I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

[dystrust]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

I know that I'm not supposed to like the GT12-75T's in it, but so far I DO... lol

T75s really are a pretty good speaker when they're set up right. If you want to hear how great they really can sound, pull all of the wiring out of your cabinet and replace it with 16 gauge wire. All of the fizz will be gone to be replaced by clear highs and really tight bass.

 

[Red_Label]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

T75s really are a pretty good speaker when they're set up right. If you want to hear how great they really can sound, pull all of the wiring out of your cabinet and replace it with 16 gauge wire. All of the fizz will be gone to be replaced by clear highs and really tight bass.

No kidding? Wow. I will definitely have to try that. May even do it this weekend!

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

In the same way that I like to have all the various amp flavours, I'm starting to collect different speaker flavours so I can further widen the range of sounds I can get. My plan is to eventually have V30s, H30s, fanes, Greenbacks, and alnico 10s and 12s to choose from...

There ya go...great plan! I have a stash of old Jensen 10's and 12's as well as quite a few differant Celestion 12's. Most of them are in amps though...not in boxes. But I have a few in boxes too! LOL! The G12H30 and Vintage 30 seem to sound great in just about anything, whereas the G12 Alnico Blue seems to sound best in Vox Ac-30 type amps or warm toned cathode biased tweed Fenders like the tweed Deluxe. It can sound way to bright with some amps.

I have a pair of mid 60's Celestion G12 Silver alnicos in a two x 12 Matchless bottem...nothing modern sounds great through them including my Matchless Chieftan and SC30. But a Vox AC-30 sounds killer through them!

Isn't that odd? The Matchless SC-30 should sound great through them...but it doesn't.

Lew

 

[Hot _Grits]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

There ya go...great plan! I have a stash of old Jensen 10's and 12's as well as quite a few differant Celestion 12's. Most of them are in amps though...not in boxes. But I have a few in boxes too! LOL! The G12H30 and Vintage 30 seem to sound great in just about anything, whereas the G12 Alnico Blue seems to sound best in Vox Ac-30 type amps or warm toned cathode biased tweed Fenders like the tweed Deluxe. It can sound way to bright with some amps.

I have a pair of mid 60's Celestion G12 Silver alnicos in a two x 12 Matchless bottem...nothing modern sounds great through them including my Matchless Chieftan and SC30. But a Vox AC-30 sounds killer through them!

Isn't that odd? The Matchless SC-30 should sound great through them...but it doesn't.

Lew

Weird. I've heard voxes through G30/H30 combinations and they sound great. Maybe matchlesses are somehow pickier.

I must try the blue with my Victoria double Deluxe. I've tried H30s with that amp and I thought it was killer.

I got my amp tech to build a heavy duty speaker cable with a female jack at one end and a male jack at the other, So I can plug any of my heads or combos into any speakers I have lying around. It's great for in the studio, and you don't have to balance your amp head on a chair right behind a combo if you want to use a combo's speakers.

 

[SoCalSteve]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

In regards to the perceived prominent mids of the V30, I had a Governor in my combo (closed back) for about a month so I was really able to get a good feel for the speaker. One day about two weeks ago I decided to put the V30 back in. I played through the amp, immediately replaced the Governor with the V30 and the V30 actually sounded like the mids were scooped compared to the very mid-heavy Governor.

There are some great speakers out there including the Governor, Wizard, C Rex, Greenback, etc., but I 've really come to appreciate the Vintage 30 in a closed back cabinet.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

In regards to the perceived prominent mids of the V30, I had a Governor in my combo (closed back) for about a month so I was really able to get a good feel for the speaker. One day about two weeks ago I decided to put the V30 back in. I played through the amp, immediately replaced the Governor with the V30 and the V30 actually sounded like the mids were scooped compared to the very mid-heavy Governor.

There are some great speakers out there including the Governor, Wizard, C Rex, Greenback, etc., but I 've really come to appreciate the Vintage 30 in a closed back cabinet.

I agree. I hear a sense of openess or spaciousness or "air" to the mids of the V-30 and the mids in the G12H30 are similar but thicker. I guess you could call the mids in the V-30 scooped...but I hear them as being less dense and airier...because the V-30 has alot of mids, they're just not all dense and stuffy.

And what you say about the Emmy Governor is also true.

I've heard a few "clones" of V30's and none had the open lively spacious voice to the mids that a real V30 has. The clones all sounded denser and thicker and just not quite as "good" as the Celestion V30.

Ted Weber used to make a clone of the V30 he called a C12B...and he would get frustrated with me when I told him the mids lacked the transparancy and "breath" of a real V30.

Guess he couldn't hear it or didn't like that quality or something...I dunno. But he'd get a little tweaked about it...and the guys who hang out on Ted's webpage (Amps N More BBS) would REALLY get tweaked when I'd mention that I prefered Celestions. I haven't posted there in years.

Ted used to send me speakers to test drive. I always liked his speakers, but I always prefered the Celestion speaker he was copying rather than his version of it.

I feel the same way about the Emmy's...they're very good (even excellant!) they don't sound like a real Celestion, and the real Celestion is the sound I have in my head.

Lew

 

[Luke Duke]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

Quick correction I meant to say in my other post that the 80s were closest to a CLASSIC Lead, not a Modern Lead.

:smack:

Carry on!

Luke

 

[Luke Duke]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

Yeah, must be! But I feel like the guy who didn't get the memo for something, and now everyone is looking at him like he's got 2 heads. I've tried to like these speakers but for some reason I just can't! Then again, I also love Classic Lead 80's and Greenbacks... I think my Avatar 4x12 is going to have 2 Greenbacks and 2 Classic Lead 80's. The_Chris has his Bogner loaded with 2 CL80's and 2 G12H30's, and its got a real nice sound. And I LOVE the sound of my Eminence Red Fangs! Tonal heaven in my AC30! I've also thought about trying 2 of those and 2 greenbacks in my 4x12... speakers are tough man, cause they REALLY affect the sound as much as an amp or guitar does.

Bah, don't sweat it man! I feel that way when we discuss the C5! LOL

Luke

 

[Fender_Punk]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

Yes. One of each in a 2 x 12 combo amp or speaker cabinet can sound really, really good! They really compliment each other. That's what Jeremy is suggesting.

Lew

What about two of each in a 4x12 being driven by a 50 watt tube amp playing ska and punk (and U2 and Blues on the side)??

 

[callous_frigid_chill]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

My carvin has a vintage 30, and I have no complaints.

 

[That90'sGuy]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

Part of what people hate about the Vintage 30s, I love. That midrange spike, while it sounds a little harsh when playing solo, cuts and stands out in the mix in a loud band settings AND sounds smooth out in front of the mix. The Vintage 30 never has the ice pick qualities that you can get from other speakers like G12H30 (in fact, I swear the V30 has the highs rolled off just a hint). Lastly, V30s have that tight low end that makes rhythm work.

Joe, don't let modded Vintage 30s skew your perception of what V30s are really all about. The stock Vintage 30s really don't need anything and you don't need more lowend (who knows what adding more lowend does to the rest of the frequency response too?).

 

[Virtual Kevorkian]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

I went through a bunch of speakers in a few different cabs before coming to realize that I just love the sound of a stock Mesa 4x12 - the V30's are perfect for what I do.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

Something else to bear in mind: all speakers sound very differant in a sealed cabinet than they do in an open back cabinet. Usually more bass and smoother highs in a sealed cab...at least that's my perception. The Vintage 30 sounds alot deeper and smoother in a sealed cab, IMO, although I love it in open back combo amps too.

And most Celestions sound better to me than most generic speakers. The G1270 Modern Lead is not my favorite Celesion but I put a pair in a friend's '76 Twin Reverb and they made a HUGE improvement in the tone over whatever was in there. (Some kind of Fender 12" speaker with big magnet...I forget what Fender was using in '76. Maybe CTS? Wasn't a Utah - anything would sound better than a Utah!)

 

[Red_Label]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

Okay,

So I popped-out the speakers in my old Sunn cab yesterday. I've been lugging this thing around for 15+ years thinking it was loaded with V30's. But the speakers say Celestion G12-30 on them (+ 15 ohms and Rolla Celestion). So is that the same is the G12H30's?

I guess now I know why the cab tended to "fart-out" when I pushed with with a 100 watt head with deep mids/lows dialed-in. I had it wired in a 2X8 ohm parallel stereo configuration. I replaced the wire with 16 gauge wire and wired it in a mono 4 ohm config.

I also pulled apart my new (to me) Marshal JCM 900 1960A cab. Serial number says it was made in 1997. Anyways... it also says it's rated at 280 watts -- this seems strange to me as it's loaded with GT12-75T's. ??? I also replaced all the wiring in this cab with 16 gauge wire. And then I had just enough time to run both cabs from my Traynor YCS100 head in 2X4 ohm config for a minute, as it was late and I didn't want my neighbors to complain. I love the sound. Not louder to run 2 4X12's at once, just more full. But I'll be spending more time with this rig today. Most of my gigs are on too small of stages to run 2 4X12's, but I hope to run this setup once in a while.

 

[Luke Duke]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

Okay,

So I popped-out the speakers in my old Sunn cab yesterday. I've been lugging this thing around for 15+ years thinking it was loaded with V30's. But the speakers say Celestion G12-30 on them (+ 15 ohms and Rolla Celestion). So is that the same is the G12H30's?

I guess now I know why the cab tended to "fart-out" when I pushed with with a 100 watt head with deep mids/lows dialed-in. I had it wired in a 2X8 ohm parallel stereo configuration. I replaced the wire with 16 gauge wire and wired it in a mono 4 ohm config.

I also pulled apart my new (to me) Marshal JCM 900 1960A cab. Serial number says it was made in 1997. Anyways... it also says it's rated at 280 watts -- this seems strange to me as it's loaded with GT12-75T's. ??? I also replaced all the wiring in this cab with 16 gauge wire. And then I had just enough time to run both cabs from my Traynor YCS100 head in 2X4 ohm config for a minute, as it was late and I didn't want my neighbors to complain. I love the sound. Not louder to run 2 4X12's at once, just more full. But I'll be spending more time with this rig today. Most of my gigs are on too small of stages to run 2 4X12's, but I hope to run this setup once in a while.

Rola H30s! Very nice!

Some guys dig the 75s, some don't. More than one person blames the wire in the cab for the tone.

Luke

 

[Sludgenutz]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

My experince with V30's is not agood one. It is all subjective, but I found them to be harsh, floppy, and the "spike" people talk about sounded like a big zipper...added onto the top of the tone. These were Brit-built V30's made for Mesa in the 1990's . Even under low volumes, they just seemed like the cones where made out of Pringles potato crisp flour (no I haven't smoked anything). The oversized Recto 2x12 I plucked them from might be too large in interior volume.

I really don't fault the speaker, just the tone under my fingers. I was raised on the EVM12-L. I often tune to "D", and prefer an American tone for my own gear.

God knows, there are seriously heavy players that use them, and my ears have been rocked by others using them, but they are just not my flavor.

 

[jeremy]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

What about two of each in a 4x12 being driven by a 50 watt tube amp playing ska and punk (and U2 and Blues on the side)??

sure. ive used that combo in 2x12 and 4x12 cabs with great success and i play everything from living colour to marvin gaye to allman brothers to johnny cash. those two speakers just give a full, fat tone with good bottom and a good amount of high end to cut thru

 

[OrkestrA]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

I use V30's... i find combining them with other speakers brings the best out of them.

I have an ENGL cab with V60s on the top and V30s on the bottom and its absolutely devastating, truely crushing.

 

[Red_Label]

Re: I've come to the conclusion that the Celestion Vintage 30 is......

I use V30's... i find combining them with other speakers brings the best out of them.

I have an ENGL cab with V60s on the top and V30s on the bottom and its absolutely devastating, truely crushing.

I learned this fact this weekend. I rewired my Marshall 1960A with 16 gauge wire, and then I did the same with my old G12-30H loaded Sunn cab. I also wired the Sunn cab back to mono @ 4 ohms (it had been wired stereo at 2X8 ohms). So then I ran both cabs from my Traynor YCS-100. I've never run 2 4X12 cabs at the same time in 23 years of playing (never had 2 of them to run at one time). All I can say is WOW! I feel like Moses after he came down from Mt. Sanai and had the gray hair and everything... lol. I have "changed". I'll never be the same again! It was simply AWESOME. The two cabs were sitting side by side (as opposed to stacked vertically) and the sound was SO full and fat. It almost seemed to be stereo. There seems to be ever so the slightest delay between the time the sound leaves one set of speakers and the time it leaves the other. It's not even measurable, just enough to really fatten the sound. For the first time I can crank the sound up on the master volume and it doesn't seen to hurt my ears. Just a very full, pleasant sound.

Since I dreamt of playing rock/metal guitar as a child, I always envisioned standing in front of a wall of Marshall cabs and FEELING the sound that was coming out. And for the first time in over 20 years of playing pro/semi-pro, I DO feel that sound. Now it's going to suck to play through anything but at least a pair of 4X12 cabs for me. I'm going to work on getting another head to run stereo and another pair of 4X12's. More really is better!