Orange PPC412

There are a lot of things I could say about this cabinet. I've owned a few over the years, being an avid 4x12 collector and trader. I'm always searching for the best one I can find. When someone asks me "what is the best 412 you have played" I kind of laugh. Because there is truthfully no one answer to that question. The Orange PPC412 however, is definitely in the conversation for best 412 of all time. Personally I think it's in the top 10. Maybe top 5. Here's why.

What are the pros of the orange 412? Well for starters it is built exceptionally well. Very heavy and high grade birch is used on these. And They are quite heavy as a result. I have seen some that have been beaten to death and still are in good functional shape. They also have (arguably) the most present bass and low end of any 412 out there. This is both a blessing in a curse. The bass on these can be quite boomy at times if you have an amp that also has a lot of bass. It's not a tight bass cab. It's just very boomy on the bass and lower mids. If you have a marshall amp or something with a lot of high end, this might be the cab to get. It really handles that British overdrive stuff quite well and will warm up a JCM800 awesomely.

Unfortunately is is a terrible offender of laser beaming. It only really sounds great if you are right in front of it. A lot of half stacks have this issue but the Orange is possibly one of the worst. If you want a cab that will spread its sound out evenly, look elsewhere.

I have to say though, despite the directionality issue, this is a very good sounding cab. Especially if you like a lot of bass. Genre wise, I would say it does heavy metal and rock stuff very well. Other than that, it kind of depends on the amp. It is a picky cab. You need to try one to make sure it likes your style of music and your amp/guitar setup. But in the right situation, this thing hangs with the best.

I play a Framus cobra 100 watt tube amp and occasionally use a peavey 5150 or Hughes & Kettner triamp. I mostly play heavier music but also dabble in ambient looping and classic rock tunes.


This is an absolute beast of a cab. The standard orange 4x12 has Celestion vintage 30 speakers while this cab has Celestion g12h30 speakers, a center beam, and some different tolex pipping. I have previously used a Carvin legacy 4x12 with vinatage 30 speakers, Mesa Boogie oversized recto 4x13 with v30's, Hughes & Ketnner triamp cab with green backs, Carvin v412 with carvin british speakers, and a madison 4x12 with some sort of eminence speakers. The Orange killed them all by a mile.


I would describe the g12h30 speakers as being the middle ground between Celestion green backs and vintage 30s. They are lower wattage which might turn some people away but I have not had any issues with volume and my band is loud. They have that a bit of that great green back speaker breakup but handle bass like a v30 without getting harsh. Vintage 30 speakers can fizz out quite easily in a live setting but these g12h30s just sound great at all volumes.

The legacy was my previous favorite but I always struggled to maintain a balance between cutting through a mix and keeping the treble under control. Sometimes I would run it together with the triamp cab and it sounded great but dragging two large cabs is not something I like to do all the time. The orange cab gives me a similar sound in half the space.

The construction of this cab is just amazing and you can tell how it's built when trying to lift it. This thing is easily the heaviest cabinet I have ever had the (dis)pleasure of lifting. They do not come with wheels either but I love the feeling of the stage shacking when palm muting through this cab. The only thing that is a bit cheap are the corner protectors. Mine are already coming off but I plan on installing some of the larger metal kind you see on road cases.

I use it for 2 years now, replacing fire in my 4x12 Celestion 65W Kustom Quad. I needed a more punchy cabinet for my Fireball 100 and with a more modern sound spectrum, hence the choice to a baffle in V30 (initially I left the Marshall Dave Mustaine but he was out, the coup d ' Orange have had the same price with a very commercial efforts of the store where I ordered!).
As you say it is difficult to criticize the quality of manufacture of the cabinet because it is the best of the best: good HP and concrete connectors, wiring, super clean, quality construction NAVAL birch plywood of 18mm thickness and the closed-back leaves nothing out the back (knowing that the panel is removable)! It weighs 50kg and has no castors, so plan roadies and then go in DIY store to buy heavy duty castors. Less bulky than 4x12 angle as the 1960 Marshall: it is more compact and stocky. Convenient for small chests! The sound is broadcast exclusively on a relatively small cone face, so plan your returns for zikos and think twice about your sound and placement. Do not hesitate to clear the rear panel if the concert is broadcast problem or you do not return (by reviewing your equation on the amp). you gain clarity and diffusion of environment, especially if the room is wider than deep. In the studio, it's pure happiness: a good quality microphone in front of any HP in a second room and it's gone.
The V30 is a little more sports to master, it spits in the upper midrange bottom and it saturates quickly so pay attention to your gain and treble. Do not fill too serious either, the baffle is already shielded and you have a bassist for!
With hindsight, the full config V30 is a bit gruff and you have everything to gain from plan to replace two HP models by warmer and less aggressive as Greenbacks example.
Oh yes and do it anyway gaffe in orange Tolex: this task quickly and tends to tear easily when the speaker takes shots so do not hesitate to buy a cover to keep it longer Unless you like grunger your speakers as your jeans!