RE: Speaker choice for higher headroom, tight sound.

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Hi there Vaughn & thank you for all the awesome reviews so far! 
I have a Q about a certain kind of speaker that I'm after. Currently I am running a Fender Mustang IV combo that I believe I could turn into a really cool sounding rig, given that I could attain the speaker(s) & sound that I'm after. As you may know the Mustang runs the ever criticised Celestion 70/80's and I must say too that I'm sure there could be a better alternative to open up this amp's potential.  
Basically, what I'm after is a set of speakers, even if its a combination of 2 different ones, that have a late-breakup characteristic & therefore a good amount of headroom. I am a lot into rock/blues, but my favourite is the David Gilmour tone, which utilises a big, balanced, tight/focused sound. 
Originally I was going to opt for the Blackhawk  100 Alnico, simply because of the very positive reviews I've read on it & that it sounds very close to a Fane or the 80w Weber Thames ceramic that I had my eyes on too. 
To be honest, the Blackhawk sounds like a cool thing but price wise its quite a bit expensive for me. There is three WGS models that caught my eye. 
One is the G12 C/S , the ET65 and the G12 British Lead... I even dig the sound of the Reaper HP since it reproduces that great Marshall crunch vibe!  Please tell me if any of these or a combined pair could be close in sound to the one I'm hunting for ? 
The kind of tone I'm really after is a balanced, less coloured tone with a nice tight bass / mids end.  All in all, I just want to settle on a speaker choice that will get me closer to the one I've mentioned.  I just wish they made a Blackhawk ceramic version so the cost could be a bit lower :-/.  
Btw, I've noticed someone else asked about the Mustang amps here & were recommending the Liberator. To me personally it has too much mids & presence, but tone I suppose is a personal thing to each of us. 
Many thanks for the help in advance, much appreciated ! 
Tom... 

 

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Lots to think about here!

Yea, the Blackhawk HP's would rock your world, but I hear ya on the cost thing.  Ya know, a big part of the magic in the Blackhawk is the Alnico ... without it, that speaker wouldn't be the same ... it's kind of like a JBL D130F; take away the Alnico and that speaker just wouldn't work.

So, other options...

The G12 C/S ... classic American tone with a bit of added "woody-ness" or "smokieness" ... should be GREAT for that amp, which some claim has a bit of digital "fizz" on top.  If you want to de-fizz it a little, while retaining a good bit of Fender glassy chime ... make it one G12C & one G12C/S.

The ET65 ... always the great de-fizzer ... my favorite speaker for warming up an amp.  I've also heard from several folks who have used one ET65 & one G12C/S together in a 2x12 combo and have really liked that mix!

So there ... if it were me, I'd be thinking seriously about a G12C/S, an ET65 ... or both!

Please post back here with your results!

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Thanks a lot for your helpful advice, much appreciated! 

I have to definitely agree with you that the Blackhawk's strength undoubtedly lies in the alnico doing its thing. Wish I could afford it, maybe someday down the line, never knows :) . However, what you've suggested would be really worth a try & I think I may go with the ET65 + G12C/S combination. The Fender cleans are really important to me & in them I could get closer to the sound I'm after. My only other choices as I've said would've maybe been the Reaper HP or the British Lead. Not sure what you reckon of those?

But one thing's for sure, my amp will sound better with either of them than the 70/80's I have in now. Can't wait to get the project rolling asap! :) 

cheers! 

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Hey wait! : )

I'm supposing you have pushed the button already on your purchase but I have one of the WGS BL80's that have to say fits the bill for what our descrbing pretty well.  It's is a tight and focused speaker with tons of headroom and clarity that reminds me in way of those old JBL's in 70's twins - but with a decidedly British flavor.  And frankly a more pleasing tone than the real CL-80 I used to own.  It was also FAR better than the stock V30 when I used to use it in my Mesa F-30.  Now I have it an open back 1x12 5f6a Franken-Bassman that is a monster for both guitar and bass.  There is a chime to to is that is personally far kinder to my ears than it's more expensive alnico counter parts high end break up and the low end is tight as hit even with the P bass pushing into it. 

There are a couple snippets with the rig on itunes from some stuff I did for a friends band.  On Xtra Tuff Love it's the slide in the center and on Silent Kinda Girl it's the Chris Issac vibe in the center - the guitar is the 1st gen Jagmaster from a few years back with stock Seymour HB's and I'm going through a GFS greenie OD, bridge pickup on Xtra Tuff and clean, neck pup with just a touch of delay on Silent Kinda..

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/stuckagain/id512117877

Hope this helps if you haven't already made the move!