Kit Build - Head/Cab or Combo which is better?

[BluesDude]

I am considering my next build project in the future. I am considering a Marshall 18 watt clone.

I am trying to figure out what amp, what combination for the build etc.

What is the better balanced choice?

1) Should I target a combo amp or separate head/cabinet? Is one more versatile than the other? What are the relevant factors (aside from personal preference) for making this decision?

2) I am considering going the 2 speaker route. What is your opinion 1x12, 2x10, 2x12? And why? Are 2x10 good enough? If I go 2x10 should I get the cab setup for 2x10 and use baffle adapters so I can up to 12s easily?

Thanks

[SoK66]

Step one on 18 watters, avoid the Mojo kits. To be able to share the component board & chassis with their (also inaccurate) JTM45 kit they buggered the 18 watt layout. Bottom line, the way they are designed the Mojo 18 watt kits are noisy, unstable and a nightmare to sort out. To be fair, their cabinet is gorgeous but it's the only part of their offering to consider. Look to the GDS & Trinity kits, as well as the offshore based Ceriatones.

As for head or combo, it's up to you. Bearing in mind there was never a Marshall 18 watt head, they are still very cool and I'd toss a coin & say more versatile than the combo. It's just in what you want. I ended up turning my Mojo kit into a TMB using a Watts audio board and a GDS faceplate. I also tossed Mojos crappy "British Vintage" 8 ohm speaker in favor of a UK-made Celestion greenback.

[Bruce / Mission Amps]

Step one on 18 watters, avoid the Mojo kits. To be able to share the component board & chassis with their (also inaccurate) JTM45 kit they buggered the 18 watt layout. Bottom line, the way they are designed the Mojo 18 watt kits are noisy, unstable and a nightmare to sort out. To be fair, their cabinet is gorgeous but it's the only part of their offering to consider. Look to the GDS & Trinity kits, as well as the offshore based Ceriatones.

.... I also tossed Mojos crappy "British Vintage" 8 ohm speaker in favor of a UK-made Celestion greenback.

I don't think MOJO advertises "100% clone" amp kits, not many vendors do. Regardless, do you have first hand building experience with all of the other vendor's amp kits to support such a statement? I've seen them all and none of them are 100% knock offs.

FWIW: I think MOJO's BV series speakers are excellent sounding, better then quite a few of the other major player speakers available and that includes some of the new Celestion speakers.
Next time you bombastically "toss" one of those, why not give it to someone who'd appreciate a really good sounding speaker.

[SoK66]

I don't think MOJO advertises "100% clone" amp kits, not many vendors do. Regardless, do you have first hand building experience with all of the other vendor's amp kits to support such a statement? I've seen them all and none of them are 100% knock offs.

FWIW: I think MOJO's BV series speakers are excellent sounding, better then quite a few of the other major player speakers available and that includes some of the new Celestion speakers.
Next time you bombastically "toss" one of those, why not give it to someone who'd appreciate a really good sounding speaker.

Well, as a matter of fact we do have experience with the other mfrs' kits, including a certain 5E3 kit from from Mission Amps! (LOL!) In no other vendors' case have we seen them blatantly disregard the original amp's layout, regardless the consequences apparently, and literally "force fit" a component board and chassis from another model to enable them some cost savings. The result of all this is their 18 Watt amp is noisy and unstable, unlike any we've experienced. We finally just threw away their component board and installed one from Watts Audio that conformed to the original Marshall layout. Voila, no more issues.

These issues aren't just confined to their Marshall clones. For example, Mojo apparently uses a single fibreboard stamping for all of their larger tweeds, which is almost 2" too long for the Bandmaster, Super & Pro clones. This causes excessive lead length & noise potential for these amps. How hard is it for them to simply make the boards the right size? I'm not here to bash Mojo for bashing's sake, Bruce, but they're amp kit offerings are among the most expensive ones out there and for that kind of cash they can do much better than what we've seen. To their credit, the cabinets and chassis are outstanding and they've been very helpful with tech support when we needed it.

Edit to add that based upon our experience, the best kits out there right now bar none are the Marshall clones from Metro Amps. Great value, top quality components, fast service and outstanding tech support all the way. Their build instructions (available for download) are without peer in the amp kit industry. Metro are setting the pace, and the standard for the other kit vendors to follow. AFAIC, they are in first and second place, no other vendor is even close. (I am not affiliated with Metro Amps in any fashion, just a customer, and a very satisfied one at that!)

As for the BV speaker, it's in the ear of the beholder. Compared to the Celestion G12Ms, particularly the UK-made Heritage, there was no contest.