Best open back combo speaker JCM 800 4010

[stratburst]

Need some input for the best open back combo speaker. I have a stock JCM 800 4010 (50 watt) with the brite cap removed and the stock speaker isn't turning me on. I've heard V30's arn't the choice for open back combo's. I'm considering a G12-65. What do you recommend, Doesn't have to be Celestion but I am after a Marshall tone from SRV to Page.

 

[Bieling3]

I'm playing through a JCM 800 4104 2x12 combo I recently paid $550 for, as well as adding my ratty old 1960a cabinet with guitar warehouse speakers in on the deal. The combo has the original G12-65s in it and at first I thought I'd have to get a 2x12 extension cab with Celestion G12T-75s or the equivalent to tighten up the focus of the bass.

That'd kinda defeat the purpose of slimming down to a combo in the first place so I threw a MXR ZW-44 Wylde Overdrive in front of it and that tightened up the bass like no other overdrive I'd tried to date. Otherwise the G12-65s seem pretty well rounded, and even without the pedal are no where near as boomy as the Vintage 30 (That remark based on my experience with a closed back Orange PPC4x12). This is my first go 'round with an open backed combo, so that the best I can tell ya.

 

[ChrisYoung]

Need some input for the best open back combo speaker. I have a stock JCM 800 4010 (50 watt) with the brite cap removed and the stock speaker isn't turning me on. I've heard V30's arn't the choice for open back combo's. I'm considering a G12-65. What do you recommend, Doesn't have to be Celestion but I am after a Marshall tone from SRV to Page.

Where is the bright cap in the 4010? I'd like to try that out myself.

Thanks!
-Chris

 

[HoboMan]

I have a 4210 1x12 combo. I replace the original speaker with a Celestion Classic Lead 80.
I love it. Fattened up the tone & got rid of the spikey highs. Very chunky, tight bottom & lots of punch.

 

[Lyv2Ryd]

I've been really diggin the Weber Silver Bell and the Blue Dog. I've used alot of different Celestions and Eminence speakers and thought I found the best tone I could find. Then I played the Webers... These thing blew away anthing I previously tried. I'm running a 212 custom open back 1936 cab with both a JCM 800 head and a JTM 45 head. Both have all the growl, karang, sweetness and balls x10 thru this cab. Granted, I'm running a 212, either speaker would be a good choice. There are many different watt options. The Blue has more highs, the Silver has more lows. I dont think Ill ever play a Marshall through a smaller than 412 cab w/o Webers again !!

 

[demonufo]

Where is the bright cap in the 4010? I'd like to try that out myself.

Thanks!
-Chris

Depends on your amps age.
Earlier amps with pots wired by leads to the PCB will have the bright cap across the leftmost two terminals of the pre-amp gain pot.
Later amps (mid '84 onwards) with pots mounted on the PCB will have the bright cap on the PCB marked as C5.

 

[ChrisYoung]

Mine is an earl 84' with the vertical inputs.
Found the cap! What value is that cap? Can't read the writing on mine.
I'll snip one of the leads on the cap and give it a listen. Thanks!


As far as any bass response in the 4010, and it's stock speaker, unless you have the amp sitting on carpet, on the floor, and really close to a wall, it really doesn't have any bass to speak of....

What I tried...
I have a Mesa Boogie amp with the Black Shadow speakers in it. Funny thing is, Mesa would apparently slap the "Black Shadow" name sticker on whatever speakers they stuck in their amps. lol
Mine has Celestion SL90's in it.

I didn't have a speaker cab on hand one day for my Marshall 2204, so I checked in the back of my Mesa, and saw the speaker lead for the 2x12 was long enough to plug into the Marshall with it sitting on top of the Mesa combo.
WOW, I really liked the warm smooth tone of those speakers with the Marshall! So much so, that I ended up swapping out the Mesa speakers with the Celestion 75's that were in my 1936 cab. Man do they sound EXCELLENT in there!! And the 75's actually sound pretty good in the Mesa! lol So that worked out okay.
When I had the Mesa speakers out, I took one and tried it in the 4010 combo.
I liked it a lot! Really helped smoothed out the tone and add some thump to the amp. Those Mesa speakers were 16 ohm speakers, so I went to ebay and bought an 8 ohm version of the same speaker to put in the 4010. I should have it Saturday.
I'm also going to do a cap job on it and convert the amp to EL34's. I'll try that first then will try snipping the bright cap. But I can't wait to hear how it all sounds together!!
Isn't it funny how changing up the simplest things in a tube amp can make a world of difference in the sound?


-Chris

 

[ChrisYoung]

Need some input for the best open back combo speaker. I have a stock JCM 800 4010 (50 watt) with the brite cap removed and the stock speaker isn't turning me on. I've heard V30's arn't the choice for open back combo's. I'm considering a G12-65. What do you recommend, Doesn't have to be Celestion but I am after a Marshall tone from SRV to Page.

Something else that really helps my 4010 rock, is to just put an EQ in front of it, I usually just use the clean input on the amp, and for distortion either use a Keeley style modded Blues Driver pedal or a Metal zone for more aggressive stuff. The Metal zone has that parametric style EQ built in so that alone will help the 4010 greatly. Still looking forward to the upgrades I have planned for it next week though!


-Chris

 

[coldsteal2]

The Alnico Gold's are good open back speakers i hear
i believed they were designed for open back?

 

[demonufo]

Mine is an earl 84' with the vertical inputs.
Found the cap! What value is that cap? Can't read the writing on mine.

1000pF

 

[Frankie]

What's in it now?

 

[stratburst]

This amp sounds KILLER with vintage G12-65's. I've tried Black and Silver backs, both sound great. Add a little gain to the signal, turn the master to 7-8 and you will have a hard time turning the thing off.

 

[ChrisYoung]

I just ordered one of those Weber Beam Blockers, for my 4010. Instead of trying to tame those "ice picky" highs by rotating a plethora of speakers through the amp, this looked like a good bet.


-Chris

 

[mxr2000]

Anybody using Scumback Speakers with this Combo,share your experience.

 

[jcm800gridlock]

Go with the 65's. They sound great in both my open back 4104 and closed back 1936.

 

[Ricochet]

The Alnico Gold's are good open back speakers i hear i believed they were designed for open back?

A nice speaker for sure. I went through 5 speakers with my DSL401 before settling on the Alnico Gold. The only one that did cleans and overdrive equally well. Still it would be nice to find a cheaper alternative.
Got some 12H(55Hz) Heritages coming for another cab. Might give them a whirl in the DSL401...who knows.

 

[jcm800gridlock]

I just ordered one of those Weber Beam Blockers, for my 4010. Instead of trying to tame those "ice picky" highs by rotating a plethora of speakers through the amp, this looked like a good bet.


-Chris

Chris, are you the same Chris, a brilliant engineer that moved from the west cost of Florida to Michigan a year or two ago? If so small world...

 

[Marshall & Moonshine]

Go with the 65's. They sound great in both my open back 4104 and closed back 1936.

i don't have the scratch right now for some real-deal 65's. how are the WGS versions? i have 70's in my 4104, and even though i think they're ok, it's probably just because i've never heard anything better in them, since by ALL accounts, they suck hard and long. i was thinking of the ET65's, or pairing an ET65 with a Vet 30. WGS actually suggested a pair of 30's, but I just don't know. i'm looking for classic southern rock out of it, or something close. if it sounds good, it'll work, if you know what i mean. (i'm not trying to "nail that tone" on anything.)
thanks!

 

[paradox419]

The WGS versions are great. My ET65s are well broken-in and I wouldn't trade them for any other speaker I've ever heard. My Vet30s are getting there. I've run them in 1922, 1936, and 1960 cabs. Combinations and pairs. I prefer the ET65 x Vet30 mix. A pair of ET65s would be my very strong second choice. A pair of Vet30s would get it done, but they'd definitely be my third choice for a classic southern rock type sound.

 

[plexilespaul]

I'll snip one of the leads on the cap and give it a listen

trust me you want the bright cap on...you will loose gain and spark taking it out. marshall didn't put it there for nothing.