Is there room for another bespoke cabinet maker?

sawyer · October 2019

So I'm a wood machinists and I've a friend who's a very good upholstery craftsman. Is there room for another bespoke cabinet manufacturer? I play guitar and my friend plays bass? Seems a partnership made in heaven. Whatcha think?

mrkb · October 2019

I would say Zilla have a good reputation and are widely known in the UK, so you’d not want to go head to head with them. May be worth working out what would make your cabs unique and work on a business case around that.

sawyer · October 2019

Yes I agree. Make something unique and very old skool British if you know what I mean? Think Bentley/spitfire/Aston Martin sort of vibe. Would be interesting to know what exactly people want in a custom cab so I could build up a range to cover all bases? I'm thinking mostly 1×12,2×12 and slightly smaller 1×12/10's for smaller watt heads?. Could all be pie in the sky but who knows ha. Just putting it out there. Have pitched it to my pal but not heard back so who knows ha.

guitargeek62 · October 2019

Sounds like you wouldn’t have to invest in much on the tooling side of things, so as long as you have the free time then it’s worth knocking out a few cabinets and seeing how they’re received. Take them around to local gig venues for different bands to try, that way you get to hear them in lots of different rooms, genres and gear, while also spreading the word locally and getting valuable feedback from users.

Lebarque · October 2019

The trend seems to be towards lighter stuff these days, so worth looking into Neo speakers etc.

sawyer · October 2019

Mm Neo speakers sound interesting.

ToneControl · October 2019

Could be interest in lightweight pine cabs, see the 1950s Fender cab designs. They had a different approach to most modern cabs
One of those with Neos could be very popular

bbill335 · October 2019

Ahh man, I'd love to see a company offering affordable fender-looking cabs with side handles. You could knock up a load of single- and double-speaker sized boxes and offer 10 or 12 inch baffles. Tweed/blues dlx & dvl style and silver grille/hot rod style.

sawyer · October 2019

Been pricing up speakers,looking at £100 mark each:(. Is there much of a market for cabs unloaded?

ToneControl · October 2019

sawyer said:

Been pricing up speakers,looking at £100 mark each:(. Is there much of a market for cabs unloaded?

yes, you'd need to offer both options. Maybe put solderless wiring into the empty cabs, and make things easy for the buyer

sawyer · October 2019

This is all good stuff chaps,keep it coming. Like I say might be pie in the sky but worth looking into.

guitargeek62 · October 2019

What materials are you thinking?

sawyer · October 2019

Birch/marine ply. 18mm Open backed,biscuit jointed and screwed. Vinyl and grille cloth in something different, but staight black too. Speakers bolted into baffle with t-nuts. What sorta price yas reckon? We talking £200 just for speakers in a 2×12. What would be considered a saleable price?. Speakers obviously biggest expense but ply and vinly+hardware add up. Would get a few cabs outa sheet 8×4.

Winny_Pooh · October 2019

If you want to compete you should look at a price point between Harley Benton and Zilla.

It will also be worth identifying the most common cabs kit builders buy such as tweed 5e3 combos or 1987 Marshall headshells.

GoldenEraGuitars · October 2019

sawyer said:

Birch/marine ply. 18mm Open backed,biscuit jointed and screwed. Vinyl and grille cloth in something different, but staight black too. Speakers bolted into baffle with t-nuts. What sorta price yas reckon? We talking £200 just for speakers in a 2×12. What would be considered a saleable price?. Speakers obviously biggest expense but ply and vinly+hardware add up. Would get a few cabs outa sheet 8×4.

If you’re aiming for a visual USP with these cabs that no one else is really doing then you’re the only one who can set a price point for now. You’ll need to cover your materials and time to start with. Once you’ve sold a few you’ll see the effort involved in each sale and adjust the price accordingly.

bbill335 · October 2019

sawyer said:

Been pricing up speakers,looking at £100 mark each:(. Is there much of a market for cabs unloaded?

I'm sure i can order two decent Eminence 12” speakers for <£200 right now

Lebarque · October 2019

Have a look at Warehouse Guitar Speakers too.

jpfamps · October 2019

sawyer said:

Birch/marine ply. 18mm Open backed,biscuit jointed and screwed. Vinyl and grille cloth in something different, but staight black too. Speakers bolted into baffle with t-nuts. What sorta price yas reckon? We talking £200 just for speakers in a 2×12. What would be considered a saleable price?. Speakers obviously biggest expense but ply and vinly+hardware add up. Would get a few cabs outa sheet 8×4.

18 mm will be heavy.

I think the trend is for lighter cabs.

You'll need to be able to source speakers at trade or better OEM prices, although this may mean limiting the range of speakers you use.

CHrisP86 · October 2019

On the speakers (as a reference) Zilla charge £80/£90 per ceramic speaker over the unloaded cab price.

The ZIlla cabs I've had have sounded great but I don't think the finishing is quite as good as it could be.

If you could essentially take the Bogner/Friedman aesthetics and quality (ie seamless finished corners, solid handles, chunky feet etc) at a ZIlla price point then you might have a chance. Maybe along the lines of V boutique cabs in the US.

Still tough to match the presence that Zilla have though. You could also think about teaming up with some of the UK amp builders who might be interested in outsourcing cab work to you (if they don't already outsource it).

Also definitely go lighter weight!

crunchman · October 2019

Zilla don't seem to offer 1 x 10" as standard. Might be some kind of market for them with all the little 5W heads around these days.

2 x 10" doesn't seem all that common either. That sounds great in some of those old Fenders.

JD50 · October 2019

sawyer said:

Birch/marine ply. 18mm Open backed,biscuit jointed and screwed. Vinyl and grille cloth in something different, but staight black too. Speakers bolted into baffle with t-nuts. What sorta price yas reckon? We talking £200 just for speakers in a 2×12. What would be considered a saleable price?. Speakers obviously biggest expense but ply and vinly+hardware add up. Would get a few cabs outa sheet 8×4.

Surely no need to screw if using a biscuit jointer?

Jalapeno · October 2019

Winny_Pooh said:
headshells.

Headshells for sure - for Kempers

sawyer · October 2019

Well my upholstery friend has gone quiet on this front:( Looks like its been a pipe dream as suspected:( Thanks for input guys,appreciated.

jhalliday89 · November 2019

A lot of the bespoke cab makers only offer 12" speakers in their custom builds. Definitely space for someone to make cabs with 8, 10 and 15 inch speakers. A while ago I wanted a custom 4x10 and ended up having to make one from a broken Fender Deville

Zoolooter · November 2019

Maybe working with an established amp company to offer a lush custom line.

RyanNoisyHammer · December 2019

Not sure if this helps but Im a new cabinet maker in the UK. Its a difficult market but we are trying. As people have said, working out your cost and efficiency is key. Also some eye catching different styles help. Good luck if you are trying.

sawyer · December 2019

^Thanks man but my upholstery friend isn't prepared to take the risk,which is fair enougth,I understand his hesitance. So this project,for me at least,is on the back burner. Good luck to you with your venture. All the best:)

jeztone2 · September 2020

Given the amount of crappy MDF being used on modern amps. I’d love to see some rehousings for things like modern. Vox AC30’s. Or even a compact 2 x 12 design?

RyanNoisyHammer · September 2020

jeztone2 said:

Given the amount of crappy MDF being used on modern amps. I’d love to see some rehousings for things like modern. Vox AC30’s. Or even a compact 2 x 12 design?

We only use 18mm birch ply with Ash framing. I would love to build a new home for new AC30s.

RyanNoisyHammer · September 2020

crunchman said:

Zilla don't seem to offer 1 x 10" as standard. Might be some kind of market for them with all the little 5W heads around these days.

2 x 10" doesn't seem all that common either. That sounds great in some of those old Fenders.

We now offer 1x10 and 2x10 custom guitar cabs. If anyone is looking for em.

gazrichards · September 2020

Surely you would get speakers at trade prices therefore bringing the price down for you and adding some markup too

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Is there room for another bespoke cabinet maker?

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