So, I'm sure some of you have noticed the well-priced, seemingly good-featured Texas Dragon cabs on eBay (or on their site). They basically have all the best features you'd find in either a Vader or older Mesa, and at a really reasonable price. Does it seem to good to be true? Maybe, but I was interested. Being as how I've been on a 212 kick for a few months now, and I'm always up for trying new gear if it's at a decent price, I talked to the owner (Kevin), and we came up with some really tasty specs for a custom Texas Dragon 212.
That was a while ago... I forget exactly how long, but at least a couple of months. Through what seems to have been no fault of his (some supplier issues), the build was held up for a while.
Fast forward a few weeks from the original due date, and I see the FedEx truck pull up to my door. I hear clunking and banging and swearing from inside the truck while I'm standing outside my door waiting for the guy... I was entertained to say the least, and the guy looked a little sheepish when he stepped out of the truck with a huge box and realized someone had been there listening. He dropped it off in my open door, and I set to opening it up immediately (easiest way to file a damage claim is with the guy still there).
So, I got the tape off the edges, and pulled back the first layer... double boxes!
After cutting back the second layer, I found this... ???
Now that is how you package a cab - double boxing and custom padding within the 2nd layer. I'm not posting all the pics I took of this... I was very impressed.
And I apparently opened the box from the bottom...
This custom padding was cut exactly to the size of the cab. Getting the thing out of there was a bit like watching a live birth.
OMG I see the head!
Anyone need a place to stay for the weekend? It's fully insulated, and smells like candy
So, down to business...
This is 31"w x 18"H x 17"D - basically, as wide as a Recto 212 and as tall and deep as a Red Star Havok 212 (ie. bigger than either). We have Vader-like impervious coating, along with metal corners, steel recessed handles on top (this thing is so easy to carry, even with it's immense size and weight), solid metal grille, special lining around the edges of the grill to eliminate any rattle, and nice rubber feet on the bottom...
and the side! (vertical 212 anyone?)
The speakers are both Eminence - a Lynch Super-V (officially my favorite speaker, ever) and a Swamp Thang.
How does it sound, you ask? In a word, "HUGE". Seriously, the low end this thing dishes out puts any 412 I've heard to shame - likely a result of the combined huge size, solid construction (look at the thick shell), and speaker choice (both speakers have awesome low end, but in different ways). At the same time, it's still very tight, and full, with great definition (thanks to Eminence), and smooth mids. It's one of those cabs where it sounds (really) good at a lower volume, but just keeps sounding better and better the more you turn it up.
As an added bonus, the tone of this cab meshes really, really well with the tone of my Sheffields in the 5150-212. They sound like they were meant to be together, and really build on each other. The Celestion pair (G12K100 / G12M) I had in my other 212 sounded good, but didn't jive at all with the Sheffields (at least in the room), two totally different flavors of speaker.
Anyway, long story short, the cab took a while to show up, but it was well worth the wait. Definitely look into these if you haven't already. Kevin is a great guy to deal with - he makes all the cabs himself, and is determined to make sure you get what you're looking for. We talked on the phone for a while, going through all the possible speaker combinations to make sure I got the tone I wanted out of it.
I'll get some clips of the cab as soon as I have some more time available, and I'll post them over in the shootout thread.
Thanks for reading!
That was a while ago... I forget exactly how long, but at least a couple of months. Through what seems to have been no fault of his (some supplier issues), the build was held up for a while.
Fast forward a few weeks from the original due date, and I see the FedEx truck pull up to my door. I hear clunking and banging and swearing from inside the truck while I'm standing outside my door waiting for the guy... I was entertained to say the least, and the guy looked a little sheepish when he stepped out of the truck with a huge box and realized someone had been there listening. He dropped it off in my open door, and I set to opening it up immediately (easiest way to file a damage claim is with the guy still there).
So, I got the tape off the edges, and pulled back the first layer... double boxes!
After cutting back the second layer, I found this... ???
Now that is how you package a cab - double boxing and custom padding within the 2nd layer. I'm not posting all the pics I took of this... I was very impressed.
And I apparently opened the box from the bottom...
This custom padding was cut exactly to the size of the cab. Getting the thing out of there was a bit like watching a live birth.
OMG I see the head!
Anyone need a place to stay for the weekend? It's fully insulated, and smells like candy
So, down to business...
This is 31"w x 18"H x 17"D - basically, as wide as a Recto 212 and as tall and deep as a Red Star Havok 212 (ie. bigger than either). We have Vader-like impervious coating, along with metal corners, steel recessed handles on top (this thing is so easy to carry, even with it's immense size and weight), solid metal grille, special lining around the edges of the grill to eliminate any rattle, and nice rubber feet on the bottom...
and the side! (vertical 212 anyone?)
The speakers are both Eminence - a Lynch Super-V (officially my favorite speaker, ever) and a Swamp Thang.
How does it sound, you ask? In a word, "HUGE". Seriously, the low end this thing dishes out puts any 412 I've heard to shame - likely a result of the combined huge size, solid construction (look at the thick shell), and speaker choice (both speakers have awesome low end, but in different ways). At the same time, it's still very tight, and full, with great definition (thanks to Eminence), and smooth mids. It's one of those cabs where it sounds (really) good at a lower volume, but just keeps sounding better and better the more you turn it up.
As an added bonus, the tone of this cab meshes really, really well with the tone of my Sheffields in the 5150-212. They sound like they were meant to be together, and really build on each other. The Celestion pair (G12K100 / G12M) I had in my other 212 sounded good, but didn't jive at all with the Sheffields (at least in the room), two totally different flavors of speaker.
Anyway, long story short, the cab took a while to show up, but it was well worth the wait. Definitely look into these if you haven't already. Kevin is a great guy to deal with - he makes all the cabs himself, and is determined to make sure you get what you're looking for. We talked on the phone for a while, going through all the possible speaker combinations to make sure I got the tone I wanted out of it.
I'll get some clips of the cab as soon as I have some more time available, and I'll post them over in the shootout thread.
Thanks for reading!
), and just thought I'd add this note -
