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Celestion V30 vs. Geenback?


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In a 4X12 config, I prefer the V30 as they sound very good with an amp's clean channel. Greenbacks distort earlier and are great for Marshalls, or any other gonzo distortion. I've got V30's in my Avatar cab.

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Guest Buck Dharma

If it's a bright room use the Greenbacks! If it's a dark room use the V30's. That's exactly what Joe Bonamassa does and he sounds the same either way.

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Greenbacks have a woody tone. What does woody mean? It is a percussive sound that gives the notes a "pop". The best way to illustrate the "pop" is to think of playing a piece on a Studio Custom and then playing it on a Newport. The notes on the Newport should generate an explosive charateristic not present on the solid body.

Greenbacks have very little bass response and tend to flub when pushed. Greenbacks are the guitar tones of the 1970s. I find Vintage 30s are more responsive to a wider array of musical styles, but they will never have the "pop" factor. Many people have mixed Greenbacks and Vintage 30s to capture the best of both worlds. Someone mentioned the g12H30, that sounds more similar to the Vintage 30 but with a broader bass range.

Going brightest to darkest you would have: Greenback, Vintage 30, g12h30

I find Greenbacks alone are too bright and lack bass for my preferences. I find that g12h30s alone are too dull. If I have to pick one Celestion to use alone it would be the Vintage 30. If your needs require more than a single speaker, a mixture maybe the best solution. You can go completely nuts and mix speakers in a 4x12, and not necessarily using only two choices. I have not had the opportunity to do such tests, but I have read on the internet of people using all kinds of various Celestion combos such as: 1 Greenback, 1 g12h30 and 2 Vintage 30s, or 2 Greenbacks, 1 Vintage 30 and 1 g12h30, etc. There are probably 10 different combinations possible for three speaker choices using four slots, any math majors amongst us?

Just remember that if you use more than one speaker type you will need a microphone for each variety if you want the house PA to truly hear your on stage tone.

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Guest Buck Dharma

I have all of those speakers listed and more. To me the Vintage 30's are the brightest and the Greenbacks the darkest. Thats through the same amp and cab.

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I never got on the Greenback bandwagon.

I LOVE V30's! It would be hard to imagine an amp that wouldn't benefit from having them tossing out the noise!

Although, I dig G12t-75's for all-out metal.

And Eminence Big Ben's for ANY 15" application.

And those new Neo's look nice.........

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Guest Buck Dharma

I am using the Scumback H75 30 watt speakers now. They are GREAT if you want the old Celestion sound. Weber makes them to the old Pre-Rola specs for Scumbag.

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I love my UK made V30's...they take a lot of punishment that a GB25 will not take. Way better botom end on the V30's as well which is why I prefer them over anything else. However, one of my amps, my Marshall Silver Jubilee 2555, sounds best through my old 75's that are in the matching SJ cab. But for everyday use it is V30 all the way.

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I always liked the 25's and could'nt really get next to the V30's...Currently trying out some G12H 30 watters and the jury is still out because they are brand new and not even close to being "broken in" yet and still sounding a bit stiff

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I always liked the 25's and could'nt really get next to the V30's...Currently trying out some G12H 30 watters and the jury is still out because they are brand new and not even close to being "broken in" yet and still sounding a bit stiff

You'll sell 'em before they get broken in anyway...... :D

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I always liked the 25's and could'nt really get next to the V30's...Currently trying out some G12H 30 watters and the jury is still out because they are brand new and not even close to being "broken in" yet and still sounding a bit stiff

You'll sell 'em before they get broken in anyway...... :D

Yeah....most likely...I must work on my lack of patience...I must work on my lack of patience...My new mantra lately because yes...I do unload things quite quickly and really don't give things much of a chance to grow on me and have been thinking I should just rebuild my rack setup that I used forever back in the day..well....at least I'm "thinking" about it......it's a start....ain't it??? hehe :D

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I agree w/ Mike Lee. Split the difference and get the G12H30, IMO they are in between a V30 and a GB.

I'm not sure about the post with the brightest to darkest going:

GB V30 H30

Maybe his setup is different than mine, but I find it goes V30 H30 GB

If you have an amp with good midrange, plenty of gain, but want a more 3d sound ( i.e. more pronounced highs and lows) then I'd go with the V30s (maybe the H30s) - plus they are pretty loud

If you've got plenty volume ... and need to emphasize more mids - I'd say go with the GBs or the H30s

Just my opinion,

- Bill

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To answer your direct question, the Vintage 30 is far more flexible and much better sounding imho than the greenback.

However the G12H30 is a fantastic speaker, as is the Celestion Blue. I have one of each in my 2x12 which I run a 30 watt amp into, and I really like the tone. I'll be putting a V30 in my new 1x12 for greater power handling capability.

Call Dave at Avatar Speakers and tell him what you're looking to accomplish, he knows his stuff and has great prices too.

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One of the things I'm trying to do with my cabs is get the to be interchangeable. I find the V30 to have such a aggresive mid attack that IMO it doesn't work well in a mid heavy amp. I had one in my Classic 30 and it was a bit much, although it sounded pretty good with the band.

Actually I'm now using the Eminence Red Coat series knock offs. Governors and Private Jacks. I still have a 1X12 cab which I'm trying to decide how to load. I have Private Jack(Greenback 50 watts), Governor(V30 75watts) and a Black Framed V30 (60watts) out of a Ampeg cab. The amps are a Classic 30 and Trace H-100 Speed Twin. My 2X12 has a Governor and Wizard(V30, G12H-30). Non of these will stand up to the Trace by themself so with that amp it would get used with the 2X12. My fear with the V30 is that the black vs. gold frame is going to make it tough to sell on Ebay. Any opinions what I should load the 1x12 with?

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It should be mentioned that V30s and G12H-30s are much louder (higher sensitivity) than Greenbacks. If volume is an issue the Greenbacks can be very helpful in taming the levels.

Chris

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