Who uses Celestians GT-75's?

[gearo999]

Marshall puts them in a lot of their cabs but I don't see any threads on folks giving props to these speakers. Are they crap?

 

[nateco]

Are they crap

generally speaking...yes.

 

[riverastoasters]

Originally posted by gearo999
Marshall puts them in a lot of their cabs but I don't see any threads on folks giving props to these speakers. Are they crap?

Quite a few Riveras ship with G12T-75s in them. Rivera has sometimes done OEM modifications, so I don't know if those are the same as other G12T-75s, but they are probably close. And they are not crap.

One of my favorite cabs is a 212 with a pair of Rivera G12T-75s in it.

 

[Laroosco!]

I gigged quite a bit last year with a friends 1x12 combo(Marhsall Clone 50w) that had a G12T-75.

One of the best sounding amps I've ever played. Never had a problem with the soundf of that speaker in it.

 

[aquadog]

My Sunn has a GT-75 and I'd say it sounds pretty damn good. Wouldn't mine doing a speaker shootout in it though..

 

[JamesPeters]

Originally posted by gearo999
Are they crap?

Nope. However they're a little more cabinet-dependant and volume dependant (louder volumes) to get a good sound.

I mix one with three Vintage 30s in my 4x12 and I love the sound of the cab. I've played some straight 4x12s with G12T75s which sounded really great, surprisingly better than expected. I've also heard them in open back 2x12s and shallower cabs--in those cases they sound pretty shrill.

 

[JamesPeters]

Originally posted by aquadog
My Sunn has a GT-75 and I'd say it sounds pretty damn good. Wouldn't mine doing a speaker shootout in it though..

That's one of the straight cabs with those speakers which I like. I wouldn't change the speakers in that cab if you like it.

 

[haslar]

Originally posted by gearo999
Are they crap?

No. I had a 2x12" cab with those, with a 1969 Superlead 100W and it was great.

Also, as Riveratoaster said, they are used in quite a few Rivera amps and they do the job really well.

 

[John Phillips]

One thing to bear in mind is that there is a very big difference between older (UK-made) 75s and newer (Chinese-made) ones. Not an anti-Chinese thing, just that there is a physical constructional difference that is IMO very important. The old UK ones have a magnet vent... and a much more open and less buzzy tone. You'll find these in most or all Marshall JCM800 cabs with 75s.

There are also later UK ones which don't have the vent. They sound closer IMO to the Chinese ones, although I think there is still a difference.

I don't really like the Chinese ones, I think they're some of Celestion's worst speakers... although that still makes them better than a lot of other speakers, IMO! But I recently A/B'd some with a set of the old vented ones (in the same cab) and was surprised how good the old ones sounded - much more resonant and characterful; the new ones sounded flat by comparison.

 

[JTM100]

G12-T75's are kind of like a high powered Greenback(reissue) with alot more bottom end. They are NOT crap. However, James is right. You need to really push them to get them to sound good. They are not the best "bedroom" volume speaker. But, crank a 100w SLP thru a 4x12 of them and lookout!

John,

You have me curious about the older "vented" ones. I dont currently own any Marshall 4x12's but I did have a couple of JCM800's with T75's for years. How do you tell the "vented" from the "non-vented"?

 

[redplexi]

James, did they mellow out the Midrange from your Vin 30's? I'm contemplating mixing a pair with my Vin 30's to mellow out those mids a bit. Or possibly a pair of CL80's.

I just got my new CAE-OD100, and can't even play it through the V30's, it just doesn't sound good at all through those speakers.

 

[aquadog]

Originally posted by JamesPeters
That's one of the straight cabs with those speakers which I like. I wouldn't change the speakers in that cab if you like it.

James, its not an old sunn though- its a fender reissue Sunn T50c. I don't know whether or not you're familiar with the amp or not. I've had no experience playing with different speakers, so I can't really say whether or not something would better fit the bill. Does sound pretty good though, but I wouldn't mind getting something with a little darker of a voicing.

John- how do you tell when or where the speakers where made? The only thing I see on the back of mine are the words "Celestion GT-75" and "Celestion international, ipswitch england limited" or something along that lines.

 

[John Phillips]

Originally posted by JTM100
G12-T75's are kind of like a high powered Greenback(reissue) with alot more bottom end. They are NOT crap. However, James is right. You need to really push them to get them to sound good. They are not the best "bedroom" volume speaker. But, crank a 100w SLP thru a 4x12 of them and lookout!

John,

You have me curious about the older "vented" ones. I dont currently own any Marshall 4x12's but I did have a couple of JCM800's with T75's for years. How do you tell the "vented" from the "non-vented"?

Look at the back of the magnet - there is a small vent grille about 1/2" in diameter in the middle.

If they actually say 'Made In England', they are. If they just list the company address, they're most likely Chinese. The newer half black/half white labels (rather than the old pale grey ones with a black ring) indicate Chinese too, AFAIK.

I don't hear any version of the 75 as sounding like a high-powered Greenback (G12M-25) though - almost the opposite, they're much less rich and characterful in the mids and have a far brighter (quite buzzy, with the wrong amp) top end. To me the G12M-25 is a jangly, mid-based speaker; the 75 is a fairly scooped, mid-free one.

 

[riverastoasters]

Originally posted by John Phillips
I don't hear any version of the 75 as sounding like a high-powered Greenback (G12M-25) though

Me either. That's one reason I like 'em.

On the other hand, the get over to that more of that sort of sound if you push them seriously. I have a 212 loaded with G12T-75s and it sounds really great when turned up pushed by 100 Watts of most flavors. I have it in a 60dB isolation room though, so it's not really something you can do for live.

 

[JamesPeters]

I'm using Chinese ones, no vents. I do think they are like a higher powered greenback if you look past the fact they don't have the same amount of breakup a greenback does. The overall vintage sound and feel is quite similar--but not at the same volumes. Greenbacks start to choke and honk at higher volumes. That's where G12T-75s shine. So it's not a case where you can compare them side-by-side with "all else being equal".

Originally posted by aquadog
James, its not an old sunn though- its a fender reissue Sunn T50c.

I wasn't talking about the old Sunn cabs either. I honestly don't know much about those, only the "reissue" ones (which are quite different from the originals, especially that amp and the Model T. Very little similarity to the originals. (I think the newer models are quite nice.)

 

[JamesPeters]

Originally posted by redplexi
James, did they mellow out the Midrange from your Vin 30's? I'm contemplating mixing a pair with my Vin 30's to mellow out those mids a bit. Or possibly a pair of CL80's.

CL80s will make the top end thicker, which tends to be interpreted as "bright" so you might not want that.

Try one G12T-75 alongside three Vintage 30s in the cab. If it's a slant, put it in the bottom so it gets some good depth behind it. If you play really loud, then you might want to put two of them in the cab. I just don't like having too many G12T-75s in a cab unless I'm going to use it loud.

It makes the cab more balanced. It gets a bit more crispness, a bit more lower mid grunt, kinda mixes up the sound a bit in a good way and the mids don't seem quite as pronounced.

 

[aquadog]

John- it's a half black and white, so I guess it is a chinese.

James- Thanks for the info. I'll definatley have to agree with you- it's a great amp (or at least it is to me for the money i paid for it), but really shares little similarities to the original. Kinda like a fender meets british amps (maybe a little of vox and hiwatt? I can't seem to put my finger on it).

 

[Mutley]

My Guytron 2X12 has one with a Vintage 30 in closed back cab and they sound great together.

 

[tonemandan]

Worst sounding speaker I have ever tried. Maybe someone else can get a good tone with them with a different setup but I sure couldn't.

Dan