Speaker options for a 5E3 clone

[H]

Hi all,

 

as you may be aware, I'm in the middle of a 5E3 clone build. I have every component I need bar one: the speaker. I'd like some opinions on the speaker options I have for this amp if you have some time to explain your choice.

 

I've had a bit of a look round and I know the old standards of Jensen and Weber for a 5E3. However, I was very impressed with the noise that the Tungsten Crema Wheat makes and that is equipped with a British-voiced speaker, the Scumback M75. The Scumback apparently leans strongly toward the low-wattage Celestion Greenback sound. Perhaps that gives you an idea of the sonic territory I'm partial to. Here's a fantastic Youtube video of that amps capabilities:

 

Anyway - opinions with supporting statements please!

 

Thanks.

[kbp810]

I started with a V30 in mine, and that gave some really fun tones... after I had to rebuild the amp though I threw in a spare Jensen C12Q I had sitting around, and I can't say for sure if it was the speaker or the mods I made with 5E3 V2.0, but I was (and still am) extremely happy with the results.

 

I decided to give the C12Q a try based on the weight... it has a really small and light weight frame, which paired well with having a solid maple cab; given that yours will be solid oak, might not be a bad route to consider as well under that notion.

 

What I liked about it was that it seemed to be very efficient, except if you add a little more bite to a chord you could seem to coax a little bit of extra breakup and/or honk out of it when pushed; the bass also seemed to be much tighter then the V30 was - but then again, I must re-state that I'm not sure how much of the change came from the speaker, and how much of that was from changes I made on the rebuild.

 

I know theres really nothing all that special about a C12Q, but just saying I gave it a chance and was very happy with the results (mine was an original Jensen, albeit a recone from Alan Joseph - Spiral Reconing)

 

Steiner and Detroit Blues have both spent a little time with it, so they may be able to weigh on how the combination sounded as well.

[DetroitBlues]

I started with a V30 in mine, and that gave some really fun tones... after I had to rebuild the amp though I threw in a spare Jensen C12Q I had sitting around, and I can't say for sure if it was the speaker or the mods I made with 5E3 V2.0, but I was (and still am) extremely happy with the results.

 

I decided to give the C12Q a try based on the weight... it has a really small and light weight frame, which paired well with having a solid maple cab; given that yours will be solid oak, might not be a bad route to consider as well under that notion.

 

What I liked about it was that it seemed to be very efficient, except if you add a little more bite to a chord you could seem to coax a little bit of extra breakup and/or honk out of it when pushed; the bass also seemed to be much tighter then the V30 was - but then again, I must re-state that I'm not sure how much of the change came from the speaker, and how much of that was from changes I made on the rebuild.

 

I know theres really nothing all that special about a C12Q, but just saying I gave it a chance and was very happy with the results (mine was an original Jensen, albeit a recone from Alan Joseph - Spiral Reconing)

 

Steiner and Detroit Blues have both spent a little time with it, so they may be able to weigh on how the combination sounded as well.

 

The amps sounds great. Very, very clean. Cannot get it to really break up unless you crank it up. Retains the full tone of the amp without adding any color.

[GuitArtMan]

First - I thought Greg V. had the G12H30 and NOT the Scumback speaker in his Crema Wheat.

Second - The Crema Wheat is not a 5e3 clone. It's based off of the 5e3 but puts out about 20 watts with a pair of 6v6s as opposed to the standard 12 for your typical 5e3 clones. It will also accept 6l6s without any modification for higher headroom.

The Crema Wheat seems to have more headroom than I remember my Clark Beaufort having (5e3 clone) and a bit sweeter breakup.

 

All that said, there are a number of people who swear by the Alnico Blue in 5e3 circuits. Certainly not stock, but many say it's a great sound. My Crema Wheat has a Greenback RI in it and sounds great, though I may experiment with different speakers in the future.

[H]

First - I thought Greg V. had the G12H30 and NOT the Scumback speaker in his Crema Wheat.

Second - The Crema Wheat is not a 5e3 clone. It's based off of the 5e3 but puts out about 20 watts with a pair of 6v6s as opposed to the standard 12 for your typical 5e3 clones. It will also accept 6l6s without any modification for higher headroom.

The Crema Wheat seems to have more headroom than I remember my Clark Beaufort having (5e3 clone) and a bit sweeter breakup.

 

All that said, there are a number of people who swear by the Alnico Blue in 5e3 circuits. Certainly not stock, but many say it's a great sound. My Crema Wheat has a Greenback RI in it and sounds great, though I may experiment with different speakers in the future.

Hi, thanks for the suggestions.

 

I stand corrected on the Crema Wheat, however the clip I posted is of the amp with the Scumback speaker loaded. Greg confirms that in the comments plus the fact that he swapped it to the G12H30 after this demo. Both speakers are British-voiced which was the point I was making.

 

It's pretty clear which territory the Crema Wheat is aimed at - and if it looks like a duck, etc

[H]

I decided to give the C12Q a try based on the weight... it has a really small and light weight frame, which paired well with having a solid maple cab; given that yours will be solid oak, might not be a bad route to consider as well under that notion.

 

Thanks, weight is certainly a factor to consider but the amp won't travel much so it's not a primary consideration. It's also fairly cheap compared to the Celestion speakers.

[H]

The amps sounds great. Very, very clean. Cannot get it to really break up unless you crank it up. Retains the full tone of the amp without adding any color.

Thanks for the info, do you put any pedals into the mix to encourage break-up?

[kbp810]

Mines not exactly a 5E3 anymore either... it's pushing closer to 20 now as well.

 

For my 5E3, using Humbuckers it seems to breakup nicely - if I'm not mistaken though, at lower volumes playing a strat DB wasn't able to get it to breakup at all.

[fxdx99]

I've a Weber 12A125 (30 watt, 8 ohm, no dope)in mine and it works well. As you comment, it's a pretty 'standard' choice. What really sets the vid off is that it's a tele thru a 5e3... teles 'n tweed deluxe's are just made for each other. I enjoy my tele thru the tweed a lot more than any other guitar. The amp's voicing (accenuated bass, deep sag, touch breakup) just fits a tele's bridge pickup.

 

Good luck - really nice build you have going there. Looking forward to a vid of it finished.

[H]

I've a Weber 12A125 (30 watt, 8 ohm, no dope)in mine and it works well. As you comment, it's a pretty 'standard' choice. What really sets the vid off is that it's a tele thru a 5e3... teles 'n tweed deluxe's are just made for each other. I enjoy my tele thru the tweed a lot more than any other guitar. The amp's voicing (accenuated bass, deep sag, touch breakup) just fits a tele's bridge pickup.

 

Good luck - really nice build you have going there. Looking forward to a vid of it finished.

Webers aren't so easy to come by in the UK and I think to get one I trusted I'd end up importing it from the States.

 

Very true about the Tele and the Tweed Deluxe! GregV also does a demo of the same amp through a humbucker-equipped SG and it doesn't sound nearly as good. I'd love to hear a demo with P90s, I bet they push the amp much better.

 

I have huge GAS at the moment for the Telebration 60th Anniversary blackguard/butterscotch Tele - that should go nicely with the new amp!

 

Thanks for the comments, I'll definitely post clips of the amp as soon as it's capable of making a decent noise!