FANE!!!!!

[efk]

A speaker which I hear remarkably *little* about is the Fane AXA12 - these are the blue alnico Fane speakers that are rated for 100 FREAK-IN WATTS yes that's right, 100 watts each. I've had a good number of old pulsonic cone (the 003 cone) Vox silver alnico speakers, and I am always trying to find that tone in a modern speaker. Or maybe, that tone crossed with an old pre-rola greenback cab. I don;t really know, its just a sound I have in my head and I'm never happy. For quite a while I felt that Celestion Golds were pretty damn close. They are great speakers, good honky and woody sound while being clear also. however, after awhile, they started to grate on my ear. They're a bit TOO clear, even after putting a lot of hours through them. There is something harsh in there that I can't seem to ignore. Tried Scumbacks too, the Weber made ones, and they have a great sound also but there was something lacking there - maybe a bit too dull (which might be a good thing for certain amps...). Anyway, I picked up a used Fane AXA12 at a really good price for a 1X12 that I was going to sell, but it sounded so damn good that I used something else and held onto it. I sold off my golds, and was looking for something to fill an empty Mojo 2X12 open back that I like to use with my JTM type amps. So I stuck the Fane in there with a Weber blue, and there were some freaking GREAt sounds coming out of that cab. Fast forward a bit, and I saw that a company here in the US was dealing in these Fanes (but not cheaply, that's for sure). On a whim, I grabbed another and replaced the Weber. HOLY SHIT!!! This is it for me, I'm done. Seriously. Now to be honest, there's nothing special there when the volume is dialed way down, but when you start hitting them with some volume and some overdrive, they spring to life like nobody's business. I;'ve never heard anything like this out of anything I own. Just had to share this with people - Iv'e been on this Fane high for a few months now and they still sound absolutely as great as they did when I loaded both in there - no abatement of the 'wow that's a great new sound' high. If you love the old Celestion alnico sound, I'd urge anyone to try these.

BTW, I had read some reviews of these somewhere that seemed to indicate that these were not as mid-rich as most Brit speakers; I can;t disagree enough, and believe me, I love my honky mids more than anything.

 

[dlmorley]

I'm interested in the new fanes. Look great. Not cheap, but sound like they are worth it!
Cool info. Thx

 

[danny2plus2]

Fane there is no substitute! I run 2x AXA12 in a Traynor Mark 3 (2002 models). With master volume they sound great at low levels and when I can crank it they sound better. I think it's the cones.

 

[1fastdog]

Fane outdid themselves when they did these speakers. Nice score! They are interesting speakers when the grind and volume is up. Not the finesse of Celestion golds with cleanish stuff. They do cross a line between an vintage Alnico/Greenback sort of vibe. Loud is the trick, IMO. Their pricetag really hurt their viability as a speaker that was really interesting to a wider acceptance.
They aren't made any longer, AFAIK.

 

[danny2plus2]

Fane outdid themselves when they did these speakers. Nice score! They are interesting speakers when the grind and volume is up. Not the finesse of Celestion golds with cleanish stuff. They do cross a line between an vintage Alnico/Greenback sort of vibe. Loud is the trick, IMO. Their pricetag really hurt their viability as a speaker that was really interesting to a wider acceptance.
They aren't made any loger, AFAIK.

What is AFAIK?

 

[slammintone]

AFAIK= as far as I know... AFAIK does not = a fake!

 

[dlmorley]

http://www.fane-acoustics.com/axiom_series.aspx
http://www.fane-acoustics.com/medusa_series.aspx

 

[1fastdog]

http://www.fane-acoustics.com/axiom_series.aspx
http://www.fane-acoustics.com/medusa_series.aspx

Good to know, I thought the Blue series were finished...:salude

 

[Mitchell]

Im a long time FANE fan, congrats on your discovery...:salude

 

[jamisonlps]

The Fane AXA is an awesome speaker, you can hear and compare them here: http://www.watfordvalves.com/soundfactory.asp

That said, I have a WGS Blackhawk 50 alnico that smokes. I know several guys that have demo'd Golds, Fanes and EV SRO's and say the WGS Blackhawk 100 smokes them all. I have not owned the 100w BH myself; only the Celestion Gold and BH50. The BH50 smokes the Gold. I also love the 25w T652 silver alnico's that Marshall had made for the 40th Ann. JTM45 stack. I've tried Scumnico's, Emi Canis Major and Red Fangs but the BH50 is the best alnico I've tried.

I would love to put a Fane AXA and BH100 head to head one of these days.

 

[danny2plus2]

The Fane AXA is an awesome speaker, you can hear and compare them here: http://www.watfordvalves.com/soundfactory.asp

That said, I have a WGS Blackhawk 50 alnico that smokes. I know several guys that have demo'd Golds, Fanes and EV SRO's and say the WGS Blackhawk 100 smokes them all. I have not owned the 100w BH myself; only the Celestion Gold and BH50. The BH50 smokes the Gold. I also love the 25w T652 silver alnico's that Marshall had made for the 40th Ann. JTM45 stack. I've tried Scumnico's, Emi Canis Major and Red Fangs but the BH50 is the best alnico I've tried.

I would love to put a Fane AXA and BH100 head to head one of these days.

I'll bring mine. Just kiddin' My Jenny NEO'S Sound great too! There are alot of good speakers being made today.

 

[Hiwatts-n-Gibsons]

Did somebody say FANE?

I am a confirmed speakerholic, with a nice rounded selection of Fanes, EV's, and more than a couple beloved Celestion models thrown into the mix.

I love the AXA12, and the best way I can describe them is to quote an ancient guitar mag reviewer who described them as "an iron fist in a velvet glove." Absolutely on point.

I love the mid-forward grind when driven, and the never harsh sweet dark cleans that when hit hard get that harmonically rich Greenback like breakup only with more low midrange authority. Throatier grind than my ex on powerchords, silky vocal single notes runs, and darkly sweet sparkling clean chords strummed or clearly picked.

Honestly speaking to my ears they coukd use a little more lowend punch, but that might take away from their sweet midrange grind, so I have mine mixed with a pair of G12H30 (55hz) Celestions. To be fair I play a lot of metal, and for rock and roll, blues, and especially jazz they are lacking nothing, pure perfection to me.

That cab is so warm and ballsy, but with silky sweet cleans that crunch up perfectly when hit with some real volume.

My current Fane Pack includes;

2 AXA12
2 Medusa 30
4 vintage Purples in a '70s Hiwatt 4x12
1 POP 20 watt with 75hz Pulsonic Cone
1 POP 25 watt with 55hz Pulsonic Cone
1 Studio 12L
1 Crescendo A

You might say I have a thing for them.

The two Medusa's are in a 4x12 with 2 alnico Coffee Can EV SRO 12's.

The two POP's are in an open back 2x12 which is usually piggybacked with a closed back 1x15 cab housing a Coffee Can EV SRO15.

The Crescendo A is in a 1x12 I use alternately for low volume bass playing when my SWR Goliath III 4X10 is too much, or clean guitar tones.

The Studio 12L is currently sitting in a box in storage until I get another or a Medusa 150 to pair with it.

While the AXA12 doesn't top my alnico Coffee Can SRO12's as my favorite all around all time speaker, they are not far behind either. They do some things the SRO's don't and vice versa. The SRO's will always sound bigger and meaner, with insane toothy grind and incredible clarity, where the AXA12''s will always sound softer and sweeter with a warmer and furrier grind. The SRO cleans are bold, clear, and chimey. The AXA12 cleans are darker, more relaxed, and silky smooth. If the AXA12 is an "iron fist in a velvet glove", then the alnico SRO is an iron fist in a metal spiked leather glove.

 

[Hiwatts-n-Gibsons]

The Fane AXA is an awesome speaker, you can hear and compare them here: http://www.watfordvalves.com/soundfactory.asp

That said, I have a WGS Blackhawk 50 alnico that smokes. I know several guys that have demo'd Golds, Fanes and EV SRO's and say the WGS Blackhawk 100 smokes them all. I have not owned the 100w BH myself; only the Celestion Gold and BH50. The BH50 smokes the Gold. I also love the 25w T652 silver alnico's that Marshall had made for the 40th Ann. JTM45 stack. I've tried Scumnico's, Emi Canis Major and Red Fangs but the BH50 is the best alnico I've tried.

I would love to put a Fane AXA and BH100 head to head one of these days.

Smokes them all? ?

Imo the alnico Coffee Can EV SRO12 is the ultimate guitar speaker. There is not a single stamped frame speaker ever made that can match its punch, articulation, and huge sound when driven or clean. From gorgeous roots cleans dripping with depth and chimey highs, to huge high gain distortion and fuzz tones with teeth and balls nothing I have ever tried comes close. The alnico compression and mojo paired with the authoritative voice of a cast frame speaker is unparalleled in my experience, and my experience with alnico and ceramic speakers, both stamped frame and cast frame in construction is pretty vast.

I have or have had in my pack...

All the Fanes I listed above.

Celestion;

Every model of V30 ever produced for Marshall, Mesa, and non OEM Celestions

Heritage G12H30's (55hz)

Celestion Anniversary G12H30's

Vintage G12H100's (which I prefer by far to all V30's)

Vintage G12-65 (75 hz)

Vintage G12-65 (55 hz)

Celestion Fullback 15's

Electro Voice;

Alnico Coffee Can SRO12's

Ceramic SRO12

Coffee Can SRO15's

Vintage OEM EVM12L's from the early '80s

Not a single one comes close to the perfect blend of texture, authority, chime, grind, and punch the Coffee Can SRO12's produce from every amp I have ever paired them with. Whether vintage or modern flavored, and whether low or high wattage the SRO always yields everything I want in an ideal guitar speaker and nothing I don't.

 

[Hiwatts-n-Gibsons]

The Fane AXA is an awesome speaker, you can hear and compare them here: http://www.watfordvalves.com/soundfactory.asp

That said, I have a WGS Blackhawk 50 alnico that smokes. I know several guys that have demo'd Golds, Fanes and EV SRO's and say the WGS Blackhawk 100 smokes them all. I have not owned the 100w BH myself; only the Celestion Gold and BH50. The BH50 smokes the Gold. I also love the 25w T652 silver alnico's that Marshall had made for the 40th Ann. JTM45 stack. I've tried Scumnico's, Emi Canis Major and Red Fangs but the BH50 is the best alnico I've tried.

I would love to put a Fane AXA and BH100 head to head one of these days.

Adding to my previous reply fwiw I am not hating on WGS one bit. I have owned their Vet 30, ET65, and ET90 speakers and was quite fond of each. I am definitely a fan of their products.

Personally I would love to see them offer a high wattage (between 65-100 watts) cast frame smooth cone clone of the alnico SRO12, and would be among the first in line to purchase them if they did so

 

[Dave P]

One of my tone nerd friends is really digging his new Fanes. I haven't tried the new ones, but the old ones were pretty cool.

 

[gitmohair]

Don't know anything about the new ones, but back in the 70s over here (UK) Fanes were the "poor man's choice". Could sound good in a 4/12 mind you with a beefy amp. Glad to hear they're still about.

 

[Hiwatts-n-Gibsons]

Don't know anything about the new ones, but back in the 70s over here (UK) Fanes were the "poor man's choice". Could sound good in a 4/12 mind you with a beefy amp. Glad to hear they're still about.

That's really odd considering they are built with cast frames, pulsonic cones (on the vintage models), and are in most cases a good bit more robust in construction and even in some cases utilize more expensive spring loaded wire couplings versus tag boards.

 

[gitmohair]

That's really odd considering they are built with cast frames, pulsonic cones (on the vintage models), and are in most cases a good bit more robust in construction and even in some cases utilize more expensive spring loaded wire couplings versus tag boards.

Maybe. But they weren't the "thing to have". I'm not saying they were crap, just undesirable (and cheaper than the "desirable" alternatives). Different times, and all that, and (practically) different demands being placed on them than might be now, too, TBF.

 

[Hiwatts-n-Gibsons]

One of my tone nerd friends is really digging his new Fanes. I haven't tried the new ones, but the old ones were pretty cool.

The A60 is definitely on my list of potential buys in the future.

 

[Hiwatts-n-Gibsons]

Maybe. But they weren't the "thing to have". I'm not saying they were crap, just undesirable (and cheaper than the "desirable" alternatives). Different times, and all that, and (practically) different demands being placed on them than might be now, too, TBF.

Hear that. Two of mine are Fane POP speakers from the '60s. They are essentially their cast frame Greenback recipe with low wattage and smalliish ceramic mags. I have one 55 hz Pulsonic cone, and one 75 hz Pulsonic cone. They are amazingly sweet sounding speakers that sound good for all kinds of vintage tones. They breakup beautifully and the cleans are gorgeous. I love them paired piggy back on top of my 1x15 housing an SRO15.