When a mod works out!

pt22

I've had a Magnatone Super 15 combo for about 6 months now, and I've waffled back and forth a bit on it since it's arrived. For the most part its a lovely thing; preamp gain sounds great, it's pretty, fantastic MV, compact size...

...but it's had this ear piercing mid-range push/honk/thing that was extremely unpleasant and took away from the lovely Magnatone growl. At any sort of decent volume it was very distracting and unpleasant, and was difficult to tune out using the mid control, treble, or presence. I wasn't sure if it was just the nature of the amp, the way the EQ was designed, or the speaker. If it was the first two I really couldn't do much about it, and I couldn't find any decent info or positive reviews of the Magnatone-branded WGS speaker so I decided to swap in a Greenback I purchased from @Boromedic in the classifieds. 

What a difference! The issue is totally resolved, and now I can focus on all the things I love about the amp. It's now got a lovely, full sound without any unpleasant or harsh frequency projection. While I knew a speaker swap would change the sound, I was nervous it would a) solve my particular issue or b) cause others. I now feel like the amp and speaker are working in concert with each other, rather than fighting against themselves and my ears. 

I've been gear rolling more than I'd like for the last 12 months, and while I've not on the level of some of you all I've was getting a bit disillusioned on finding an amp I was going to be happy with. If the Greenback hadn't had solved the issue, I'd probably be typing up a for sale ad at the moment and looking for the next thing. Now I can stop browsing Amps£ and enjoy what I've got.







(who am I kidding lol) 

Boromedic

That's awesome mate, so glad it worked out, tis a great sounding speaker that one and I miss it because the new one I bought still needs some breaking it

Enjoy.

ICBM

pt22 said:

...but it's had this ear piercing mid-range push/honk/thing that was extremely unpleasant and took away from the lovely Magnatone growl. At any sort of decent volume it was very distracting and unpleasant, and was difficult to tune out using the mid control, treble, or presence. I wasn't sure if it was just the nature of the amp, the way the EQ was designed, or the speaker. If it was the first two I really couldn't do much about it, and I couldn't find any decent info or positive reviews of the Magnatone-branded WGS speaker

The only WGS speaker I’ve tried - the Veteran, which is supposedly a V30 copy - had that too. I heard it in a Mesa combo and couldn’t decide if it was just a very bad match to the amp or if the speaker was the main problem, but guessed the speaker. It was horrible - a grating, metallic upper-mid honk, almost certainly the worst 12” speaker I’ve heard. Yes, worse than the infamous Celestion Rocket 50/G12E-50, which is tinny and thin-sounding, but not actively nasty.

So I wonder if that’s the model Magnatone have used…

Lebarque

I expected this thread to be about Paul Weller going to the gym.

Dontgiveupyourdayjob

Lebarque said:

I expected this thread to be about Paul Weller going to the gym.

Or @Roland doing a Zumba class.

Modulus_Amps

I have had one come through here that I think had cone rub with the amp cranked up, but sonically wasn't as to my taste either. Strange as they seem to get good reviews.
I think for most of us playing the classic Celestion speakers is like coming home.

pt22

There were/are two WGS threads on here in recent days as well. What are we missing on these products that others seem don’t have issue with? 

Supportact

pt22 said:

There were/are two WGS threads on here in recent days as well. What are we missing on these products that others seem don’t have issue with? 

I haven't tried enough of them to judge really, but I've got a WGS 'Green Beret' in my AC15 and I'm very happy it. I've got another amp with greenbacks in though and they are really good. It's a nice feeling when you find just the right speaker.