DIY: How to Install Speakers in a 4x12 Cab, Part 1 

It's a good thing he showed us how to open the cardboard box and cut the plastic bag... I was stuck at that step

The tip about installing the speaker with the cab standing up is absolutely golden. Great stuff.

Its amazing being shown how to do this stuff by the master himself...Carlos Santana.

Looks like Lemmy went country! Good video!

Hey Brother Skip - thanks brother - thanks to you I wired 4 - 12" organ speakers that I bought from Craigslist for $5 a piece. I made a cabinet and have an orange head - and it sounds great. So thanks gain, brother

This way facilitates the ohmage better (you'd end up with 4 or 32 ohms otherwise), and you'll have the option of running the cab in stereo without too much modification. This wiring also would give you the best compromise between series and parallell wiring in regards to speaker interaction and their sound.

By the looks of the tools on his wall, the rake and stuff, he's just in his garden shed.

Just wanted to say what a great job you did on these 2 videos. Thanks!

This video is pure gold.

I just bought a used 4 year old Marshall cab with greenbacks, and since a 4x12 can hide and disguise speaker issues on one or more I decided to take the back off and do the battery thing, and the impedance too. Well, though all four LOOKED exactly the same (20 watt g12m heritage series)...the two on the top did not move as much as those on the bottom and one on the top barely moved at all from the battery..so I keep doing more to test them. I de-soldered the speakers at the terminals so I could test them individually. Yep, the one that barely moved sounded like about 1/5th the volume and dynamic range as the one next to it (which I also suspect has some damage as it didn't move as much as those on the bottom. So, I make an aligator clip on speaker cable, and switch from one speaker to the other without changing the volume settings on the amp, so now I KNOW there is a major issue with at least one of them. NO the bad speaker does not rattle, fizz or other sounds, it just sounds like it's missing all the bass, most of the other freqs and the volume is about 1/5th of what the other has. Bottom line, most would not even notice it, I really did not hear anything wrong when I first plugged into the cab and was right in front of it, I even used a digital decible meter in front of each speaker, it measured the same on all speakers. So, what I'm saying is when you buy a used cab, test them out individually, don't just stand in front of the cab and wail away on the guitar and say "sounds legit". Wish me luck because I bought this thing at Guitar Center! I want to fix it myself if they'd either send me a partial refund in the amount of replacing the bad speaker/s or send me a new speaker/s. I don't want anybody at GC to be monkeying around with this cab, it is a 50th anniversary cab with the E.C. pinstripe grill cloth (very delicate stuff, and very expensive)..and so, basically I expect them to tell me to bring it back (so they can verify there is something wrong..ha ha).. Anyway, I have a few tips as well on this, as I've done it quite a few times..but one thing is for sure you can't be too careful when buying a USED 4x12 cab. The previous owner probably took them out of a 2x12 cab cause I can't imagine blowing a 4x12 with four 20 watt speakers unless they were a metal head. They did other very stupid things to it too, like when they removed the back panel, they forgot to remove the screw in the center which goes into the center post and they ripped up the MDF base which I have allready glued back to together. They moved one of the side leather straps to the other so they could grab it from the top and discarded 2 of the four metal glides. So, some dumb-ass had their way with this thing like it was a hotel room rented by Keith Moon.

A mullet for the ages!

i like this man. this is the kind of in depth explaining i need.

Great, just got my green backs today, I love it!

Very helpful. Please consider using 14 gauge wiring on one branch of the wiring ( 2 speakers ), and note the difference in expanded frequencies. Works for closed back cabs best. I use #12 only in my cabs May lose some classic Marshall tones, but you can dial that back in if desired. Also replace the head to cab cable with 12 - 14 gauge lamp cord style, and stand back. 22 gauge...? This is my "secret sauce". Like the hat. I wear a boonie when I get serious. Helps.

hi i have a marshall 8100 valve state amp head and on the back it says " 100watts RMS/4 ohms. how would i wire a 4x12 cab with 16 ohm speakers in it to work with this amp { speakers are Marshall AX -75 BTW ", thank you, great video i used it for my evh head and green backs

Is there a specific way that I can wire the cabinet to get 4 ohms, like in parallel in a 2x12?

This is a great video! I have been wanting to use speakers in a monitor from a car. The diagram helps, too! Thnx

Does the cork on the front mounting area of the speaker's frame act as a gasket? If you front mount a speaker, do you need a new gasket to place between the speaker frame and cabinet?

Why is the series on one side made on the positive side and the other on the negative wire,is there a resistance reason to do so? I know different wire cauges have to do with the power it can handle but why so thin?

nice work

NOTE: This diagram that is embedded in the video is shown at 15:40. PS) I couldn't get the given diagram link to work.

Great job man experience shows others too

Please do a video on replacing speakers in a fender style combo. Like a deluxe reverb! Thanks!

Lots of great tips! Thank you .

Great vid.

What about the little bit of paper cone that it is in the screw hole of the speaker? I am installing a new speaker and all the holes has paper on it that I must drill. Any particular way of doing it? In this video it seems he has any care about it and he put the screws directly through the paper...

22 awg wire is a little on the thin side, Hell I consider 18 awg small as heck. I would honestly not go any smaller than 16 awg and 14 awg seems like the sweet spot.

Can anyone tell me what size the screws are that hold the speakers in?

This video should be called "How to Double Check Your Work After Everything's Done."

Awesome video, great information. Steve from Australia:)

wonderful video and the hat is great. Reminds me of a bavarian hat

What if the fire falls out of your joint on the speaker, can you place the vertical on the bench too?

I have 4x12 celestion speakers each is 8 ohm. which cables to get for a properly parallel connection? Gauge? THX

I have two 4x12" cabs, one 16ohm and the other 8ohm. Is there a way to rewire one of the cabs so they have matching impedance where either both cabs are 8ohm or both are 16ohm?

My dude, you have an excellent look, kinda like Mike Myers friend in So I Married an Axe Murderer.

I mount My speakers in from the front, so that the screws can lock the speaker in & the sharp point is Inside. I also use 8 screws when possible.

It's Kurt Russell from Tombstone! Rock on dude!

Hey mate I have a Marshall Jcm 900 50w head that has the impedance switch on the back witch says (4)16 on one side and 8 ohms on the other side the (4)16 ohms is confusing me and my cab has 4 12 inch 16 ohms speakers what ohms should I wire my cab to for these impedance settings on my amp because I haven’t even used it yet I’m scared I’ll blow it up lol and I don’t know what (4)16ohms means is 4 or 16 every other amp has one number to set to like 4 8 or 16 if you could help out cheers Luke from Australia

I smoke lead solder in my bong.

LOVE GREENBACKS :)

I'm about to make one myself, arere there things i should take into account so that the speakers are compatible with the head? Can i maybe mix brands of the speakers or use 2 bassguitar speakers with lower frequency range sothat i could use it as a guitar/bassguitar cabinet?

no prob i was given a wrong link i'm patient plan to make my own cab eventually have wired many recording studios, including the college i taught in, next i will make my own cab

I don't get it, I think my cabs are just poorly made or what. Every new celestion appears to want to basically hang off the screws. If I even get them snug they sound bad in the high end.

What about wiring up just to speakers in the cab to make 8 ohms from 2x 16 ohms speakers from the quad box and set my jcm 900 to 8 ohms and that way it will kick some arss just a thought 😢

What if your cabinet doesn’t open from the back only the inputs

Only question I have is what is done with the other positive and negative prongs on the jack? anything?

Great ! Thanks Skip,

Excellent video, thank you very much.

Great videos. Do you think it would look cool for 2 celestion V30 and 2 celestion 70/80 together in the same box (4x12)? Thanks for answering.

Hi my friends.yasterday I buy. A Marsahall modelo valvestate AVT 2000 of 150 watts. But the cabinet is Cráte brand, and the speakers are diferentes brands, in México is very hard to buy Celestion speakers. Only can buy Eminiens speakers. Can you tell me say how is the correct Power and the oms?... Tankyou for your vídeos are FANTASTICS" and great guitar manera!!

Great tips, thanks!

Might be a stupid question. But i guess ill ask anyway. Got an 8ohm fender 4x10 pro the other day and noticed it runs "1,000 watts program (500 watts continuous at 8 ohm" and i have a head that is 4ohm/750 watts. Does that diagram work for this bass rig so i can rewire it following along on here? Sorry for the newb ignorance. Just dont have cash to get another 8ohm cab to parallel connect, my head. Thanks yall and thanks for this video!

If I had a 8 ohms speaker and like to mounting a 4x12 cabinet, and the impedance who I like to output is 16 ohms, can wiring the speakers in series only?

Why does he wire 2 sets of 2 speakers in series in parallel instead of all 4 in parallel or all 4 in series? Thanks

with a fender rocpro 1000 head, would i be able to use a single input on the back of my cab? i am looking to redo an old crate cab that has blown celestions, but it also has 3 inputs on the back

Thanks!

where's part 2

what kind of screws are being used here? Wood or machine? Just screwing straight into the baffle?

Would anyone recommend what type of speakers would give a good low end while remaining with articulate highs? Right now I own V30s in a Mesa Cab. …I also hear that Ear Candy Cabs are good.

You checked the ohms they all where at 13.5, how is that acceptable when they're rated at 16

Whats the genre for the background music ? sounds chilled

I cut through all 4 speaker cones because of this video 🤣😂🤯

So if someone could help me out, just to be clear, In this video, the cab is coming out at a total of 16 Ohms? So, If I follow the same method, but with all 8 ohm speakers, the total ohms will be 8 Ohms?

thanks a lot!

Great vid like your workflow brutha

where is part two???

i don't have a volt meter/multimeter which brand are you using?

01:40 "22 AWG wire" might you use a thicker gauge wire?

Great information! Now here's a question..how do you remove the grill on a sealed back carvin 4x12 with the cloth grill. I am totally perplexed

So this is a 16ohm cabinet, right? So if i wanted to do an 8ohm cabinet i would get 4x 8ohm speakers and wire them up the same way, correct?

what would be the negative effect of not using the correct speaker wire gauge? This video uses 22 AWG.

Well here I am years late to the party. Why would you use 22awg? Seems very thin but I get it that this is not a Hair Dryer being Wired. Anyway at theOrange Box I tries 14 awg and too thick hard to solder and nodoubt will put my vintage GreenBacks to risk. So back to arange box and there is 18-20 awg seems too skinny So I finally found 16 awg on the E of bay. My 1960A is Feb 1971 all original speakers but the original wire was removed and replaced with the huge speaker wire, and the soldering is a mess. So before I start twisting why are you using 22awg ? 60/40 lead, Yeah no doubt. Look forward to your comments. PS my local Tech ask why I would want to change the heavy wire? Sorry to thow that at ya, but here we are. Thanks

Out of phase with your band members???

Question: Since you have four 25W speakers, does that mean that you now have a 100W speaker cabinet? Will connecting a 100watt head be safe? Sorry for this dumb question but I'm a total noob. I'm planning to build a 2x12 cab with Celestion G12T-75 16ohm speakers. Each speaker is 75W. Will that mean that I will have a 150W speaker cab? And that connecting a 100W solid state amp will be safe for my amp? If I made it into a 4x12 with 75W 16ohm speakers will I be having a total of 300W?

I'm looking for a good amp tech, I'm in Nashville also, where are you located?

The Fane Medusa 150C could be what you want. Then it may have too firm a grip for your taste.

Would the diagram be the same for 8 Ohm speakers? Help much appreciated.

22 gauge speaker wire? I used it but it sure is skinny.

As a real electronics engineer, this made me laugh my ass off.

12-16 AWG on mine please

why thank you good sire!

I need help with a project

alligator clips, 2mins, done!

Now this is how you open a box...

spakers!

What would happen if I had two 8ohm and 2 16ohm?

Difficulty finding part 2…?

one is for bypass another is for 4 ohms and the 3rd is for 16 ohms

I want to buy 2 speakers that are 12" at 20 watts 8 ohms. then build my own cabinet for them. Is it possible to find speakers like these? or is there some kind of standard measurement? and If my amplifier says 5W 4 ohms, Can I rebuild it to measure 20 watts 4 ohms?

you wired the P+ to a -N terminal on a spkr!! isn't that out of phase. why not wire spkr to spkr then two seperate jacks

Also too

Leave the vintage for another day Three Doritos later>>> We’re doing vintage style

You've wired each par in series and the 2 pairs in paralell............ Idea! ----- If you wire each pair in parallel and then the the 2 pairs in series, you would use half the wire and would reduce the resistance of the wiring in the cabinet, donno if i'm just being fussy.....

Would it not have been smarter and easier to lay that cabinet face down and do this ? Less chance of dropping a speaker. Easier to put screws in.

Those screws are metal screws not wood screws, metal screws always have fine threads.

Alright, alright, alright... : ) dude sounds like matthew mcconaughey

UPS!!!.....Guitar Man!"!!!!!.........

Working with an A-list act....that must discredit the tech this video.

A little patience maybe? This was just uploaded 3 hours ago. LOL

interesting