Do different Speakers In Guitar Amps Really Make A difference? - Celestion Shootout.

[@0megalul309]

The real hero of this video is the quick swap cab. What a convenience to have man.

[@timmotel5804]

The Gold for sure and the Neo Creamback are my choices. 12/30/2023: Enjoyed your demo very much. Happy New Year

[@Bairov]

Grabbing a Neo after searching for a long time. This is the best video I've come across in my search. Gonna pair it with an Eminence alessandro SC64

[@johnhudak3829]

The three best “bang for the buck” changes you can make in your rig are picks, strings, and speakers. I use different picks for different guitars….it’s amazing the change in tone!

[@adamwatson6916]

Speakers are overlooked by so many. People assume they make no difference or are the least important part of the chain but speakers change the tone mote then tube swaps or guitar pickup swaps I have a Variety of cabinets and speakers and when I switch cabs but use the same amp its like a switched toa different amp .

[@TRLgoodvibesdotcom]

Picks are like paintbrushes

[@annunacky4463]

@@TRLgoodvibesdotcomfor me their more like rollers lol. My technique could use some work.

[@darwinsaye]

And cabinets.

[@bigstick5278]

@@adamwatson6916 ::: It's a combination of many things.. It's mind boggling: Well tuned amp good quality tubes, well set up guitar: Strings, pickups and string action, pick gauge, picking style. Speakers for sure.. I use to play for years with med to light picks, the Dunlop Tortex is my favorite, Why? It started because my friend closed his boutique music store and handed me a big sack of loose Tortex picks and a box of effects for helping him when things got crazy. Lately I use heavy.

[@bentenpeterson]

That Neo is superb! Such clarity and smoothness. 🤘

[@ma9th]

I really like your playing. Straight and tastefully. No needles doodeling.

[@IamMusicNerd]

I just put an Alnico Cream in my cabinet, and what a huge difference. It’s more versatile than my Vintage 30 or greenback. Huge dynamic range. Completely transformed my sound. Love it!

[@frantisca]

I recently purchased an Alnico Cream: these speakers are awesome !

[@adamwatson6916]

The whole creamback range are fantastic. Whether it's the alnico cream the neo cream or the Ceramic M and H cream. For so long you had to choose between either the low wattage vintage voiced speakers ot the higher wattage more modern voiced speakers but now for the last few years Celestion and other speaker producers are combing the vintage voicings with modern higher power handling. For quite a while with celestion if you needed higher power rated speakers you choices were basically vintage 30s or T 75s . I like V30s but they don't sound particularly vintage to my ears .

[@reverendmark3887]

Beautiful song! So nice to hear a demo done in the mix, rather than mindless bluesy noodles. Well done!

[@ianjensen7989]

I think a neo and a gold would sound great in the same cabinet. especially after broken in.

[@prd004.2]

The sparkling top end on the gold really sat well in the mix. And I agree that the neo was the better sounding of the cream backs. Great demo!

[@dautofreitas8318]

What a wonderful sound, I love this clean stratocaster sound.

[@stevethebeeline44]

Really great comparison! Most speaker comparison videos show one speaker compared to the other but to hear it in the context of a track was fantastic. Celestion Gold has been my favourite speaker for a long time but nicely surprised by the Celestion Neo Creamback. Held off on the Neo due to mixed reviews but I think I'll have to try two in a 2x12 cab now after hearing it here. Surprised that I preferred it to the standard Creamback!

[@Abutado]

Wow dude, your playing gave me chills. SERIOUSLY, what did I just stumbled upon on.

[@maxpeck4154]

At first I preferred the Neo Cream - thought it had more top end and sparkle than the other 2 and then realized that you had the guitar's switch in position 4 (neck and middle) for the clean demo of the Neo Cream but had it in position 5 (neck only) for the ceramic Cream and the alnico gold. The clean demo of all 3 speakers should've been on the same pickup setting. Not that it was intentional! I had to go back and re-listen several times as I thought I was hearing things.

[@berndzagel4302]

Best speaker demo on KZbin. More please. 😊

[@JimmyRadloff]

I have an Alnico Cream 90 in my Fender HRD and I love the way it sounds

[@jublaim]

Very nicely done! I've paired the Neo Creamback with a V30 in a small 2X12 closed-back cab; they really work very good together!

[@tejeguitar]

Gotta love those goldies. Can't help it. Cheers Paul!

[@aldito7586]

Many moons ago in a guitar mag a reviewer says "I'm reviewing all guitar speakers". And he wasn't kidding. He reviewed every speaker. Altec-Lansing, - Cerwin-Vega, - JBL,- Electo-Voice, - Peavey. EVERYTHING. Well anyway at the end of his reviews he said - "Well with all that said - snuff it!" - "The Celestion Blue is the BEST sounding speaker!"

[@dsholt]

I actually thought the brightness of the alnico gold was a little harsh. I preferred the Neo Creamback. Great demonstration! Only suggestion would be to end the video with some edits to have each one right after the other so one doesn't have to slide between sections of the video to hear direct comparisons.

[@WallyBoots]

Great video. That melody and chord progression were amazing. Superb playing.

[@andrewsutton7007]

Very nice vid Paul and super playing. I installed a Celestion Gold into my DRRI nearly 15-years ago and continue to be very impressed with its performance. it just seesm to get better and I've use no other. 'Breaking In' guitar speakers is however, voodoo mumbo jumbo to many, but once fitted, I fed the DRRI with pink noise (a freq. weighted wide band signal) at mid-power for about 40-hours (while I was out at work each day) and genuinely noticed a pleasing difference afterwards. If you play a lot, that'll also do the trick, but that's probably 20 gigs or rehearsal sessions...

[@Germinalx]

I have heard him pull that G so many times I recognize him with my eyes closed from the moon! Very distinctive and well done!

[@frantisca]

Hi Paul, I tried all sorts of speakers. It is indeed a very important component in one's signal chain. IMO, the G12M65 Creamback is probably the best compromise in your test. The cleans are maybe less chimey than the Gold, but it gives you an overall spectrum that allows you to play through a lot of genres, clean, crunch, distorted with a constant output tone quality. Which might not be the case of the Neo... I use a Creamback together with a G12T75 and both complete each other pretty well. My 2 ¢

[@GioGuitarDude]

Haha, that’s funny… my 2x12 cab for years was loaded with a G12T75 and a G12M65. A couple years ago I swapped the T75 for a NEO creamback and the sound is absolutely stellar. The G12T75 made my tone a little nasally, but the NEO buttered the tone up nicely. I’ve spent thousands of dollars on speakers and cabs looking for the right tone and I finally found it. The tone of the G12T75’s are good, but they’re so dang loud that they overpower whatever speaker you pair them with.

[@DennisAlvarezMusic]

I didn't notice much difference between the Cream Backs. But the Gold made the guitar really pop. (If that's what you want)

[@garyslash7552]

Speakers and sound aside - this is a wonderful song and your playing is as soulful as ever. And this is what music is all about.

[@TheStudioRats]

Cheers Gaza!

[@kevincourcey813]

Really interesting. I thought the Neo sounded a bit thin, especially in the bass response, but since it was first one played, I thought it might just be the guitar. But the Ceramic added some depth and bottom end to the sound that I thought improved the sound overall. The Gold sounded best for the kind of quiet guitar part you were playing, great clarity and bass response, but harsh on the overdrive. Of the three I'd go with the Ceramic Creamback.

[@giulioluzzardi7632]

Agree with your choice, heard the same.

[@relevantinformation6655]

They all have their own place. That’s the beauty of it. I don’t know how many different speakers I have in cabs since the 70s. However I just switched to gold top of the lines in my vox. I play at low volumes anymore and I find them very articulate, and I can get a well rounded sound with little fuss.

[@pastorkev777]

I liked all three, I wouldn't use all three for the same thing though. You should check out the selection v-type and the v-type Neo, great speakers. You may actually like the Alnico cream back better than the gold.

[@alanst.4417]

Hi, Paul! What a lovely strat sound and beautiful Hendrix style melody! I'm always glad to hear a well made speaker comparison. All 3 speakers sounded very good, the creambacks were better overdriven and the alnico gold on cleans as you mentioned. But if I had to choose just one, I'd probably go with the creamback as it seems more versatile to me and is cheaper, too. The neo is very popular these days, but I'd have to hear the exact same phrases back to back to differentiate their nuances. Also it might be interesting to throw the H creamback in, however it's not that portable...

[@dominbuleto]

Did you adjust your amp using any of the speakers? Good video, quite illustrative!

[@chrisdrake447]

That was illuminating. Listening via my meagre set up, the Neo seemed the most balanced of the three, in the context in which you were testing them. Curious to know if you tried (& videoed?) a similar experiment with a humbucker-equipped guitar and / or a Tele type, to see if things changed much, especially whether the Alnico Gold’s high-end clarity helped or hindered. Great song and gorgeous playing too. Cheers.

[@liammcnamara338]

For a really nice A/B clean melodic tone comparison of the creambacks I switched between: Neo: 1:48 Ceramic: 5:25

[@zoraseboulisa9377]

Hero

[@nigeladams9819]

I replaced a vintage 30, with a Neo V type, because I couldn't take the weight of the cab, and it's great. On my TV the ceramic cream back seemed smoother and not so bright. Which on a Strat I did like. The Alnico gold was very bright and jangley. The Neo Cream Back was very similar to the Alnico. So on a price and weight point the Neo wins, for me. Obviously in the room it will be different. But nice demo. Thanks.

[@Funkybassuk]

The Neo was surprisingly good!

[@monkofwar]

I’ve got neo creambacks in my Orange Rockerverb 50 mkiii combo. They sound great. I love British made Orange amps. I even use a made in China Orange 35rt as my home practice amp. Everything from Orange sounds great to me. Fender guitars + Orange amplifiers = guitar heaven.

[@brammanck]

In the track the gold sounds really nice, the neo sounds great on its own, good stuff

[@magnusberger6762]

Dreaming of a stereo rig with both types. A Deluxe Reverb w/Gold set a bit above edge of breakup with a dash of reverb. A Brownface Deluxe with Creamback set cranked with slight tremolo that appears when notes ring out. Run both amps at the same time and adjust between clean and mean with the volume controls. 😊😊😊

[@mikeblue385]

i have had the neo creamback in my hotrod deluxe for about 2 years. it finally softened a little. love it.

[@aristocaster]

Very good video. Would not hurt considering how fast human ear forget the timbre of the tone, to make a verse or two where you change the sound from one speaker to another like almost in every two bars, back and forth. 😀

[@aristocaster]

I saw the beginning of the video second time, and funnily, there was short segment where that was actually done, my apologies 😀

[@daveandrew7014]

After many Celestion speakers purchased, my fav comes down to G12H30 Anniversary & Alnico Cream.

[@bradpankow1112]

Absolutely brilliant. Thanks for sharing!

[@matthewf1979]

Neo and Alnico speakers sound very similar to me. I'd bet it has something to do with the magnetic field size since they're both a lot smaller than ferrite/ceramic magnets.

[@gcr28]

Yes, it makes a big difference. I recently purchased a marshall mx212 cab that had 70/80’s in it, which in my opinion are good speakers they get a bad rap. They sort of sound like a tamed down vintage 30. However I changed speakers to a v30 on the bottom and a g12-t75 on top. Big difference, sounds great.

[@theshadowoftruth7561]

I three in an old 1980's Organ 12" Speaker into my tube amp and it sounds great.

[@circlemover]

Neo for me all day. Thought the sound sat in the track much better. But its horses for courses and as you said Paul...probably need all three depending on the music and vibe. Much appreciated and thanks.

[@Fugettaboutit]

Very interesting. I could see how you like the more sparkly Neo with the tighter/fuller bottom end, but even though the ceramic has more rolled off highs and lows, it still sounds really nice. Like a pleasing, warm voice. It's almost as if you took the neo and then used some compression on your guitar, squashing the outer parts of the EQ but then enhancing and adding more sustain to the mids. The Gold probably needs to be broken in more, it's more strident and a bit stiff. the ceramic Creamback sounds older and more broken in. I think it actually has the nicest tone but rather one-trick-pony and compressed compared to the others. Put it this way, I think you could get the neo to sound like the ceramic with some compression, but not the other way around. If I was choosing for say a Fender amp, I'd probably go with the ceramic and dedicate myself to that characteristic as my 'base', unless I knew I had an easy way of hitting an eq/compressor pedal to get it spot-on when using the neo. But in a band mix you'll probably lose a lot of those extra lows and highs anyway, so maybe again the ceramic and not worry about it.

[@nightmurma]

Great comparison and it‘s interessting to see how the Gold excels in the clean area and the others more in a driven setup. I really like the Neo! But much more important: This is a fabulous playing and composition! Thanks a lot for sharing. Can we buy this song somewhere? Best, Markus

[@ivonsmith2024]

Great comparo - Im looking right now at what to choose for my next custom cab build! I like the Neo CB concept - especially since my current custom cab is very light weight, Have you done any videos on the Electro Voice EVM12L or 15L??

[@doughoward9627]

Great video, but I always wonder in these comparisons, for which speaker was the amp/guitar tone set up for? If it was on the first, then that speaker had that advantage over all the rest.

[@user-DonHall44]

I have 3 separate Victory 2x12 vertical cabs with different Celestion speakers installed. Ceramic Creambacks, Neo Creambacks and AlNiCo Creams (which are Celestion's most expensive speakers, rather than the AlNiCo Golds). They all sound excellent but I very slightly prefer the sound of the Ceramic Creambacks, although when it comes to moving the cabs, I much prefer the lighter weight of the Neo Creambacks! The AlNiCo Creams have the most laid back sound, while the Neo Creambacks have the fastest response. I also have a mini stack consisting of 2 identical sized Montage cabs, one with a single 12" Ceramic Creamback, the other with 2x10" Ceramic Creambacks. Easier to move around than the 2x12 cabs and sounding just as good.

[@jeffburgess6258]

They all sound great. Lovely Strat tones. Great song too!

[@philchapman1463]

Great video! It may have been my imagination but the Gold seemed to have characteristic of both the Neo and the Creamback

[@marciofavatto]

Incredible work, incredible video! Thank you so much!👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@ZillaCabs]

Great video! Lovely playing, really letting the guitar breathe, that's what you want when doing this stuff with speakers. Loved it!

[@TheStudioRats]

Cheers Zilla cabs! Love your content.

[@sarahoward3341]

What the hell is this absolute meaningless babble about "let the guitar breathe"???

[@giulioluzzardi7632]

You are a "Soul-Man" , we can all see your expression when your playing and digging the tune. From this end the Standar creamback actually sounded "Fuller" and "warmer" , a more versatile choice than the other 2. All are good but how many speakers can we be lugging around to a job? I may have to stick a 10" creamback ceramic in my AD15 combo just cos it works for anything from Country/ Folk to Dance music and all out Rock n roll(with a Fuzz), thanks for the Viddy as it really helps hearing another( cool) Player using the gear and we can really listen. TA'. BTW I thought you were going to grab a cold drink when you opened up the Grossman(It does look like a domstic appliance).

[@GreenGuitarNerd]

Did not really like the Gold overdriven but was really sweet on the clean end. Ceramic was a little bitier which worked better overdriven. NEO was indeed a balance. Which I guess is as advertised. But it’s subtle.

[@sidwhelan6918]

Thanks for video! Very helpful.

[@jkwjkw1624]

I need a copy of the backing song you're playin to! How can we get one? 👍

[@MintStiles]

The bass and lower mids are stronger on the gold with a nice sparkle on the top. The Neo Creamback is clean clear and tight. Both are very different and would be worth having. The ceramic creamback is a honestly kind of muddy. You might get more out of it in a higher gain situation I think. Not really my thing though.

[@leebuck8532]

I have 2 neo cream backs paired with 2 Vintage 30s in an xy pattern, in a marshall cab. It gets bad ass metal tones! Cab has 15deg angle.

[@HiHello-ku1fl]

Even though at first I didn't think the gold sounded as good overdriven I preferred after several listens. I like the texture of the Golds overdrive even though it isn't perfect it's cool and stands out. I also preferred the gold clean but I can see why you may have preferred the others with your Matchless. Some amps I prefer ceramic speakers. Between the two creambacks I thought the Neo sounded smaller or thinner which is the opposite of the way you described it as fuller. I preferred the regular creamback as it sounded more full and dynamic where the NEO sounded more even and less dynamic. ...also smaller and less punchy. Maybe different in the room.

[@chrisgibbsracing]

Really interesting video, many thanks. Paul, what is the song at the beginning please? Love the guitar part and vocal melody, it sounds so good.

[@sTVG2]

Can you do a video like this showing the same speaker… (Celestion alnico gold) With various cabinets?

[@Abutado]

The song is "Drifting in the dark" by The Studio Rats.

[@alexwong7]

The Gold is great but lacks attack in my rig. It has a chime that the creamback doesnt. I now have a creamback H and Alnico Cream in a 2x12 and it's so good!

[@TheStudioRats]

Nice one!

[@realtruenorth]

I don't want my speaker to attack LOL

[@garywaddell6309]

Absolutely love this song and I agree with all comments Paul, regarding your playing and those crisp Strat tones 🤩 do you have any thoughts / experience on the Marshall origin combo amps with the Celestion Midnight speakers?

[@TheStudioRats]

Hi Gary, I’ve only played through an Origin head and I liked it.

[@laurieharper1526]

The Gold had the sweetest sound. Would be ideal for studio work and especially more delicate guitar parts. That subtlety would probably not be noticed in a live situation. Of the Creams, I preferred the Neo. It was quite close to the Gold for sweetness and had a bit more oomph. Would make a better all-rounder, as well as saving money.

[@totallyunmemorable]

I wanted to prefer the neo (my back ain't getting any younger), but the regular creamback was the one for me. It sounded twangier, less smooth. Better suited to my playing style. I observe the same difference with my Eminence Redcoat Tonker and Tonker lite speakers. Even the factory said the neo would sound brighter. It doesn't. Like the Celestion, the neo is smoother, warmer. And actually, the two work very well together in the same cab.

[@Boomsterblak]

I remember people switching their fender cabs from jensens to jbl or some dam thing,,if I knew then what I know now I would have collected all the throw away jensens

[@unabonger777]

did you feel the same way after hearing the recorded results? because to me the ceramic creamback sounded a lot fuller than the neo, the low end you talked about did not really come across with the neo (listening with ATH-M50), the neo sounded thinner.

[@digitalchris6681]

Hiya. Great review. I know I'm around 10 months late to the party, but from memory can you tell me which sounded better at low volume? I know, for example, my V-type sounds crap (rather like a transistor radio- no bass and tinny treble) unless turned up, when it sounds pretty good.

[@oldguybuildingstuffandassa8530]

Great video! I would love to have the tab/chords for that demo piece you played!

[@Im-sure]

Look who has all the cool toys… Nice!

[@bagusmusicallo]

Nice song and memorable, i like the alnico because of top end clarity.

[@nedim_guitar]

Fun video! Subtle differences, and even though none sound bad, some are just more special. I like the speakers that sound more full and punchy. The gold one sounds great, but there's a honky mid (?) that makes it sound more different from the other two. Oh, almost forgot! I must compliment your playing! Great use of inversions, very musical, melodic!

[@davidp158]

Thanks for this excellent comparison video. I hope you might compare some other speakers if you get the time. ALL the other speaker reviews I’ve seen use heavy distortion tones instead of any clean tones. While this may be great for some I think clean tones are far more revealing of a speaker’s tone character. Great playing by the way. I like your wide open choked voicings. Any chance you might demonstrate how you construct your chord voicings?

[@thedoodl38ug]

HI, could you please tell me the song name & where i can find it? Lovely playing!

[@MartinCliffe]

Love Neo Creambacks, I have 4 of them.

[@sarahoward3341]

Would reeeeally love to hear all three together in a 4x12 cab and IF you also had and added the Creamback 75 together! Would you be able to do a three together? Cheers

[@TrickyGomez]

I have to take your word for it on which one is preferred. Probably sounds different in the room but not enough through KZbin for me. Great vid.... Thanks for confusing the choices even more, lol

[@fredlanster9936]

YES they do!!! But you need to find the ones you like!!! Nothing else matters.

[@EdBenji]

The Golds are King...But the price tag is scary...$$$

[@jamanjeval]

For these a/b/c comparisons, it would be helpful to have the same part played back to back rather than 3 long sequences. Your playing and tone were really good it’s just that skipping around in YT doesn’t give the best experience. Even the segments for each speaker aren’t identical so it’s difficult to hear the same part on each. In the intro you almost did that but you cut between the speakers based upon the part of the song and not the same riff on each.

[@Dunk0The0Punk]

Great Video Paul ! Man you have some spanking Riffs right up my Strasse ! love the double stops, when's the full song due for release ?

[@TheStudioRats]

Cheers Duncan, just waiting to get some 🎹 on it.

[@felinekaiju4517]

fantastic video, Paul!. I love that more people are starting to go down the speaker path and realise how much it changes the tone instead of going for a new amp, I think matching different speakers can make for very interesting tones if matched right . I'm currently looking for a speaker to match with my Eminence Pete Anderson Hempback, and I'm thinking probably an Eminence DV-77 once they're available here in Australia. As I play both down tuned metal, but also have a love for luscious cleans. I'm currently paying off a peavey invective and using an old crate TD-70 at the moment.

[@felinekaiju4517]

@jameswilliams3304 I don't know the EVM, I'll have to look it up.

[@felinekaiju4517]

@jameswilliams3304 I checked it out, and I think it would pair nicely with the Zakk Wilde 12L

[@Andyme-z7s]

Hi, great video! Would love to know what the track is please?

[@JonGUK]

I’m really getting the itch for that ISO cab you have.

[@TheStudioRats]

You won’t regret it.

[@GCKelloch]

An AlNiCo Cream might have made more sense than the Gold here. Bet that would have been the preferred choice as well.

[@joselazo7157]

Nice demo!! I would use the creamback if I wanted a mix with more vibe, gold for a top 40 feel, and neo kind of messed with some of the drums clarity/attack for me

[@SergeiVlassov]

What is top 40?

[@sroelit]

Interesting. I tried to toggle back and forth between the soloed sections; it certainly seemed to me that the greatest difference was between the Alnico and the other two.

[@Bobby_Digital37]

I like the neo the least… Alnico I like the most both clean and distorted. Regular cream I like most distorted.

[@mikesager3820]

Hey Man...really enjoy your videos. You have an amazing touch and you do VERY thorough coverage on whatever you are review (testing). Thank you Bud...Rock On!

[@TheStudioRats]

Cheers Mike

[@BigRich531]

Great video and comparison! Appreciate it! Care to divulge any info on the strat being used? (model, pickups...etc) It sounds great (as does the Matchless) and deserves a nod.

[@TheStudioRats]

Cheers rich. It’s a 62 custom shop I’m afraid I don’t know what pickups are in it.

[@DBroce]

I love this. Man, I need an ISO box. I’d love to be able to switch out speakers on the fly.

[@khargrarnrhan209]

Hello, Paul. I have a question, If you don't mind. What would you think of a Creamback Neo and a V-Neo combination in a 2X12 Cab? I'm considering building one for me (vertical configuration, probably) with fancy woods and a cool finish.

[@jeremyversusjazz]

Really appreciate this video- I’m in the process of choosing between a couple alnicos myself for a Zilla Cab that they’re building for me! I’ve never had a cab built before! this video was very helpful-the alnico was it for me-had the organic sound of a magnet but the same sparkle u liked about the neo…which made a strong case for a spkr that weighs half a magnet!🤔

[@lrob1234]

I had golds in a Zilla fat cab. It was godly.

[@jeremyversusjazz]

@@lrob1234 I bought a mint Mesa Cali tweed head off a guy on Reverb and zilla building the cab using either the 40 watt Jensen Blackbird alnico or the 100watt version- I bought both-I found a used 100 watt for half price so I’m gonna try both out and sell the one I don’t use-so Zilla is making me a empty open back more vintage style cab.

[@davetube2ful]

I have the tone Master blonde deluxe that came with the neo and it sounds great.

[@dykeneuk]

I put a neo creamback on my Fender supersonic 22. Sounds glorious.....

[@Jedidiahguitar]

Awesome comparison mate! Any idea on the differences between the Alnico Creamback and Gold?

[@TheStudioRats]

I really don’t know Jed. Might be worth asking Celestion .