Tweed Champ - fix old speaker or put in new one?

Spindrift · Post by **Spindrift** » Mon Jan 26, 2009 11:10 am

I have a '61 tweed Champ with the original speaker, but the speaker is rubbing. Any thoughts on whether I should have it repaired or put in something new? If I do go new, any recommendations? I know Victoria use the Jensen P8R in their Champ replica, so I was thinking about that, but I'm open to other suggestions as well.

Thanks
Adam

curtiswyant · Post by **curtiswyant** » Mon Jan 26, 2009 12:57 pm

I put a new Jensen 8" in my SF Vibrochamp and it sounds better than the old speaker. A recone might be a good investment if you intend on selling the amp and keeping it original but for the money I'd just get a new speaker and keep the old one.

tdbajus · Post by **tdbajus** » Mon Jan 26, 2009 1:45 pm

weber also makes excellent speakers. I like the sound of the jensens, but I have blown up 3 (count 'em, THREE) of the Jensen 50 watt speakers in my 22 watt blackface deluxe, which is inexcusable, even if you max out the amp and brutalize it with a big muff.

Which i do, sometimes. Sometimes a kid's got to do what a kid's got to do.

The Webers hold up to abuse wonderfully.

Also, on the low wattage amps, I like the sound of ceramic magnets quite a bit (vs alnico)- the bottom end is much more defined, though you do get more treble.

riantide · Post by **riantide** » Mon Jan 26, 2009 1:52 pm

It totally depends on how much you value originality. If you want your amp to be original, then totally re-cone it.

If it were me, I would say this is a perfect opportunity to find a replacement speaker that is currently in production, so you can know exactly what speaker to buy in the future AND not have to worry so much about abusing it.

I'm a Weber guy but I constantly hear great things about the higher end products by companies like Eminence, Jensen, and Celestion. I wanna say that a Weber would be able to get you as close as possible to the original, though.

BENDYmusic · Post by **BENDYmusic** » Mon Jan 26, 2009 7:01 pm

+999 on the Weber, give them a call and they can explain all of your options and help you decide. I have a 49' Champ that is the bee's knee's with one of Weber's ceramic speakers.

&e

KennyLusk · Post by **KennyLusk** » Mon Jan 26, 2009 8:05 pm

Does anyone have a Pyle speaker from like '75 and '76 in their Champ or Vibro Champ? I've got one in my Vibro Champ and like but wonder if anyone likes a different speaker in that amp.

acjetnut · Post by **acjetnut** » Tue Jan 27, 2009 5:52 pm

Yes - weber speakers are great. Go AlNiCo!

adadan · Post by **adadan** » Wed Jan 28, 2009 2:12 pm

I agree on the Weber. I think the Weber signature series are as good or better than Jensen reissues, and they are fairly cheap (~$25 ceramic/$35 alnico). Plus, their 15% off holiday sale on speakers is still going for a few more days. . . till January 31st. . .

Spindrift · Post by **Spindrift** » Wed Jan 28, 2009 7:34 pm

Thanks for all the advice. Lots of Weber fans!

The only reason I hadn't been considering Weber is because a friend of a friend had a bad experience with getting two problematic 8" speakers before finally getting a good one. That's a lot of shipping money to send two speakers back to the States from Canada. Still, with so many people recommending them here (plus the very appealing prices), I may just end up trying them out.

How many of you are recommending Weber in general vs. having specifically used their 8" speakers?

Thanks again.
Adam

adadan · Post by **adadan** » Thu Jan 29, 2009 3:19 pm

I haven't had the 8" signature in a Champ, but I have a set of 4 alnico signatures 10" in a Super Reverb right now, and before installing them I tried them in a bunch of small amps that take single 10" speakers. I liked them in just about everything I tried (they sound a lot like various manufacturers' typical 10" alnico speakers that came in small amps back in the day).

I've been doing amp repairs for years, and the main thing at the shop where I freelance the most is 5-15 watt single speaker tube amps, so I've heard quite a few vintage speakers. The thing I personally like about the Weber signature series is that they sound very similar to me to average-quality speakers from the past, rather than being a boutique-ey improvement with more agressive/modern sound, which isn't really my thing. I'm sure some of the higher-end Webers will do that as well if that's what you're looking for.

Just my .02

KennyLusk · Post by **KennyLusk** » Thu Jan 29, 2009 3:37 pm

I'm surprised there's no love for Eminence speaker's. I had a early 90's Princeton (solid state) loaded with 2 x 10" speakers made by Eminence and thought they sounded great. They gave that wonderfully super-tight Fender thump on the bottom and were nice and chimey on the high's - you know, that beautiful Fender "sparkle" when you're playing clean.

Driving the front with a boutique tube guitar pre, the speakers would really come alive and could handle anything I pushed into it extremely well from clean to OD. My goal was to be able to hear all the strings in the chords I played even when in "crunch" mode and the Eminence speakers really delivered. They're not really cheap but they're fairly priced IMO.

Trick Fall · Post by **Trick Fall** » Thu Jan 29, 2009 10:07 pm

I wouldn't throw out the old speaker, but I also wouldn't hesitate to put a Weber in there. I put a 50's style Weber in a silverface chanp and it's the amp I use the most.

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Tweed Champ - fix old speaker or put in new one?

Tweed Champ - fix old speaker or put in new one?

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