Speaker Selection For PSG (12" vs. 15" vs. 15"
Posted: 23 May 2012 4:42 pm
Greetings Everyone!
I'll apologize up-front for this somewhat lengthy post, but I need to get to the bottom of something that has me a bit perplexed. Basically, is there a generally-accepted consensus in the steel guitar community as to the best overall size and type of speaker to be used with PSG? If so, what and why? In particular, I'm wondering about the preferences with respect to 12" vs. 15"?
I don't yet own a pedal steel instrument myself, but I own a couple of non-pedal steel guitars, and as most of you know, such instruments are often used with tube-driven amps that are typically equipped with 12" (not 15") speakers. However, there is definitely a sharper/brighter timbre to the overall sound of a PSG than seems to occur with non-pedal instruments, and there's a legitimate need for greater string separation as well, so solid-state amps (with their limited rectifier sag) make perfect sense for this type of an application - but why the need for a 15" speaker?
Its been widely asserted that 15" speakers offer superior low-end response to a 12", and its certainly true that some of the more notable 15" speakers (e.g., JBL D130/E130) are widely used for broad-frequency applications like keyboards, but are they really that superior in terms of their bottom-end to (say) a 12" Neomag or a comparable (55 Hz) 12" with super-heavy (60-70 ounce) ceramic magnet?
The second question I'll add is . . . if the 15" speaker is indeed considered to be the 'ideal', then what about the use of 2-way PA speakers (with 15" woofer) vs. a 12" instrument speaker? In other words, if you've already got a high-powered solid-state amp and are faced with the choice between a pair of 15" 2-way JBL PA speakers and a pair of 12" cabs loaded with EVM-12L's or 3" chrome-dome what-evers, what would you choose and why?
Thanks All! This oughta be good!
I'll apologize up-front for this somewhat lengthy post, but I need to get to the bottom of something that has me a bit perplexed. Basically, is there a generally-accepted consensus in the steel guitar community as to the best overall size and type of speaker to be used with PSG? If so, what and why? In particular, I'm wondering about the preferences with respect to 12" vs. 15"?
I don't yet own a pedal steel instrument myself, but I own a couple of non-pedal steel guitars, and as most of you know, such instruments are often used with tube-driven amps that are typically equipped with 12" (not 15") speakers. However, there is definitely a sharper/brighter timbre to the overall sound of a PSG than seems to occur with non-pedal instruments, and there's a legitimate need for greater string separation as well, so solid-state amps (with their limited rectifier sag) make perfect sense for this type of an application - but why the need for a 15" speaker?
Its been widely asserted that 15" speakers offer superior low-end response to a 12", and its certainly true that some of the more notable 15" speakers (e.g., JBL D130/E130) are widely used for broad-frequency applications like keyboards, but are they really that superior in terms of their bottom-end to (say) a 12" Neomag or a comparable (55 Hz) 12" with super-heavy (60-70 ounce) ceramic magnet?
The second question I'll add is . . . if the 15" speaker is indeed considered to be the 'ideal', then what about the use of 2-way PA speakers (with 15" woofer) vs. a 12" instrument speaker? In other words, if you've already got a high-powered solid-state amp and are faced with the choice between a pair of 15" 2-way JBL PA speakers and a pair of 12" cabs loaded with EVM-12L's or 3" chrome-dome what-evers, what would you choose and why?
Thanks All! This oughta be good!