15 inch speakers - how do they sound?

Thinking of possibly putting a 1x15 into my tweed Bassman RI and wondered what the general sonic characteristics of a 15 inch speaker would be.

I play alot of rock, and would like a nice fat clean sound (bright, but full), but also something that takes pedals well.

Would a 15 do the trick? What are the negatives for a 15 inch speaker? Do they lack punch or the ability to cut through?

I'd be using it w/ either an Esquire or an SG...

I use a Jensen P15N and it has a nice smooth midrange with good treble and actually the same amount of bass you'd expect from a good 12."

When I use it to record Bass Guitar it handles the low end very well and doesn't fart out though.

When played loudly the Treble mellows a bit and it lightly compressess. Something that is common with AlNiCo speakers in general.

The right 15" can be a clear big sounding speaker, but so to can a 12" or a pair (or quad) of 10"s.

What in particular do you NOT like about the current speaker configuration?

Perhaps an easier way to resolve your tone troubles is available without having to rip out and re-baffle.

like a trash bag full of vegetable soup hitting the pavement from 12 floors up.:mrgreen:

The 15 will feel quite different than multiple 10s. Slower response. No less responsive, but on a different schedule. Hard to generalize about sound, but overall, rounder, somewhat deeper sounding than multiple 10s. Of course, you could say the exact same thing about 12s too. Crash said it well. No more bass than a similar 15, but somehow it spreads the sound better. In a gainy, cathode bias tweed type (like the Pro), a 15 gets this juicy sound. Hard to describe, but that's what I love about these big speakers.

Thinking of possibly putting a 1x15 into my tweed Bassman RI and wondered what the general sonic characteristics of a 15 inch speaker would be.

I play alot of rock, and would like a nice fat clean sound (bright, but full), but also something that takes pedals well.

Would a 15 do the trick? What are the negatives for a 15 inch speaker? Do they lack punch or the ability to cut through?

I'd be using it w/ either an Esquire or an SG...

No negative in my opinion, all positives.
Single 15's sound great. Fender Black Face Vibroverb 1-15" is one such example.
Consider that a 15" will have a different tone than 4-10"s.
I used an amp with single 15" Jenson and a JBL and they sounded great.
Wish I still had them.

Good luck,
DanD

The Jensen Neo 15-150 sounds fantastic, and makes your amp easier to carry! :mrgreen:

The Jensen Neo 15-150 sounds fantastic, and makes your amp easier to carry! :mrgreen:



I've got a Jensen Neo 12-100 that I just LOVE. I'd like to give their 15" version a spin as well :)

The Reissue Jensen P15N sounds great-very warm and smooooooth. Hard to go wrong with it. Just a reminder..you must break in any brand new speaker before it performs it's best.

I used to have a 15" D-130 JBL in my '56 Pro Amp,and it was golden.