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Speaker Brand used in Spider V?


bluebluetones
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Curious what speakers they are using for full range? I'm not as particular about the tweeter, but the 12" speaker (s).

 

I know on my Spider IV they are custom Celestions, and I am hoping these new amps are the same. I have always felt that part of the tone comes from using actual guitar speakers. I realize using PA speakers might offer more flexibility for the instruments the S5 can take, but I worry about that "disconnect" feeling a PA speaker might give when playing a guitar.

 

Ultimately I'm sure it will sound good.

Look forward to more info.

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Guest Mandiboy

Curious what speakers they are using for full range? I'm not as particular about the tweeter, but the 12" speaker (s).

 

I know on my Spider IV they are custom Celestions, and I am hoping these new amps are the same. I have always felt that part of the tone comes from using actual guitar speakers. I realize using PA speakers might offer more flexibility for the instruments the S5 can take, but I worry about that "disconnect" feeling a PA speaker might give when playing a guitar.

 

Ultimately I'm sure it will sound good.

Look forward to more info.

The spider V doesnt seem to have speaker outs- a big disappointment for me

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I never noticed that - I do run my Spider IV 150 into a 4x12 for kicks sometimes.

 

I guess I could use the XLR outs to go into a speaker cab if necessary?

The XLR is great for PA's but having the option to go to external cab is cool too. Diddt see a head version

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  • 1 month later...

I am not a fan of the speaker in my spider v 120. Had the 2x10 with the custom Celestions in my spider iii (wish I never had gotten rid of it). Sad but right now my spider v is collecting dust. Buyer beware. My bad for ordering online and not testing.

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It'd be easy to find out what the speaker is in a spider v - take off the rear panel. I have a 120 and if I get the chance I'll find out.

 

Guest_WEROZ - what is it about the tone that you don't like. Usually line 6 use custom speakers because they then use speaker cab models. I wouldn't be surprised if the speaker is a cross between a PA driver and a guitar speaker, with the cab models dialed down a bit so as to hear a little real speaker tone too.... So you could always replace the speaker for something else.

 

Just some thoughts anyway.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Uber Guru,

 

I find the sound to be very muffled with not a lot of bass. I did remove the back panel and took a quick look at the 12" speaker. It is a 4 ohm with a small tweeter in the upper right corner of the cab. Could not tell what brand of speaker but I am assuming it is similar to a PA speaker. With the back panel off seems like there is a little more life to the sound. I am downloading many user patches from the cloud.

 

To my ears the clean tones sound pretty good and the heavy tones not so much. From what I have read the amp modeling and effects come straight from the pod x3, a very old product.

 

Wonder if Line 6 will confirm that and if so, create an update with their newer amp modeling. Will press on.

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Uber Guru,

 

I find the sound to be very muffled with not a lot of bass. I did remove the back panel and took a quick look at the 12" speaker. It is a 4 ohm with a small tweeter in the upper right corner of the cab. Could not tell what brand of speaker but I am assuming it is similar to a PA speaker. With the back panel off seems like there is a little more life to the sound. I am downloading many user patches from the cloud.

 

To my ears the clean tones sound pretty good and the heavy tones not so much. From what I have read the amp modeling and effects come straight from the pod x3, a very old product.

 

Wonder if Line 6 will confirm that and if so, create an update with their newer amp modeling. Will press on.

 

 

Do something as simple as change the cab and/or mic on the preset and it will sound totally different.  There are a lot of other things you can change but this is the quickest way to find the sound you are looking for.  My Spider V is the best sounding amp I have ever heard but I didn't care for the presets on the harder tones either.  I was ready to send it back until I changed the Cab and Mic.  Wow, what a difference.  There are several Mic and Cab configs to choose from not to mention all the EQ.  This amp is awesome.

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"Can anyone tell me what is the difference between an amp and a PA?"---

 

Amps are for general amplification, but can also be optimized for specific amplification uses from musical instrument

amplification to aerospace uses, and all amplifying uses in between.

 

PA (Public Address) is a term from olden days of audio electronics (from before my time even). A generic term used to specify

the use of the audio electronics. PA is used for a wider range of audio frequencies than just for a particular audio/music

instrument. Today, the term "sound reinforcement" is used for an even more generic audio purpose. And it sounds more pro too.

 

Spider and Spider Valve series would be amps for guitars. L2 and L3 series would be PA or Sound reinforcement

for a wider range of frequencies (voice, guitar, bass, keyboards and such). You wouldn't use a guitar amp for voice,

because a guitar amp is more optimized for guitar and not voice or keyboard frequencies, so those tone colors

would sound odd.

 

Speakers are optimized for their specific uses, ie- frequency range and power levels. But filters (tone controls) also

are used to zero in on, or open up the optimal use of the amplifier. It's a matter of matching up the elements for your

use. Depends on what you are after.

 

The Hollywood Bowl has a PA system (with mixer and amplifiers), members of a band have guitar, bass and keyboard amps.

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  • 1 year later...
On 9/28/2016 at 7:28 AM, bluebluetones said:

I have the V60 and it appears to have a no name 4ohm speaker.   The full range part comes from the tweeter, pretty sure the main speaker is a dedicated guitar speaker.  I'm planning on an upgrade.  I'm actually going to put a higher ohm speaker in to cut the volume since it is just an at home practice tool for me.   I feel like the 10" doesn't have the bass and fullness I want.  

 

 

Curious what speakers they are using for full range? I'm not as particular about the tweeter, but the 12" speaker (s).

 

I know on my Spider IV they are custom Celestions, and I am hoping these new amps are the same. I have always felt that part of the tone comes from using actual guitar speakers. I realize using PA speakers might offer more flexibility for the instruments the S5 can take, but I worry about that "disconnect" feeling a PA speaker might give when playing a guitar.

 

Ultimately I'm sure it will sound good.

Look forward to more info.

 

IMG_1039.jpg

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Chunil Corporation is also used by Marshall in addition to Line 6.

 

Here's the specs (if the link copies correctly, uses flash at the site)  http://www.kicschunil.com/product_detail.asp?id=308    It's actually quite a flat range driver.    It's 40W as the tweeter horn is the remainder of the amperage.    It's 60W for the V60, but that is the total of the bi-amp  configuration.     

 

If you replace it, you'd want one that is also fairly flat or the modeling calculations Line 6 developed will be skewed.  

 

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On ‎12‎/‎15‎/‎2018 at 1:44 PM, SeaRefractor said:

If you replace it, you'd want one that is also fairly flat or the modeling calculations Line 6 developed will be skewed.  

What he said. 

 

These are not amps from the good ole' days of yore. 

Don't go doing mods unless you have intimate knowledge about these amps. 

 

You have probably voided the warranty by opening it like that. I hope it doesn't

rattle when you put the back, back on. If not, it may rattle if you put a 12" speaker

in it. The speaker and cab dimensions are matched to one another. 

 

It has to do with tuned cavities and acoustic power. You just don't willy-nilly put a

speaker into a box. And with modeling, it's even more crucial to calculate the acoustics

of it, and match the speaker specs to the cavity dimensions. It's not rocket science,

it's acoustical engineering. Speakers and cabinets in general have to be matched. 

 

 

 

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I'm not sure why you would want to replace the speaker in a modeling amp, especially the Spider V series.

First, you have plenty of ways to modify the tones of the presets, from different amp models, different speaker cab models, pre and post eq, etc.

Second, the speaker specs for the OEM speaker show an efficiency of over 100 db per 1 watt, so you aren't likely to find a speaker that is more efficient and therefore would make the amp louder.

Third, since the higher models are a 2 way system, the efficiency of the 12 in driver needs to match the efficiency of the tweeter, so the frequency response of the system will be as flat as possible.

To me the whole point of a modeling amp is to have the flexibility to make the widest options possible of different tones. For the money, the Spider V's give amazing tools to do just that. I have a number of nice tube amps that have one or two good tones if that's what I want. But the Spiders have plenty of ways to get the tones you need. If it doesn't, sell it and get something else.

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What gtrman100 said.

 

@jlcleaver79,...

Hope it's a good seal getting the panel back on again. Wouldn't want it to start

rattling from secondary vibrations, causing air leak distortions through the cabinet

seams. Has to be torqued just right. Wish you had told me ahead of time that you

were going to open it.

 

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  • 2 months later...

You could always use the headphone out jack as the input to a different power amp and speaker, or perhaps a home stereo system.  (Lame--I know)

 

I understand the problem.  You set up the preset so that it sounds great through headphones, or on a digital recording on your computer, but when you play  the same preset and guitar tone/volume settings in a live performance, the amp sounds like a cheap cardboard AM radio speaker.  Wtf?    Here's a long winded bit of info about frequency response, that may help.

 

As others have noted, Line  6 provides a quality full range speaker system and a power amp designed to provide flat frequency response.  The thing is that there is really no such thing as a perfectly flat frequency response.  If you look at a graph of an audio frequency response the graph will be drawn on log paper.   The graph may show cutoff frequencies where the response is down by only 3 decibels.  That does not seem like much, but the cutoff frequencies are actually down to 70.7% in linear terms, and they are half the power output!    Our ears are amazing logarithmic devices that can hear a pin drop, and hear the roar of a jet engine.   A "flat" response curve has little dips, bumps, and resonances in it that your ear can discern.  Other factors such as the acoustics of the room, overall volume level, etc.,   all play a huge role in how the amp will sound. 

 

I'm an old guy having a bit of deja vu regarding this whole discussion.  Way back in the early eighties a lot of guys bought giant expensive speakers from Mathew  Polk.  We were often disappointed that no matter how hard we tried we could never quite get a true concert audio sound in our living rooms, but the same 33.3  RPM record sounded so good through the old  Koss Pro 4AAA headphones.    As sophisticated as Line6 audio engineering may be, the human ear and brain are about a thousand times more capable of discerning subtleties in an audio wave. 

 

So... you can replace the speaker.  Make sure to match the impedance, and understand that it is a crapshoot.  It may sound better or worse. 

 

You can experiment with trial and error.   Set up the amp on the back porch and see how it sounds as you fiddle with the multi band EQ feature.  Do it again in the living room.  Repeat in the church auditorium, or the bandstand at the local park.  The idea is to arrive at a few different versions of your favorite presets that sound good in whatever the acoustic environment happens to be.   To do this really well it might help to use a microphone stationed out where the audience sits, and listen to the mike on a monitor as you play.  The sound is different out there. 

 

I suppose a scientific approach is possible...  Make a digital recording of a barre G chord.   Find or borrow a really high quality microphone and record the replay of that same chord.  (Use the digital recording as the input to the amp--not the guitar)  Now look at the frequency spectrum of the chord (fast Fourier transform)  and compare the 2.  I expect that the two spectra will be a bit different as the live version will show some frequencies a bit louder or softer than the original.  The frequency response of the microphone would play a role here too.   Looking at the frequency spectra, it may be possible to tweak the EQ of the amp so that the live response sounds more like the headphone response.  (of course then the headphone response will sound like crap when you are done)    Even though I'm a bit of a geek for this stuff, that's may too much work for me, so I'll just use my ears. 

 

By the way...  Is the headphone jack output of the V60 stereo?   The V120 is a dual speaker stereo amp, that can mimic a Roland stereo chorus amp, or so I am told.  My little V60 is mono, but if the headphone jack is stereo I could use the phones output  as an input to two different amps making the V60 nothing more than a pre-amp and effects processor.  Or I could just buy a V120...., or better yet,  forget all the gadgets and spend all of my time and effort on learning to play. 

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  • 4 months later...
On 11/28/2016 at 11:58 PM, Guest WEROZ said:

I am not a fan of the speaker in my spider v 120. Had the 2x10 with the custom Celestions in my spider iii (wish I never had gotten rid of it). Sad but right now my spider v is collecting dust. Buyer beware. My bad for ordering online and not testing.

 

You should of just spent a bit more for the 240HC and then run it through a cab. I run my through my 1960AV. It sounds pretty nice. 

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  • 1 year later...
On 12/17/2018 at 10:16 PM, gtrman100 said:

I'm not sure why you would want to replace the speaker in a modeling amp, especially the Spider V series.

First, you have plenty of ways to modify the tones of the presets, from different amp models, different speaker cab models, pre and post eq, etc.

Second, the speaker specs for the OEM speaker show an efficiency of over 100 db per 1 watt, so you aren't likely to find a speaker that is more efficient and therefore would make the amp louder.

Third, since the higher models are a 2 way system, the efficiency of the 12 in driver needs to match the efficiency of the tweeter, so the frequency response of the system will be as flat as possible.

To me the whole point of a modeling amp is to have the flexibility to make the widest options possible of different tones. For the money, the Spider V's give amazing tools to do just that. I have a number of nice tube amps that have one or two good tones if that's what I want. But the Spiders have plenty of ways to get the tones you need. If it doesn't, sell it and get something else.

I agree with you. Any good patches you would recommend? Thanks! 

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On 7/30/2019 at 4:39 PM, Phrydoom said:

... for the 240HC ... I run my through my 1960AV. It sounds pretty nice. 

Yeah, that is my take. I run my 240 HC into a 2x12 cab loaded with EVM 12Ls with the 240HC's speakers switched OFF.  Sounds great.  As in "really great", actually.  The only "however" is that -- at least I think so -- it significantly changes the sonic palette compared to what others are hearing with their standard Line 6 setups, as such many of the others' patches are really only good for a starting point and not immediate use ... to my ears, anyway.  That being said, the Spider V's ability to build up presets w/ Remote 2.00 is just sick (in a VERY good way, I mean) so that I use my own presets and not anything that came with the amp or downloaded, except some clean tones that only needed tweaking.  The downside to that, though, is I had to spend a lot of time developing my own presets.  Well worth it, though.  Tone city.

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  • 2 months later...
On 12/1/2016 at 12:50 PM, Rowbi said:

It'd be easy to find out what the speaker is in a spider v - take off the rear panel. I have a 120 and if I get the chance I'll find out.

 

Guest_WEROZ - what is it about the tone that you don't like. Usually line 6 use custom speakers because they then use speaker cab models. I wouldn't be surprised if the speaker is a cross between a PA driver and a guitar speaker, with the cab models dialed down a bit so as to hear a little real speaker tone too.... So you could always replace the speaker for something else.

 

Just some thoughts anyway.

I pulled off the back and looked at the speaker and all it says is it's a 4 OHM speaker. No wattage and manufacture information. Very generic.

 

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