Guitar speaker cabinets are a hugely important but often overlooked part of any player’s signal chain. Though they usually look like plain and nondescript boxes, they are actually incredibly varied in terms of their sound, construction, the number of speakers, and a host of other factors.
Table of Best Cheap Guitar Cabinets
It’s vital for all electric players to demo and learn about as many different types of guitar cabinets as possible because they all produce different aspects of what is pumped through them.
Guitar cabs come in all shapes, sizes, and price ranges like any other piece of gear. Of course, some are quite expensive and many players indulge their rock and roll fantasies, if they can afford to, and pop for high end and high-priced guitar cabinets from Bogner, Mesa, Rivera, and other pro-level companies hoping to get the best tones that money can buy.
File that approach under “nice work if you can get it.”
Most of us are usually working within a budget when we’re amp and guitar cabinet shopping and can’t always spend the kind of cash it takes to bring home one of those status symbol guitar cabs. Some of us are married… We have to balance our need for on-stage glory with our need to remain living indoors with our spouse.
This article is dedicated to these domestic bliss-minded guitarists and is all about the best cheap guitar cabinets that can be had on a fixed budget.
There are plenty of proper guitar cabs in this price range, guitar cabinets that won’t let you down on sound, price, or quality.
The Best Cheap Guitar Cabinets
Table of Contents
Blackstar ID412A
It is a 320-watt Celestion-loaded closed back 4×12 mono guitar cabinet that is capable of pumping a whole lot of wattage into the ol’ cottage. This guitar cab delivers a huge sound and is perfect for those playing large venues or who simply want to experience that old school big amp thump for themselves. It’s voiced to compliment Blackstar’s ID series heads but will work equally well with any other head with a four-ohm output.
Any guitar cabinet loaded with Celestion speakers at this price must surely be on the shortlist of best guitar cabinets – a deal not to be passed up.
- Angled extension cabinet
- 320 Watts
- Mono
EVH 5150III
Two 12-inch speakers are plenty for most gigging and recording situations and don’t require a cargo van to haul around. The EVH 5150III is half of a half stack and still delivers the kick in the pants we all love about big amps.
This is another one of those cheap guitar cabinets loaded with Celestion speakers and that is, again, super cool.
It is made from birch plywood, one of the best materials for guitar cabs, runs at 16 ohms, and comes covered in slick Ivory tolex.
- 2 x 12" Straight Speaker Cabinet with Celestion G12H Speakers Birch Plywood Construction - Ivy
- 60W
Orange PPC112C
It’s a 60-watt closed back guitar cab covered in the orange tolex it is named for. It puts out a lot of sound for its size and is a good pick for stage or studio use. It will also get you noticed wherever you go. The PPC also features a Celestion Classic 30 speaker, which gives it the sound of rock’n’roll automatically.
These guitar cabs are an excellent choice for a club rig that can still cover bigger stages when needed or can be run two at a time in stereo for maximum spread and stage coverage.
- Larger internal volume
- Celestion vintage 30 speaker
- Classic orange styling
Marshall’s MX212A
The vertical style of a 2×12 guitar cab isn’t seen quite as much as the horizontal variety is, but it has a lot to offer. Its greatest advantage is getting your sound going upward toward your ears rather than blasting it straight into your knees.
This one is, of course, a genuine Marshall product, which can only add to any player’s Cool Factor and, as such, features two Celestion speakers.
For a lot of folks, Marshall is what it’s all about when it comes to great tone.
- 2x12" Vertical-angled Cabinet with Celestion G12 Vintage Speakers
- 140-watt
- 8-ohm
Hughes & Kettner TubeMeister
The guitar cabinet features a single ten-inch Celestion speaker, the 110 makes a big noise but takes up very little of your precious on-stage real estate. Tens have long been a secret weapon for guitarists seeking a tighter, more focused type of sound when typical 12-inch speakers can be a bit too woofy and dark.
These guitar cabs were made to go along with H&K’s Tubemeister heads but would also work well with any of the “lunchbox” heads on the market.
- 1x10" Open-back Speaker Cabinet with Celestion TEN 30 Speaker
- 30-watt
- 8-ohm
Laney IRT112
It is loaded with a single Custom HH-designed speaker that handles 80 watts of power. It also features well-conceived carrying handles that make moving it a breeze. It pairs well with the rest of Laney’s IRT series but is also suited for a variety of applications.
Definitely one of the best cheap guitar cabinets around today.
- 80 Watts
- Custom 12" HH-Designed Drivers
- Side Grab Handles
Conclusion
These relatively cheap guitar cabinets are just a small sample of the value-priced offerings available to budget-conscious guitar slingers of the modern era.
They are all fine choices for working musicians and there is a cheap guitar cabinet here for just about any kind of player. It’s not a bad idea to have a couple of guitar cabinet choices in your gear locker and match them to the sizes of the gigs you play. Sometimes a half or full stack is the right tool for the job and other times you’ll find a 1×10 guitar cab to be more appropriate.
All of these guitar cabinets are capable of delivering the goods in terms of tone and volume when paired with a quality tube head. The rest is, as usual, up to you.
Last update on 2024-04-18 / Source: Amazon