Celestion Alnico Blue in a Morgan amp

[mcarte07]

First let me say that I've never used a Celestion Alnico Blue in anything, so when I traded a pedal for one I was pretty excited considering all the aura. I got a used UK made Blue that the previous owner said was already broken in, but whether or not it was didn't concern me.

I play through a Morgan 10pm 1x12 combo, which is like a 10watt AC30/15, for those who aren't familiar. I got it from Joe with an ASW KTS-70. I've been extremely happy with the sound, but I thought that the Blue in a vox-style amp had to be even better.

In my opinion, the Blue just wasn't the best match. I definitely didn't see that coming. Comparitively, the Blue's top end was fairly brittle, and definitely less sweet. The mids were present, but not in a natural way. It almost seemed like the speaker was creating a frequency that didn't quite jive with the natural character of the amp. On a positive note, the lows were nice and full, and still defined- that I did like.

Overall, I have to recommend the Austin Speaker Works KTS-70 over the Alnico Blue. In my very humble opinion, the KTS just fits more naturally into what I think the amp should sound like- they just fit.

Morgan, Vox, Xits, Magic players out there, don't automatically go for the Blue if you have a choice. Give the ASW guys a try!

Not to be neglected, Joe recommended the ASW KTS-70 to me as his favorite speaker in this amp.

[slimjw]

I have no idea what the blue sounded like in your Morgan, but I know for me that the blues in my AC30CC make a big difference and definitely sound better than greenbacks or the wharfdales with that circuit. They also took a while to break in.

At the end of the day, though I think someone like Joe or an equivalent builder probably has the best sense of what works best with their amp. I asked him about a couple different speaker choices for the MV23mkii and cab he's building me and he said the stock greenback sounds great and in some ways preferable to the Heritage because the power handling is 5 watts greater. Sounds good to me. We'll see how it shakes out, but I really don't anticipate I'll be disappointed.

Maybe the celestion alnico sound isn't your bag, but I had to pipe in as I think it is a great speaker for a Vox circuit to my ears. I wonder if the one you got needed more break-in. Like I said, mine took a while and sounded a good deal smoother as a result. At least you bought the blue used and can probably move it for the same amount you paid.

[cratz2]

In my opinion, the Blue really needs to be played up at a certain volume level to make it's magic. Running it at lower volumes and/or with an attentuator just don't get it there. Having said that, I think Blues sound absolutely fantastic with Vox type amps, right at the point of breakup... where you aren't sure how much is power tube breakup and how much is speaker breakup. That IS the Vox sound for me.

:dunno

And I'm sure ASWs are sweet as well.

[mcarte07]

I got the 10pm new from Joe, so I know how many hours are on the KTS. All I know on the Blue is that it has been through 2 other owners already, so I assume it has more time on it than my 70 since I've had the Morgan for about 2-3 months.

The thread isn't a knock on the Blue, just a suggestion to consider the KTS if the choice is there. I prefer the KTS-70 to the Blue in the 10pm. By that reasoning, the KTS-70 would probably be better for me in the AC20 also.

[MT Buckaroo]

Yeah, in terms of speakers and amps sometimes what is supposed to be great "on paper" is meh, and something that you didn't expect works great.

Examples: 1. Put a Blue in a Bad Cat Cub IIR once, couldn't get back to the stock Bad Cat V30 fast enough. 2. Although an alnico like an Elegante or Scumnico sounds great in my Morgan Dual 20, somewhat surprisingly an H75-HP sounded really great too.

[gillman royce]

[QUOTE=cratz2;10320547]In my opinion, the Blue really needs to be played up at a certain volume level to make it's magic. Running it at lower volumes and/or with an attentuator just don't get it there. Having said that, I think Blues sound absolutely fantastic with Vox type amps, right at the point of breakup... where you aren't sure how much is power tube breakup and how much is speaker breakup. That IS the Vox sound for me.


I couldn't have said it better myself and yes, there is a prolonged break in period - two actually - the first: about 100 hours; the second: about two years ! Ask your wife/girlfriend about her shoe collection: how she rotates them and then how long before the whole collection is broken in. The truthfull answer is never, as in, " Honey, they were having this annual shoe sale...."

[mcarte07]

[QUOTE=cratz2;10320547]In my opinion, the Blue really needs to be played up at a certain volume level to make it's magic. Running it at lower volumes and/or with an attentuator just don't get it there. Having said that, I think Blues sound absolutely fantastic with Vox type amps, right at the point of breakup... where you aren't sure how much is power tube breakup and how much is speaker breakup. That IS the Vox sound for me.


I couldn't have said it better myself and yes, there is a prolonged break in period - two actually - the first: about 100 hours; the second: about two years ! Ask your wife/girlfriend about her shoe collection: how she rotates them and then how long before the whole collection is broken in. The truthfull answer is never, as in, " Honey, they were having this annual shoe sale...."

I wasn't playing it at low levels, but then again it's a 10watt amp. There's no master and I play the amp a little over the edge of breakup to where I can hit the string hard and it crunches pretty good- play light and it's almost totally clean.

Maybe 10watts wasn't enough to push the speaker hard enough OR maybe the KTS70 just fits me better :)