Mesa Boogie Subway Rocket speaker change (Celestion G10N-40)

So, I finally got round to swapping out the stock 10" Mesa Black Shadow (Eminence) 50W speaker from my Subway Rocket combo for a Celestion G10N-40 (as recommended by @ICBM). The objective of this swap was to reduce the very pronounced mid-range honk I was getting from the stock speaker.

When I took the stock speaker out I noticed that it was a very heavy construction, more akin to a 12" than a 10". The magnet and the spider was huge compared to the Celestion, and it weighed a lot more. Maybe this was robbing some of the bottom and top end, making it sound rather odd.

Anyway, I made a very rough before/after video using the camera/mic on my iPad, which was done in one take and intended for myself only, but I thought I might as well share it. You'll have to excuse the poor sound quality and poor playing though.



What do you think? Much better / can't hear any difference / get the original one back in ASAP?
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Comments

  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71957
    "He would say that wouldn't he" :)

    - but to me it sounds much better with the Celestion, especially on the clean channel where you can hear the deeper bass. The dirty channel on these is just really middy, and even with a better speaker it's still too boxy-sounding for me. Did you try the 'Contour' mode with both speakers? I always found that the only really usable sound on the dirty channel.

    The odd thing is that in general, a heavier speaker magnet gives *more* bass and treble, not less (all other things being equal) - but I've always found this particular Eminence speaker awful.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • MayneheadMaynehead Frets: 1782
    edited September 2016
    Yeah I'm happy with the swap and it has achieved the objective of getting rid of the mid hump. It has also expanded the sound a little, although I haven't had a chance to play it at volume or break in the speaker yet.

    I've always thought of the amp as a mini Mark series without the graphic EQ, therefore without the ability to dial in the standard inverted V. It does have that classic Mark series distortion though which I like, and the new speaker has added some of that scoop you normally get from the EQ.

    If you play it through a 2x12 it really opens up and starts to sound even more like a Mark, so I don't think the amp is inherently boxy. Its small size and 10" speaker probably contributes to it though. However it is also the reason I bought the amp. The size and (now even lighter) weight makes it a great amp for rehearsals. A real back saver!


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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71957
    Maynehead said:

    I've always thought of the amp as a mini Mark series without the graphic EQ, therefore without the ability to dial in the standard inverted V. It does have that classic Mark series distortion though which I like, and the new speaker has added some of that scoop you normally get from the EQ.
    The Contour mode is actually a GEQ with a fixed shallow V, but with resistors instead of sliders. In theory you could work out the right values to deepen the V, if you want to - although it's clearly very sensitive since the resistors are in pairs, to give composite values which are not available as standard resistors.

    To be honest I find all Mark series distortion sounds unusable without the GEQ - that's the frustrating thing about the King Snake, which has possibly the best clean/light break-up sound I've ever heard, but horrible overdrive. (For me, anyway!)

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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