ED head - recto cabinet

[mikeller]

So I did buy a ED head to use with a 2x12 VERTICAL recto cabinet I had because my combo was killing me with its weight.

Problem is - not sure I like cabinet. It seems to lack highs and is very boomy and thumping on the bottom. I am not sure if that is due to the close back which I am not used to, or V30's in the Recto Cabinet (my combo was a 1-12 C90 which I think sounded much better to my ears).

Any comments would be appreciated!

 

[Laskyman]

I think the ED is very boomy in general, and although the amp seems to be darker in character, there IS actually a tone of high in the voicing- I didnt realize this much on stage, but after spending time with the ED in a studio last week- I gained an entire whole new understanding about the ED...in my opinion, the vertical 212 is a very good match for the ED, YMMV....turning up the ED a little will help the highs "come out" if that makes sense...also beware the bass of the ED period...I usually run mine at 10- but 9 ina band setting...

 

[formisano]

So I did buy a ED head to use with a 2x12 VERTICAL recto cabinet I had because my combo was killing me with its weight.

Problem is - not sure I like cabinet. It seems to lack highs and is very boomy and thumping on the bottom. I am not sure if that is due to the close back which I am not used to, or V30's in the Recto Cabinet (my combo was a 1-12 C90 which I think sounded much better to my ears).

Any comments would be appreciated!

I can relate to this. I started with the 1x12 C90 cobmo. Then I went to a Head + Recto 2x12 setup. But I missed the open sound of the C90. So I ended up with the Head and a Road King 4x12 that has 2 open-back C90's on one side and 2 closed-back V30's on the other side. This gives me the ability to use either side at 8 ohms, or use both sides together at 4 ohms, which honestly is how I will probably use it 99% of the time. Sounds perfect to my ear.

 

[YellowJacket]

Ya, swap one of the v30s for a c90 and see if you like it.

 

[mikeller]

I think the ED is very boomy in general, and although the amp seems to be darker in character, there IS actually a tone of high in the voicing- I didnt realize this much on stage, but after spending time with the ED in a studio last week- I gained an entire whole new understanding about the ED...in my opinion, the vertical 212 is a very good match for the ED, YMMV....turning up the ED a little will help the highs "come out" if that makes sense...also beware the bass of the ED period...I usually run mine at 10- but 9 ina band setting...

Yeah - On the combo i would run mine at around 11, but the the head/recto it is around 9-9.5...

Thanks

 

[J.J]

The vertical 2x12 recto cab is really neat in terms of size, weight and orientation. I really wanted one, but shied away from it for all the same reasons, the booming bass and lack of highs from the V30. The 2x12 Stiletto cab has tighter bass, but still is a bit down on highs.

One thing I wonder about and want to try if I can is the vertical recto cab with an open or half open back and a C90 at the top with V30 at bottom. Seems like that would work very well.

As has already been said bass above 9:00 can be really overpowering and mud up the tone. Turning the bass down and uping the presence will go along way to getting balance back. I have an open back 1x12 with C90 and usually run my bass around 9:00, presence around 1:00 and trouble (treble) around 1 to 2:00. IF the tone gets to edgy then I back the treble down a notch or add some mids.

 

[mikeller]

Yeah - last night I turned the bass down from 10 to 9 and it was alot better. I may try the C90 on the top - and venting the back is an interesting idea....

So then could it be said that the C90 has better highs? I know the V30's seem to have strong mid's.

I love the size and vertical design of the Recto cabinet.

 

[YellowJacket]

V30 has a strong midrange and in particular, there is a spike in the high mids. This is what gives the speaker the bite in the high end as well as the fizzy / ice pick quality to the tone. The c90 has thick low mids, a notch in the high mids, and more pronounced but smooth treble. To the ear, it sounds like the treble frequencies of the c90 are higher than that of the v30. Also, a c90 has less cone breakup and a more meaty tone.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lJYmOKC4h0
This video should get the point across.
I personally find the tonal characteristics of the v30 and c90 combined tends to cancel out the more pronounced features yielding a far more 'even' tone. Getting rid of the ice pick quality is a huge benefit, in my opinion.

 

[DWAKO]

I currently use the Road King horizontal 2x12 cab with the ED and it sounds pretty dang good. The C90 mids are definitely smoother than the 30's and they tend to even each other out. I've used V30s for a while now because it was considered the "go-to" speaker for high gain tones, (and it always came standard in Mesa Cabs). Now I'm really trying to decide if I honestly like them. I played through my band's other guiatrist's Marshall 1960's lead 4x12 cab with 75s and it's really made me think twice about V30s. I traded my Stiletto 4x12 for a Recto 4x12 cab because the pronounced mids of the V30s in the Stiletto had extreme amount of ice pick to my ears, and no matter what I did with the Dyne I couldn't get it out. I was hoping the construction of the Recto cab would help tame the mids. Overall I was pretty happy with the Recto cab. I just recently opened the back of the cab and to my surprise I found it had a Greenback, a G12H Seventieth Anniversary, and 2 V30s :shock: I liked the sound but I decided to swap a V30 out with a 75, it sounds good but I still hear that 30 ice pick in there (or could it be another speaker as well?) so I'm debating whether to take out the other 30 as well. I really like the sound of the Dyne but when I crank it those ice pick frequencies become more prevalent, I know it's the cab, not the head. I'm just trying to find the best combination until I find the sound I'm looking for. So far I really like the 75s best, but I haven't spent much time with the Greenback and G12H. Anyone had great experience with a speaker in particular for higher gain at high volumes?

 

[YellowJacket]

Greenback + G12H 30 sounds like an ace combination to me! The speaker crunch should sound great with the slightly less overtop gain that the ED puts out. MY $0.02!

 

[mikeller]

Thanks all -

I think what I am gonna do is order a C90 for the top and leave the V30 in the bottom and ask our sound guy to double mic!

 

[J.J]

The C90/V30 combination will give you a good change from the two V30s.

The reason to put the C90 at the top is so you get to hear more of the C90s upper range. The C90 has the kind of upper mid range and highs that are not in your face so much like the V30. You can always move the V30 to the top and see if you like it like that better at any point.

Let us know how you like the results.

 

[DWAKO]

Greenback + G12H 30 sounds like an ace combination to me! The speaker crunch should sound great with the slightly less overtop gain that the ED puts out. MY $0.02!

Yeah I think I'm beginning to like that combination, I think just having that V30 in there is the main issue. When I have time I think I'll swap it out for another G75 in my 4x12, maybe in my Roadking 2x12 as well. I'm beginning to think G75s are "my" speaker.

 

[J.J]

I really like the G75 speakers too. They control the bass really well for me, have good mid range and an extended top end that I like. Clarity is decent, but probably not as good as the C90.

The only issue I have is that they can get harsh if you are not carefull with settings. The harshness can always be dialed out, but seems to creep in if small adjustmenbts are made. I have a Marshall 4x12 with them in and often use it at home with the ED. If they were 8Ohm I would swap one into my 1x12 to see how it goes with the band. I bet they would cut through like a sharp knife.

 

[YellowJacket]

I really like the G75 speakers too. They control the bass really well for me, have good mid range and an extended top end that I like. Clarity is decent, but probably not as good as the C90.

The only issue I have is that they can get harsh if you are not carefull with settings. The harshness can always be dialed out, but seems to creep in if small adjustmenbts are made. I have a Marshall 4x12 with them in and often use it at home with the ED. If they were 8Ohm I would swap one into my 1x12 to see how it goes with the band. I bet they would cut through like a sharp knife.

G12T - 75s are some of the most crunchy, grindy, and aggressive speakers you can buy. I find the highs to be scratchy but that is just with my fizzy Dual Rectifier. Although I haven't tried G12T 75 with a 'Dyne, I love them with the Orange Tiny Terror.

 

[Assumer]

I really like the G75 speakers too. They control the bass really well for me, have good mid range and an extended top end that I like. Clarity is decent, but probably not as good as the C90.

The only issue I have is that they can get harsh if you are not carefull with settings. The harshness can always be dialed out, but seems to creep in if small adjustmenbts are made. I have a Marshall 4x12 with them in and often use it at home with the ED. If they were 8Ohm I would swap one into my 1x12 to see how it goes with the band. I bet they would cut through like a sharp knife.

G12T - 75s are some of the most crunchy, grindy, and aggressive speakers you can buy. I find the highs to be scratchy but that is just with my fizzy Dual Rectifier. Although I haven't tried G12T 75 with a 'Dyne, I love them with the Orange Tiny Terror.

I have liked these speakers with other amps as well.

 

[J.J]

Its funny, they are always appearing on Ebay everyone seems to be pulling them out of their cabs. Guess they are just not flavour of the month :lol:

 

[YellowJacket]

Yes, they totally aren't. It is funny though, because they are great sounding speakers. When I was originally cab shopping, I was always torn between greenback / v30 cabs. I couldn't stand the G12T-75 cabs but those were what was always available. My complaint with the v30 cabs was that they sounded 'constipated' at low volumes but the greenback ones farted out at high volumes. Could never find a balance. I owned a mini-marshall 4 x 12 loaded with G12T - 75s (In place of stock speakers) and then I sold that and upgraded to a diamond plated Mesa 4 x 12. It was alright but it never sounded good unless you cranked the tar out of it. I almost acquired a greenback Marshall cab but it sold before I could get the funds together.
I currently run two DIY cabs, one that is oversized with a c90 / v30 combo, and a thiele 2 x 12 currently speakered with 2 G12m Heritage speakers in it. I'm definitely a fan of the G12m Heritage but I don't know if I like that better or if I like the G12m / v30 combo. They both do different things well. With the G12m duet, you get awesome warm cleans, great blues tones, and super awesome creamy crunch. It just misses the thump though. The solo tones with the G12m duet is absolutely incredible. The trouble with the thiele + dual is that the Dual sounds fizzy unless you crank it. I almost need something like a little 18watt boutique head for it.
The G12T 75s I always found to be too scratchy in the highs and there was always a hole where the mids should be. I am not a fan of scooped tones so I stayed away from these bad boys. It is only lately that I've started liking them. Like I said, there are only certain amps that I'd pair with that sort of a tone . . .

 

[DWAKO]

Well last night I switched out the V30 in my road king with a G75 (now it's a C90/G75 combo) and the V30 in my Recto 4x12 (now it has a greenback and G12H of top with 2 G75's on bottom. I could not be more happy! It's not that is dislike V30's I just don't like them paired with the ED. The ED already has an emphasized upper mid range and the V30's made it sound really harsh to my ears to matter what I did with the eq, it seems like would go from way too much upper mids to a extremely dark tone with no where in between. The ED's highs are very musical and don't ever get very harsh even when cranked so the 75's seem to really balance out the tone. And I don't know why I didn't try the 75/90 combo before! It's pretty phenomenal. I'm pretty satisfied, it made me love my ED that much more and convinced me not to switch it out for the RA-100.

 

[J.J]

Who would have thought , C90/G75. The G75 must be heard on countless albums. I would bet a lot of people love the sound, but just don't know that it is coming from the G75.

I'm now wonedering how the V30 would pair with a G75. I like the V30/C90 combination better than either by them selves.

The RA-100 is a different beast. I'm sure I won't be changing my ED for one...