bluesman345 Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Hi everybody, Today, I played a few blues riffs on my Zephyr Blues Deluxe into my Valve Standard. I was very impressed with the sound - with the gain at 10 or 11 o'clock, I got tones reminiscent of EC in the Bluesbreakers My question is, does anyone know who manufactured the stock Epiphone 12" speaker for the Valve Standard? I have googled this ad infinitum and have read nothing , so far. I know this has been covered in other threads, but do you have a recommendation for a replacement speaker (voiced for clean and blues/crunch)? Also, are there suggestions for tube replacements? I know very little about electronics, so I have no intention of touching anything on the PCB. Realistically speaking, this is a sweet bedroom amp, and I don't want to do any mods if they don't make a noticeable improvement. I go through a Boss GE-7 equalizer and find that the improvement in sound is phenomonal! Thanks for your "input". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesman345 Posted April 7, 2009 Author Share Posted April 7, 2009 I read KEB's thread and saw some very good suggestions for a replacement speaker. Does anyone have a comment on the Eminence "Lady Luck" speakers that are found in the BC 30 and some VJr. cabs? Does the Valve Standard allow the internal speaker to operate in tandem with an ext. cab, or does plugging in the cab switch off the int. speaker? I assume the Lady Luck is 16 ohms, so the int. spkr. (8 ohms) + the Lady Luck cab (1X12"@16 ohms) = 12 ohms total impedence (8+16 divided by 2 = 12). Is this correct? Otherwise, how would the Lady Luck compare with the stock "custom voiced Epiphone" speaker (of heretofore unknown origin)? Or should I get some kind of Celestion (I have G12T-Hot 100's in my Vox Valvetronix). Thanks again for your "feedback". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesman345 Posted April 7, 2009 Author Share Posted April 7, 2009 Well, I got an answer to whether or not you can run an ext. cab in tandem with the internal speaker. While perusing the "Guitar Noise Online To Onstage" blog, a fellow named Dave sent an email to Gibson Customer Service and got a response: To: Customer Service1 Subject: Epiphone Valve Standard Tube Amp I have an Epiphone Valve STANDARD, 15 watt tube combo. It has two speaker outputs in the back. One of them is being used already by the built in speaker and it is labeled "Speaker - 8 OHM". The other one is labeled "8 Ohm min". Can I plug in another 8 ohm cab and leave the internal speaker plugged in, or do I need to unplug the internal speaker before plugging in another 8 ohm cabinet? Thanks, Dave You can plug in another 8 ohm external speaker without unplugging the internal speaker. Thank you for the inquiry. Regards, Roger Ball Gibson customer service service@gibson.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesman345 Posted April 19, 2009 Author Share Posted April 19, 2009 UPDATE: Well, to continue this delightful conversation that I am having with myself here... I STILL haven't found out anything further about the manufacturer, wattage, etc. of the stock "Epiphone Special Design" 12 inch speaker in my Valve Standard amp. I removed the speaker and now have it for sale. I have now replaced it with an NOS (1975/76) CTS 12 inch, 8 ohm speaker (also of unknown wattage). The speaker still has to break in yet, but so far, it definitely sounds like an improvement over the stock speaker. As a point of interest, CTS (Chicago Telephone Supply) speakers were used in some Fender and Ampeg amps in days of yore. Robert Gault used to work for CTS and left to form his own company, Eminence Speakers. Has anyone else out there ever used CTS speakers? If so, whaddayathink? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K.E.B.1281734147 Posted April 20, 2009 Share Posted April 20, 2009 Hi bluesman345, The Valve Standard is becoming more and more of a ghost online. Even a search in Ebay brings up nothing. Now that Epiphone has discontinued the model, who knows what will come of it. When it first came out, It garnered some very favorable reviews. When it got into the hands of masses, the tune changed. Word of mouth is a powerful voice. Now, nobody really knows/talks about it much. That said, I'm sending mine in under warranty as soon as I can get it sent off to Gibson. There's a burnt capacitor onboard. I have had some nice moments with mine. It doesn't shine like some nice old amps do, but it can get seriously loud in the house. At those volumes there is some nice tones going on for sure. I know I was seriously wanting to change the speaker. I still do. I'm thinking ceramic. The stock is a bit dark for me. My tubes are still original as well. People report good results with JJs. I bet a few nice tube/speaker/mods given to this amp will satisfy me just fine. That doesn't mean it will be my only amp. O:)/ How did you come to choose CTS? I don't recall seeing them advertised in the big online stores. Oh, and in answer to your questons, I dunno. I'm curious as well about the speaker's origin and watt handling. I just had to break up your monologue and support a fellow VS owner. BTW, there is much talk about the VS on ppwatt.com - They might have mentioned the speaker specs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesman345 Posted April 20, 2009 Author Share Posted April 20, 2009 Hi bluesman345' date=' Oh, and in answer to your questons, I dunno. I'm curious as well about the speaker's origin and watt handling. I just had to break up your monologue and support a fellow VS owner. BTW, there is much talk about the VS on ppwatt.com - They might have mentioned the speaker specs.[/quote'] Hi K.E.B., Nice to talk with you! I was starting to talk with MYSELF here I chose CTS not so much as a major brand name, but because a fellow on our local Craigslist had a couple for sale at $40 each. He had several, apparently NOS (1975/76) in boxes, for the same price. The serial # on mine did not match any series that I could find on line, but that's not surprising, I guess. At the price it appears to be a pretty good speaker, as it's voicecoil appears to be twice the size of the one in the Epi speaker. As you see in my post, I researched CTS speakers and their use OEM in Fender and Ampeg (who also used Jensen, Oxford, Eminence, etc. at various times). At this point, early in the break-in period, it sounds pretty good. In any case, it looks to be of better quality than the offshore Epi speaker of unknown provenance. I have yet to dive into ppwatt very deeply, as it appears to be very technical and totally above my head Judging by the comments of some on our amp forum, I feel rather uneasy about quality issues with the VS I DID have to return the first VS I bought because a loud hum rendered the amp unusable, even with the DSP turned off. On the other hand, the Vox Valvetronix line has had its share of hum, hiss, pops, smoke, etc., but I love mine. With the help of a good EQ, I am getting some pretty good sounds (I have to brighten it up considerably). I hope that this amp will serve me well. If not, I know a good tech. Ciao for now (it's supper time), Frank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K.E.B.1281734147 Posted April 20, 2009 Share Posted April 20, 2009 Hi Frank, Found this upgrade kit onlline. "Product: EPIPHONE VALVE STANDARD CRYO C12Q KIT Epiphone Cryo Amps Kits Epiphone have introduced a range of valve amplifiers that have a good standard of bulid quality for a very low price. The range on introduction suffers for low price valves and buget speakers.These are simple tried and tested upgrades that improve the sound. Here we have listed our most common upgrades giving you the opportunity to enjoy a valve and speaker upgrade at a greatly reduced cost. EPIPHONE VALVE STANDARD CRYO C12Q KIT The Epiphone valve standard DSP is a low cost 15 watt class AB amplifier which really benefits from upgrading the stock OEM 12 inch speaker. The Jensen C12Q is an ideal choice to provide a rich warm vintage guitar sound. The Jensen has enough treble detail for a nice clean sound with plenty of bite when you move into rock mode. The kit consists of the speaker and valves only and does not include the amplifier. 3 of ECC83 STR CRYO TREATED 2 of E84L HARMA CRYO 1 of JENSEN C12Q- 8 OHM" It's from a European site: http://www.watfordvalves.com/product_detail.asp?id=1639 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K.E.B.1281734147 Posted April 20, 2009 Share Posted April 20, 2009 Here's another thread you might not have seen yet on speaker swap. http://newsgroups.derkeiler.com/Archive/Alt/alt.guitar.amps/2006-06/msg00724.html ...this is a very interesting thread. Notice all the notoriety the VS garnered in 2005. And check out this quote: "The Epiphone Valve line ships with unlabeled Weber Ceramic speakers stock ..." ...and the entire thread. http://www.bigroadblues.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=840 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesman345 Posted April 21, 2009 Author Share Posted April 21, 2009 Hi Kirk, Thanks for the info. I did follow up on the links you sent me - I have already checked out the Cryo site - all things considered, the total cash outlay, including shipping, duty, etc. would be prohibitive in my case. I have to remember that the VS is my BEDROOM amp - I use my Vox Valvetronix AD50VT2-12 (100 watt Celestion speakers) to gig with. I have gotten very positive comments about my tone and I plan to keep that amp for as long as it lasts However, I do think that the VS would gig very well if mic'd - I may do that some day. When I bought the VS, I A/B'd it with the Valve Jr. and the Fender Champion 600 (I think). The salesman also brought out the small Peavey Satriani model but I didn't even try it. The Valve Standard sounded sooo much better than the other amps (to my ears). To be fair, they were all around 5 watts with small speakers, so of course they sounded a little "boxy". The VS yielded a deep, rich tone that the others were just not designed to give - they are more tube overdrive based amps. Of course, the Jr. does it so well that it has a substantial cult following, but it is just not my thing. I googled several pages re: unlabeled Weber speakers stock in Epi amps. So far, the only references to back up that claim were the 2 posts in the bigroadblues forum. It may be so, but a lot of people make claims that are not accurate or factual After reading so many posts panning the Valve Standard for various reasons, I have had second thoughts about keeping it. However, for $400 Canadian, that is a pretty good price for a decent sounding, cool looking tube amp. I have read posts where people like the stock speaker and have no intention of changing it. On the other hand, many people think that the stock speaker should be the first thing to go. I asked my tech if I should change out the stock Sovtek tubes and he said that they aren't bad, so don't bother (either he's telling the truth or he doesn't really need my money). Someone on the local Craigslist is selling 2 vintage '50's or '60's Bell & Howell branded Jensen 16 ohm speakers for $100 (or, $60 each) that were removed from an old organ. Two things concern me: the price and the actual condition of a 40-50 year old speaker. In the long run, the cost of refurbishing may outweigh it's vintage appeal. Also, I could only use it as an extension speaker, not the main one, as it is 16 ohms and the main speaker input is listed at 8 ohms. The same may be the case for the 16 ohm Eminence Lady Luck speaker. I would not want to fry a transformer or something I am interested in the Blues Custom 30 but I haven't tried one out yet - the price is $1000 Cdn! Even the BC 30 hasn't garnered ALL positive reviews. I will probably take a more serious look if a used one crosses my path. Anyway, 'nuff said for now...talk with you again. Frank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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