Bought some stereo speakers in the 90’s...the guy in the shop said “be careful you don’t stop listening to the music, and start listening to the speaker, it’s a dangerous path”...wise words...😁😁😁... funny how that stuck in my head....
Many, many, many years ago What Hi-Fi used to run a readers rig page. One annoying twat had a hi-fi, bought using a loan that mummy and daddy had to guarantee, and then said that sometimes he listened to music that he didn’t like, to hear the nuances of the kit, and that he also just sat and looked at it. Never has someone needed a punch in the face more !
@@brymills yea that sounds indeed exceptionally punchable. i personally feel that unless the difference is something i probably can't replicate with EQ and tone knobs, i don't care. i get that with certain gear you want the stock sound as close to what you want to hear. but all this won't matter anyways, if you waste all your practice time with browsing gear. i'd focus mostly on detail in the frequencies since you can always dial back frequencies you don't want...i guess. i'd honestly want more videos about that. trying to make different stuff the same. because then it becomes more about range and versatility i think.
Same goes for actually playing the guitar and not getting caught up in faffing about with NOS valves, pickups, capacitors etc. If you listen to the tone too much you get lost and never play. If you just play then you tend to naturally play to the tone's strengths and weaknesses.
@@layingblacklines best thing to do, buy a 1 pickup guitar. Sometimes more is too much, I see so many people where they are a slave to buying new pedals etc, slow down, dial an amp in have a few pedals but play more, practice more, hone your skills rather than try and buy new skills
@@jebusgod I have several axes with VERY different personalities and they make me play differently in a good way. I also play through a Marshall, an AC 30, a hot rod deluxe and an H&K. All have different speakers. It gives me an incredible experience, it’s just what you’ve into and what you want to carry or pay someone to carry. You can’t be down on folks for what they hear. Hell, we would have never had Jimmy, Stevie Ray, Gilmore etc without lots of different gear and axes.
Pete’s comments in the beginning ala the v30 are so spot on. The awesome sound you get in a bedroom situation is not what you want live. My rule of thumb is dial in my tone, then crank it up, turn the gain down and the mids up. What I end up with is a great live sound that sounds a little weak, and harsh at low volume. Best advice I’ve ever gotten is always play as close as possible to gigging with a drummer volume, and play standing up. If you’re trying to figure something out or create something sitting is ok but if you’re practicing to get better and play live, play loud, and stand up. Imho
As I watchalong: - V30 vs Stock: That V30 upper mids sound just fantastic, I'd cut through with ease.. on the Katana video on cleans just wouldn't sound pleasing, but on this it sounded great clean or with higher gain, to me V30 wins vs stock, even more with gain, the stock just fell apart. - G12M (65W) vs Stock: That G12M turned up just blew the stock away, but on cleans.. it just felt small.. I'd go for the G12M if I'd play higher gains sounds more often. - G12H (75W) vs Stock: On cleans they were pretty close, but if I had to pick one I'd go with the G12H just because I don't put too much bass-end on the sounds I play, and on drive sounds again the G12H, the stock driven just falls short on the comparison. - G12 NEO vs Stock: Cleans on the NEO a bit too thin, when Lee added volume it got better, and again on drive the stock falls apart. At this point I sort of see a theme developing. Drive on the stock is just meh compared to anyother speaker so far. - G12-65(Heritage) vs Stock: On cleans the stock has the edge, not by a lot but enough to make a decision. Now on the driven sounds, that top-end on the G12-65 is great! feels kind of "alive" if that makes any sense. - G12M Greenback vs Stock: The Greenback very sparkly on the cleans, that break up was actually pleasing. On drive is even better! I'd take it any day over the Stock one. Curious to see what it'd sound like with 2 Greenbacks on a 2x12. - G12H Redback vs Stock: Close call on cleans, the Redback seemed a bit brighter but just a touch. And again on driven sounds the stock just sounds muffled. - G12 Ruby vs Stock: This was the closest one so far to the Stock, while typeing this I couldn't really tell them apart. On drive sounds actually not that different, but if I had to choose one I'd go for the Redback. - G12 Cream vs Stock: The top-end on the Creamback is a bit too pokey but sounds great somehow. It might get exahusting after some time but it'd cut through like nothing. - Katana vs Stock: Clean, the Katana was good but not by a landslide really, and driven.. I didn't like any of the two. After jumping around, I'd choose 3: V30, Greenback and Creamback. If a pedal could get the sounds of any of this speakers, I'd buy them instantly. And I love this videos on speakers, really underlooked part of guitar tone and I'm happy that you guys are putting attention to it. Love it!
@@bleromafia When I first heard the stock speaker on cleans I was quite pleased to be fair, but when switching back to it, it sounded to me very distant whilist the V30 really felt "up-front" which is more to my liking.. but yeah, I can totally see your point.
@@JaimeNoro Don't know what he meant but for me listening, the G12H-75 Creamback sounded the best to my ears here and many other videos testing speakers with different amps.
I prefer the good old, easy to buy for 150$, EVM-12L OEM. I have 3 of them and they are incredibly punchy and ear-pleasant, though one of them sounds very differently, despite looking exactly the same.
I know Cap hated it, but I'd love to see more speaker shootouts. Absolutely the best video you have ever done. Speakers, and cabinets make as much difference to your tone as the amp itself. Good decision choosing the SM7b for the mics btw. The larger diagram probably limited the clinical precision of a smaller dynamic mic like an SM57. Each speaker cone will be differently shaped, and impact the tone greatly. Grabbing a larger image of the cone with the larger diaphragm limited this, giving a more general impression of the sound. Great video.
What I'm hearing is that the stock speaker has more mid and low range to help fill in the sound when you're practicing on your own in your bedroom while the aftermarket speakers are all designed to focus more in the mid and hi-end frequencies so it stands out in a mix with a full band.
I agree with Pete: G12H Creamback is a fantastic speaker. Round and warm for clean and tight bottom for overdrive sounds. The Greenback gives you that classic rock crunch. And then there is the V30 with its special upper mids. If you have these three for recording, you are good to do almost anything.
Thank you guys so much for the hard work! This is the most informative video on Speakers and their sounds, I have found so far. It really helped making my decision. Please don't shy away from this sort of effort for your videos, it helps so many viewers to make informed decisions, when they hear the differences with their own ears in combination with your honest opinions. I'm a fan :)
Bruce Zinky used to live around here and be in my circle of friends. He told me years ago that the last thing he did at Fender was design the speaker for the HRD together with Eminence. His marching orders from Fender management were to "make it sound as loud as possible in a music store". It was pretty evident what the initial marketing emphasis was for the amp, to impress neophytes. So you had this very mid forward speaker and a volume control taper that made it sound really powerful at barely any volume setting. He also told me that the weak point of the amp was the output transformer. Which showed up any time you tried to really crank one up. The combination of wimpy OT and mid forward speaker made for a really nasal sound. But if you didn't push it too far, it was like a Tube Screamer in that it cut though a mix well. Great for garage bands and small bar bands that were it's target market. Eventually as they became popular, Fender started making "special editions" with different speakers in them. Starting with the Jensens in the Blues Deluxe. Haven't played an HRD in awhile, but it sounds like they revoiced the speaker to try to compensate for the OT with more bottom end. Back in the day, the Mesa C90 which had a solid bottom was a good choice for beefing up an HRD.
The stock speaker always sounds like it has this haze of "fuzz" coming through with the gain. The Creambacks seem to eliminate that completely and sounds so much more articulate.
I struggled so much with my Blues Junior IV with low end and the fuzz within the gain you mentioned. Low end could just be the cab is small and the fuzz sounds like the Type A speaker, since the BJ4 also has a Type A
Wow, thanks for doing this. What I got out of it: 1) a HRD can certainly sound pretty good!, 2) The type A had that classic American scoped mids with emphasis in the bass and high end that sound good in a room by yourself, but might not sound as good as you get louder and in a band situation, 3) I really liked the G12M-65 and bought one today (before seeing the video) for my HRD that I'm rebuilding, 4) The Alnico Cream certainly sounded a lot richer than all the others, but I'm not sure how that would translate to a warm single coil sound at gig volume, 5) All the speakers sound really good, you can't go wrong with any of the, 6) stock type A is pretty usable and probably not worth replacing. My HRD is older and doesn't have that speaker. Really informative video.
The v30 sounds bright and with not so much low end, works perfectly for high gain tones, but not so much with a clean to overdriven tone. Stock speaker sounds great, wouldn’t replace it unless it breaks, loved the creambacks.
Thank you Lee and Pete for the enormous effort and a big shout out to everyone behind the scenes for producing and editing these video's. It helps people decide if or what speaker they may consider to replace the original in there amp. Watched the shoot out on the Boss Katana 100 mk2 same again interesting as solid state vary in design of speakers compared to valve amps.
Really appreciate this comparison as well as the previous one. Have a V30 in a 1x12 cab that I'm very happy with and really didn't hear anything I thought sounded better. Different for sure but not better. Absolutely sticking with the V30.
Seems to me the "A" type is a good compromise for the clean and drive channel of the amp. Whereas the non-stock speakers seem to highlight the different characteristics of the tone, mainly in the mid-range levels from higher to lower. Great vid guys, didn't skip any parts!
I spent about 3-4 weeks shooting out a WGS G12C/S (USA), WGS ET65 (Brit), Celestion Neo Creamback, Celestion V-Type, and Celestion V30 in a Fender Princeton 65 1x12 Solid State Combo amp, and yes you can definitely go mad, trying to decide which sounds best. Both American and British voiced speakers definitely both sound really good, not one is really better than the other in terms of a pleasurable tone, in my opinion, but I ever so slightly preferred the British flavor in that particular amp, definitely with gain, it just sounds much more aggressive and mean! Cleans were pretty even..I ended up choosing the WGS ET65. Very difficult decision, and dialing in the tone on the amp with the eq knobs definitely helps a ton too! And each speaker needed quite a bit of different shaping too. You can most assuredly get lost in chasing tone, but once you find something that just really hits the spot it's a great feeling!
I agree that the A type was darker in all cases, but in quite a few of the comparisons I liked the stock speaker until I heard the other one. For me, the Creamback G12H was the winner... unless you've got the dosh for the Alnico Creamback. That was gorgeous! I don't use the drive channel on my HRD. I use pedals for that. Thanks for doing this guys. It must have been exhausting.
Great work guys! As I gig with these amps, I think the Neo Celestion is a great choice as an alternative to the A type. The Neo doesn't change the sound too much from the A Type, but has more clarity which seems noticeable in a live stage environment.
IMHO - The HRD has always been criticized for the drive channel. I believe Fender's goal with Gen 3 and 4 were to make the drive channel sound better (smoother) with a Celestion speaker, at the expense of the articulate clean sound. If I were Fender, I would have given the the drive channel a post-distortion tone stack to do the smoothing instead of relying on a darker speaker. It is really difficult to have one speaker sound great both clean and dirty - it's always going to be a bit of a compromise. I think you need to decide whether clean or dirty is your main sound, and then use EQ to adjust the other. Also, the point about guitarists willing to spend gobs of money on pedals but not on their speaker is striking.
That’s actually one of the things I want to try when I eventually get around to buying a modeling rig: tie a couple cab blocks, maybe an EQ, and a drive/gain to the same expression pedal so that I can try to smoothly transition from clean to high(ish) gain without having either extreme sound wrong.
These have to be a huge pain to make, but unlike the Katana video where I generally preferred the stock speaker, this time I'm preferring the "upgrades" as often as not.. I play primarily clean, but really liked the V30, the AlNiCo cream back, the 65 cream back. The green back had something special going on too. You guys are awesome for spending a whole day doing this!
@@qddk9545 Not really - not enough to make any gear-hunting worth it. They're manufactured to the same spec they used to be, the only difference you'll get with an old G12-65 over a new one is the amount of playing-in that has happened - which you can do yourself by *just playing it* for a while.
@@JohnvanCapel I have both, so I know. The Vintage 30s were also made to the specs of the Celestion Blue, but the don´t sound just a little alike, so dream on.
I bought a Hot Rod Deluxe the first year they came out back in the late 90s. I loved the sound right away and checked to see what speaker was in there. It said made by Eminence for Fender Musical Instruments. I have been using American made Eminence speakers in all my amps ever since and that Hot Rod Deluxe is still my go to amp for small gigs as it is one of the best pedal platform amps ever made.
As if the audience gives a crap about that. You change speakers because YOU like to tweak the sound to your preference. In other words, it's perfectly sensible to change speakers even if you're just playing for yourself, be it in your studio, bedroom or basement.
@@TheEchelon It matters more at the beginning of the gig. I mean, the front row “ice pick in the ear” effect that comes from EQing the amp while it’s pointed at your knees is always annoying, but these things matter less as people get drunker.
@@OtherTheDave sounds like a bad venue more than the equipment. If the sound is setup for every instrument, drums included, then you get a more balanced pleasing sound barrage than an ice pick to the skull/ears.
@@caiusmadison2996 It’s not a matter of the venue. Guitar amp speakers are way too big to smoothly radiate higher frequencies. Most guitarists eq their amps with it sitting on the floor and physics prevents them from hearing just how bright their amp is. The result is typically the people in the front row get their heads taken off by overly bright guitars. The sound guy can fix it in the house and monitors (although I’d recommend mostly leaving it in the monitors so they’ll be able to hear just how bright their rig is), but there’s not much the venue can do about the stage volume coming right off the band’s instruments. The effect is called “beaming” www.troelsgravesen.dk/Beaming.htm
Oh Chaps. I take my hat off to you for that work. From swapping them all in and out, to the excellent editing. Top notch work. Result for me..... Buy that Dane! Such a great pedal.
Thank you for the these speaker comparison videos. It's really not practical for people that don't own a music store to do them, and they're very revealing. Also, this is a good reminder of why the Hot Rod Deluxe is the world's best selling tube amp of all time. It's the perfect gigging amp, with a sound that really cuts through. I thought some of the replacement speakers were very in-your-face with their bitey tone, but in a good, rock 'n roll way :-)
I had the opportunity to have a friend of mine who has several cabs with various Celestion speakers…test my HRD into each one of them. As much as I hated to admit it, the Alnico Gold was noticeably better than any other one we tried. I really didn’t want to be tempted to pay over 300 dollars for a speaker, but here I am. The Gold is in my HRD right now.
Guys, this video--like ALL your videos--is simply incredible. Y'all are do knowledgeable, personable, and relatable. I'm trying g to decide between two limited edition Hot Rods... One with an A-type Celestion, the other with a Creamback. This video is exactly what I needed. You guys rock!!
Just noticed at 44:52 following the lines on the grill cloths that the mics look to be positioned differently on each cab with the stock speaker mic being further from the cone! I do like the greenback though!🤐
I just saved a ton on my Amp speakers lol. These videos have been valuable! To me, not enough differences to justify swapping. But, if someone stole the speaker out of my Blues Jr... I think I'd go cream back.
All you proven is that they all sound great. Yeah the more expensive speakers sound fantastic. Personally I love the Atype sound, it was a very budget friendly option for me in my Tweaker 15, and I was a great choice, for me.
In this video and in the Katana video, I gotta say I really liked the sound of the Neo Creamback. I feel like that one produced sounds that I really liked across the different types of sounds that Pete was playing. I always thought I'd end up wanting to put Vintage 30s in a cabinet, but after these two videos, I'm really becoming a fan of the Neo Creamback's sound.
I put the A-Type in my HRDlx III. Previously I had the stock 70/80 and a V-Type. The A-Type has these warm, fat cleans than I am after. But the V-Type sounds more detailed and generally better for dirt. The cleans on the V-Type are a little bit sterile.
Decades back (late '70s), I upgraded a twin reverb with 2 Celestions (not sure which model) and it sounded sooo much better. I would be pleased with any of the tones here! Something else is going on though. Listen at several spots and you will hear the amps are quite different too. 48:30 for instance. Reverb on the standard, almost none on the test model.
this is exactly what im looking for to help me decide which speaker to get for my hot rod. thanks guys. i didnt like other videos that do speaker reviews with the speakers in extension cabs. thanks again.
I heard no considerable difference until you strummed the first two chords on that 75 Creamback and then it got my attention. Great job on this one guys!
The G12-65 sounded like the ideal speaker for the Hot Rod Deluxe. The alnico Creamback sounded great clean, but I'm not sure a HR Deluxe is worth that kind of money, and I think the G12-65 sounded best dirty, and it still had that Fender-ish low end.
I have the 212 Deville and 5 years ago I pulled the shit speakers out of it and installed a G12-65 along with a (China in made) Vintage 30, both 16 ohms wired in parallel, and man I couldn't be happier with the results!
You can use any speaker easily without frying the speaker, there is easy way to match the power handling of the speaker. You turn the amp louder and then you will reach a point (if the speaker is underrated) where the speaker won't get any louder but just little bit more compressed and distorted, that is when speaker has reached it's limit, and if you turn your amp a tad lower, you can play to the end of your life without frying the speaker. (and even if you run them too loud, they will handle that with ease, the coil has to heat up enough to get stuck with the magnet, and that will fry the speaker, because the coil cannot move freely, and that takes a long time)
Thanks for the awesome video guys! Actually IRs is a great way to audit speakers before buying them... I've made a couple of IR speaker shootouts in my channel. The A-Type sounds great for the Fender clean stuff. The dirty channel of the HRD IV got better, but is still not quite there. With the Dane, I really like how the notes bloom with the G12-65 and the Creambacks! The G12-65 was made for Marshall 412s and late 70s hair metal, but it got very popular in Dumbles and 212 open backs and a lot of modern blues players use them! The Greenback is not only associated with AC/DC, but basically every Marshall tone in the 60s-80s and sounded great clean and nailed the crunchy tones. Alnicos are just gorgeous chimey bell tones, but the ruby is waaaaay darker than the blue, gold or cream and needs a VERY bright amp
Very interesting video especially as I own a Hot Rod Deluxe IV. The clean channel on that amp with that great sounding spring reverb turned up to 3-4 just sounds immense. I never use the drive channel as the clean channel just takes pedals so well. Now, I really like the stock Celestion A-Type speaker and I think it sounded a bit dark in this video, which I don't find to be the case when I'm playing it but again you can easily dial it in to your linking. So if I was to try and change the speaker it would have to be the Alnico Creamback... that was the only one where I thought it would make sense and be worth the upgrade. Anyway... great video, guys! And thanks so much for sitting a whole day shooting this and the Katana videos for us! You rock!!
I gig with mine every weekend and some during the week. Mine is all stock. I used to use a blues driver with it. Now I just use the amp over drive. I have a EQ in the effects loop for a boost for solos. Big difference in tone and loudness from 4-5. The sweet spot is 5 on the overdrive channel. I use the more gain switch when I need more gain. I can get a sound close to my Marshalls. I cut the bass back, crank the mids, treble a little more then mid way, about 3 on the presence. I play with the bright switch on. I use lespaul's.
I put an Eminence Wheelhouse 12" in my Blues Deluxe and it really gave the amp a lot more articulation with a firmer bass and kept the treble/mids without excessive boost in those frequencies and due to efficiency it's slightly louder. That said I have 2 different cabs with the Celestion Creamback G12-H 75 in them. One is G12H-75 8ohm in a Weber single 12 cab powered by an old repurposed Hammond Organ amp and it's glorious. Beefy lows with a tight mid and a smooth upper, it CAN get loud. The other is a 16 ohm G12H-75 in a Marshall 1932B 1x12 cab and is powered by a Blackheart HD15 head. Originally the speaker was a G12T-65 and was a bit bright for me, the Creamback really brings the amp to life. It now has that creamy drive I remember from playing an original Marshall 50 watt plexi.
Awesome. I went into this video wanting to upgrade to the heavy magnet 70w Creamback and this video and the fact that Pete has had that setup further cements my decision. Very helpful video chaps! 👍
This was interesting for me because my Hot Rod IV came with a Creamback G12M speaker. It was one of the FSR amps, it has a oxblood grill and tweed sides. The Alnico Cream is a very tempting change imho
I'm coming at this from the perspective of having one of these amps and using it exclusively in a band context, where the A-Type tends to get a lost if the amp isn't set up right. Overall, with limited exceptions, the A-Type loses in my book because it's missing something tonally. The mids are scooped out too much compared to most of the other speakers, and it's overall missing the clarity and definition that are required for the amp to work well in a band setting. The Ruby is an exception and I'm not a fan of the Neo either. That Alnico Cream is glorious. The cleans were sublime.
To my ears, the cream backs are the way to go for this. I liked the m, the h was good, the alnico and heritage were tied for winners. IF YOU EVER DECIDE TO TRY THIS AGAIN, PLEASE demo a 2x12 cab with a v30 combined with each of the cream backs you used here. Since it’s such a popular combo nowadays with the h, you’ve got me really curious what the alnico and heritage speakers sound like when blended with that v30. Great video guys. Wish I could’ve made it to the shop when I was in London last year. Hopefully next time. 🤞🏻🤘🏻
You should try switching the outputs of the A/B box since the isolated output has a different impedance. Might be acting somewhat like a buffer. Could explain why in both tests the one amp always had more presence.
Favorite all time speaker is a JBL 120 in a fender . NOT something very popular with the younger crowd but that is the sound of the 70s R&R that I love and play . None of the newer speakers are even close . That said I like a stiff cold speaker that cuts through in the humid weather . Dont play outdoors in the summer ? Its not about the volume its about serving the sound .Bedroom level sells gear . But gigging is a full contact sport. EVH and most old school rockers also used JBL or EV. That SQUIRT from a high wattage speaker is not replicated with creambacks or any others which are all great for different things.
Happy to see Anderton's doing this kind of videos as well, didn't really expect this stuff on this channel. Would've been a bit interested in how a common Fender type Jensen, some eminences and wgs speakers worked in this amp as well. Personally prefer the stock speaker here. If I get a fender amp, I'm looking for that kind of a bit dirty and moody sound. If I want aggressive mids, I go for marshall instead of different speaker. They say Celestion 65 was the best Celestion made. Probably talking about Marshall and rock. Apparently people really disliked 70 so Celestion slightly changed 65 to bring out 75. Although for some reason people seem to always bash 75 so who knows what's going on. But the 65 did sound nice, although close, with the original speaker here.
I have the George Benson Deluxe with a Jensen C12K Speaker, I like a clean amp using pedals for the dirt. I have to say that this works really well for me. Mainly playing a Strat. I played an older Deluxe not so long, it was boxy sounding, didn't sing at all.
Fantastic video. Thanks guys! On the clean channel, nearly all of the other speakers sounded as good or better than the A type IMHO. There may have been one or two that I felt were slightly not as good. On the gain channel, I often preferred the A type... Kind of surprisingly. With the Dane, again I almost always preferred the other speakers. My faves were the Cream Back with the medium magnet, Cream Back with the heavy magnet, and the clear winner hands down no doubt about it... The alnico cream back. That speaker was absolutely magical.
The AlNiCo Cream (not “Creamback”) is Celestion’s best speaker ever, in my opinion. The Blue is the best sounding, but although the Cream is second-best sounding (again, my opinion), its power handling makes it so much more usable. The Ruby really only works in overly bright amps.
In general, the speakers that sound best on clean tones won't sound best on dirty tones, so if you play both clean and dirty, you need to compromise a bit.
LOVE the video...Lee you should ask Tim or Neil from CLUTCH to be on the channel when the world goes back to normal. They tour the UK every year it seems. And are the best band in the Galaxy!
Hey. I really appreciate this video and the subject. Despite the seemingly odd choice, I bought a HR Deville IV and promptly tamed and tweaked it a little with a Fromel Supreme mod kit and a Mercury Magnetics output transformer. After watching this video and doing a little more research online, I ordered a couple of Cream 90's. Grateful.
What I'd love to see is a video about heads and speaker cabinets. I have a few questions about them: 1. How different does a 4×12 actually sound to a 2×12, besides the likely-obvious matter of volume? 2. What's the difference in sound between a straight cabinet and an angled one? 3. Open versus closed back? 4. If you have two cabs with identical speakers/spec but a *way* different price range, what exactly are you paying for with the expensive one?
I recently compared the G12H-150 Redback and the Alnico Cream with a Friedman Small Box and BE-50. I know these are very different amps to the Hot Rod Deluxe and they're also high end by comparison, but I'm posting my comments as these two speakers seemed to find some favour in this video... I already owned an 8ohm Alnico Cream and I was comparing the 16ohm G12H-150 because one of the Friedman amps I was testing was a combo with the Redback factory installed. The Alnico Cream is quite scooped, so it did not have the same desirable midrange character that the Redback did. To my ears the Alnico Cream can come across a little muted. So in my playing/listening tests the G12H-150 won. I was particularly impressed that the Redback gives texture to the midrange without being shrill or harsh in any way. Clearly it has also found favour with Dave Friedman, so that is worth something given the rich and desirable tone of his amps. I actually sold the Alnico Cream because it wasn't the first time I thought it lacked mid range character for a driven tone. I must admit though the Alnico Cream comes across very well for both clean and driven tones in this video. I just think in my personal experience the G12H-150 has a more balanced EQ of these two and it's cheaper as a bonus :-) I must confess I have only compared these speakers at lower volumes though. Loud in the house during the day time, but not gigging volume which as the guys were saying, volume can totally change your perception and preference.
I like vintage Jensen's like the PQ12. You can find re-coned versions for cheap, and I think they sound better than new production speaker drivers -- for Fender amps.
I prefer the stock speaker almost everytime. The neodymium being the closest and maybe a little clearer without sounding thin or shrill.The Redback sounded good. It just seems like the overall voicing of the stock speaker fits into all styles. I have to admit I do love the alnico creamback for its clean sound. Notes just pop right out.
Thanks so much for this video. Obviously a lot of work for you guys. I was not at all surprised that I like all of the Creamback variations. They all sounded great. But I am finding that these speakers are pleasing to my ear in most situations I have heard them. I think I liked the Alnico the most, but hard to tell when you are listening to minor variations for an hour+ (Can only imagine 8+ hrs). Was impressed with the Heritage and the Reback as well. I feel like if I bought any of them it would be the neo creamback just for the weight reduction. It almost feels like a nice "extra" feature. It was obvious they wanted the Type A to give that classic Fender clean sound. But what I found interesting was that the Type A also seemed to take the pedal really well on the clean channel. Which of course is what I think most players intend to use the amp for. But most other speakers seemed to work better on the drive channel.
i feel all the "new" speakers had more clarity then the "A" type. lot of mids in the A type. i think i would go with the G12-65 heritage for mine. mainly because the alnico cream is just out of my budget.
Thanks! Great video! Okay I have a blues deluxe reissue, but still, it gave me a sence of direction... something with creamback or greenback would be nice, I will listen again... But what would be the difference with a cannabis rex?
Bought some stereo speakers in the 90’s...the guy in the shop said “be careful you don’t stop listening to the music, and start listening to the speaker, it’s a dangerous path”...wise words...😁😁😁... funny how that stuck in my head....
Many, many, many years ago What Hi-Fi used to run a readers rig page. One annoying twat had a hi-fi, bought using a loan that mummy and daddy had to guarantee, and then said that sometimes he listened to music that he didn’t like, to hear the nuances of the kit, and that he also just sat and looked at it. Never has someone needed a punch in the face more !
@@brymills yea that sounds indeed exceptionally punchable.
i personally feel that unless the difference is something i probably can't replicate with EQ and tone knobs, i don't care. i get that with certain gear you want the stock sound as close to what you want to hear. but all this won't matter anyways, if you waste all your practice time with browsing gear. i'd focus mostly on detail in the frequencies since you can always dial back frequencies you don't want...i guess.
i'd honestly want more videos about that. trying to make different stuff the same. because then it becomes more about range and versatility i think.
Same goes for actually playing the guitar and not getting caught up in faffing about with NOS valves, pickups, capacitors etc. If you listen to the tone too much you get lost and never play. If you just play then you tend to naturally play to the tone's strengths and weaknesses.
@@layingblacklines best thing to do, buy a 1 pickup guitar. Sometimes more is too much, I see so many people where they are a slave to buying new pedals etc, slow down, dial an amp in have a few pedals but play more, practice more, hone your skills rather than try and buy new skills
@@jebusgod I have several axes with VERY different personalities and they make me play differently in a good way. I also play through a Marshall, an AC 30, a hot rod deluxe and an H&K. All have different speakers. It gives me an incredible experience, it’s just what you’ve into and what you want to carry or pay someone to carry. You can’t be down on folks for what they hear. Hell, we would have never had Jimmy, Stevie Ray, Gilmore etc without lots of different gear and axes.
Pete’s comments in the beginning ala the v30 are so spot on. The awesome sound you get in a bedroom situation is not what you want live. My rule of thumb is dial in my tone, then crank it up, turn the gain down and the mids up. What I end up with is a great live sound that sounds a little weak, and harsh at low volume. Best advice I’ve ever gotten is always play as close as possible to gigging with a drummer volume, and play standing up. If you’re trying to figure something out or create something sitting is ok but if you’re practicing to get better and play live, play loud, and stand up. Imho
Great advice man, so true.
Yes
Very true, I don’t like playing loud, it sounds better but is uncomfortable, but playing loud does matter for practicing noise management.
Or turn bass and treble down with the gain 😉
It’s the same for bass guitar 🤘
As I watchalong:
- V30 vs Stock: That V30 upper mids sound just fantastic, I'd cut through with ease.. on the Katana video on cleans just wouldn't sound pleasing, but on this it sounded great clean or with higher gain, to me V30 wins vs stock, even more with gain, the stock just fell apart.
- G12M (65W) vs Stock: That G12M turned up just blew the stock away, but on cleans.. it just felt small.. I'd go for the G12M if I'd play higher gains sounds more often.
- G12H (75W) vs Stock: On cleans they were pretty close, but if I had to pick one I'd go with the G12H just because I don't put too much bass-end on the sounds I play, and on drive sounds again the G12H, the stock driven just falls short on the comparison.
- G12 NEO vs Stock: Cleans on the NEO a bit too thin, when Lee added volume it got better, and again on drive the stock falls apart. At this point I sort of see a theme developing. Drive on the stock is just meh compared to anyother speaker so far.
- G12-65(Heritage) vs Stock: On cleans the stock has the edge, not by a lot but enough to make a decision. Now on the driven sounds, that top-end on the G12-65 is great! feels kind of "alive" if that makes any sense.
- G12M Greenback vs Stock: The Greenback very sparkly on the cleans, that break up was actually pleasing. On drive is even better! I'd take it any day over the Stock one. Curious to see what it'd sound like with 2 Greenbacks on a 2x12.
- G12H Redback vs Stock: Close call on cleans, the Redback seemed a bit brighter but just a touch. And again on driven sounds the stock just sounds muffled.
- G12 Ruby vs Stock: This was the closest one so far to the Stock, while typeing this I couldn't really tell them apart. On drive sounds actually not that different, but if I had to choose one I'd go for the Redback.
- G12 Cream vs Stock: The top-end on the Creamback is a bit too pokey but sounds great somehow. It might get exahusting after some time but it'd cut through like nothing.
- Katana vs Stock: Clean, the Katana was good but not by a landslide really, and driven.. I didn't like any of the two.
After jumping around, I'd choose 3: V30, Greenback and Creamback. If a pedal could get the sounds of any of this speakers, I'd buy them instantly.
And I love this videos on speakers, really underlooked part of guitar tone and I'm happy that you guys are putting attention to it. Love it!
Same here: If you have these three for recording, you are good to do almost anything.
i preferred the stock over V30 on both the clean and built in drive.
with the pedal i preferred the V30
@@bleromafia When I first heard the stock speaker on cleans I was quite pleased to be fair, but when switching back to it, it sounded to me very distant whilist the V30 really felt "up-front" which is more to my liking.. but yeah, I can totally see your point.
Thanks for the massive effort this must have been to do!
Thanks for tuning in & watching!
I have tested a lot of speakers in my hot rod. For me the best is the celestion cream back!
Yet another dude saying the creamback is this or that but doesn't specify which one since there are two very different ones...
@@JaimeNoro Don't know what he meant but for me listening, the G12H-75 Creamback sounded the best to my ears here and many other videos testing speakers with different amps.
I prefer the good old, easy to buy for 150$, EVM-12L OEM. I have 3 of them and they are incredibly punchy and ear-pleasant, though one of them sounds very differently, despite looking exactly the same.
Which ONE?
It seems that creamy is the best choice in many cases. I have one in my Marshall Astoria cabinet. Unfortunately I have nothing to compare to.
I know Cap hated it, but I'd love to see more speaker shootouts. Absolutely the best video you have ever done. Speakers, and cabinets make as much difference to your tone as the amp itself. Good decision choosing the SM7b for the mics btw. The larger diagram probably limited the clinical precision of a smaller dynamic mic like an SM57. Each speaker cone will be differently shaped, and impact the tone greatly. Grabbing a larger image of the cone with the larger diaphragm limited this, giving a more general impression of the sound. Great video.
What I'm hearing is that the stock speaker has more mid and low range to help fill in the sound when you're practicing on your own in your bedroom while the aftermarket speakers are all designed to focus more in the mid and hi-end frequencies so it stands out in a mix with a full band.
I agree with Pete: G12H Creamback is a fantastic speaker. Round and warm for clean and tight bottom for overdrive sounds. The Greenback gives you that classic rock crunch. And then there is the V30 with its special upper mids. If you have these three for recording, you are good to do almost anything.
Thank you guys so much for the hard work! This is the most informative video on Speakers and their sounds, I have found so far. It really helped making my decision. Please don't shy away from this sort of effort for your videos, it helps so many viewers to make informed decisions, when they hear the differences with their own ears in combination with your honest opinions. I'm a fan :)
Bruce Zinky used to live around here and be in my circle of friends. He told me years ago that the last thing he did at Fender was design the speaker for the HRD together with Eminence. His marching orders from Fender management were to "make it sound as loud as possible in a music store". It was pretty evident what the initial marketing emphasis was for the amp, to impress neophytes. So you had this very mid forward speaker and a volume control taper that made it sound really powerful at barely any volume setting. He also told me that the weak point of the amp was the output transformer. Which showed up any time you tried to really crank one up. The combination of wimpy OT and mid forward speaker made for a really nasal sound. But if you didn't push it too far, it was like a Tube Screamer in that it cut though a mix well. Great for garage bands and small bar bands that were it's target market. Eventually as they became popular, Fender started making "special editions" with different speakers in them. Starting with the Jensens in the Blues Deluxe. Haven't played an HRD in awhile, but it sounds like they revoiced the speaker to try to compensate for the OT with more bottom end. Back in the day, the Mesa C90 which had a solid bottom was a good choice for beefing up an HRD.
Great info! A good reson for upgrade my stock to Mercury. Thanks
Such useful info!
Huge thanks!
I replaced the speaker in my gen 1 HRD with an Eminence Texas Heat and it made a huge difference. Sounds amazing.
Yeah agreed. The Texas Heat is great in these amps. Had a Texas Heat and a Swamp Thang in my Deville also
El texas heat es practicamente un evm 12 l classic a super precio
Thanks for this effort! Filmed more than 7 hours for this one... respect. Great job
The stock speaker always sounds like it has this haze of "fuzz" coming through with the gain. The Creambacks seem to eliminate that completely and sounds so much more articulate.
Especially with the Dane. Sounded like the amp had a blanket thrown over it.
I struggled so much with my Blues Junior IV with low end and the fuzz within the gain you mentioned. Low end could just be the cab is small and the fuzz sounds like the Type A speaker, since the BJ4 also has a Type A
Wow, thanks for doing this. What I got out of it: 1) a HRD can certainly sound pretty good!, 2) The type A had that classic American scoped mids with emphasis in the bass and high end that sound good in a room by yourself, but might not sound as good as you get louder and in a band situation, 3) I really liked the G12M-65 and bought one today (before seeing the video) for my HRD that I'm rebuilding, 4) The Alnico Cream certainly sounded a lot richer than all the others, but I'm not sure how that would translate to a warm single coil sound at gig volume, 5) All the speakers sound really good, you can't go wrong with any of the, 6) stock type A is pretty usable and probably not worth replacing. My HRD is older and doesn't have that speaker. Really informative video.
The v30 sounds bright and with not so much low end, works perfectly for high gain tones, but not so much with a clean to overdriven tone. Stock speaker sounds great, wouldn’t replace it unless it breaks, loved the creambacks.
Lets face it.........the stock one is pretty damn good!
I agree
totally agree,,,,, do this review in a different room and youd get difference results!! very minor differences anyway youd never know in a mix.
Thank you Lee and Pete for the enormous effort and a big shout out to everyone behind the scenes for producing and editing these video's. It helps people decide if or what speaker they may consider to replace the original in there amp. Watched the shoot out on the Boss Katana 100 mk2 same again interesting as solid state vary in design of speakers compared to valve amps.
Anyone interested in the PRS Silver sky clean sounds with Pete's beautiful playing :
5:33 12:10 18:44 26:33 32:26 39:34 48:13 55:26 1:00:15
Loved the last one of these, can't wait to see this one :D
Wait until the end & we even test out the Katana Speaker from last time!
@@andertons this is what I'm waiting to see...
@@andertons Now you’re starting to think like an Andertons TV addict!
Really appreciate this comparison as well as the previous one. Have a V30 in a 1x12 cab that I'm very happy with and really didn't hear anything I thought sounded better. Different for sure but not better. Absolutely sticking with the V30.
Seems to me the "A" type is a good compromise for the clean and drive channel of the amp. Whereas the non-stock speakers seem to highlight the different characteristics of the tone, mainly in the mid-range levels from higher to lower. Great vid guys, didn't skip any parts!
I spent about 3-4 weeks shooting out a WGS G12C/S (USA), WGS ET65 (Brit), Celestion Neo Creamback, Celestion V-Type, and Celestion V30 in a Fender Princeton 65 1x12 Solid State Combo amp, and yes you can definitely go mad, trying to decide which sounds best. Both American and British voiced speakers definitely both sound really good, not one is really better than the other in terms of a pleasurable tone, in my opinion, but I ever so slightly preferred the British flavor in that particular amp, definitely with gain, it just sounds much more aggressive and mean! Cleans were pretty even..I ended up choosing the WGS ET65. Very difficult decision, and dialing in the tone on the amp with the eq knobs definitely helps a ton too! And each speaker needed quite a bit of different shaping too. You can most assuredly get lost in chasing tone, but once you find something that just really hits the spot it's a great feeling!
Loved this video, and the Katana one! Don't be afraid of the longer form videos, you guys are making them worth while. Cheers!
The stock A speaker sounded a bit darker compared to all the other speakers.
Indeed. Could make you think that there might be some difference in the settings on the two amps, since it's the case on every single comparison.
The A-Type is a dark sounding speaker.
@@dep1001 Could have to do with the output impedance of the transformer in the switcher vs the direct output.
I agree that the A type was darker in all cases, but in quite a few of the comparisons I liked the stock speaker until I heard the other one. For me, the Creamback G12H was the winner... unless you've got the dosh for the Alnico Creamback. That was gorgeous! I don't use the drive channel on my HRD. I use pedals for that. Thanks for doing this guys. It must have been exhausting.
I made it to the end!! Most upgrades were preferred to the stock. Well done guys for getting through that ear fatigue!
I really liked the way the V30 recorded. so glad I have a pair in a sealed cab for most of my amps.
Please do more of these speaker swap videos! 😊
Really enjoyed those two speaker videos, realize the work to do them, many thanks...
Great work guys! As I gig with these amps, I think the Neo Celestion is a great choice as an alternative to the A type. The Neo doesn't change the sound too much from the A Type, but has more clarity which seems noticeable in a live stage environment.
Yes I love the neo creamback
Great video, the harmonics on the Creambacks are much richer, no doubt.
Thanks for spending an entire day making a in depth video for us guys . Alnico Creamback FTW !
the G12M creamback with the dane is UNBELIEVABLE
Thank you for taking the time to do this gents!
IMHO - The HRD has always been criticized for the drive channel. I believe Fender's goal with Gen 3 and 4 were to make the drive channel sound better (smoother) with a Celestion speaker, at the expense of the articulate clean sound. If I were Fender, I would have given the the drive channel a post-distortion tone stack to do the smoothing instead of relying on a darker speaker. It is really difficult to have one speaker sound great both clean and dirty - it's always going to be a bit of a compromise. I think you need to decide whether clean or dirty is your main sound, and then use EQ to adjust the other. Also, the point about guitarists willing to spend gobs of money on pedals but not on their speaker is striking.
That’s actually one of the things I want to try when I eventually get around to buying a modeling rig: tie a couple cab blocks, maybe an EQ, and a drive/gain to the same expression pedal so that I can try to smoothly transition from clean to high(ish) gain without having either extreme sound wrong.
Excellent and spot on comment!!!
I was just thinking about the Katana speaker video this morning. Can't wait to watch! Thanks for putting in the hours to make these videos.
I've had a Creamback G12H in my HRD2 for yeaaaaars now and love it. Such a great speaker and much better than the stock one.
*Awesome demo Danish and Captain. I like the G12 Rola 65 and the Alnico Creamback.*
Best bet is to get the extension cab and put a creamback into it.
That way you get your bassy mids in the stock combo and the high end in the ext cab.
These have to be a huge pain to make, but unlike the Katana video where I generally preferred the stock speaker, this time I'm preferring the "upgrades" as often as not.. I play primarily clean, but really liked the V30, the AlNiCo cream back, the 65 cream back. The green back had something special going on too.
You guys are awesome for spending a whole day doing this!
I’ve been waiting for this episode!
Both Clapton and Mayer use the G12-65 for their Fendery amps. And Pete heard the same benefits they do. So I might have to put one in my Blues Deluxe.
But the probably use old ones - they sound different.
@@qddk9545 Not really - not enough to make any gear-hunting worth it.
They're manufactured to the same spec they used to be, the only difference you'll get with an old G12-65 over a new one is the amount of playing-in that has happened - which you can do yourself by *just playing it* for a while.
@@JohnvanCapel I have both, so I know. The Vintage 30s were also made to the specs of the Celestion Blue, but the don´t sound just a little alike, so dream on.
I bought a Hot Rod Deluxe the first year they came out back in the late 90s. I loved the sound right away and checked to see what speaker was in there. It said made by Eminence for Fender Musical Instruments. I have been using American made Eminence speakers in all my amps ever since and that Hot Rod Deluxe is still my go to amp for small gigs as it is one of the best pedal platform amps ever made.
The Alnico creamback sounded absolutely magical on clean setting!
I’ll be sure to try this out in 2027 when we’re actually able to gig again
As if the audience gives a crap about that. You change speakers because YOU like to tweak the sound to your preference. In other words, it's perfectly sensible to change speakers even if you're just playing for yourself, be it in your studio, bedroom or basement.
@@TheEchelon lol I know it’s just a Covid joke, I’ve been a home musician for the last couple year, trust me I understand 🥲
@@TheEchelon It matters more at the beginning of the gig. I mean, the front row “ice pick in the ear” effect that comes from EQing the amp while it’s pointed at your knees is always annoying, but these things matter less as people get drunker.
@@OtherTheDave sounds like a bad venue more than the equipment. If the sound is setup for every instrument, drums included, then you get a more balanced pleasing sound barrage than an ice pick to the skull/ears.
@@caiusmadison2996 It’s not a matter of the venue. Guitar amp speakers are way too big to smoothly radiate higher frequencies. Most guitarists eq their amps with it sitting on the floor and physics prevents them from hearing just how bright their amp is. The result is typically the people in the front row get their heads taken off by overly bright guitars. The sound guy can fix it in the house and monitors (although I’d recommend mostly leaving it in the monitors so they’ll be able to hear just how bright their rig is), but there’s not much the venue can do about the stage volume coming right off the band’s instruments.
The effect is called “beaming” www.troelsgravesen.dk/Beaming.htm
Oh Chaps. I take my hat off to you for that work. From swapping them all in and out, to the excellent editing. Top notch work.
Result for me..... Buy that Dane! Such a great pedal.
Thank you for the these speaker comparison videos. It's really not practical for people that don't own a music store to do them, and they're very revealing. Also, this is a good reminder of why the Hot Rod Deluxe is the world's best selling tube amp of all time. It's the perfect gigging amp, with a sound that really cuts through. I thought some of the replacement speakers were very in-your-face with their bitey tone, but in a good, rock 'n roll way :-)
I had the opportunity to have a friend of mine who has several cabs with various Celestion speakers…test my HRD into each one of them. As much as I hated to admit it, the Alnico Gold was noticeably better than any other one we tried. I really didn’t want to be tempted to pay over 300 dollars for a speaker, but here I am. The Gold is in my HRD right now.
Guys, this video--like ALL your videos--is simply incredible. Y'all are do knowledgeable, personable, and relatable. I'm trying g to decide between two limited edition Hot Rods... One with an A-type Celestion, the other with a Creamback. This video is exactly what I needed. You guys rock!!
that was one seriously long video, informative and good to listen to while restringing. liked the alnico cream back the most.
Just noticed at 44:52 following the lines on the grill cloths that the mics look to be positioned differently on each cab with the stock speaker mic being further from the cone! I do like the greenback though!🤐
I just saved a ton on my Amp speakers lol. These videos have been valuable! To me, not enough differences to justify swapping. But, if someone stole the speaker out of my Blues Jr... I think I'd go cream back.
All you proven is that they all sound great. Yeah the more expensive speakers sound fantastic. Personally I love the Atype sound, it was a very budget friendly option for me in my Tweaker 15, and I was a great choice, for me.
In this video and in the Katana video, I gotta say I really liked the sound of the Neo Creamback. I feel like that one produced sounds that I really liked across the different types of sounds that Pete was playing. I always thought I'd end up wanting to put Vintage 30s in a cabinet, but after these two videos, I'm really becoming a fan of the Neo Creamback's sound.
I put the A-Type in my HRDlx III. Previously I had the stock 70/80 and a V-Type. The A-Type has these warm, fat cleans than I am after. But the V-Type sounds more detailed and generally better for dirt. The cleans on the V-Type are a little bit sterile.
What do you think of the 70-80 compared to the vtype?
It must be brighter, right?
Thanks in advance.
Decades back (late '70s), I upgraded a twin reverb with 2 Celestions (not sure which model) and it sounded sooo much better. I would be pleased with any of the tones here! Something else is going on though. Listen at several spots and you will hear the amps are quite different too. 48:30 for instance. Reverb on the standard, almost none on the test model.
this is exactly what im looking for to help me decide which speaker to get for my hot rod. thanks guys. i didnt like other videos that do speaker reviews with the speakers in extension cabs. thanks again.
I heard no considerable difference until you strummed the first two chords on that 75 Creamback and then it got my attention. Great job on this one guys!
The G12-65 sounded like the ideal speaker for the Hot Rod Deluxe. The alnico Creamback sounded great clean, but I'm not sure a HR Deluxe is worth that kind of money, and I think the G12-65 sounded best dirty, and it still had that Fender-ish low end.
I have the 212 Deville and 5 years ago I pulled the shit speakers out of it and installed a G12-65 along with a (China in made) Vintage 30, both 16 ohms wired in parallel, and man I couldn't be happier with the results!
You can use any speaker easily without frying the speaker, there is easy way to match the power handling of the speaker.
You turn the amp louder and then you will reach a point (if the speaker is underrated) where the speaker won't get any louder but just little bit more compressed and distorted, that is when speaker has reached it's limit, and if you turn your amp a tad lower, you can play to the end of your life without frying the speaker.
(and even if you run them too loud, they will handle that with ease, the coil has to heat up enough to get stuck with the magnet, and that will fry the speaker, because the coil cannot move freely, and that takes a long time)
Alnico Cream the outstanding winner, also noticeable how Pete suddenly got inspired to play.
Celestion Heritage series as a whole is just flat out good.
Overall that was fun and interesting to watch, and there were small differences but all usable sounds. Makes me want to get a Hot Rod Deluxe
Thanks for the awesome video guys! Actually IRs is a great way to audit speakers before buying them... I've made a couple of IR speaker shootouts in my channel. The A-Type sounds great for the Fender clean stuff. The dirty channel of the HRD IV got better, but is still not quite there. With the Dane, I really like how the notes bloom with the G12-65 and the Creambacks! The G12-65 was made for Marshall 412s and late 70s hair metal, but it got very popular in Dumbles and 212 open backs and a lot of modern blues players use them! The Greenback is not only associated with AC/DC, but basically every Marshall tone in the 60s-80s and sounded great clean and nailed the crunchy tones. Alnicos are just gorgeous chimey bell tones, but the ruby is waaaaay darker than the blue, gold or cream and needs a VERY bright amp
Very interesting video especially as I own a Hot Rod Deluxe IV. The clean channel on that amp with that great sounding spring reverb turned up to 3-4 just sounds immense. I never use the drive channel as the clean channel just takes pedals so well. Now, I really like the stock Celestion A-Type speaker and I think it sounded a bit dark in this video, which I don't find to be the case when I'm playing it but again you can easily dial it in to your linking. So if I was to try and change the speaker it would have to be the Alnico Creamback... that was the only one where I thought it would make sense and be worth the upgrade. Anyway... great video, guys! And thanks so much for sitting a whole day shooting this and the Katana videos for us! You rock!!
I gig with mine every weekend and some during the week. Mine is all stock. I used to use a blues driver with it. Now I just use the amp over drive. I have a EQ in the effects loop for a boost for solos. Big difference in tone and loudness from 4-5. The sweet spot is 5 on the overdrive channel. I use the more gain switch when I need more gain. I can get a sound close to my Marshalls. I cut the bass back, crank the mids, treble a little more then mid way, about 3 on the presence. I play with the bright switch on. I use lespaul's.
I put an Eminence Wheelhouse 12" in my Blues Deluxe and it really gave the amp a lot more articulation with a firmer bass and kept the treble/mids without excessive boost in those frequencies and due to efficiency it's slightly louder. That said I have 2 different cabs with the Celestion Creamback G12-H 75 in them. One is G12H-75 8ohm in a Weber single 12 cab powered by an old repurposed Hammond Organ amp and it's glorious. Beefy lows with a tight mid and a smooth upper, it CAN get loud. The other is a 16 ohm G12H-75 in a Marshall 1932B 1x12 cab and is powered by a Blackheart HD15 head. Originally the speaker was a G12T-65 and was a bit bright for me, the Creamback really brings the amp to life. It now has that creamy drive I remember from playing an original Marshall 50 watt plexi.
A type is a winner .. solid package
Awesome. I went into this video wanting to upgrade to the heavy magnet 70w Creamback and this video and the fact that Pete has had that setup further cements my decision. Very helpful video chaps! 👍
This was interesting for me because my Hot Rod IV came with a Creamback G12M speaker. It was one of the FSR amps, it has a oxblood grill and tweed sides.
The Alnico Cream is a very tempting change imho
I'm coming at this from the perspective of having one of these amps and using it exclusively in a band context, where the A-Type tends to get a lost if the amp isn't set up right. Overall, with limited exceptions, the A-Type loses in my book because it's missing something tonally. The mids are scooped out too much compared to most of the other speakers, and it's overall missing the clarity and definition that are required for the amp to work well in a band setting. The Ruby is an exception and I'm not a fan of the Neo either. That Alnico Cream is glorious. The cleans were sublime.
To my ears, the cream backs are the way to go for this. I liked the m, the h was good, the alnico and heritage were tied for winners.
IF YOU EVER DECIDE TO TRY THIS AGAIN, PLEASE demo a 2x12 cab with a v30 combined with each of the cream backs you used here. Since it’s such a popular combo nowadays with the h, you’ve got me really curious what the alnico and heritage speakers sound like when blended with that v30.
Great video guys. Wish I could’ve made it to the shop when I was in London last year. Hopefully next time. 🤞🏻🤘🏻
I changed the stock for a G12 65H in my HRD. It's really nice and can cut through the mix bretter than the stock.
Excellent speaker
44:33 best description of a speaker sound ever XD, amazing video comparison!
Great video. One of your best. Really helpful. Thanks for doing all this work! Definitely upgrading my speaker.
You should try switching the outputs of the A/B box since the isolated output has a different impedance. Might be acting somewhat like a buffer. Could explain why in both tests the one amp always had more presence.
Great guys. It’s so difficult to decide on a speaker replacement when you cannot try them. This give a real direction to look in
Favorite all time speaker is a JBL 120 in a fender . NOT something very popular with the younger crowd but that is the sound of the 70s R&R that I love and play . None of the newer speakers are even close . That said I like a stiff cold speaker that cuts through in the humid weather . Dont play outdoors in the summer ? Its not about the volume its about serving the sound .Bedroom level sells gear . But gigging is a full contact sport. EVH and most old school rockers also used JBL or EV. That SQUIRT from a high wattage speaker is not replicated with creambacks or any others which are all great for different things.
Ruby also sounds closer
The last creamback has the warmth of the stock speaker with the upgraded clarity as well
Great call on the HRD. I've been debating doing this for sometime
Happy to see Anderton's doing this kind of videos as well, didn't really expect this stuff on this channel. Would've been a bit interested in how a common Fender type Jensen, some eminences and wgs speakers worked in this amp as well.
Personally prefer the stock speaker here. If I get a fender amp, I'm looking for that kind of a bit dirty and moody sound. If I want aggressive mids, I go for marshall instead of different speaker.
They say Celestion 65 was the best Celestion made. Probably talking about Marshall and rock. Apparently people really disliked 70 so Celestion slightly changed 65 to bring out 75. Although for some reason people seem to always bash 75 so who knows what's going on. But the 65 did sound nice, although close, with the original speaker here.
I have the George Benson Deluxe with a Jensen C12K Speaker, I like a clean amp using pedals for the dirt. I have to say that this works really well for me. Mainly playing a Strat. I played an older Deluxe not so long, it was boxy sounding, didn't sing at all.
Fantastic video. Thanks guys!
On the clean channel, nearly all of the other speakers sounded as good or better than the A type IMHO. There may have been one or two that I felt were slightly not as good.
On the gain channel, I often preferred the A type... Kind of surprisingly.
With the Dane, again I almost always preferred the other speakers.
My faves were the Cream Back with the medium magnet, Cream Back with the heavy magnet, and the clear winner hands down no doubt about it... The alnico cream back. That speaker was absolutely magical.
The AlNiCo Cream (not “Creamback”) is Celestion’s best speaker ever, in my opinion. The Blue is the best sounding, but although the Cream is second-best sounding (again, my opinion), its power handling makes it so much more usable. The Ruby really only works in overly bright amps.
In general, the speakers that sound best on clean tones won't sound best on dirty tones, so if you play both clean and dirty, you need to compromise a bit.
I gotta give the W to the Celestion G12H.
LOVE the video...Lee you should ask Tim or Neil from CLUTCH to be on the channel when the world goes back to normal. They tour the UK every year it seems. And are the best band in the Galaxy!
i would pay good money to be in the same room with these guys baked as a cake comparing tones. hilarious and informing as usual!
Hey. I really appreciate this video and the subject. Despite the seemingly odd choice, I bought a HR Deville IV and promptly tamed and tweaked it a little with a Fromel Supreme mod kit and a Mercury Magnetics output transformer. After watching this video and doing a little more research online, I ordered a couple of Cream 90's. Grateful.
1. The Creamback Alnico
2. Redback
3. Heavy Mag Creamback
4. Medium Mag Creamback
5. G12 65 Heritage
What I'd love to see is a video about heads and speaker cabinets. I have a few questions about them:
1. How different does a 4×12 actually sound to a 2×12, besides the likely-obvious matter of volume?
2. What's the difference in sound between a straight cabinet and an angled one?
3. Open versus closed back?
4. If you have two cabs with identical speakers/spec but a *way* different price range, what exactly are you paying for with the expensive one?
Creamback Alnico sounded superb on clean channel, not as much on drives, 150 Redback sounded amazing too with ceramic creamback
Just ordered the alnico creamback. Thanks!
Update: the alnico speaker is like treble icepicks in the ear. They mentioned they are using a rather mellow guitar.
I recently compared the G12H-150 Redback and the Alnico Cream with a Friedman Small Box and BE-50. I know these are very different amps to the Hot Rod Deluxe and they're also high end by comparison, but I'm posting my comments as these two speakers seemed to find some favour in this video... I already owned an 8ohm Alnico Cream and I was comparing the 16ohm G12H-150 because one of the Friedman amps I was testing was a combo with the Redback factory installed.
The Alnico Cream is quite scooped, so it did not have the same desirable midrange character that the Redback did. To my ears the Alnico Cream can come across a little muted. So in my playing/listening tests the G12H-150 won. I was particularly impressed that the Redback gives texture to the midrange without being shrill or harsh in any way. Clearly it has also found favour with Dave Friedman, so that is worth something given the rich and desirable tone of his amps. I actually sold the Alnico Cream because it wasn't the first time I thought it lacked mid range character for a driven tone. I must admit though the Alnico Cream comes across very well for both clean and driven tones in this video. I just think in my personal experience the G12H-150 has a more balanced EQ of these two and it's cheaper as a bonus :-) I must confess I have only compared these speakers at lower volumes though. Loud in the house during the day time, but not gigging volume which as the guys were saying, volume can totally change your perception and preference.
I like vintage Jensen's like the PQ12. You can find re-coned versions for cheap, and I think they sound better than new production speaker drivers -- for Fender amps.
I put a P12N in mine, sounded nice.
I prefer the stock speaker almost everytime. The neodymium being the closest and maybe a little clearer without sounding thin or shrill.The Redback sounded good. It just seems like the overall voicing of the stock speaker fits into all styles. I have to admit I do love the alnico creamback for its clean sound. Notes just pop right out.
Fascinating vid!!! Thank you boys, I hadn't thought at all of changing the speaker on my Hot Rod Deluxe
Thanks for the labor of love of making this video guys! This is the type of awesome content I live for!
Thanks so much for this video. Obviously a lot of work for you guys. I was not at all surprised that I like all of the Creamback variations. They all sounded great. But I am finding that these speakers are pleasing to my ear in most situations I have heard them. I think I liked the Alnico the most, but hard to tell when you are listening to minor variations for an hour+ (Can only imagine 8+ hrs). Was impressed with the Heritage and the Reback as well. I feel like if I bought any of them it would be the neo creamback just for the weight reduction. It almost feels like a nice "extra" feature.
It was obvious they wanted the Type A to give that classic Fender clean sound. But what I found interesting was that the Type A also seemed to take the pedal really well on the clean channel. Which of course is what I think most players intend to use the amp for. But most other speakers seemed to work better on the drive channel.
i feel all the "new" speakers had more clarity then the "A" type. lot of mids in the A type. i think i would go with the G12-65 heritage for mine. mainly because the alnico cream is just out of my budget.
Bimmer2047 - This is exactly what I was about to type. Agree 100%. And thanks to the Captain and crew for the long haul of putting this together.
Thanks! Great video! Okay I have a blues deluxe reissue, but still, it gave me a sence of direction... something with creamback or greenback would be nice, I will listen again... But what would be the difference with a cannabis rex?
Creamback all the way for this particular unit ! I’ve always been a V30 guy though !
As for the V30, I liked it best with the built in gain. But clean and with the Dane, I´d go for the stock.