New speakers for a Fender Twin

[rucarlso]

Hey folks--

I have an early 70s silverface Fender Twin amp that needs some help. At some point it needed a new pair of speakers, and since I really don't know jack about replacing speakers in a guitar amp, I got some Eminence Alpha speakers on the recommendation of a friend. I bought those and put them in, later I realized that those speakers aren't at all what that amp needs.

So I am asking if anyone knows what kind of speakers I could use to replace the Alphas. Ideally I'd like something in line with what would have originally been in a Fender Twin amp of this vintage. You know, generally. I'm looking to get that classic Twin sound or something close to it--not something that sounds British or "metal."

I'm not keen on spending too awful much on new speakers, so I don't want to buy NOS Jensens or whatever for $500. But I'm not so cheap that I won't spend the money necessary to make the amp sound sweet. Because it used to sound sweet as hell and I'd like to hear that sound again.

Any suggestions are appreciated. Many thanks!

 

[soundchaser59]

I have a Twin.

IMO you have 3 choices....

3rd choice: Put a couple of Eminence Cannabis Rex in it. Not classic Twin sound, but they work well with the Fender amps.

1st or 2nd choice (tied): Get two Jensen C12K 100w from Antique Electronic Supply http://www.tubesandmore.com/ they run about $75 a piece + shipping. Click on speakers - Jensen Vintage Series - Ceramic - scroll about 2/3rds down on the page. The C12K's will stay cleaner at higher power while the C12N's will break up easier.

Or what I did, I put a Mesa MC90 "Black Shadow" and a Weber Michigan together in my twin, with beam blockers.

Or pair the Michigan with one of the C12K speakers.

You can try the brute force approach if you want and put a couple Tonkers or Swamp Thangs in there, those are the other great Emi speakers, but that isn't really the Twin sound the way Rivera and Co intended it, I dont think.....

If you are really bored you can build a 2x10 and use a couple of Delta Demons. Those are truly great 10 inch speakers that translate to Fender Twin sound really well! That's what I ended up keeping in my 2x10.

 

[Dani Pace]

For a truly vintage (early 70s) sound put a pair of JBL speakers in your twin. I'm old enough to remember and back then it seems like everoune was using them. Jensen speakers were also pretty common in Twins (and most other Fender amps) back then too. Fender Classic speakers have a sound similar to the old JBLs but not quite as "gutsy" and are great for that country "twang." Celestion speakers became popular in Fender amps in the mid 70s. Those are the main speakers I remember most people using back then to get the sounds they did. I'm sure there were many other brands of speakers used but those were the most common ones I can recall.

 

[mrface2112]

go to www.webervst.com and get in touch with Ted Weber and see what he recommends. he makes fantastic speakers.

i put an 8in alnico in my silverface champ and paired with some JJ tubes from eurotubes, the thing really came to life.


cheers,
wade