Ceriatone Forum

Hi everyone! I'm new!

I don't own a non-Overtone ... but I think I might like to ... I'm just mulling over some options in my head.

Has anyone tried the Overtone with the Celestion Gold Alnico speaker? It gets good reviews in the music press and I was wondering how well it might work in a 1x12 cab.

It's rated at 50w. Is that enough headroom for the Overtone? I'm more interested in good tone at moderate volume rather than being loud enough to play Wembley without a PA !!!

F. Nerd

The Celestion Gold is similar to the Vintage 30 in many respects- if you like a sparkly top end & a speaker thats quick to distort then it's great sound- a classic in fact, & not as expensive as the Gold!  However I highly recommend the Celestion G-65 if you can get it- it has a slightly higher power rating, a much smoother top end & mids- in fact rumour has it this is the speaker Robben Ford uses with his Dumble.  After reading many posts about the OT overdrive being a bit 'raspy' I would recommend trying different speakers if poss.... I really like the Celestion G-65- it has a large dust cap which sort of disperses the treble frequencies more evenly & smoothly...  maybe worth trying a tone tubby with a hemp cone- I've heard they have many of the sweet overdrive properties of the gold alnico but with a smoother top end... hope this helps... :)

thanks Mitch - useful info - I guess it is a matter of trying stuff out!!! I'll probably try the G65 first - sounds like a good speaker - and cheaper than the Gold.  ;)

1265 is dark. The emi rw&b speaker sounds much better IMO.

Are you sure about this?
I always thought RW&B is darker sounding speaker compared to 1265.

 ???

Yeah ,,, ???
Emi RWB is definitely darker than 1265  IMO

+1  1265 isn't as dark.  BUT, I do like the RW&B's.

I am going to second Jzucker & SPM. The G12-65 is darker than the Vintage 30. I have a 2x12 amp with Rola G12-65s and a cab with a V30 and G12H30. I felt the V30/G12H combination covered the tonal range of the Overtone Special much better. Humbuckers sound pretty much the same with either set of speakers and settings for the Robben Ford tone on the Overtone. You can really exploit the versatility of a Stratocaster with the V30/G12H combination driven by the Overtone Special.

Sorry, I have to disagree. The 1265 is like a blanket over the speaker. No highs or lows and sounds awful with a strat.

You can +1000. I have made recordings with both speakers with the same amp settings and mic positions as well as played them for friends. The 1265 is definitely muffled but if you *ONLY* want the robben-tone, it's the better of the 2 speakers. I'd rather have an EV12L though.

The Gold I have doesn't remind me a bunch of the Vintage 30s I've played through.

http://professional.celestion.com/guitar/features/partners/Michael_Lewis.mov

This is a Celestion G12-65 Heritage. Sounds dark :-(
Hope It will respond well to some more treble

What kind of g12-65? Heritage or old 80-ies? Have them both in a  2*12 cab, you're right about the highs, but lows stand rocksolid.

+1000   I don't think the 1265 is too dark either. It's very widely used with great results and not just in Dumble type amps. I also think it sounds stellar with a strat. They definitely attenuate some high end but that contributes to its smooth warm buttery quality. IMO many speakers can sound shrill with Fendery / Dumbly amps esp at performance volumes.

It all depends on your tastes, your gear, your application (bedroom, recording, live) and what you are going for I guess. So all opinions aside, the speaker and cab obviously have a huge effect on the end result, so when you aren't able to try the speakers for yourself, listen carefully / critically to samples and compare with others - then draw your own conclusions.

I hate this  ;D

I have allready ordered my cab (with 2 g12-65's) I play Strats mostly. I do feel SPM's clips on YouTube sound a bit dark and so does the clip I added a few posts earlier. On the other hand a few people are very convincing in their comments about the quality of the G12-65 both in the clean (sparkly and open) and the OD channel. Obviously the sound in those clips is also the result of the way the amp controls are set up, the choise of guitar etc etc. To make it even more complicated I have heard some people making comments about the fact they needed to tweak the amp because it sounded to trebly with a Strat.
I'm confused. I might be able to have the speakers replaced with Celestion Golds, but I don't want to spend the extra € 200 for nothing. It's hard to decide someting like that without being able to compare it by ear yourself.

Anyone with some convincing clips of the ODS with g12-65 and a strat?


off topic or rather of amp
I have made an interesting observation. Lots of people complain about the PODXT being fizzy. I never noticed that with my Marshall power amp and G12H-100's. I do notice it with my Atomic power amp and Eminence full range speaker though. Now I know why  :D

...cmon people 1265 is not a bad speaker. Tone is a very personal thing and what is awesome to one person, can be a complete disappointment for others.
This speaker has been proven many many times and if it sounds bad, my vote is there is something wrong with you and not with the gear.

 8)

Just noticed Marin is using a G12-65 as well. Nothing dark there !

I've had my Overtone now for nearly a week & have had chance to try it with a variety of speakers both at home & on a loud(ish) gig. IMHO it's all very subjective anyway & all down to personal taste and the guitars you use.  I built a single 12 for small gigs and use at home with an original (1981) G12-65 (see piccie) installed & despite what you'd expect there's plenty of top end on tap- maybe too much at times with the bright switch 'on'.  On the gig I used a Marshall 2x12 with a G12-65 & a Vintage 30 and surprisingly I found myself boosting the top end slightly- mind you that was probably due to frequency deafness setting in- my drummer has all the subtlety/technique of a house brick  ;D  I have to say the Overtone sounded fantastic even at high volume.  It was also good to find the Mains & O/P transformers were barely warm even at the end of a long gig- a sure sign of a well designed/built amp.

I've also found the effects loop to be really useful and even with longish cable runs to & from my pedal board- I can barely detect any loss when engaged.  In fact I'm experimenting using the stereo out from my EH Memory Man to connect to a Vox AC30CCX2's effex return (essentially using just the Vox's power amp section) with interesting results- especially with the Alnico blues in the Vox adding their magic too it makes for a massive roar I can tell you!  I think Robben Ford does something similar using a Fender Twin with the Dumble. 

wait'll you hear the diff when you try a buffered loop...

I too mainly play strats. I was going to suggest that you check out Marin's clips - thats what sold me on the 1265 and I don't regret it one bit.

Thanks for all the imput guys! (I worry to much)


Just payed a visit to the thegearpage forum. Some of this discussion must be boring for some of the members here. This has been talked about a lot. Sometimes in a very uinpleasant way.  It's a spuprise they haven't started a nuclear war as a result of dicussions on TwoRocks, Fuchs, EVL's, Celestions etc etc.  :-\
I hope the tone here stays a bit more mellow. :D

The night is young.

There is something wrong with me because I think the 1265 is dark sounding and doesn't sound good with a strat? Whateva.

I'm dialing in some really nice tones now with my strats and tele's and the G12-65.

Its really equalized well for the way I play and pick.


M.

Please don't take that as a personal attack on you. In my non English way, I just wanted to say that before people start discarding something, they should try it out and only than they'll be able to say something works or not. No one can do that for them. All we can do is pass some biased opinions (including me!!) and thats all.
 ???

I see a V30 in your future Jack. :P    I too, am quite partial to the RWB but can certainly appreciate that a lot of great players are digging the 12-65.  How's that for diplomatic.

Plus it's all a package. Of the amp and the speaker and the guitar and (most important) the player.

I have noticed people altering the schemetics of the amp because the treble if to harsh. I guess you could get comparable results with changing the speaker.

There's a nice video of Robben Ford on YouTube commenting on his rig.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzVq9JsBLsI
He discusses the importance of speakers (quote: if you're not getting the sound you want you might wanna change your speakers) but when he's on the road he just get a Marshall cab He doesn't know what kind of speakers are in there. He uses a Twin Reverb as well. I guess Robben will always sound like Robben.

This is mot directed a jzucker, but just a reminder to all of us on this thread...
1. There are many factors that affect tone and how a speaker sounds and without being able to compare under identical conditions a definitive comparison cannot be made.
2. You cannot really tell how something sounds form a recording. As good as Marin's and others samples sound, we are not hearing the real thing. You can only get an idea of what the real thing sounds like. I purchased the OT based on Marin's and Sami's sound samples, but I was truly blown away when I got to play through the real thing and I have played through he best out there.
3. Tone is relative, one person may like a darker sound. One speaker may sound really good for certain things and not for others. I was able to AB my G12-65s (Rola) and they just did not sound as good as the V30/G12-30H combo. They weren't bad, just not as good. Moreover, I would bet that no one would hear the difference on a Youtube video.
4. A good player using the Overtone with any speaker with compatible ratings/specs will sound good. A specific speaker choice is to put that special touch on your tone.

All that said, if any one has had a good or bad experience with a speaker I appreciate their input. Thanks!

I have just ordered a small cab with a G12M Greenback.

I am curious what it will sound like. I'll post some clips in 3 weeks when it should arrive.

Marin

Mine Greenback cab has more hi end and different low end (probably due to different cab design), overall I would say more Fenderish sounding. I know it sounds stupid but that's how I feel about it.

 ???

I have a 2x12 cab coming with greenbacks. It can be run either open or closed back. I'm hoping it'll get more of a hendrixy sound with my marshall clone but it'll be interesting to hear it with the overtone...

Interesting, that sounds like the description of a Jensen.

Are you happy with the tone?

Marin

My 1x12 is like that. It has a door at the back which can be removed to make it a open-back.

Actually, the cab I have ordered is an ISO-Cab but it can be used as a normal speaker too. I want to be able to push the speaker a bit more without having bothering the neighbours.

Also, I am curious to see if the Greenback can get me a g12-65 tone with an earlier break-up.

Marin

It can definitely break-up earlier,... it's still a Celestion sounding, just more Fenderish compared to 1265.

This is my cab...
(http://freeweb.siol.net/mcinku/images/guitars/extension_cab.jpg)
 ;)

Does it work well with the Overtone?

M.

Well, I like it very much but I feel nervous while using it, 'cause it has just 25W. Wouldn't like to fry it.
 :(

Don't worry, you'll hear when it start to break! :)

M.