- Jensen Loudspeakers
Jensen Loudspeakers is a company that manufactures speakers in many different models and sizes, originally located in Chicago, IL. They built a reputation during the 50's and 60's providing speakers used mainly in guitar and bass amplifiers. Though the American company is long gone, "reissue" speakers are currently made in
Italy . Jensen Loudspeakers is now a brand owned byAudiovox .The current
Fender Twin Reverb amp uses two 12" Jensen C-12K speakers.Model numbers
Jensen speakers used a model number that contained 4 to 6 characters.
The first character denotes the magnet type used.
*FN = Field Coil
*P =Alnico
*C =Ceramic magnet These are listed in the order in which they were made, with the P line starting in the 1940s and the C line starting around the 1960s.
The next one or two characters denotes speaker size (8 = 8", 10 = 10" and so on).
The last character denotes power handling. The codes are no longer the same as the original vintage Jensen models.
Currently:
*K = 100 W
*N = 50 W
*Q = 35 W
*R = 25 WThese aspects together make up the speaker's model number. For example: a Jensen C8R speaker is eight inches in size, has 25 W power, and has a ceramic magnet.
All Jensen speakers also include a date and manufacturer's code. Jensen's code is 220. Accompanying the company specific (EIA) code (220) is the last digit of the year and the 2 digits of the week manufactured, creating a 6 digit code usually imprinted on the speaker edge or the magnet housing. Thus a code of 220534 would denote a Jensen speaker manufactured in either 1955 or 1965 on the 34th week of that year. Most speaker (and other electronic component) manufacturers began adding the last 2 digits of the year in the 1970s, so the 6 digit code became a 7-digit code.
At one time, Jensen speakers were manufactured in the United States. The US importer for Jensen loudspeakers, [http://www.cedist.com CE Distribution] , states that Jensen speakers are currently manufactured in Italy by [http://www.sicaspeakers.com Sica Loudspeakers] [http://www.sica.it/home/index.asp] .
External links
* [http://www.jensen.com/ Jensen homepage]
* [http://www.jensenvintage.com/index.htm Jensen Loudspeakers homepage]
* [http://www.jukebox-revival.nl/catalog/index.php/cPath/96_97 Jensen speakers catalog]
* [http://www.sica.it/home/index.asp]
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