NCD: Matrix NL212

thomasross20

I'll have second dibs on it, please...!

Don't you fancy just buying one, @Cabicular? ;

People have said I should also check out Zilla cabs... can they match these sort of specs or do yuo think they might be "better" than the NL212? 

I'll also check eBay for them

digitalscream

thomasross20 said:

People have said I should also check out Zilla cabs... can they match these sort of specs or do yuo think they might be "better" than the NL212? 

I'll also check eBay for them

You probably won't find the NL212 on eBay - they're pretty thin on the ground. Zilla cabs tend to be significantly heavier - even a Fatboy 1x12" with a G12K-100 was almost twice as heavy as the NL212.

thomasross20

What speaker is in the NL212 cab? People generally say Celestion or bust... how does it compare?

digitalscream

thomasross20 said:

What speaker is in the NL212 cab? People generally say Celestion or bust... how does it compare?

Talking to John on the Matrix stand at the Guitar Show, he said that they have them made specifically by a company in Italy. Basically, they tried the Celestion Century (I think) neo speakers, and they sounded horrible...so they asked this Italian company to make them a neo-magnet speaker voiced like the V30. They've done a pretty good job, although with the ported cab they sound more like the V-Type to me (which is no bad thing - I much prefer the more balanced sound of the V-Type).

thomasross20

I have no idea what V-type is like. 

It's maybe a bit embarrassing but I've always been a player (not that you guys aren't!!) to the detriment of gear knowledge on my part... Does this genuinely sound as good as the other cabs you've tried? The weight is a big factor for me.

thomasross20

Did the 112 sound naff (you mentioned you didn't go for it)?

digitalscream

thomasross20 said:

I have no idea what V-type is like. 

It's maybe a bit embarrassing but I've always been a player (not that you guys aren't!!) to the detriment of gear knowledge on my part... Does this genuinely sound as good as the other cabs you've tried? The weight is a big factor for me.

To my ears, the V30 is quite spiky - that mid-focus and upper-mid spike it has grates on my ears. The V-Type has the mid-focus, but no spike and it's got a fuller low-end, which is great for live tone IMO. It's also slightly quieter.

That's essentially the character of the NL212.

thomasross20 said:

Did the 112 sound naff (you mentioned you didn't go for it)?

It sounded...like a 1x12". I don't like them, generally, because they sound "small", which is what the NL12 1x12" did. Fortunately, the NL212 weighs less than the average 1x12", and that was my main concern.

thomasross20

Also my concern. Lightest and most portable is best, as long as tone is still good. 

digitalscream

thomasross20 said:

Also my concern. Lightest and most portable is best, as long as tone is still good. 

Well, I sold my Jet City JCA24S as soon as I played one rehearsal with the Matrix - and the Jet City has been my favourite cab for 4 or 5 years. That should tell you something

thomasross20

Do you have sound/vid clips of this beast (clean, crunch and then lead)? 

digitalscream

Nope. I will do, at some point in the next month or two; I'll be putting something up in the reviews section, but even though I'm an admin I still have to obey the "3 month" rule It'll just mean hiring a room at a rehearsal studio for a few hours so I can do some decent-quality recordings of the cab and the Kraken (and possibly the JCA50H too). And my dummy load for comparison. And the GSP1101.

I might have to take a day to do it...

thomasross20

Really look forward to that!!

lightninboy

digitalscream said:

thomasross20 said:

What speaker is in the NL212 cab? People generally say Celestion or bust... how does it compare?

Talking to John on the Matrix stand at the Guitar Show, he said that they have them made specifically by a company in Italy. Basically, they tried the Celestion Century (I think) neo speakers, and they sounded horrible...so they asked this Italian company to make them a neo-magnet speaker voiced like the V30. They've done a pretty good job, although with the ported cab they sound more like the V-Type to me (which is no bad thing - I much prefer the more balanced sound of the V-Type).

We had Celestion G12 Century Vintage in the cab before the V-type being built for us. The speaker I referred to was the Mark DV one we had in the original prototype.....truly horrible. The Celestion is OK, a bit bright for some peoples taste. I think we'll be offering a Neo Creamback version soon which kind of fits in between the V type and the G12.

Cabicular

I've put two neo creambacks in 2 orange ppc112 and they sound really good so far Gig tomorrow night so we'll see

Benson

Slightly off topic but if anyone is interested in a secondhand NL212 I have one for sale having moved over to a FRFR setup for my AxeFX. I'm based in Basingstoke but will ship in original box. Message me if interested. Now back to our regular programming ...

thomasross20

Christ, I just hauled the blackstar into the car for a gig tonight... At half the weight of the blackstar, I think these would be a joy to lift. Would still just need to decide on a head (and a spare). If only they did small and light TVP heads

Si_

Still liking this? Got a chance at a 2nd hand one and I'm tempted.

digitalscream

Si_ said:

Still liking this? Got a chance at a 2nd hand one and I'm tempted.

Yep. Haven't played with it much since I left the band, but I'd still recommend getting one.

Roland

Time for a review methinks

thomasross20

I was going to buy one off somebody here but my Blackstar does me fine - maybe if I had a bigger place and could decide on which head to buy.