I've been a self-employed professional woodworker most of my life. Lately I've begun to downsize due mainly to the loss of my shop building to higher rent and flooding, but also due to the economy, my age, etc. I've moved my woodworking tools to my new garage, but with less than 1,000 available square feet, my production options are limited.

Reading this forum I have seen dozens of posts from people looking for cabs, wanting to build cabs, wanting cabs for specific uses, i.e. a 2x12 to sit under and match a Fender Twin. I've built a number of speaker cabinets in the past, mainly for myself and there's honestly not much to it if you've got the tools and the know-how. Here's a pic of one of my last projects in the old shop.



Obviously, compared to this two-door, five-drawer, triple bookcase in solid quarter-sawn white oak, a Tolex covered speaker cabinet would be a pretty simple task. My accountant says it's time for my woodworking to become a hobby, not a business, and for it to disappear from my tax returns. I haven't had any shop income in two years since the move, so this year The Oak Shop, sadly, will take its last depreciation deduction and cease to exist.

Through aftermarket sources it's possible to match most any Tolex or other covering, cabinet corners, hardware, grill cloth, etc. I should be able to build a cabinet to any reasonable specs, with desired appointments, and since I would now be a "hobby" shop I wouldn't have to charge the prices I used to just to cover my overhead. I'd still have to make money, obviously, but speaker cabinets would be smaller projects, fairly light to ship (without speakers) and I could sell direct or on eBay, where I have years of experience already.

So, simply put, I am wondering if there is enough of a market to make this a worthwhile venture. I'd have to gear my limited space to specific tasks, make up some jigs and set up a production line to take plywood from sheets to finished product. This would limit future production options somewhat (material storage, access to certain tools), but I'm really ready to stop building everything under the sun and just go SIMPLE.

I'm serious about this. Any thoughts?

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

I would try if I were you....
you got the tools
you got the know how
just need the business
I say go for it and and least give it a shot

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1986 Fender Sidekick Reverb 35
1990 Fender Red Knob - "The Twin"
1992 Fender Newporter - Acoustic
2000 Fender American Series Strat - Natural ash
2010 Fender Mustang 1
2011 Fender Blacktop Jazzmaster -Sunburst
2012 Fender Champion

You'd have a lot of competition, but if you're good, and could
keep your costs down and offer at a good price, you could do really well I think.

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

Well, the one advantage of becoming a "hobby" builder is that I think I can keep the price down. As a one-man custom furniture builder in the shop building that I was leasing, it cost me over $3,000 a month for rent, insurance, utilities, etc. As a one-man builder in my own garage I can probably get by for a tenth of what it was costing me to run The Oak Shop.

I would probably start by building "spec" cabinets of a size and design that would look good alongside Fender models, start with a few standard sizes and go from there. At this stage of my life I'm just looking for a niche market and I think, competition notwithstanding, that this could be it.

Thanks.

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

I wonder if there'd be a market for small cabinet / combo amp enclosures that look a bit more like furniture.

That way, you can keep your amp in a handy place, like your living room, without getting too many complaints.

You figure it worked for the old school radios, why not for a guitar amp?

Being able to ship safe and cheap will have a lot to do with how much you can sell online. Sticking to standardized sizes will allow you to figure out the proper size box with reinforced cardboard or foam corners. Every business is a gamble. You just need to figure out your niche. What size cabinets do you have in mind? I would think bass and lead players would be the most likely to have a powerfull enough amp head and need extension cabinets. I would think they would be looking for at least 2X10 or 2X12.

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'10 American Deluxe HSS Sunset Metallic
'10 JA-90 Thinline Telecaster
'15 Music Man JP-15 Blueberry Burst
'07 Les Paul Standard Faded LCPG #82
'14 Carvin ST300
'12 Carvin CS424S
'66 Guild Starfire IV w/Bigsby
'14 Warmouth Partscaster Daphne Blue

in my area no there is not a market for it.
tell you what is, and these folks pay good money for them too, reef aquarium stands and canopies.
custom stands for tanks 96 gal up to 210 gallon are very hard to come by and
folks will pay a premium to get them too. trust me
look into reef clubs in your area.

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63supro
"The good thing is in a club situation, most of the patrons are trashed and really can't tell the difference."

I'm thinking 2x10 and 2x12 cabinets to start. I've got a bunch of 4x12 cabinets here in the music room and I always thought I'd like matching 2x12s or even 2x10s on them now and then when playing out, both for the look and the extra speakers.

Another thing I was thinking about was making cabinets to hold the guts of the Fender G-DEC 30*. It seems like everyone is always complaining that they'd like a 12" speaker instead of a 10. Of course, a really nice matching 1x12 to sit under a G-DEC 30 might work, too. Pity neither the new G-DECs nor the small Mustangs have extension speaker jacks... Sitting here looking at my G-DECs, I can envision a taller cabinet with a 12" speaker under the 10".

2x10 and 2x12 cabinets and smaller would be a lot easier and less expensive to ship, too.



* gar1013 - I have been thinking a bit along those lines, too, since I have been building custom furniture for 40 years. I might have to make a couple of white oak, cherry or black walnut enclosures as prototypes and see what they might end up looking like - Arts & Crafts style amps..? There's certainly no shortage of options in smaller cabinets.

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

Very nice piece CR........Mike

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The blues ain't nothin but a good man feelin bad.

Thanks, Mike! It was a custom piece made to go with a huge matching headboard/double dresser combo (see pic below), but they reneged on the deal. I kept their deposit and the bookcase now sits in one of my bedrooms. I love it and I'm glad they paid me $1,200 to keep it.



So many things to build, so little time...

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

There is a real science behind speaker enclosures. You can't just knock any old size box up and throw some speakers in it.
You need to consider dimensions very very carefully as they affect which frequencies the cabinet will accentuate.
Theres a lot to it, and aside from the above, I don't know much about it.

I put a 4x12 on the circular saw diet. I totally recommend it. That cab lost 4" in 15 minutes. It was 20" deep. Now you'd think a oversized cab would be nice and bassy. Not so in this case. The thing was a haven for high frequencies. Slimming the thing down worked wonders in increasing the bass sound of the amp heads sitting on it.

Also quality materials is a misnomer for a good sounding cab too. You can get em, but they are rare. Particularly with closed back designs. Look at the worlds best selling cabs, the 1960A and the 1936, both use 13 layer marine ply. Which isn't cheap but isn't solid. The cabs vibrate all round. Some bassists I know will only have cabs made of 9mm thick hardboard, because they swear it sounds better than anything else.
Then you have to consider sound projection too. The thing has to sound great stood next to it and good stood 30ft infront of it.

Not trying to put you on a downer, not at all. Just that their is a whole science to it and if you want it to work out (and I'd love to see you make a go of it), theres some stuff you need to know.

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No no and no

Something like this would be awesome:



Or perhaps using the old console TVs as inspiration:

Further to Niki's comments about the important variables involved, there is also the issue of wood selelction. Many boutique amp builders use finger jointed pine and others use hardwood plys like birch.

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Just think of how awesome a guitar player you could have been by now if you had only spent the last 10 years practicing instead of obsessing over pickups and roasted maple necks.

omg, my brotherinlaw had that same tv when i was a kid lol.

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63supro
"The good thing is in a club situation, most of the patrons are trashed and really can't tell the difference."

The only Bro that I knew personally making cabinets was named Ken Dean from the Chicago area. His cabinets looked very similar to Fender cabs. Super is the logo that he used. If you get into it, good luck Bro.

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you can save the world with your guitar one love song at a time it's just better, more fun, easier with a fender solid body electric guitar or electric bass guitar.