Best 10 Inch Guitar Speakers [2020 Updated]

Posted in Recording & Audio Equipment | Last Updated on May 1, 2020

So you're thinking about replacing the speakers in your guitar amp? Yes, you can upgrade or change it at any point. Therefore, no matter if you've got a combo or stack there are modifications you'll be able to make to get your sound. Eminence, Celestion, and Jensen are the 3 main speaker builders in the world which can be found in the amplifiers you are seeing all over.

Generally speaking, your best choice is what comes in your amp because those speakers have been tested and compared with others, with the final goal to find what works best. Replacement with a more desirable speaker, or swapping a faulty one, isn't always just a matter of putting in a new, expensive speaker. Comprehensive information regarding the general characteristics of various speaker can be found all over the web, but this is not enough, therefore we tested 10s of models to find out what the top brands are really offering.

Here is a list of some of the most well-liked guitar amp speaker models and what they sound like.

Reviews of Our Top 6 Best 10 Inch Guitar Speakers

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Eminence Patriot Ragin Cajub 10 Inch Guitar Speaker

The Ragin Cajun delivers monstrous sound for a 10” speaker, producing open sound over the frequency range even within the bottom end. Bottom end a lack of smaller amps. It got a warm controlled mid-range. The high end is crisp and energetic. It produces exactly what your amplifier has to offer. One of the most effective things regarding the Ragin Cajun is that it will sound glorious in any cabinet form.

Whether your amp is closed or open-backed, this speaker can provide a solid tone with simply the right amount of an edge. It is very efficient and brings the volume up to almost any 10" cabinet. It might be ideal for the country, blues, or rock genres. It’s without a dilemma one among the best 10” speakers.

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Jensen Vintage C10R 10-Inch Guitar Speaker

Even if you do not have tons of money, you'll be able to get an excellent tone with a Jensen C10R. This speaker got a constant, steady tone within the mid and high-range with a transparent and sweet low range. Its open sound makes it the perfect speaker for the rhythm guitarists. Players that like using overdrive and distortion effects also will enjoy the sonic qualities of this speaker, which supplies the tone a pleasant extra pluck.

The smaller magnet additionally lowers the weight of the speaker in your cabinet, making your set-up easier to carry. This is probably a less important factor than the sound, however a nice addition. No doubt this one of the best 10” guitar speakers for the money.

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Celestion G10 Greenback 10 Inch Guitar Speaker

This could be the best 10” guitar speaker on the list for jazz players. The friendly sound of the Celestion G10 also makes it a popular choice amongst acoustic players and blues guitarists. The bass is strong without making the boom, and the heavy low end deepens the sound without losing the detail on fret or fingerpicks.

Celestion might be wonderful for use on its own on small stages or other private settings. The G10 can also be matched perfectly with a brighter speaker in a larger cabinet. This could offer a warm blues tone to your overall sound.

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Celestion G10 Gold

The Celestion G10 Gold 10” is definitely Celestion’s top-of-the-line 10” guitar speakers. Featuring an Alnico magnet, the G10 Gold is voiced to join the characteristics of the famous Celestion Blue 12” speaker with the fast response of a smaller driver. It provides a smooth, clear midrange and strong, punchy bass which sounds fabulous. There are a slight dynamic stiffness and harmonic timidness in the upper register. After a couple of days using it, the speaker was way too smoother and richer. The amp sounds less plump and significantly more wide and bright.

While still sounds like a loud, overdriven Marshall guitar amp, the Celestion Gold really evened out some of the rough edges of the amp and brought some nice shine to the top end. This speaker is definitely the number one choice. Worth every penny.

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Classic Speaker Celestion G10 Vintage 60

The Vintage model features enormously full and complex tones, a warm low-end, a well known rich mid-range and a remarkably precise top-end. Used only to expose the complexities in fancy amps, or in ensembles for a well-involved vintage 30 crunches. Performed with overdrive distortion, it presents a crisp crunch. A nice boost for any amp. Plays quite loud with very little power and the more you push it, the better it sounds. It wants to be driven hard and dirty.

Expensive but worth it for making sure you get the sound you look after. Dimebag Darrell, Slash, Kurt Cobain and Zakk Wylde used Celestion speakers at most of their careers. Not only does it sound more quality it actually sounds louder at any volume. We would recommend this speaker to anyone that wants to upgrade their old cabs.

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Eminence Legend 1058 speaker 10

When you need a little more power, the Eminence Legend speaker is perfect as a universal 10-inch replacement. It has been and remains to be original equipment in many of your favorite cabinets. It produces a lot of punch and crunch. Overdrive sounds great. Also, the speaker maintains a full-fat sound as the volume goes up. The sound is very crisp with a fat low-end and lots of honk. It could be a perfect speaker for anyone playing country, blues, or rockabilly.

This speaker works great with Rickenbacker guitars. Eminence Guitar Legends are specifically designed for electric guitar amplifiers. Features vintage magnet and cone materials to recreate the legendary tone of lead and jazz guitar.

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ALNICO vs. CERAMIC MAGNETS

Up till the late 70’s, most high-end speaker manufactures used Alnico magnets thanks to their more significant energy/weight ratio. At the beginning of 1978, all major manufacturers switched to ferrite (ceramic) drivers. The switch to ferrite was in response to a crisis scenario whereby Alnico became entirely unavailable.

A war in Zaire led to the complete embargo of the world’s only source of economic cobalt used in Alnico. This is why, in less than one year, each major Alnico speaker manufacturer had switched to ceramic. The ceramic conversion had the exact same magnetic energy of Alnico drivers they replaced. To be able to continue production of the speaker systems, the ceramic bass drivers had to be the exact sonic equivalents of the Alnico drivers they replaced.

Otherwise, the whole systems would need to be re-engineered and there was no time to try and do this. The basket, cone, and suspension remained identical.

There are 3 main benefits of Alnico over ceramic magnets:

- greater immunity to flux modulation
- greater heat stability
- bigger suitability to shielded applications

There is also one crucial disadvantage. Alnico is vulnerable to demagnetization thanks to massive voice coil currents. None of those differences are absolute. It's possible to design out all of the restrictions of every material.

However, the problem is the price. In the same manner, Alnico drivers can be designed to be resistant to demagnetization from overpowering. We believe the modern ceramic drivers are superior to the vintage Alnico styles.

SPEAKER DISTORTION

When we talk about speaker distortion, we tend to mean a sort of distortion distinct from amplifier distortion that's generated once a driver is pushed close to its operational limits. The sound coil and paper cone begin to fail to provide the electrical signal clearly, and, as a result, offers some kind of distorted performance. When the sound coil begins to saturate, the paper cone starts to flap and vibrate on the far side its capability.

Then the magnet’s performance compresses, and also the entire electro-mechanical system that makes up a speaker cooperates to bring its own sort of fuzz to the compound. The concept of such distortion is typically confusing as a result of it usually happens on top of any distortion the amplifier itself is manufacturing.

The dist triggered by a high gain preamp level or a floored output stage will usually be heard on its own. Once an amp is played through high-powered speakers that refuse to distort (or distort very little), even underneath high-output conditions. In most cases, once an amp is raging, you hear a bit of each.

British vs. American Sound

As you are thinking about buying a speaker for your guitar amp, you might see it mentioned to as having a British or an American sound. There are no rules as to what makes a speaker British or American. Generally speaking, American-style amps and speakers are brighter and cleaner.

The British sound provides warmer and darker sound with clear higher tones and a powerful mid-range. Basically, the difference is where certain brands are produced. American sound/tone is most generally matched with Fender, while British sound is associated with Vox and Marshall.