Framus Cobra 4X12

The Framus Cobra 4x12 is a rugged and reliable cabinet meant to deliver metal tones with that vintage-esque overtone. The cab is made out of poplar, and it has Celestion Greenbacks wired in 8 ohms total. It also has a metal grill to help protect the speakers instead of a normal grill cloth.

The Framus cabs are pretty cool because they’re unique in both construction and speaker choice. While they’re marketed towards those who are playing metal, the speakers inside them are well known for delivering those classic rock tones. The poplar helps add some cool flavor that the birch woods don’t seem to have.

First of all, while these Greenbacks are mostly used for classic rock, they can work great for heavy metal. I’ve played death metal with these without much of a problem. The speaker distortion that occurs can actually benefit if you know how to work your rig correctly. The metal grill also adds a different tone because of the way the sound is dispersing through them. It’s a bit more direct sounding than a normal grill cloth, but it can also be a bit of a pain to mic. The mic will pick up all kinds of bizarre frequencies unless you get it just right or take the metal grill off all together.

The tolex on this thing is probably its biggest issue. It’s a thin tolex, so it rips easy. Those of you who are hard on cabs might want to look into getting some sort of hard case for this if you’re concerned about looks after touring. Aside from that, these are pretty rugged and reliable cabs. I’ve never experienced any issues with them, and they sound fantastic. Some people might dislike them because of the Greenbacks, but give them a try and see how it works out. You might be pleasantly surprised.