Should I recone this Jensen

[kfowler8]

I picked up a 1960's Supro Bantam yesterday. Really cool little amp. Light as can be. It has an 8" Jensen Special Edition speaker. Based on the code 2200913, I believe it's 1969.

The speaker has several tears in it. Is thing worth reconing? I know some of these 8" aren't that desirable. What do you think?

 

[rabidhamster]

You could or you could just buy another one they aren’t terribly rare.
You might be able to save the original baffle and put a new one in for a 10” instead.
If the tears aren’t bad, separate plys of paper towels. Thin wood glue with water, get paper towel ply impregnated with glue and apply to the back of the speaker if able taking care to maintain the cone geometry. Smooth it down so it needs to look like one, allow it to dry a few days and it should be good to go. You may not notice the repair at all in use.

I’ve “rebuilt” speakers with nearly half the cone missing for practice, they still work and sound ok but at that point the tone is definitely impacted.

 

[sonar]

Opinions seem to be split down the middle on this one.

Personally, I don't think there's a modern speaker company that gets the vintage Jensen speaker exactly right. That said, a recone can be a bit of a crap-shoot in itself and doesn't necessarily guarantee old-school vintage goodness.

You can get a pretty decent to good sounding 8" speaker for approximately half the cost of a recone, yet a reconed speaker will increase the financial value of a vintage amp compared to a replacement.

In the end, old speakers from the 40-60's have gone long past their expiration date. You're asking the same question me and a lot of other players ask ourselves every time we deal with old, tired or blown speakers.

 

[kfowler8]

Opinions seem to be split down the middle on this one.

Personally, I don't think there's a modern speaker company that gets the vintage Jensen speaker exactly right. That said, a recone can be a bit of a crap-shoot in itself and doesn't necessarily guarantee old-school vintage goodness.

You can get a pretty decent to good sounding 8" speaker for approximately half the cost of a recone, yet a reconed speaker will increase the financial value of a vintage amp compared to a replacement.

In the end, old speakers from the 40-60's have gone long past their expiration date. You're asking the same question me and a lot of other players ask ourselves every time we deal with old, tired or blown speakers.

That’s one thing I’ve read is even if not torn, many of these speakers would benefit from a reconing.

 

[goldtop0]

The cone can be repaired if the tears aren't too bad......but then again buying another speaker may be the cheaper option.

 

[Duane_the_tub]

I had the speaker in my Champ redone with an NOS, vintage-accurate cone. They're not easy to find, but they're out there.

 

[StudioFan]

May I suggest the Eminence Patriot 8 , with hemp cone ?

https://imgur.com/tblN2ce

Is yours similar to this original ?

https://imgur.com/a/aAqpDHr

https://imgur.com/HGAiH6r

 

[sonar]

I had the speaker in my Champ redone with an NOS, vintage-accurate cone. They're not easy to find, but they're out there.

Strange that someone hasn’t properly spec’d authentic recone kits?

 

[Duane_the_tub]

Strange that someone hasn’t properly spec’d authentic recone kits?

Yep, my amp tech said the same thing. A standard replacement cone apparently has some significant structural differences from a vintage-correct one (mine was a '58). If the old saying "the tone is in the cone" really holds true, someone could make a nice chunk of change with vintage-correct replacement cones.

 

[kfowler8]

May I suggest the Eminence Patriot 8 , with hemp cone ?

https://imgur.com/tblN2ce

Is yours similar to this original ?

https://imgur.com/a/aAqpDHr

https://imgur.com/HGAiH6r

Yes. Very similar

 

[mdubya]

I would not recone.

If the tears bother you, you could dab them with silicone.

The tears are probably not negatively affecting the sound. jmho.

 

[goldtop0]

Yep, my amp tech said the same thing. A standard replacement cone apparently has some significant structural differences from a vintage-correct one (mine was a '58). If the old saying "the tone is in the cone" really holds true, someone could make a nice chunk of change with vintage-correct replacement cones.

I know that in the case of Celestion with their recone kits and speakers, the much revered pulsonic cones cannot be reproduced now due to a different mix of pulp being used in the cone production, hence the tonal difference between '60s to mid '70s Celestions and today's ones. And as is said above, tone is in the cone.
It's quite marked between the old and newer speakers in this case.........the old ones have the better tone to my ears.