Vibro Champ Speaker Upgrades...

I've read up on this a decent amount, but before cutting a new baffle and spending the money on a decent 10" I'd like to hear some opinions. Would my money be better invested into building a new cabinet and putting a 12" into a Vibro Champ, or is using the cab I have and modifying the baffle "good enough"? The baffle option is significantly less time consuming, but I figure my costs for building a new cabinet and finishing it nicely will be around $80 after hardware... If I build a second one, selling it will essentially cancel out any monetary investment I make.

I love the sound of the Weber Sig8, but it's lacking on low end and at high volumes it can get a bit flubby on certain notes.

How do you use the amp currently? Do you take it out to play and thus want the convenience of a combo? Or is this a home amp for you?

I ask because the simplest, least invasive and potentially best sounding option for you may be to simply plug your VC into an external cabinet using a simple RCA male to 1/4" female adapter. I run my '69 VC into a 2x12 at times and it can indeed be glorious, but I understand this is not always convenient.

If you really want the combo, a good 4ohm 10" speaker will fit and add some depth to a VC while still keeping it a tidy little combo. And the 12" cab is a popular mod too.

I don't see myself playing stadiums any time soon, and the only time I play out I can be mic'd if I have to be. I'm essentially looking to fill out the bottom end while keeping the nice speaker breakup that comes with a good alnico. Ordering a 10A100 from Weber is $90 vs. a 12A100 which is $100... If I'm going to do the upgrade, I don't want to waste my money on something I won't be satisfied with. I can always use the 8" in the cab it's in now just for the speaker if I need lower volume for apartment playing.

What would be the best speaker from Weber? I say 10/12A100, but that's only because the rating is the same as my current 8". I don't know if a 125 would be better or not, but I'm assuming no. Also, does 4ohm vs. 3.2ohm matter in this case (since that's what the VC is actually rated for)? Will it give a noticeable volume difference at 3.2ohm?

4 ohm vs. 3.2 does not matter so no worries there. Not enough of a mismatch to make a difference, especially factoring in the impedence of the circuit anyway.

Do you own any external cabs? Perhaps a 1x12? To me, putting a good 4ohm speaker in an external cab (or even two parallel 8ohms in a 2x12) is a great way to record and even possibly gig these little beauties, yet still have my handy little home amp.

I'd email Weber and tell them exactly the sound you are after. In 12's, for me it was the 12F150T, but YMMV.

One other thought, you may like ceramic speakers better and not know it. My Weber ceramic Sig8S had no flub and nice bass response in both my '69 VC and '68 Champ, where it now resides - this speaker kills in these amps IMO.

I have a 10" Weber Sig (Sig10, I think) installed in my '76 VC and its unreal. Probably the best tone I've ever had. Its so good, I'm trying to find a similar sound in a larger amp. It may not be possible, but we'll see. I would think any VC, especially with a larger speaker would be too loud for an apartment, but I guess that depends on your neighbors.

There are people on ebay who sell larger baffles w/grill cloth for these amps. Can't remember the cost, but they're on there.

Mine has a larger cab made to give more room for a 10". It's not new but it is 4 ohms. The alnico speaker came from an organ. I can use it in a band now if it's mic'd. and on a stand. Best tone I ever heard from a small amp.

... Best tone I ever heard from a small amp.


I agree. I had a Vibro Champ that I put a WEBER 12" AlNiCo VINTAGE SERIES 12A125-O 20wts with no DOPING.

I had to recab the amp to house the 12" speaker. ALLEN AMPS had a nice cab that fit the chassis and speaker as a 'drop-in' The amp opened up SOOO much. it sounded like a "little deluxe reverb" with smoother overdrive and richer, more complex character. it sounded 'throatier' GREAT AMP

I just read the GP interview with Jeff Beck. He used a Champ from the 50's on most of the new CD. He's even considering taking a pair of them on the next tour instead of the Marshall.

I'm with Mr Mullens.

My late 70's VC has a 70's 10" Eminence and I use it unmiked at rehearsal and it sits well with a variety of other amps and instruments.

One thing I have done is the "tweed mod" which takes the tone stack out and gives approx 6db extra output (with tremolo).

The 10" in a standard cab gives a fuller sound in a really portable package.

I have a 10" Weber Sig (Sig10, I think) installed in my '76 VC and its unreal.

Ditto on my Bronco, sounds great.