Radical 212H / 115 / 112SW
Regular price
£529.00
£899.00
The Radical 212H is the ultimate cab for gigging your big valve amp head. With the unique AVD+ enclosure you don’t need to use a 4x12” cab to get that full power large scale sound, be it for rock, blues, funk, metal, anything - even the loudest bluegrass band on the planet.
And if you don't need the output/tone of a 2x12" you can have this as a custom 1x12" version, the Radical 112SW. This oversized "Super Wide" 1x12" cab is ideal for guitarists wanting to use a full-size head but reduce the output and weight of their rig vs a 2x12".
Or if you want a totally different tonality this is available as a 1x15" version, the Radical 115, with a Celestion G15V-100 Fullback. (Due to the limitations of our Shopify online platform, please order a Radical 112SW in the impedance you want and add the 15" driver to the cart too, then we'll make the 1x15" specific version. We're only able to have 100 different product options and the 115 version takes it over the limit - most annoying!)
If you haven’t heard a Barefaced Diffractor guitar cab you may be sceptical that something this small and light can sound as big and heavy as a 412 - or that it’ll cut through on stage without being as tall. This is where the science comes in:
The AVD+ enclosure uses both sides of the cone to generate sonic output, doubling its acoustic power and dispersing that sound everywhere around the room. No longer will you have to lurk in that narrow cone of tone and finally you’ll be able to consistently get that Goldilocks mix, not too loud, not too quiet, just right - both on stage and in the audience. Gigs are better when you all hear the music as it’s meant to be!
As standard it’s loaded with two Celestion Vintage 30 loudspeakers, giving 120W power handling and buckets of authentic tone. But if your sonic preference differs, you can customise it with any Celestion 12” guitar driver, we offer the whole range.
Specifications
|
Stock - V30 |
Custom - Minimum | Custom - Maximum | |
| Dimensions (H x W x D) |
48cm x 74cm x 31cm 19" x 29" x 12" |
||
| Weight | 16kg / 36lbs | 11kg / 24lbs (Neo Creamback) | |
| Drivers | Celestion Vintage 30 | 20+ custom Celestion 12" choices | (including mixed pairs) |
| Enclosure design | AVD+ | ||
| RMS power handling | 120W RMS | 40W RMS (G12M EVH) | 500W RMS (Neo 250 Copperback) |
| Nominal Impedance | 16 ohm | 4 ohm | (8 ohm also available) |
Features
- Innovative internal design - Barefaced AVD+ enclosure for superior audibility, efficiency and power handling
- Low-cut filter toggle switch
- Choose from the entire range of Celestion 12" speakers*. The iconic Celestion Vintage 30 fitted as standard.
- Either a black or silver cloth grill with white piping.
- British Raging Green or Black in Black tolex.
- Single top strap handle
- Rubber feet on base
- Dual combi 1/4” + speakon sockets
*Additional customisation fee applies. See below.
Questions
Traditional guitar loudspeaker designs.
There are basically two sorts - closed-back and open-backed. Open-backed because they were combos and needed to keep the valves cool and accessible for servicing, closed-back and sealed because that’s how most speakers were made in the 1960s.
How does that affect using them?
The closed-back cabs have narrowing dispersion as frequency increases (a hi-fi speaker uses smaller speakers for higher frequencies to reduce this problem). The open-backed cabs fire sound out of the back as well as the front, so although the dispersion narrows from both front and back in much the same way as the closed-back cab, the sound coming out of the back helps fill the room with mids and highs - but that sound out of the back cancels out most of the lows (due to the inverted phase as the back of the speaker pulls when the front pushes and vice versa). In other words, open-back cabs are easier to hear around the room but the lows are thinner.
How is the Radical 212H different?
From the front it behaves much like a closed or open-backed cab. But the mids and highs coming out of the AVD+ at the back are amplified and dispersed around the room whilst the lows are inverted to match the lows from the front, giving lots more bottom. Basically you get twice the output of a closed back cab with an identical speaker AND even better dispersion and audibility (and far far greater output) than an open-backed cab.
What is AVD+?
You see it when you look at the back of the cab - it’s the Augmented Vent Diffractor plus the secondary tuned reflex port. It’s a unique patented technology that we started developing back in 2013. At low frequencies the AVD and the separate tube port act as tuned vents or Helmholtz resonators, improving efficiency, power handling and output. At mid and high frequencies the AVD acts to diffract, disperse and couple the sound with the room for improved audibility and output especially in rooms with poor acoustics.
The reasons for the AVD+ design on the Radical 212H are twofold - for maximum horizontal dispersion we only want the mids and highs coming from the back of one speaker, so the sound source is narrow compared to the wavelengths - that's why there isn't an AVD behind both 12" drivers. But with just one AVD the cab ends up with too a low a tuning frequency to be optimum for conventional guitar, so we add the secondary port to raise the Helmholtz resonance. At low frequencies both the 12" speakers drive the AVD and the secondary port, it isn't a split enclosure, there is just one air space and tuning frequency.
What is the Lo Cut filter for?
The increased low frequency output from the AVD+ may be too much for some guitarists’ tastes - so you can flick this switch and remove lows at the cab. Doing so not only changes the bass response but also increases the power handling of the cab, lowers the distortion due to motor excursion and reduces the load on your amp’s output stage. This can give you two different sweet-spots of optimum speaker overdrive or break-up and two different sweet-spots of power valve overdrive. If your sound is perfect in rehearsal but too dirty at a louder gig then engaging the Lo Cut filter will clean it up.
Customer feedback
20/02/25 - Radical 115 - USA
Hey I just wanted to say this cab is incredible. You’ve all heard it before, sure, and I am still impressed. I’m excited to play. I haven’t been at all frustrated like before. It reminded me of the time when I had a chance to drive my mother’s BMW Z3 and I remember hitting the throttle and feeling no limit, like all I had to do was push down more and it would respond in kind. That’s what it the cab feels like. Like I’m holding it back because if I don’t I’m going to roll it. Fantastic.
I hope this finds you warm and in good company,
Justin
19/01/25 - Radical - USA
The cab sounds great, awesome build quality. I do have one dumb question: I looked in the paperwork that came with the cab, but couldn't find a 'hold my hand and explain like I'm stupid" explanation for what exactly the two inputs on the back of the cab are for and the difference between them, and which one is which?
David
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12/02/25 - Radical 112SW - USA
Just in case you don’t have a picture of the Radical underneath a full size Marshall style head. Here it is under my Suhr SL68.
Michael
31/01/25 - Radical 212H (Neo Copperback) - UK
Long time barefaced user here. Playing in the band ‘Mums’. Two loud and deep tunes guitar with 100w valves heads both with the 2x12 cabs with Neo Copperbacks.
We LOVE our cabs, and anyone we play with is always in awe of how loud they are and how light they are!!
Jack & Roanne (Mums)
22/01/25 - Radical 212H - USA
I just got my second Barefaced Radical 212H, this one loaded with the Neo Creambacks. I'm still stunned, even being an owner/operator already, at the total superiority of your designs. I went with the Neos because I'm periodically forced to load into my house ahead of gigs, and access is down uneven stone steps, often in the dark, and sometimes there are booby traps. The full-range-ness of the cab, the richness of sound spreading in the room is hard to describe in guitar terms, because it's unique. It's simply so much better, that there aren't even really points of comparison between my AVD cabs and the traditional cabs I've used. They include vintage and special editions from Mesa/Boogie and Orange, loaded with a variety of Celestions, Webers, and Eminences. The AVD cabs are just better in every way. I'm pretty stunned at the consistent sound between the two cabs I have, which are loaded with very different drivers. The first one has an H75 and DV77 combo, and the second is dual Neo Creams. They match each other remarkably well, which was a pleasant surprise.
I also want to say, I love the YouTube channel. Not only are the cabs better, but I'm beginning to understand why. My only request is more high-gain content. I think many of us metal folk are up our own asses about tone a little bit, but it is true that under gain, speaker voices can change everything (and still further once they are miced as normal). I really think your cabs are the shit for metal and hope we all catch up to the curve.
And another thing! I've noticed in your comparison videos between classic cabs and AVD cabs is how revealing the AVDs are of the voice of the speakers in question. When comparing the T75s, no one's favorite speaker for metal (though, for me, a solid choice for R&B), the Radical spoke in the voice I expected to hear from a close-miced speaker but at a distance in the room. Thoroughly exciting stuff. One of these days I'll have to get a pair of Upsizings!
Thank you again.
Max
07/11/24 - Radical 212H w/Activier - UK
Your cab sounds great. The weight is very welcome, and the amp module is slick and convenient to “ready to go” installed in the cab. I liked the dispersion of frequencies, though I have a larging and acoustically lively living room, and so sound tends to disperse quite a bit and echo around the room anyway, so perhaps this wasn’t the best environment to gauge the effectiveness of this part of the cab design.
I was shocked by how much I liked the cab with the V30 speakers. We have an 80’s 1960B cab in the office, also with V30’s, and it sounds harsh in comparison. I’d say of all the speakers I tried, the V30’s just seemed to fit perfectly with the acoustics of the cab.
I tried installing some vintage G12H (55Hz) speakers and they also sounded very good. The JBL D120F speakers worked, but a little less well, as I think the LF tuning of the cab didn’t really match the drivers. The low end was lacking. The JBL speakers are more of a pro-audio design and so tuning plays a bigger role.
I really hated the Bluesbreaker cabinet since buying it around 5 years ago, and this was part of the motivation for wanting to try your cabinet, having watched you YouTube demos. I bought the pin stripe cloth a couple of months ago out of desperation. I’d experimented with some Laney 2X12 cabs that sound great, and having ruled out the acoustic properties of the cab, I decided that the Laney cloth was the thing that sounded good. Like the original Marshall pin stripe cloth, the 60’s/70’s Laney cloth is coated with a pattern of rubber, or similar material. The pin-stripe cloth has the effect of reducing harshness, as well as slightly boosting low end. In comparison to your cab, the pin-stripe equipped cab was softer on the top-end, and the low end was more consistent across the range of speakers.
This is all a very long-winded way of me saying that I love your cab, but that I’ve found something I really like in the time that’s passed since we first spoke. I guess more to the point, it works well with my favourite speakers and so there seems no reason to change. I really appreciate you giving me the chance to try out the cab.
Simon (Origin Effects)
20/10/24 - Reformer 112 - USA
Hi,
A while back I ordered a 1x12 guitar cab from you guys. It is incredible. My rig has changed a bunch since then (lifestyle changes and living arrangements are part of this). I'm currently running a Fractal Audio FM9 (floorboard version of the popular Axe FX III) and a pair of powered Laney LFR-112 FRFR cabs. Those things sound great too, but they are ungodly heavy (45 lbs 1x12 and a horn)--I feel like I could have a 2x12 from barefaced for each of those and still have a rig that weighs less. Since I'm back to using modeling devices, I'm interested in the Reality cabs, but there's no 2x12 version. I think there was mention somewhere that you'd do them on request. I'm curious about the weight and price. I'm located in the US so shipping might be an issue.
David
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Hi David,
Yes, we'll add 2x12" versions of the Reality to our product line as people order them. You can choose between 212V (Uprising size), 212H (Radical size), and 212XL (Upsizing size). The weights and prices will relate to those models like the weight and price of the Reality relates to the Reformer. Does that make sense? Glad you're so pleased with your 1x12 guitar cab!
Best regards,
Alex
30/07/24 - Radical 212H - UK
Look at this handsome rig. It worked beautifully and the gig went really well.
Thank you to you and the team for all your help and attention.
Best
Julian
09/07/24 - Reality 112FR - USA
I guess you know you're doing things right when someone orders another cab immediately after their first one haha!
I have a unique question for you... I was curious, I did not see that y'all could make the Reality as a 2x12 when I place my order.
I was curious, if I were to send mine back (and pay for the shipping and whatever upgrade costs) you would accept the return and make me this thing as a 2x12?
If not, no worries. I understand being oceans away from each other and I do love the cab still. I just think a 2x12 would have been "more perfect"
Anyways, let me know. I do not intend to cancel my 2x12 order for the radical. That'll be specifically for my tube amp.
Get back when you can
McClain
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Hi McClain,
Glad you're so pleased with the Reality! Regarding sending it back for a 2x12" version, that would be v expensive because we can't arrange shipping from the USA to UK so you'd be paying retail rates which are a lot. However, we can make you an extension cab, so for louder gigs you can stack the Reality 112FR on another 1x12", so it'll be the same as a Reality 212FRV, just in two boxes (which is how I do my 2x12" FRFR bass rig, with two BB3 rather than one BT3). Hope that makes sense!
Best regards,
Alex
13/11/23 - Reformer 112 - USA
Dude my mind is blown man!!
I need an extended 1x12 for a Soldano head or should I just do the 2x12?
Or do you think I should just do a 1x12
I am so excited man!! Biggest improvement I have ever heard!?
You are a wizard man!
Trey Alexander
Hi Trey,
The Radical 212H sounds fatter for sure, whilst the Radical 112SW will sound like the Reformer 112 but bigger/deeper rather than fatter (if that makes sense!) Everyone here has just been enjoying your videos btw! You'll get more output from the 212 which could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how loud you need to be. And obviously more power handling from the 212 (assuming the same speakers) which is a good thing if you're using the 100W head but you'll be fine with that 50W Soldano with a V30 unless you're really pushing it.
So pleased you and your mates are so impressed!
Alex
It was a life changing event last night, I still can’t get over how amazing it is!! I want to make some killer videos showing off just how great they sound!!
I can’t wait to get my next barefaced cab!
04/01/24 - Four10 + Radical 212H - USA
Greetings, Barefaced!
I have purchased a Four10 and a Radical 212H (with two neo-creambacks). I am very happy with them both. The problem is, I can't play bass and guitar at the same time. So, I bought a Boss OC-5 and that gets me close. I use it to split my guitar signal into a "bass" signal, too. The "guitar" signal runs through my guitar rig and into the Radical, and then "bass" signal runs through my bass rig into the Four10.
So far, this setup is working better than I expected and is SO FUN to play through! My question is: is there an optimal way to configure the two cabs? Right now, I have them both on the floor, with Four10 on left and Radical on right. I've been thinking about stacking them with the Radical on the bottom (because it's wider) and the Four10 on top. But, my brain thinks having the bass cab under the guitar cab would be best.
Since both cabs are designed to disperse sound across the room, it makes sense to me that they should be stacked so that the "center" of both cabs is the same. But, I'm sure there are factors I'm not considering that might be more obvious to you all. So, any thoughts on how best to use both Four10 and Radical cabs at the same time on the same source?
Thank you in advance for any insight you're able to share!
Matt Wolff
Hi Matt,
That sounds fun! I think the key thing to remember with this is that the cabs are not dealing with the same sources, so you can really place them wherever you want. I'd be inclined to separate them further so your ears find it easier to separate the two sounds because they're coming from different locations. Or if you want them to sound more like one big sound, put them close together. You can try stacking them either way too. The room will change things quite a lot too.
Best regards,
Alex
15/11/23 - Radical 212 - USA
I just wanted to say, in response to actually playing the Radical 212, that it is hands-down the most superior cab sound I've ever heard. Last practice, I replaced one of the 4x12s in my stereo rig with the Rad212 and not only was it louder, but sounded obviously better than any cab that had come before. It was, as I know you know, just better. In any metric it outperformed everything else I've ever played through. The band wants to know when I'm getting a second. Thank you so very much.
Max
14/11/23 - Reformer 112 - USA
Dude my mind is blown man!!
I need an extended 1x12 for a Soldano head or should I just do the 2x12?
Or do you think I should just do a 1x12
I am so excited man!! Biggest improvement I have ever heard!?
You are a wizard man!
Trey
Hi Trey,
The Radical 212H sounds fatter for sure, whilst the Radical 112SW will sound like the Reformer 112 but bigger/deeper rather than fatter (if that makes sense!)
You'll get more output from the 212 which could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how loud you need to be. And obviously more power handling from the 212 (assuming the same speakers) which is a good thing if you're using the 100W head but you'll be fine with that 50W Soldano with a V30 unless you're really pushing it.
So pleased you and your mates are so impressed!
Alex
13/06/23 - Radical 212H - USA
You might have ruined me. I plug amps back into my Avatar and Mojotone cabs after with Vintage 30 speakers and it makes the amps sound like transistor radios! The Vintage 30s behave so differently in my Radical cab! I can’t believe the difference. It makes me think there is something broken with the amps! I wish cabs were easier to sell. I would get rid of these and order another Barefaced.
Brad
19/04/23 - Radical 212H - USA
It’s purple, it’s loud, you're off the hook!
After 79 days you tend to have doubts, visions roasting the company on YouTube, glad I’m happy enough to not have to do that.
When I finish the shelves, I’ll send another photo maybe just the speakers.
Mike
23/11/22 - Radical 212H (A-Type) - Switzerland
After half a year with my Radical 212 I want to give you a short feedback.
First of all: I'm overall very happy with the cabinet. The sound dispersion is very good and a big advantage on stage! I even like it with my Blackface Bassman and the bass roll of disabled: The Low End just sounds great, especially when toe cabinet is some meters away from a wall. First I used it more often with the filter on, but on tour I realised when the cab is on stage far away from the way with full bass just sounds heavy and great.
First I ordered the cab with Celestion G12H-75 Creambacks, after some rehersals I swapped them for A-Types, because they sound sound better on the Bassman. Swapping was easy, no problem there.
28/10/22 - Radical 212H (V30) - Ireland
Great cab by the way, it roars in a live setting. I have had complements at gigs from sound engineers about how big the tone is. A better endorsement of tone than a youtube video!
Kind regards,
Tom
22/10/22 - Radical 212H (V30) - USA
I just received my Radical 212 about a week ago. Loving it so far.
Thanks,
Brad
22/10/22 - Radical 212H - USA
I just received my Radical 212 about a week ago. Loving it so far. I’ve seen that recently Celestion updated their Vintage 30 design to have transparent dust covers and have seen videos online showing an audible difference in sound to the previous models. (For the better I think.) Does my Radical 212 have this newer version of the Vintage 30?
Thanks,
Bradley
Alex says:
Hi Brad,
I asked Celestion about this because I've never noticed a change in the dust cap in the time we've been fitting V30s to cabs. Here's what they said:
"Please rest assured that nothing has changed recently on the Vintage 30.
This video that is going viral demonstrates that the product now is much better than what was being produced in 2006. (16 years ago)
That is a fact, but it’s not down to the dust cap. We always reserve the right to make improvements to products that are already in production.
In this case, here’s proof that a bunch of small tweaks and better build consistency over a period of time have made a great product even better."
Glad you're loving your new cab - spread the word!
6/10/22 - Radical 212H (V30) - USA
I tried the thing last night with a VHT CL 100.
WHEW! Just killer!!!
To solve the “problem” I’m thinking about ordering two 8 ohm 1x12 cabs. Once my wallet recovers a bit.
That would allow 8 and 4 ohm operation…yes?
Thanks for your help and a great cabinet.
Crisis averted…
Steve
13/09/22 - Radical 212H - USA
Tested today with real volume on it.
Simply amazing! Immense and balanced.
Thank you so much!
Daniel
02/02/21 - Radical 212H - Germany
Hi Alex,
Yesterday the cab finally arrived. I had the day off, so I could test a lot.
First of all, man, what an awesome cab. Never heard such a good cab before.
First test in my living room. Had an ENGL 212 with WGS ET65/Invader, drivers I personally like(d) a lot. Played some time to get the tone. Then plugged in to the Radical212. Wow, what a power and clarity is coming out of the box. Just couldn't stop smiling and playing. So much better and the ENGL is a cab which is known a very good one. And even I was not son in the Vintage 30 driver, when I heard them before in all other cabs. Was ok, but here. Love them man... Wow.
Then on the roof rehearsal room. Very very difficult sound situation here. Slanting walls, even walls, very harsh and ice picky sound directly in front of the box, when you move away from the front of the box the sound gets very dark. No power coming to you, even you play very loud, everything sounds thin. We played some times there with my band and it is always a fight with the sound. Plugged in the barefaced, wow. Powerful sound that is almost the same in the whole room. You here a noticeable difference in sound, but way way better. As I said, very very difficult situation there. But it works great.
Then in the big rehearsal room. Today competed against the ENGL 412. You know the answer. The Radical was much clearer, more powerful, louder with the same amp settings, more cutting thru the mix I assume. Outstanding.
And no thoughts about swapping speakers. Just love for the one :D
Now I am selling three ENGL 412 and one ENGL 212 on eBay and will carry my new loved Barefaced around.
I just can congratulate you to your work, passion, time, money,...you put in your cabs. They are as great as you describe it.
I think my wife will order her bass cab in the next weeks, maybe month, but she definitely will :D
So enough words, just wanna play :D
Stay healthy and best regards,
Daniel
14/01/20 - Radical 212H - USA
Hey Alex,