Room rattling my cabinets

[Mikoo69]

I have 2 closed back cabinets (a Hiwatt 4x12 and a vintage Fender 2x12). Both cabinets perform normally and never rattle, except for when I use them in certain rooms. There are 2 or 3 rooms we play in sometimes, one with very large ceilings and lots of ambience that make the cabinet rattle like crazy. It happens only when I play certain notes, but the whole back of the cabinet feels like there's an earthquake in there. In most rooms though, the cabinet doesn't rattle AT ALL.

 

Is there anything I can do to the cabinet to prevent this? Is this a sign of loose screws or bad construction, or is it simply these rooms that are problematic, and I should just play elsewhere? Some of the screws that hold the back of the cabinet are a bit loose, and the wood block in the center doesn't have screws holding it in. If I get large gauge screws and plug every hole, including the screw holes that attach the center wood beam, will that help at all or am i just screwed in these rooms?

[Cirrus]

All rooms have frequencies they resonate at - if you're not aware, look up "standing waves". It might just be that those rooms are resonating at some of the frequencies your cabs also resonate at, in which case they'll reinforce each other and you might end up with a cab that's physically vibrating more than in other rooms.

But, is it definitely the cab and not something else in the room? I know at high volume it can be hard to tell exactly where the rattle is coming from. Try playing on one of these rooms while someone else applies force to various parts of the cab, that way you might find exactly which part of the cab is rattling.

[Mikoo69]

its definitely the cabinet rattling, and it rattles whether its on the floor, or raised on a road case, etc. there are some other things rattling in the room, but when i put my hand on the back of the cabinet, it feels like an earthquake inside there.

would getting thicker screws help this at all, or do i just need to find a different room?

[~Abstract~]

Make sure your speakers are wired correctly. If you have one (or more) out of phase, you'll have lower sound output and in turning up, will create more vibration. You'll basically just make a ton of vibration by the time you get to normal output.

[Mikoo69]

the speakers are in phase. like i said, this cabinet never rattles unless it's in this specific room. is there anything i can do to the cabinet to prevent it from rattling when it's in rooms with resonant frequencies like this?

[~Abstract~]

 

the speakers are in phase. like i said, this cabinet never rattles unless it's in this specific room. is there anything i can do to the cabinet to prevent it from rattling when it's in rooms with resonant frequencies like this?

 

 

 

Put a folded up handtowel between the center brace and the back baffle...then make sure all the screws are tight. Then make sure it's the cabinet not the handles or casters making the noise. I just ordered some new Marshall handles for a 1960B because the pos plastic handles were cracked and rattled a lot.

 

 

You said it happens in large rooms. So you're turning up louder in those rooms? But most rooms are smaller and you don't hear the rattle (because you aren't cranking it up so much)?

 

Maybe?

 

I'd hit the inside seams with caulk...then get new slightly larger screws for the back baffle. Then see if I could isolate where the actual rattle was coming from with someone else playing the rig.

 

Then hit that area with a screw or two.

[Mikoo69]

not turning up any louder than in smaller rooms. i run a 22 watt fender deluxe reverb through the 4x12 (internal speaker disengaged from the combo). always run it on 6, with pedals pushing it into overdrive/fuzz. never had this problem in other rooms.