This is a continuation of an old thread on MR which eventually had me putting a V30 with a CL80, which didn't work - for me. Somehow the CL80 sounded 'loose'. Might be OK for AC/DC stuff but I need something tighter and smoother, but still with plenty of complexity.
So after an eon or so, I have picked up a Gold and thinking to try that instead.
It is an interesting mix because both are in some way an attempt by Celestion to produce a higher-power Blue. In theory the Gold should complement the mid-range strengths of the V30, but wondering whether efficiency will be an issue and the 50w Gold will overpower the 60w V30.
"Nobody needs more than 20 strats." Mike Landau
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btw a Gold is such a special tool, I'd keep it separate for blackface and voxy amps
Have you tried the Watford valves speaker test site?
I have heard a Gold plus V30 two by, It was a 1/3rd open back cab and we rigged it to A/B the speakers.
Not a staggering difference IIRC but I do recall the Gold had a bit more bottom, which I would not have predicted?
If you don't need the full power handling I would wire each speaker to a separate jack and fit a shorting switch.
Dave.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
It's mostly a waste of time.
You will always have a favourite, based on the riffs you feel like playing that day and the random tonal attributes your mind decides are good or bad.
The only worthwhile way (for me, anyway!) to judge speakers is to take them to band practices and gigs for a few months, and see how often you're driving home with a smile or a frown.
That said, must have been bloody cool to visit the Matamp factory and play through some speakers!
Back to the OP, personally I've gone off mixing speakers - I feel that multiples of the same speaker type gives you the character of that model and you can set the rest of your rig to play to its strengths. When you start mixing speakers the result gets unpredictable and the resulting sound gets less character, plus you might find that what's just right for one speaker leaves its cab-mate dull and flubby. Not a great analogy, but it's like mixing different paints and just ending up with brown.
That said, a V30 and a gold in a 2x12 is a setup I gigged with for a couple of months last year and it was one of the more successful blends I tried - definitely worked better at high volume though! Personally, I'd go two V30s and if you need more bass, crank up the bass!
As for the Blue/ Gold/ V30 thing, to my ears the only similarity is that they all have relatively recessed highs and a tasty midrange push. The Blue and V30 both have "creamy" high end when hit hard, the V30 is much tighter though. Blue vs Gold, the Gold is punchier, has more bottom end, more zing in the upper mids and a bit more complexity in the treble while still being mellow up top above the upper mid peak. That's broken in though - new the gold is the brightest, harshest thing I've heard.
Bandcamp
Spotify, Apple et al
http://www.watfordvalves.com/soundfactory.asp
The gold is on the celestion page, top left, next to the blue.
btw anyone have any opinions about the Fane AXA 12?
A 100w supposedly a bit like blue/gold. I bought one a few years back, it was good but I preferred the Gold for my John-Mayer type Dumble clone.
I find the v30 doesn't work for many amps for me. OK with Marshally-type ones certainly, but I didn't like with Fendery and voxy amps, except the Fender Tonemaster - stunning, but it was voiced for v30s specifically
Bandcamp
Spotify, Apple et al
Bandcamp
Spotify, Apple et al