Celestion V30 vs Neo Creamback – Opinions on a postcard please

delorean

I’ve been using a Zilla Fatboy 2x12 for the last few years, loaded with Celestion V30’s.  My amp of choice is a Blackstar Series One 100 (6L6)

Whilst I’ve never been unhappy with the sound, nor have I been blown away by it, it’s what I would class as “good enough”. 
I’m certainly happier with the amp than I ever was with my old Dual Rectifier and Marshall DSL’s though.

Recently a number of people have suggested I swap the speakers out for Neo Creambacks, but I’ve not had any first-hand experience of these.

How to they compare to something like a V30?  I play predominantly 80s stadium rock (Def Leppard, Whitesnake, Skid Row, RATT, early era Bon Jovi etc), so I tend to prefer to use a saturated gain sound.  Would these speakers compliment that well?

More importantly – are they likely to be a better fit for my sound than the V30s?

 

timmysoft

I find V30's very shouty in the mid range, they cut through really well but i do find them fatiguing to listen to and quite difficult to record, especially the chinese ones. 

 Neo Creambacks are great, they're balanced, really open sounding and so bloody light! They aren't as aggressive as a v30, but i think they sound more defined at volume. 

DaveMon

I've found the Neo's to be warmer and rounder, with plenty of low end thump.

Whereas the V30s are brighter (harsher at times?), and a little lacking in the lows.
Also found the V30s needed to be driven harder otherwise they sound a little muddy.

But the light weight of the Neo's is awesome!

Danielsguitars

i don't like v30's either,  I'd rather have something like the g12h types, the anniversary one was much better than a v30 to my ears, it was a 1x12 cab though

timmysoft

Current Neo stock is also UK made, a huge positive for me as the Chinese v30 is nowhere near as good as the old UK V30.

delorean

Thanks guys - yeah my V30s are Chinese, and I've always thought they were a little harsh - I kinda figured it was just my amp, but could never quite dial the harshness out.

I'll have to start saving my pennies for some Neo's by the sounds of it!

clarkefan

I don't think the Chinese origin is necessarily the issue, the nature of V30s regardless of origin is what you might be struggling with, they're very Marmite. Personally I can't stand them. I'd suggest you try different flavours of speakers before committing to any particular speaker, they play an underrated part in the sound of the system.

p90fool

Didn't @Brize have a couple of Neos for sale? 

ICBM

There is no difference between Chinese and UK V30s - that was conclusively proved some time ago, by someone who posted the test on TGP if I remember rightly.

I should really get around to trying a Neo Creamback... I love the ceramic ones.

timmysoft

ICBM said:

There is no difference between Chinese and UK V30s - that was conclusively proved some time ago, by someone who posted the test on TGP if I remember rightly.

I should really get around to trying a Neo Creamback... I love the ceramic ones.

I have it on good authority that there is a difference, celestion were one of my customers when I was selling lubes. 

I had one of the guys show me the differences between the Chinese one and a uk one they were at that time supplying to cornford, he was saying it’s 95% there and the manufacturing cost was about 60%cheaper!

ICBM

timmysoft said:

I have it on good authority that there is a difference, celestion were one of my customers when I was selling lubes. 

I had one of the guys show me the differences between the Chinese one and a uk one they were at that time supplying to cornford, he was saying it’s 95% there and the manufacturing cost was about 60%cheaper!

I don't doubt there are minor constructional differences, but it doesn't affect the sound. Someone found a pair of boxed unused NOS UK-made ones and did a comparison to new Chinese ones, before and after break-in for the same amount of hours. After break-in, no-one could tell the difference.

p90fool

timmysoft said:

ICBM said:

There is no difference between Chinese and UK V30s - that was conclusively proved some time ago, by someone who posted the test on TGP if I remember rightly.

I should really get around to trying a Neo Creamback... I love the ceramic ones.

I have it on good authority that there is a difference, celestion were one of my customers when I was selling lubes. 

I had one of the guys show me the differences between the Chinese one and a uk one they were at that time supplying to cornford, he was saying it’s 95% there and the manufacturing cost was about 60%cheaper!

Lubes?! 

delorean

Thanks for all the feedback folks!  I'm going to try and get hold of a pair of creambacks to try (neo or otherwise).

It's just a shame there's no way of trying speakers out first before buying them

StuartMac290

The Neo Creamback is a great speaker, but if weight isn't a factor then get the ceramic Creamback instead - it's just that bit more open and fuller-sounding

timmysoft

p90fool said:

timmysoft said:

ICBM said:

There is no difference between Chinese and UK V30s - that was conclusively proved some time ago, by someone who posted the test on TGP if I remember rightly.

I should really get around to trying a Neo Creamback... I love the ceramic ones.

I have it on good authority that there is a difference, celestion were one of my customers when I was selling lubes. 

I had one of the guys show me the differences between the Chinese one and a uk one they were at that time supplying to cornford, he was saying it’s 95% there and the manufacturing cost was about 60%cheaper!

Lubes?! 

Yep, Teflon! 

ICBM

delorean said:

It's just a shame there's no way of trying speakers out first before buying them

Unfortunately there really isn’t a way - particularly as one of the most important factors is break-in. (Sorry Dave .) The sound can change substantially in quite a short time, but in my opinion it continues to do so - increasingly slowly, obviously - almost indefinitely.

In my opinion that’s why people think old UK V30s sound different from new Chinese ones - but it’s old vs new that makes the difference. The V30 is actually one of the most affected speakers because it has a very heavily doped edge surround.

timmysoft

ICBM said:

timmysoft said:

I have it on good authority that there is a difference, celestion were one of my customers when I was selling lubes. 

I had one of the guys show me the differences between the Chinese one and a uk one they were at that time supplying to cornford, he was saying it’s 95% there and the manufacturing cost was about 60%cheaper!

I don't doubt there are minor constructional differences, but it doesn't affect the sound. Someone found a pair of boxed unused NOS UK-made ones and did a comparison to new Chinese ones, before and after break-in for the same amount of hours. After break-in, no-one could tell the difference.

I’ve done similar with a cornford 212, there was a noticeable difference, enough for me to never want a Chinese version again. 

flying_pie

delorean said:

Thanks for all the feedback folks!  I'm going to try and get hold of a pair of creambacks to try (neo or otherwise).

It's just a shame there's no way of trying speakers out first before buying them

I wonder if there potentially is a way of "sort of" trying them out first. Sort of. 

I guess you could record your Blackstar preamp by connecting the Fx send into an interface into a DAW. You would then then look for impulse responses for your current speaker and the one you're interested in.

Obviously there are lots of variables which would effect the sound depending on how the impulse responses were recorded - power tubes, cab type, mic choice and positioning etc , but it might give a rough idea of what to expect compared to your current speaker, especially in terms of recording or being miced up at a gig. 

sweepy

Why not just swap one speaker, Matchless and Bognor used to offer Combos with mixed 12” drivers 

StefB

As a wild card alternative, I recently fitted a Celestion A-Type and a V-Type in the Marshall 1936 cab I use with my S100 6L6 and they sound thoroughly superb together.  I rate the A-Types very highly anyway, and the mix with the V-Type is fab with this amp (and others) I've used with the cab.

Both drivers are great value for money too, even brand new.  Seek out Pete Thorn's You Tube demo of the A-Type in particular...