I'm finally getting around to changing out the speaker in my MM 112RP 65. The original speaker is still in there and it's an Eminence A12-GS.
Yes, Steve Kennedy, I'm finally getting around to changing out the speaker!
I narrowed it down to one of two choices. Either a Jensen:
www.guitarcenter.com/Jensen-C12K-100W-12--Replacement-Speaker-665004-i11...
Or this less expensive Eminence Legend:
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/eminence-legend-1258-75w-guit...
The Jensen is more expensive and has a higher power rating (100 watts) and it has a ferrite magnet. But what's wrong with the Jensen's that Fender has been shipping for decades? They work for me.
Any comments? Any mounting problems I have to be aware of?
Thanks!
Why not recone?
Hi Tom,
If your original speaker is an A-type, it's got the desirable AlNiCo magnet. In my humble opinion, absolutely worth a recone. The Jensens of today (made in Italy), while fine speakers, are not exactly the same as the old ones made in Chicago. I guess it comes down to taste too. A 100 watt speaker would be a little quieter - and in today's world that may not be a bad thing.
Cheers,
Lars Verholt
[Edited - I mistakenly directed the post at Steve K.]
Which Replacement Speaker?
Lars:
Tom Hanser here, not Steve Kennedy. I mentioned Steve as he serviced my amp recently (and did a great job) but I still hear this intermittent buzzing at even a moderate volume. I had this speaker out of the amp and bench-tested by a local speaker rebuilder (very reputable, also) and he said it was fine.
Well, this speaker is probably 35 years old and I keep reading about old speakers, pitted voice coils and everything else. Maybe this speaker DOES make noise and is the cause of this intermittent buzzing I can clearly hear up close to the speaker grill cloth.
Why not just change it?
Deja-vue
I had a very similar problem with an RD-112 65 combo. The speaker went to the rebuilder, was declared fine, then back to me. I tried to use it in the amp - nope, it crapped out within a few minutes. When I took it back to the rebuilder I got them to push it a bit harder on the bench and it started doing the 'buzzzzzzz' that it did in the amp. After that they agreed to recone it. After the rebuild it was as if I got a new amp. Since I cannot listen to your amp I cannot tell if a similiar solution would work for you. You could play it safe and purchase a replacement speaker from a vendor that will allow you to exchange it for another model if you are not happy with the sound.
Cheers,
Lars
PS - I think Eminence speakers are great
Which Replacement Speaker?
Thanks, Lars.
I think replacing it is the only way left to isolate this problem. I could take it back and ask this guy to rebuild it, but for basically the same price I'll have a new Eminence speaker.
The Jensen is rated at 100 watts and the Eminence is only 75 watts, and I'm not looking for speaker distortion of any kind.
But, being this is only a 65 watt amp, maybe the Eminence would be fine.
Thanks again.
Which Speaker Replacement?
So, the new Eminence Legend is installed and sounding great. Parts Express is the place to go for this item, if you're shopping for new speakers.
I cannot, at this time, detect that buzzing sound that was plaguing me for many months. I should have replaced it earlier, in spite of taking the speaker in to be checked by a technician.
Lesson learned: if you hear a buzzing sound, replace the speaker. Even if the expert speaker repair tech says that it's fine, replace it any way.
As for breaking in the new speaker, would it make any sense to feed a a low frequency into the amp and leave it on for a few hours? A low frequency would move the cone more, and if it were low enough of a frequency you may not even hear it.
Thoughts on breaking in a new speaker?
Thanks, everyone.
Nah-just play it. It's a lot
Nah-just play it. It's a lot more fun than listening to "woop woop". Mike