Alnico vs ceramic magnets.
Ceramic speakers vs alnico.
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Alnico speakers compress at high volumes.
Rex is a prime example.
When i went with new speakers for my 66 vox ac50 i got one of each a scumico and an h75.
Preferred for lower volume playing.
Ceramic speakers are heavier because their magnet must be heavier to achieve the same power all other thing equal.
The first crop of speakers in the early 1950s used alnico magnets which is why some people say they sound more vintage than speakers built with ceramic magnets.
Try the blind test to find out.
You often hear that the sound of a pickup is dominated by the choice of magnet used in its construction.
Ceramic has more punch tends to cut through the mix better.
I don t think that speaker breakup is a cut an dried proposition in regards to alnico vs ceramic.
What wgs speaker would be best for my tone king imperial which is a dual channel amp with one being blackface and the other tweed to light marshall.
Alnico speaker breakup quicker that ceramic i e.
Whereas ceramic is used in metal as it sounds tight loud and cool.
Can be kind of harsh and edgy at low volumes.
The scene on speakers now is that most of the commonly available alnicos like from weber and others is that they have tiny little voice coils of around one to one and a half inches this creates a cone that has very little stiffness when pushed they breakup.
But as i ve worked with different speakers i ve found some very clean alnico s and some early breakup ceramic warm toned ceramics a c.
Ceramic is the cheapest and most common material.
Alnico generally sounds sweeter and mellower but can kind of mush out a bit when pushed.
Are alnico speakers really worth the extra cost.
Alnico is commonly thought to produce the most vintage tone and has a reputation for sounding compressed.
Mark bartel the designer engineer for the tone king imperial feels that it is a mid range issue and not a ceramic vs.
To crown a winner in our alnico vs ceramic magnets shootout we would need a way to accurately compare the two which is not an easy task.
These days i m running only one alnico in one of my six amps a jensen p15n in a gutted peavey classic 50 410 cab.
If you are comparing speakers that have the same magnetic flux but generated from different magnet compositions you probably won t notice a difference in tonality.
An alloy comprising aluminum nickel and cobalt alnico demagnetizes relatively easily which gives a smooth response with compression at higher average volumes.
Alnico seems to be the popular favorite but on the other hand there is no shortage of popular recordings that feature ceramic pickups.
