Celestion G12 Alnico

G12 Celestion Alnico "Blues" . Simply , the very best speaker there is. It can bite you a little during a hi-gain pic attack, but in a very good way, it's smooth and agressive ,very responsive . From the thick rich bottom to those singing highs, it is like it is an extention of the player . I have 2- 212 cabinets { 1 is open back & 1 is closed back } . I have a 412 closed back as well. I use a variety of tube amps. Any tube amp that is hooker to these speakers will sound fantastic!

The sound is rich and creamy with altering tones of warm ,clean , smoothness right up to the time you deside to dig into the guitar, then it knows what your doing and can get as nasty as you can play .
It has the worlds greatest distortion when pushed . I play both my 212 cabinets through a Marshall hand wired and a Vox AC 30 HW head.
The sound is to die for !

Oh ! about me. I play mostly Blues and some rock . 25 years. I play Strats,CS Gibsons Humbuckers , Gretschs , Tele's .

No problem here !

Now here is something that is funny . I have e-mail Celestion a question or 2 and they did reply , but their guy DR. Decible is a moron . He does'nt know anything !

10+ I care about the tone comeing out of these expensive Amp heads...
The " Blues" are Tone Monsters !
As fae as other speakers , I do use Eminence Red Fangs underneth the Blues a lot. Now that is a Great Sound !!! I set a 212 Blue Cabinet on top of a 212 Red Fang and crank up the most awesome tonal sound there is !
I own the following speakers to choose from: Vin 30's , 12T 75's ,
Vin Green Backs , Private Jacks ,
Delta Demons, Copperheads ,Swampthangs ,Red Ryders , Man O wars , Red Fangs & Celestion Blues

15 w speaker that made history.
I hear about all those praises and finally purchased one for my new VOX AC 30 CC1. I must say that 15w speeaker is not good idea for 30W tube amp, but as I use it only for recording purposes and on mid levels at maximum, this is OK.

I had Celestion NeoDog in Vox and that I replaced it with Vintage 30. I think Neo Dog was much better than Vintage 30. After I tried friend's Vox with Blues, I was sold for it.
For distortion I use Tech 21 PSA rack effector voa effect loop. I was amazed how sweet and round sounds Vox now.
As I don'y play metal, I appreciate very much a soft distortion I can her with Blue.
It is true, this is living legend and althogh NeoDog is excellent speaker, after installing Blue I undestand why AC 30 is so much praised by many players.

I think it is very well made product, built to last forever if power peaks do not exceed rating.

The best remains the best. Even at price it is bargain.

12" Alnico magnet, 8 ohm....EXPENSIVE!!! I give it a '7' because this speaker is rather limited....limited to people with GOOD TASTE THAT IS!

Silky, smooth , sweet, ARTICULATE! VERY NICE! I have two of em' in a Vox AC30 and WOW! Not for heavy metal or thrash...the speakers just won't do 'harsh'. But, they do a great distorted smooth sound(like 'Queen'). Perfect speakers for the AC30 and for what I play (Classic/Hard rock/blues). They love both single coil and humbuckers. Of note: when you push these speakers they don't 'flub' or 'fart' out, they kinda compress and smooth out in a very musical way!

I hope it is....

Celestion in England is actually pretty good with emails etc...

The 'hype' is true! these speakers are all that...

12 Inch, 15 WAtt guitar speaker. Main difference to other speakers is that it has alnico magnet instead of a ceramic one.

I am using it with Mesa Triaxis and Soldano X-99 into Mesa 50/50 into 4X12 Recto and a custom made cab loaded with Celestion Blue speakers.

Music style (Alnico Blue): THey are quite versatile. They sound kinda soft so agressive music is not what suits them best. Lets say classic rock and blues is their home. FOr metal they are to "rounded".

15 watts are quite loud and compete with other more powerful speakers without a problem. THe only side effect is that they start to compress early. That means that they are getting louder, but when you turn the volume up even more, the attack of the pick is less and less urgent. It you turn them up too much, the attack is gone completely which is totaly naturtal for a 15 wat rating. However, there speakers stay warm even if you push them that hard. Nothing harsh. In just about the right area they sound very round (becaue of this compression). Vintage 30 speaker (60 or 70 watt) don't compress that early and are very harsh at higher levels. So for someone that likes musical response this speaker will be a dream, but for someone that is looking for urgent attack, this might sound too elegant.


To make things clear: I own the entire classic range of Celestion speakers. Compared to Vintage 30, the Blue sounds much fuller and present. Like there was a blanket over the VIntage 30, when I play trough it.

The G12H really has a more of a warm tone then Vintage 30, even though it is quite urgent in attack. But its high end is still not nearly as smooth as Alnicos produce.

Greenback is somewhere in between. It is very rounded (perhaps even too much). That is why many call them muddy. The attack is not suitable for any kind of modern style music. However, they are great for high string blues. When you dig into strings and with volume high greenbacks really cry. I mean when they are pushed a bit and you pick and bend the high string hard they remind of the Blue a lot. They compress great. However for low end work they are to soft.

In terms of presence and fulness of the sound they rank like this.

Alnico Blue
G12H (low string work) / Greenback (high string work) (I cannot decide)
Vintage 30 (sounds very dead compared to other speakers).

Vintage 30 is really thin sounding compared to the BLue and G12H and even to the Breenback when Greenback is not pushed to hard. Someone here said that Vintage 30's have a sound of their own and they don't let the amp sing trough. THey hide the amp and produce their own sound. THat is absolutely true.

I Have a MEsa REcto 4X12 with Vintage 30 speakers. I decided to throw them out at the very moment I heard other speakers right beside them. It took 2 years and I beleived that Vintage 30 is a vintage speaker. It is really a joke. All other speakers are much more vintage. Those that denie this have probably never tried them all at the same time with the same gear. I have and I think that I had to tell you my experience eventhough it was a long story.

Now I have one 4X12 "Recto" (it is not a recto anymore right) cab with G12H and one with Alnicos. Best I could find for my rather classic style.

I have no Idea. Speakers should last for years and I haven't had them that long.

Alnicos are the best overal. THey are not the most agressive so I use G12H for heavier music, but in classic rock music they are the best I have heard.

2 years ago I bought a closed back cab off Ebay that has two Blues in it. I run it as an ext cab off my 15W Kendrick Black Gold 15 (see my H-C review of the BG 15). The Kendrick has 2 FANE 10" in an open back cab so I am getting a nice blend of air and oomph with the two dissimilar cab/spkr config.

The Blues are super efficient and can make a small amp sound much larger than it normally would. They have a very warm presence and are super responsive. I can get really sweet clean tones and then use my Strat volume pot to push them into overdrive. They never sound harsh or ratty.

I have had no problems nor do I foresee any as I am going to respect the recommmended max power handling capacity and just run them off my little Class A Kendrick

N/A

I have been playing longer than I care to mention! I have a fair amount of gear including a vintage Tube Screamer, 1966 Tele, Voodoo Strat, 73 Twin blackfaced by Kendrick, various pedals, the usual suspects. I jumped at the chance to get the Blues after reading reviews, especially because I got a good price and they came in a pro grade cabinet.

To my ear, this speaker is extremely versatile. It is capable of doing clean, wonderful jazz, fiery blues, and dead-on classic rock with a vintage voice.

In my other reviews on Harmony Central I attempt to give a balanced, clear judgment about a piece of gear, so as to be helpful to fellow musicians who come here for hands-on assessment of the multitude of musical products that exist.

This Celestion G12 "Blue Alnico" speaker is so fantastic, however, that the only comment I can make is how fabulous they sound! Essentially, I have nothing else to say. I like the quote on Avatar's website: "It is considered to be the best guitar speaker humanity has ever built." This sums up my hearing of these speakers, too. I have nothing to add.

I have been forever enamored of the kind of overdriven, harmonically rich and pure guitar sounds heard on Allman Brothers at Fillmore East, Rolling Stones Sticky Fingers, and in the work of people like Robin Trower, Jeff Beck, Clapton, and numerous others.

These speakers -- I purchased two as replacements for my stock speakers in a Fuchs 2x12 cab -- coupled with a great amp -- in my case, a Fuchs ODS-30 -- has become my key to these types of guitar sounds as well as a limitless number of sounds of my own creation.

They are so articulate, so clear that the smallest shades of tonal nuance are reproduced. Further, the response of this speaker is such that it "works with you" in creating your music.

So, to sum up in very unobjective language: these speakers are absolutely fabulous.

Andy Fuchs thought a pair would be okay for the 30-watt version of his amp, the Overdrive Supreme. I don't expect I'll be pushing them to that degree, however. The seem very well built.

Absolutely outstanding. I almost feel like I've "wasted my life" trying to get great tone from other speakers -- these are that good. If they were stolen or broken, I'd replace them immediately.

There were a lot of great comments about this speaker, by just about everyone. The sounds on Celestion's site also give a couple of good snippets of what this speaker can do. Every one of the comments -- many quite glowing -- are not overstatements. This is one great speaker that -- if your ear for tone is similar to mine -- will completely blow you away.

I give 7 for its low power-handling although I hear that they can usually handle more than 15W.

The best speakers I've ever heard. I heard these first in the limited edition Marshall JTM45 halfstack (2X12 cab). Highs were very smooth sounding yet very clear and airy. Just enough bass that is very well balanced between round and tight. Buttery mids. Great speakers.

I've used Celestions before. They are rock solid.

Never dealt with them.

They are a bit pricey and can't handle high power, but they sound so good and there are no other speakers like them.

15W 12inch speaker w/ a very cool blue color, huge alnico magnet.

Replaced a Jensen C12K reissue in my Deluxe Reverb reissue. Replaced all Groove Tubes with NOS Phillips and Mullard Milspec preamp tube. Bendix 5992 Redbanks (6v6gt)Power Tubes. Byapssed the tone stack in Channel 1. The Celestion is simply the finest guitar amplifier speaker on the planet, maybe the best ever made.

Never a problem.

Bought it from Dave a Avatar Speakers. Finest gentleman you will ever do business with.

Use with a 92 Custom Shop Les Paul outfitted with Wagner Fillmore Set pickups and a '02 LP outfitted with Wolfe MacCloud (Wolfetone) Mike Bloomfied Humbuckers.

a very loud 15 watts in my 22 watt Princeton Reverb II.

With some trepidations I installed this speaker into my Fender Princeton Reverb II, replacing the stock Speaker. My concern was the 15 watt rating in a 22 watt amp. First, it doubled the volume of the amp - and I find myself seldomly needing to turn my channel and master volume up beyond 6. This is amazing considering I play in a loud band. Next surprise was the sound quality. Clean and full at low volumes, thick and pasty when pushed. Not a bad tone to be found. I play primarily Fenders with Fralin pickups and a tonebone in between for added distortion. Without a pedal you can't make this amp/speaker/guitar combo howl, but it compresses nicely and gets a nice edgey tone. With my ES-333, this combo honks assertively without the assistance of pedals. I love this set up because I still have the vintage fender sound, but can get many other tones due to the Rivera design of the amp. I play roots-rockin'-jump-blues-swing, pop and straight forward rock, and this amp, thanks to the speaker, does it all.

I've gigged fairly regular with it for over a year and no problems. Very sturdy (and attractive) speaker. The wattage rating issue hasn't been a problem, thank god.

no experience with them

I've been playing since around 1969-1970. I have a 62 reissue strat, a Gregg Rogers 50's strat relic(fantastic), an american std tele, a Gibson ES-333, and a Carvin TL-60T. My other amp is Fender Vibro King, which I use when my back is feeling good, or I'm gigging outdoors. But I'm really more comfortable with the Princeton/Celestion combo anyway. Despite the high price tag, I'd replace this speaker, recommend it, install it in other amps in a heartbeat. I haven't researched if Celestion has a 10-inch equivelent that would be suitable in my Vibro King, but would/will consider it if I find myself unexpectedly coming into a lot of cash.

Very cool blue

Country Rock and Jazz. Very nice with single coil pick ups.
I put mine in a Fender Champ 12. It is 10 watts of total class A amp. I did it to get a little bit more of that voxish sound cause I really can't afford an AC30. And no it doesn't exactly sound like an ac30 but an upgrade no doubt. Dark and rich in the low end.Very Smooth and clean Highs. Nothing shrill!

Its been tested heavy, no problems

Since 1969 you do the math. Seymour Duncan 100 watt with Ev 12" In a Class ab amp. Yes I would buy it again. I compared it to the Weber alnico. My biggest complaint is the List price. I got mine through Guitar Center. The price was close so I went with the original. If stolen I sure would miss it.