Grateful Dead Music Forum

Gang, I've got a 150W Dean Markley (RM150DR) coming in and curious on speaker recommendations.

Over the years I've really loved the following:
Weber NeoMags
Old Alnico Jensens
And really liked, not loved, Eminence's C- Rex

Amps that I've loved and appreciated:
Fender DSR
Fender BMR
Fender Vibroverb
Fargen 1/2 Twin Blackbird

She's coming in with a speaker labeled "Magnum" and my thinking is to put something in there to suite my tastes and also do a 1x12 ext cab.

I've seen the following recommendations here:
Eminence Delta Pro-12A
Eminence Red, White, Blues
EV12L

Scour craigslist for Meyer Sound Lab speakers. Occasionally you can find a deal. I got one for $100. I like the EV12L and the better Eminence, but also JBLs. Good luck!

ugly rumor wrote:Scour craigslist for Meyer Sound Lab speakers. Occasionally you can find a deal. I got one for $100. I like the EV12L and the better Eminence, but also JBLs. Good luck!

I've got no experience with Meyer's. Which models should I look for?

Strummin,
I have a preference for Alnico, which based on your description of amps and speakers, you may also. The "right" Alnico IMHO is generally a more musically balanced and just sweeter sounding across the entire frequency range. Not to mention they have a naturally compressed sound as volume increases.
With that, my search ended with the Alnico Tone Tubbys (50 watts max) (by FAR the best alnico out there IMHO). Until, that is, I needed a higher wattage speaker for my Mesa Mark IV. I wanted to experiment with an Alnico in it but the TT isn't rated high enough. The closest I could come to the TT with higher wattage was the Weber Blue Dog. I had them make me one with a 75 watt rating (they make a 100 watt). The offer multiple wattage for most speakers they make. Note their description of wattage ratings on tone, in my case, I prefered the higher rating anyway. I love it.

IMPORTANT P.S. Also note that Dean Markley traditionally rated their amps at 4 ohms. Which means your amp might actually be 75 watt amp or less @ 8 ohms, if that makes sens. All amps I know of are rated at 8 ohms. See the Dean Markley archive; your amp isn't listed here, but any other amp spec listed is rated at 4 ohms. An 8 ohm rating would be about half this. And from the rest of these spec sheet, the number in the amp Model doest even correspond to the amp wattage rating. The actual wattages are lower than the model number. You may actually be getting a 50 Watt amp. For instance their K-150 is listed as a 100 watt amp @ 4 ohms. Which means its a 50 watt amp @ 8 oms which is the more accurate/common rating system as we know it. My guess is that you bought a 50 watt amp, not 150. This is a common trick that power amp manufacturers use to seemingly bolster their wattage ratings.

http://www.deanmarkley.com/Info/LegacyAmps/Docs.shtml

Man, If I would do it all over again, I would go light. I am sick of killing myself lugging that 2x12 around. I am really wanting to try out those neomags in a cab that's easier on the back. I looked at those eminence Pro's, and went with the commonwealth and love them, the pro's are nice too. I looked into the pros because they are supposed to be like the commonwealth/JBL E freq without the dustcap and the price, but you sacrifice sensitivity. I think they're heavy too like the commonwealth's. Are you worried about weight or just sound?

Thanks so much! KC, good information there that is badly needed.

Yes, my ears do prefer Alnicos I do believe. The Neos are meant to behave like Alnicos and my 66VV with a Jensen is my favorite combo ever.

Mario at Upscale said 4ohm is fine and the speaker is 8ohms. We'll see. I can test that easy enough.

Looks like I'll send her off to a good tech (Jonarobb) and see what he has to say on wattage before making a decision.

Not that it is any of my business but...what are you getting in this amp that you haven't had in those others? (including that nice Fargen I thought you were in love with)

NashvilleMike wrote:Not that it is any of my business but...what are you getting in this amp that you haven't had in those others? (including that nice Fargen I thought you were in love with)

High volume in a small package that I can take anywhere without worrying.

My 40w Fargen is still my #1 but different tools are needed for different jobs.

I watch alot of guys try to get more headroom out of a Princeton or quicker break-up from a Twin. Bring the right amp for the job.

strumminsix wrote:

NashvilleMike wrote:Not that it is any of my business but...what are you getting in this amp that you haven't had in those others? (including that nice Fargen I thought you were in love with)

High volume in a small package that I can take anywhere without worrying.

My 40w Fargen is still my #1 but different tools are needed for different jobs.

I watch alot of guys try to get more headroom out of a Princeton or quicker break-up from a Twin. Bring the right amp for the job.

Or better known as Gear Whoring - the commonly held belief that one can never own too much equipment, and a commonly known addiction among musicians. But by the way Strummin explained it, he just hasn't reached step 1 of recovery by admitting his gear whoring addiction. Me neither for that matter. So, party on dude!

KCJones wrote:

strumminsix wrote:

NashvilleMike wrote:Not that it is any of my business but...what are you getting in this amp that you haven't had in those others? (including that nice Fargen I thought you were in love with)

High volume in a small package that I can take anywhere without worrying.

My 40w Fargen is still my #1 but different tools are needed for different jobs.

I watch alot of guys try to get more headroom out of a Princeton or quicker break-up from a Twin. Bring the right amp for the job.

Or better known as Gear Whoring - the commonly held belief that one can never own too much equipment, and a commonly known addiction among musicians. But by the way Strummin explained it, he just hasn't reached step 1 of recovery by admitting his gear whoring addiction. Me neither for that matter. So, party on dude!

HEY! I resemble that remark. How many amps are too many?

I think it really changes if you are gigging and have a different scenario in every club.

In all honesty I'm probably 2 guitars and 1 or 2 amps over necessity.

I understand. I thought maybe you had a NEED that wasn't met by your other gear. For a medicore musician who has never played for a dime I have to much gear already. Speaking of which...

If money were no object what single speaker combo amp would you own?

NashvilleMike wrote:I understand. I thought maybe you had a NEED that wasn't met by your other gear. For a medicore musician who has never played for a dime I have to much gear already. Speaking of which...

If money were no object what single speaker combo amp would you own?

There is no single speaker combo that would suite all my needs. However, a 40W Fargen can do the job about 90% of the time. But it's only ideal for about a third.