I don't like with this RA's clean channel. I'm ordering a WGS Liberator and I'm going to see how that blends with the ET65 in my PortCity. If it sounds good, I'll just order another PC 2x12 OS and load it with the ET65 and Liberator.

 

[JamminJoe]

That is very true about the V30's and the RA clean channel. I usually love V30's for both distorted and clean tones, but it's not a good speaker for the RA clean IMO. Too many mids and not sparkly enough made the clean channel on the RA harsh. I tried the RA with 2 greenbacks and the clean channel sprang to life - very 3D and lots of shimmer. But the hi-gain tone was pretty mushy and of course, 2 25watt greenbacks in a 100 watt amp is not a good idea, so I've bought a couple of creambacks. I'll report back when I try these out.

 

[danyeo1]

I found a used 2x12 Electra Dyne cabinet, same thing as the RA version. I know it will sound awesome with my Electra Dyne combo but well see if the RA will sound fat enough with it.

 

[screamingdaisy]

I found a used 2x12 Electra Dyne cabinet, same thing as the RA version. I know it will sound awesome with my Electra Dyne combo but well see if the RA will sound fat enough with it.

You have the 1x12 combo, correct?

If so, I'm interested to hear your opinion on the 1x12 vs 2x12 with the ED.

 

[danyeo1]

I found a used 2x12 Electra Dyne cabinet, same thing as the RA version. I know it will sound awesome with my Electra Dyne combo but well see if the RA will sound fat enough with it.

You have the 1x12 combo, correct?

If so, I'm interested to hear your opinion on the 1x12 vs 2x12 with the ED.

Yes, the 1x12 combo. I wanted the 2x12 cab but I couldn't stomach paying close to $700 shipped for one but I got lucky and found one Craiglist for $425 shipped.

I've owned the ED 2x12 combo before IMHO there wasn't a big difference between the 1x12 and 2x12 combo. The 1x12 is every bit as fat sounding. But I wanted the 2x12 cab for a possible mix of 2 speakers. Hopefully the RA sounds good on that cab.

 

[screamingdaisy]

Cool. One of these days I want to get the matching amp stand (i.e., extension cab) for my ED so that it sits a little higher off the ground. I'm leaning towards a second 1x12, although I'm keeping an open mind about it.

 

[YellowJacket]

Second 1 x 12 with a v30 to mix with the stock c90 of course. On topic, that 27" 1 x 12 / 2 x 12 is a fantastic sounding box. Sounds great with v30s and with the single c90. Definitely give it a go with the Royal Atlantic!

 

[danyeo1]

Cool. One of these days I want to get the matching amp stand (i.e., extension cab) for my ED so that it sits a little higher off the ground. I'm leaning towards a second 1x12, although I'm keeping an open mind about it.

I have an Ear Candy Buzzbomb cab at my place now that I'm borrowing. I tried the ED 1x12 combo ontop of the Buzzbomb and then next to it, side by side. It sounded soo much better side by side with it, just a big massive sound. Ontop and the sound just wasn't as spread out and massive. But if you're playing out and need to hear yourself better stacking would work, for me though I'd lay them side by side and just stand further if you can to hear yourself.