[Madmardigan]

So I've got this Fender MH cab, I knew it had Celestion 100 watt speakers in it, but I didn't know if they were Chinese speakers or made in England. So for shits and giggles I opened it up to take a look. Turns out they are made in England and are 16ohm speakers. Which got me thinking, pretty sure the V30's in my recto cab are 16 ohm.
I spent last night doing some research. Apparently those two speakers pair up really well in a 4x12 X configuration.
There's just a few things keeping me from going ahead.
First,
The fender cab has the speakers wired for 4ohm. I'm wondering if that's because the 100 watt speakers need more power to sound good? I'm worried they won't move enough air at 8ohm.
Second,
In the fender, the speakers front loaded. I wasent able to find much info on why that is. But I think, Diezel and Orange cabs with the g12k-100 speakers are also front load. So I'd imagine there's a good reason for that. I'm pretty sure the rectocab the speakers are mounted on the inside.
And third, wiring.
There's just a few things I'm not sure about. If I put in the two 100 watt speakers in the recto cab (one upper left and bottom right) and keep it wired for 8ohm, how many watts would it be rated for?
I should probably just leave it alone, but I've got a bad habit of having to modify everything I own.

 

[406]

In the fender, the speakers front loaded. I wasent able to find much info on why that is. But I think, Diezel and Orange cabs with the g12k-100 speakers are also front load.

Diezel with K100s are front loaded, the Orange with K100 is rearloaded. Peter Diezel said that the K100s don't work in rear loaded cabs. I don't remember the reason, but one guy mentined phasing issues, and that the Orange cab would be the perfect example for it...but oin the other hand, this is the only time I ever heard someone complain about the K100 loaded Orange cab, and it came form a DIezel fanboy, so take it with a grain of salt - I personally could not think of a reason why it shouldn't work, in the end, these are more or less slightly modified higher powered T75s, which is THE standard in a rear loaded cab (1960)...

If I put in the two 100 watt speakers in the recto cab (one upper left and bottom right) and keep it wired for 8ohm, how many watts would it be rated for?

always: power rating of the "weakest" speaker multiplied by quantity of speakers, that is your power rating.
If it's a 412 and your weakest speaker is a V30, which is rated for 60W, you have 4*60 = 240W power rating. It doesn't matter if the rest of the speakers is rated also for 60W or 300W. If your weakest speaker is 25W, power rating of your 412 cab is 100W.
The power doesn't distribute itself "intelligently" over the speakers (e.g. "Hi, i am a 300W power, and I'll just spread the biggest of myself on this 200W speakers to spare this poor old Greenback there...") - each speaker needs to handle the same share.

 

[Cobra Commander]

James has a rear loaded zilla 2x12 with the same combo and it sounds great fwiw. No idea what his ohms are though so I can't offer anything there. But it sounds very good. :yesway:

 

[Madmardigan]

Well, I guess I just need to try it out to see. Thanks for replies.
I just have a few more questions.
Is there an easy way for me to find what speaker sounds best? Ideally I'd like to get the best 4 into my Mesa Cab.
As for wiring. I suppose I'd just hook up the speakers to same way the old ones come out?
What will end up happening is I'll have two hybrid cabs. I'm likely going to put the two V30's that come out of the Mesa into the fender. I'd also like to rewire it for 8ohm. Can I just copy the wiring in my Mesa?

 

[Kagami]

For the new speakers, you would hook them up the same as the old ones were.

For changing the cabinet impedance, you will need 4 different speakers. If you have 4 16 ohm speakers wired to 4 ohms you could probably wire 2 pairs to series for 16 ohms if you wanted. But to get an 8 ohm output you'd need 8 ohm speakers (8+8 = 16, 2/16 = 8).

If you have a shop that does amp repairs near you they can probably rewire the cab for you at minimal cost.

 

[Madmardigan]

You're right. I opened my Mesa cab and they are 8 ohm speakers, and my k100's are 16ohm. At this point, it's probably not worth the effort. I know it can be done, but it's probably best I leave it be. If I'm going to do it I'll just buy a pair of k100 8ohm.

For the new speakers, you would hook them up the same as the old ones were.

For changing the cabinet impedance, you will need 4 different speakers. If you have 4 16 ohm speakers wired to 4 ohms you could probably wire 2 pairs to series for 16 ohms if you wanted. But to get an 8 ohm output you'd need 8 ohm speakers (8+8 = 16, 2/16 = 8).

If you have a shop that does amp repairs near you they can probably rewire the cab for you at minimal cost.

 

[Lozek]

Shame you can't do it, it's a killer combination. I have a Diezel 4x12 and a Laney Iommi 4x12 with exactly that set up. When I got the Diezel I tested front and rear loaded cabs, to my ears front loaded is tighter and rear loaded is bigger, roughly speaking.

Currently pondering whether to move one K100 into my Mesa 2x12 and one of the Mesa voiced V30's into the Diezel to see what happens.