Why Does the Size of a Guitar Amp Matter?

These days, it's becoming more widely understood by the average player how important a role speakers play in their overall tone. With this in mind, it's no surprise that the market for upgraded speakers has become so popular. But with so many brands, styles and size combinations to choose from, it can be a difficult task to figure out which speaker is best for you. The most popular format is easily the 12-inch Speaker, but with an increasing number of quality 10-inch and some interesting 15-inch speakers available, the best way to know which one is best for you is to understand the role size plays in the overall sound quality of your subwoofer.

Speaker design and sound quality

Almost every aspect of a Guitar Speaker plays a role in its inherent tone. Some of the more important components are the voice coil, magnet assembly, and cone. Other factors include suspension, surround, dust cover, and cone finish. In addition, the way these components interact with each other also plays a large role in the overall sound.

Guitar Speaker

While these interactions can be very complex, they are still based on the rules of physics, which means that manufacturers have a pretty good idea of what certain parts of a speaker will look like.

Speaker Manufacturers use these guidelines to find the right combination of all these factors to achieve a certain tone. For example, imagine that we want to use a small speaker with a thin and light cone. This type of cone will have more intense vibration patterns than a thicker cone, which is more resistant to these vibrations. This results in a richer, more complex harmonic sound, but if we use the same diaphragm thickness for a larger diameter speaker, that diaphragm may lack the stiffness needed to withstand the planned power handling, which means it may buckle under the action of a moving voice coil. In this case, there is some trade-off between tone and power handling, requiring the designer to make musical and technical choices to achieve the best of both worlds.

Size and sound quality

Thus, we see that attributes like size, harmonic complexity, power handling and high range dispersion are clearly related in the design process. In most cases, 10-, 12- and 15-inch speakers offer a balance of warmth and bite, plus the necessary volume to compete with other instruments in the mix.

While there are certainly 8-inch and even 6-inch speakers, they are still best suited for use at home or in practice situations where they do not provide the necessary amount of power for playing purposes. On the other hand, there are 18-inch speakers, but they tend to emphasize the low end and are not practical for the guitar's range. Their extreme power handling capabilities and physical size also make them impractical.

Electric guitars sit on a spectrum roughly between 70Hz and 5kHz, so guitar speakers don't really need to reproduce any frequencies outside that range. it's no coincidence that 12-inch speakers are popular in guitars, as most of them fall within those parameters. the Celestion Vintage 30 is a perfect example. That's not to say that 10-inch and 15-inch don't have something to offer.

Quality 10-inch speakers typically deliver fast, powerful sound with a wider listening angle and less "boom," especially on smaller stages. They're also more portable, cost less, and have the ability to push your amp into overdrive at much lower levels than larger speakers, making them a popular choice for recording or practice sessions. A well-designed 15 can move more air and features a vocal range that can be more detailed and extended in the low end, with lots of detail and harmonic complexity, giving a surprising sense of richness.

Which one is right for you?

Ideally, you'll want a couple of different setups because each one has different attributes that make it more suitable for different situations. But if you have to choose one size - at least for now - you'll have to weigh your current needs. If you're looking for a good quality amp for home or recording, but don't want to break the bank, then a 10-inch speaker setup makes the most sense.