VHT Speaker Upgrade
Hi David,
I‘d like to upgrade by VHT Special 6 speaker. Would you recommend the same Weber that you recommend in the videos about upgrading the Laney Cub 10 speaker? People always seem to mention the Eminence Lil Buddy when talking about upgrading this amp.
Thanks very much!
PM42, sorry for jumping in on David's thread.
I'd wonder a bit about the Lil' Buddy being a 50 Watt speaker in a 6 Watt amp. I'd also be curious if the amp modders looking at the Lil' Buddy are guitar or harp players.
I wouldn't think you'd get much crunch on the high power end (outside of tube distortion) as it would still have a long way to go to get to breakup. If you're looking for clean, than it would be perfect. If not, you might look at some lower-power options like a Weber 10A100 at 15 Watts, the Eminence Legend 1028K (which I've been very impressed with in the Windy City Plus) at 35 Watts, or a Jensen P10R at 25 Watts.
Just my two cents (which is worth much less than that).
Thanks for jumping in jjudson, all good points.
I should add something to the speaker set I mentioned above...
David has a great interview with Gary Smith about speaker selection here:
Small – Gary Smith and David Barrett, Gary’s Recommended Speaker
Gary makes an excellent point about magnet and voice coil size. Bigger is definitely better for what we're doing, as it tends to open the low end more on the speaker and puts out a more rounded, less tinny sound (some guitar folks call that chimey). Our harps are tinny enough without enhancing that.
I mentioned the Weber 10A100 above. A better choice would be the 10A125, which David recommmeded in his Laney Cub replacement. The 125 has a bigger magnet and voice coil than the 100 -- 11 oz. and 1-1/4" vs 7 oz. and 1". This change also bumps up the wattage a bit from 15 Watts to 20 Watts (with a 30 Watt option). If going with the Weber, the 20 Watt 10A125 I would say is a better choice for what we're doing. That said, the 10A100, the Eminence Legend 1028K, and the Jensen P10R are still great choices with their smaller magnets and voice coils.
We can bits-and-bytes these selections to death, but sticking with the tried and true legacy and legacy-copy speakers will always be a good pick.
Hello PM42. When I plugged its head into different cabinets (of similar size), with different speakers (including the Weber), I didn't hear an appreciable change (in the good direction) in sound. I did not try the Lil Buddy though. If people are saying they like the difference, then maybe it's worth trying. If you do, please let us know if you felt it was worth the $ and time.