Line 6 have announced at Musikmesse the Powercab 112 and Powercab 112 Plus active guitar speaker systems. These aim to deliver authentic “amp-inthe-room” look, sound, and feel when paired with any amp modeler, preamp, or amp sim pedal.
Guitarists can use Flat Mode to reproduce the sound of their modeler’s presets with a wide frequency range and the punch of a real guitar speaker, or bypass their modeler’s speaker cabinet emulation and use Line 6’s new Speaker Modeling technology to swap in models of any of six classic and boutique loudspeaker drivers. The speaker models range from the hard-rocking Green (based on the Celestion Greenback speaker) to the funky Bayou (based on the Eminence Swamp Thang).
Whichever option a user chooses, genuine guitar cabinet sound and feel come from the Powercab speaker system’s powerful, 250-watt power amp and custom hybrid coaxial 12-inch speaker, designed to have a neutral, wide-range frequency response (70 Hz-20 kHz) for Flat Mode, and a lightweight cone to deliver the fast transient response that typifies guitar speakers.
Powercabs are constructed to withstand the rigors of the road, while weighing just 35 pounds (16 kgs), and their efficient amplifiers produce up to 125dB Peak SPL, say Line 6 — enough volume to fill a small club or medium-sized venue. Their uniquely curved plywood construction provides a rigid structure, while foldout kickstands facilitate angled backline placement or use as an angled floor monitor. They also have XLR outputs featuring optimized microphone emulation for direct connection to a P.A.
The Powercab 112 Plus adds many advanced features on top of the regular Powercab 112, such as a 2-inch LCD, 128 user preset locations, MIDI In/Out, AES/EBU digital I/O, an L6 LINKTM, a USB audio interface, and a multipurpose second input. Users can also select the type and distance of a virtual mic on the speaker model. Loading up to 128 third-party speaker cabinet impulse responses (IRs) — such as those offered by Celestion — is also an option, allowing users even greater tone-crafting flexibility.
Powercab 112 ($839.99 MSRP) and Powercab 112 Plus ($1119.99 MSRP) will be available worldwide in Q2 of 2018.