Celestion G12M-70 opinions
adam79
G12M-70. If I buy it, I will be matching it up with a Marshall 1960a
Lead w/ Celestion G12-65s. I play heavy metal/grunge. Just wondering if
anyone owns these speakers, and what they think of them.
Thanks,
-Adam
boardjunkie
Squier
FWIW, I do not personally own a cab with the 70's but I have heard
them from an ex-bandmate playing Les Paul and Marshall JCM head
into the Marshall 4x12 cab and that cab never really sounded very
good to me. But that might not be the speakers because there are
so many other things in a complete rig that all have to get along well
together including the person playing.
I plugged into that rig with a Fender Fat Strat and it sounded even worse.
I have played through 4x12 with greenbacks (G12M 25 watters) and with
the usual Celestion Vintage 30's loaded cabs and cabs with G12H-30's
and a mix of G12H-30 and Vintage 30's. The G12 70's really sound kinda
muffled without a nice top and without any mid 'fatness' and they have
a kind of tinny bass to them. I really think out of all the celestions
they might be the worst. But hey - I am sure others out there might
find them to work well with their guitars and amp heads and playing style.
If you need higher wattage cab (and want all the speakers the same) then
go for the Lead 80's which to me sound a lot better.
here's the thing with the Lead 80's though - unless you have the wattage
to open them up they don't sound very good to my ears (in other words
playing a 4x12 loaded with Lead 80's using a 10 watt amp is not going to
get the best results from those speakers).
The G12-65's can sound really nice but they are an acquired taste (imho).
They sound great clean and mild overdrive.. etc.. but they never really
impressed me with good higher gain sounds.. but obviously YMMV.
I have tried a lot of speakers and lots of cabs and my all time
favorite for most things is 2x12 or 4x12 with Celestion G12M 25 watt greenbacks.
If I need something for higher wattage then 2x12 or 4x12 (mixed in X pattern)
using a mix of Vintage 30 and G12H-30 speakers.
And ultra high wattage (for 80 - 100 watt heads) then 2x12 or 4x12 with
Vintage 30's or mix of Vintage 30 and Lead 80. (the lead 80 really takes
high gain very well and holds together better than Vintage 30 under
really high gain although the Vintage 30 has a nice breakup to it,
so the V 30 breakup under higher wattage and gain mixed with the tighter
Lead 80 make for a good mix).
Anyways... you don't need to match speaker cab wattage with amp output wattage
but many high wattage speakers really don't sound so good until they are
getting driven a bit and a low wattage amp just can't can't those cones
moving enough. I know people that have played cabs rated for over 100 watts
and they plugged in their low watt heads and it just didn't do the cab
justice at all. Sure they got to hear the low watt head through 4x12 and
were all grins.. but they would have liked it better plugging into a cab
with (perhaps) 25 watt greenbacks which can open up a lot better with
much less watts.
Ok yeah sure... tone is all subjective and I know you can get great sounds
using a 60 watt speaker and a 5 watt amp... but that 60 watt speaker could
really open up and probably sound better with a 25 or 30 or more watts amp.
anyways, that's my take on it. The 70's sound nothing like the 65's
and you'll find that out real quick if you get the cab with the 70's.
The only thing you might get away with is mixing the 70's with the 65's
in an X pattern in each cab (take 2 70's and two of the 65's from your
existing cab and make mixed 4x12's). The 65's might be able to work off
some of the tinny mids and muffled highs the 70's will do).
If you have an amp or overall rig that already pushes out a lot of mids
and is also overbright and you don't need a bottom end then the 70's might
work well for you. Or perhaps you have a super 'boomy' sounding humbucker
neck pickup that you can't deal with EQ on the amp.. then the 70's might
also be good for you.
ok. nuff.
White Spirit
> FWIW, I do not personally own a cab with the 70's but I have heard
> them from an ex-bandmate playing Les Paul and Marshall JCM head
> into the Marshall 4x12 cab and that cab never really sounded very
> good to me. But that might not be the speakers because there are
> so many other things in a complete rig that all have to get along well
> together including the person playing.
> I plugged into that rig with a Fender Fat Strat and it sounded even worse.
> I have played through 4x12 with greenbacks (G12M 25 watters) and with
> the usual Celestion Vintage 30's loaded cabs and cabs with G12H-30's
> and a mix of G12H-30 and Vintage 30's. The G12 70's really sound kinda
> muffled without a nice top and without any mid 'fatness' and they have
> a kind of tinny bass to them. I really think out of all the celestions
> they might be the worst. But hey - I am sure others out there might
> find them to work well with their guitars and amp heads and playing style.
> If you need higher wattage cab (and want all the speakers the same) then
> go for the Lead 80's which to me sound a lot better.
The Vintage 30s are 70W speakers anyway, so you could go with those if
you want a heavy duty speaker. I prefer the G12T-75s, though.
Squier
yeah... the G12T 75's are more mid neutral and take to mid scooped tones
a lot better than Vintage 30's (which to me are 60 watt speakers).
But the V 30's have big mids inherently and don't make for good
mid scooped sound speakers. But if a person's rig naturally has
overbearing mids (for whatever reason) then the G12T 75's can certainly
smooth out those peaked or honky mids.
I find that many times the Vintage 30's might not sound so good
playing at home but in a band mix those mids can really cut through
for lead playing. Where as the G12T 75's can sound really good at home
and at lower band volumes but don't necessarily have good mid cut and so
you tend to use brute force and crank up volume with them to sit in a mix
or have some cut for leads/solos. But they do make for excellent rhythm
sounds and of course the scooped metal tones (ala triple rec scooper crowd).
But that's just my ear and how I hear 'em and YMMV.. etc....
I'm addicted to 25 watt greenbacks and don't really like any other
speaker any more. The Vintage 30's are ok though (but for these I
really like the WGS Veteran 30's better than the Celestions).
And for anyone out there that wants a kick butt 10" speaker -
give a try to Eminence Ragin Cajuns. oh my! great 10" speaker.
In the end I think you can read all the reviews and comments etc
from all of us here and on other boards and forums and you never
really know what is going to work for you until you try them out
and take the time to play them and let them break in and then play
them some more. Sometimes the speakers many people trash talk might
be the ones you like the most. Never can tell.
What I find to be a pain though is that there are very few places
that have a lot of cabs with various speakers to plug amp heads into
to try out. They have all sorts of guitars on the walls and all sorts
of amps.. etc.. but few places have a bunch of cabs with different speakers
to plug into and try out all the various speaker choices out there.
White Spirit
> yeah... the G12T 75's are more mid neutral and take to mid scooped tones
> a lot better than Vintage 30's (which to me are 60 watt speakers).
> But the V 30's have big mids inherently and don't make for good
> mid scooped sound speakers. But if a person's rig naturally has
> overbearing mids (for whatever reason) then the G12T 75's can certainly
> smooth out those peaked or honky mids.
Vintage 30s sound more 'punchy' to me, whereas the 75s have a bit more
fibre.
> I find that many times the Vintage 30's might not sound so good
> playing at home but in a band mix those mids can really cut through
> for lead playing. Where as the G12T 75's can sound really good at home
> and at lower band volumes but don't necessarily have good mid cut and so
> you tend to use brute force and crank up volume with them to sit in a mix
> or have some cut for leads/solos. But they do make for excellent rhythm
> sounds and of course the scooped metal tones (ala triple rec scooper crowd).
With the 75s using a Marshall, I just set the mids up a bit higher. I
think I just prefer them to come from the amplifier, where I have more
control. The funny thing is that many bands are actually using the
Vintage 30s with scooped sounds and the Rectifier cabs come with them as
standard. I believe Slayer, Megadeth and many more brutal bands use the
30s whereas Iron Maiden, for example, use the 75s.
I'm listening to the rehearsal recording from yesterday and my DSL-50
with G12T-75s is pure midrange crunch. I'm glad I finally got that amp
repaired.
> I'm addicted to 25 watt greenbacks and don't really like any other
> speaker any more. The Vintage 30's are ok though (but for these I
> really like the WGS Veteran 30's better than the Celestions).
I'd probably blow those in a 100W half stack. My 6100LM was tested as
being 120w before distortion and my 6100 is probably closer to 150.
> In the end I think you can read all the reviews and comments etc
> from all of us here and on other boards and forums and you never
> really know what is going to work for you until you try them out
> and take the time to play them and let them break in and then play
> them some more. Sometimes the speakers many people trash talk might
> be the ones you like the most. Never can tell.
Yep.
> What I find to be a pain though is that there are very few places
> that have a lot of cabs with various speakers to plug amp heads into
> to try out. They have all sorts of guitars on the walls and all sorts
> of amps.. etc.. but few places have a bunch of cabs with different speakers
> to plug into and try out all the various speaker choices out there.
There was an excellent shop in the centre of London that had loads of
cabs as well as all manner of guitars and amps. Unfortunately, it
closed down, but there was plenty to choose from there.
Dave Curtis
I've had a pair for roughly 15 years. I got them for my SF Pro
Reverb, and they sound good in that spot. I've had them in my V4 cab
and I like them there, too. At the moment, they reside in the VT22,
and will likely stay for the time being. I'll keep 'em.
+DC