sonic difference between CTS ceramic and alnico in a super reverb

[saxophonist56]

what actual sonic differences do you hear between cts ceramic and alnico speakers in a vintage super reverb? does alnico break up later?

 

[Swarty]

You're not going to get much speaker breakup in a Super Reverb as you are feeding 45w into about 60+ watts of speakers. At one time I owned 2 that were a week apart June '66. One w/ CTS ceramics and one with CTS alnicos. The alnicos were more defined and tighter wheras the the ceramics were loose and more mid-rangey.

 

[saxophonist56]

what happens if you mix alnico's (2) with ceramics (2)?

is that a happy or unhappy combo?

 

[GearHeadFred]

what happens if you mix alnico's (2) with ceramics (2)?

is that a happy or unhappy combo?

It's a happy combo.. With the Alnico's on top (they are brighter). I run this config with my Super Reverb and love it (Emienance 1028/1058 combo)

 

[jetlag]

The alnicos will give you a more squashed tone with a lot more emphasis on mids. They roll off highs and fart the bass a tad (no easy accomplishment with that large of iron and 4x10s). They really fatten up the super reverb's tone - make it more meaty than the stereotypical scooped "rhythm sound of doom." They are pretty inefficient and make the amp more gigable in clubs. All of the above is basically why most guys are looking for super reverbs with CTS alnicos.

 

[saxophonist56]

The alnicos will give you a more squashed tone with a lot more emphasis on mids. They roll off highs and fart the bass a tad (no easy accomplishment with that large of iron and 4x10s). They really fatten up the super reverb's tone - make it more meaty than the stereotypical scooped "rhythm sound of doom." They are pretty inefficient and make the amp more gigable in clubs. All of the above is basically why most guys are looking for super reverbs with CTS alnicos.

interesting. the ceramics were meaty to say the least in my 64. i thought alnico's would be brighter.

 

[sideman]

I was so disappointed in a '64 SR with the CTS Ceramics that I replaced it with a '66 with CTS AlNiCos. The AlNiCos have that edgy, overdriven SR tone that you hear in early Anson Funderberg and Ronnie Earle recordings. To my ear, the AlNiCos define the magic SR sound. They start to overdrive at modest club volumes and sound great. The Ceramics were alot cleaner and fuller.