How accurate is this demo of the Studio Classic Combo? Scroll to 2:05 where he is using the stock 10" speaker vs before and after with 12" speakers. I think all 3 sounded good (especially the first 2). And that 2:05 was most satisfying. I know that to know for sure if it works for me, I'll have to pull the trigger. But I like how he indicated his settings
@cherrysunburst00 - I wouldn't consider this a realistic comparison of 10" vs 12" speakers with the SC20. First of all the combo is probably designed to sound best with the supplied (10") speaker. But IMO what really invalidates the test is what he says on YT: "No mods were done to the cabinet so a portion of both 12” speakers is blocked by the front of the amp" Basically, wood obstructing a portion of the speaker's surface area. In fact, a 12" speaker has approximately a 30% greater surface area than the 10" speaker (without considering the concavity of the cones). I'm not a physicist but you can bet that interference caused by the obstruction will go a long way toward degrading the larger speaker's performance here. A better comparison would be the combo with its supplied speaker vs the combo's output directed to a proper 1x12 extension cab. I will admit the combo does sound damn good with its 10" speaker. I can also say without a doubt that the SC20H through a 2x12 cab is killer!
Additionally, not having one at all but reading lots on here, it seems the cabinet sounds kindy boxy with a 12 inch speaker. It seems Marshall designed it to work best with a 10 inch amd don't hear any complaints here from members with the combo. Try one amd listen with your ears, not blind opinions about the speaker!
I do not understand the obsession with 12" speakers, especially with lower wattage amps. I personally believe you must match the speaker not only by power but also size depending on the amp's output. There is a reason Marshall and a lot of other brands stick a 10" on an amps around 20watts... You can get proper speaker distortion in my opinion and that is a big factor in a cranked amp's distortion character. I believe a 20watt amp will never push 12" speakers like a 50 or 100 watt monster can. I won't deny that a lower wattage amp can sound terrific thru 12s but I don't think it will ge speaker breakup like a 10 would. Just my completely uneducated opinion haha
For God's sake, forget these tiny 10" speakers. If you're going to play through a little 20w amp, at least run it through a man sized 4x12 cab. ............ (JK)
Hey buddy how you doing? Good to see you here! Looking forward to seeing you more often. That’s truly a bad comparison if this guy did what @Old Punker said, and I’m sure he did if Punker said he did. As far as the SC20 CSB, I don’t have any personal experience with the combo, only the head, I play my head thru a 1-12 cab, so it probably gets similar tones as the combo in the video. I mean it’s not like comparing it to a SC20 thru a 4-12 cab. The tones in this video sound accurate to me all things considered, but there are so many tones this amp is capable of. I didn’t realize how versatile this amp really is, it covers quite a bit of ground. A big part of that is how responsive the volumes and tone stack is. @ken361 has the SC combo and he loves it. He’s posted some clips here, as well as others. Yeah, Marshall hit a home run with this Studio line imo, I’m very happy with mine buddy. Oh one last thing, if you’re still a home player, keep in mind this amp is loud. The five watt setting is manageable for home playing, but in the 20 watt mode it can get a bit loud without an attenuator, imo. I use a Weber Minimass 50 watt attenuator, it does a great job and it’s under $175 last time I looked. Best of luck buddy, I’ll see you around!
GRRRREAT to hear from You too, Homie. Been super busy all week with our return to in-person schooling (yeah really, THIS late--6ish weeks to go ). The G.A.S. is killing me on this one. I may have to treat myself to an end of the school year celebration and get one. You have seemed to be most pleased with the 5 watts; that's what I would most likely be playing it in nearly exclusively. I actually really liked the demo video I posted--the 10" speaker sounded really nice AND I like how he posted his tone and volume settings.
Keep in mind even the 5 watts mode is loud, but with the preamp volume you can get nice tones at low volumes. I played it that way for about 4 months, using both the 20 and the 5 watt modes. Around that time I had decided I wanted to get an attenuator, because I wanted to crank the master to get those EL34s really cooking. I ended up getting a Weber Minimass 50 watt attenuator, I thought I’d give it a shot. It was only around $120 at that time, and it got incredible reviews, so I bought one. It sounds great! Imo this is the best way to use this amp when playing it at home, at least it is for me, and it sounds great using it this way imo! Best of luck treating your gas! See ya around buddy!
SO, I just ordered a Navy Blue one; it's outta stock, but will ship when they get it. YIPPEEEEEEE I'll have to wait to see about an attenuator. I'm hoping for results like the video I posted. That sounds nice. When I want my Power Tube drive, I go to my Fargen, Carl's Custom Amps, OR my SL5 in 1 watt.
