The Steel Guitar Forum

I have a '69 Fender Twin with the JBL D 120 F speakers that I've had for nearly 40 years. Recently I've tried other amps like the Cube 80xl due to the weight of the Twin. I just keep going back to the Twin because it sounds SO good. I am tired of lugging it out of the basement for gigs and I wondered what the forum would recommend for a replacement speaker that would sound close but would weigh much less. Any advice?

Thanks

Jeff,

I have Weber NeoMag12 with cloth surround guitar cone and aluminum dome in mine. That's the configuration Weber recommended for D120-F replacement.

Ooh! A Twin with JBL's was my first amp. Loved it, but it sure was heavy.

jeff...Seem to remember reading elsewhere on the Forum that Telonics will be introducing an 8 ohm version of their 12" neo speaker based on the JBL D120. Those should shave a few pounds off the weight of the Twin.

Yes- contact Dave Beatty at Telonics. He is in the process of producing an 8 ohm speaker, aimed at Twin replacements (and everything else, of course).

He is targeting the JBL sonically....and he has an electronics company with the people and equipment to get it right...

I have a 12" 4 ohm Telonics in my Milkman Pedal Steel Mini and it is totally incredible - rich, thick lows, lots of sparkle in the highs, and everything else in the middle is just grand...

Eminence Delta lite II.

thank you all for the suggestions!

Check out Weber Speakers, they make replicas.

https://taweber.powweb.com/weber/

A local speaker boffin recommended them also.

I`ve tried most of the replicas, except the Telonics and I`m convinced that NONE of them sound like the JBL F series. Some of them are good speakers and may have a similar type of sound but no cigar. Really.

Olli,

What would you recommend?

Anybody else can also chime in.

The best replacement for a D120F is a K120.....
Just kidding
I have original D130, D120 and K120 speakers but the amp I usually use out has an Eminence PSC15 (?). It doesn`t sound just like a JBL but it sounds really good in it`s own JBL influenced way. And it takes a lot of punishment.
Maybe the 12" version of that might be a good choice?

FYI, the Telonics 12" was designed using the Eminence as a starting point (they actually manufacture it), but Dave Beatty's lab did extensive testing and mods to the design to make it more JBL-like. That said, I believe Dave will tell you that it isn't a perfect imitation, - I believe his goal was to make the best speaker possible, with the feel of a JBL - .

The JBL's have a larger voice coil and a much more powerful magnet than any other manufacturer except TAD. No amount of modelling or fiddling can match the JBL efficiency and response without matching these basic parameters. You will always have to turn the amp up more with a sub speaker to achieve the same sound level as the JBL produced, which often pushes the distortion of the amp into unusable bounds in addition to the increased distortion of the speaker itself. Just how it is....

You could split the head and speakers into two cabinets. Seems to be a solution for us Twin addicts. I haven't done it yet, but I see it on the horizon.

My 2 Orange Frame JBL D-120F speakers look real festive in the open back, ivory white tolex, w/oxblood grill cloth cabinet. Likewise the Silverface Twin Reverb head looks equally cool. I had thought about having a co. in Nashville build them for me, but the 500dollar price tag, put a stop to that. So, for a 150bucks and a little table sawing, I built'em myself. And I get a lot of compliments on how nice they look, and that they look like a factory job. It cuts the weight down, but obviously takes up more space.

Mike Poholsky wrote:You could split the head and speakers into two cabinets. Seems to be a solution for us Twin addicts. I haven't done it yet, but I see it on the horizon.

That's what I did with my Twin. But I made a cabinet with a K130 in it and sold the D120's to my guitar player/friend and he also made a cabinet for them. We both made cabinets for just the head part of the twin.

The 8-ohm Telonics Neo 12" is in. Yay! I'm going to put one in my Deluxe Reverb. Just what the doctor ordered.

Thank you Dave for responding to us.

Thanks Tom,
We received a LOT of very helpful input from Forum musicians, it is always appreciated.
Dave

I picked mine up today - I am going to put it into my little Milkman and see what happens. This is very exciting!

Mine is on the way. It's going into an old original '57 tweed
Deluxe cabinet. Also mounted inside is a tiny half-pound 210
watt power amp module. The TSNEO12-8 will be replacing a
Jensen Neo-100.

Jay, I would be interested in your comparison comments of the Telonics to the Jensen Neo. I have both models of the the Jensen Neo. The regular Neo is in my 1955 Pro Clone (has a 12" baffle) and the 12" Toranado is in my 1965 Princeton clone.
It would be interesting to see the DB SPL rating at 1 watt/1 meter. I suspect around 99dB SPL. A JBL would be closer to 102-104db SPL, as I recall.
I am still leaning toward a D120-F for my Princeton Reverb, if I can find a nice one! However the weight of the Telonics sure is temping.
Awaiting those reviews!

Ken,
OK, I'll keep ya posted after I get it next week and stick it in the cabinet. I see Jensen discontinued the regular Neo.
Only the tornado is still offered. They supposedly have
less bottom end...though I've never tried one.

Jeff Pickering wrote:I have a '69 Fender Twin with the JBL D 120 F speakers that I've had for nearly 40 years...I wondered what the forum would recommend for a replacement speaker that would sound close but would weigh much less. Any advice?

Thanks

Funny, I never really considered the D120-F as a heavy speaker (I always reserved that term for SRO's or Gauss')

Anyhow, I think the Celestion G-12 Century comes pretty close to the old JBL's, and would recommend them as a good lightweight replacement. When I bought one for one of my Fender amps (a Stage 112SE) I honestly thought they had sent me an empty box! Yes, they really are that light - about half the weight of most other "lightweight" neo speakers. Power handling on these is only 60 watts each, but that's about on par with the old JBL's. (A really cranked-up Twin will fry either one.)

Prices for these are all over map, from $99 each to $279 ea, so shop around before you pull the trigger. They only come in 8 and 16 ohm, but you'll be looking for 8's for your Twin.