Black Shadow speakers vs. Celestion V30's.

[espmaster1]

What do people think, I'm thinking of making the change cause soemtimes the Black shadow's "open up" too much for me. Like, the sound isn't as condensed and full and I've heard the V30's further full the sound out. Myth?
Thanks everyone.

 

[turunturun]

I am doing a test myself to answer this very question. I have been suspicious that the C90s are a bit more harsh and bright - I have heard rumors (this board probably) that the C90 response curve looks more mid-cut, where the V30 is a bit mid-bulge.
This weekend I will be comparing two 3/4 open back cabs, one with C90s and one with V30s to see what the tone differences are. I will post impressions after spending some time comparing.

 

[fjs1962]

I ordered my 212 Lonestar combo with V30s. To me the V30s have a more lively, responsive sound. The C90s seem to be flatter and tighter sounding. The V30s have more of an upper mid chime to the tone but still stay nice and creamy with overdrive. Whan I had the C90 Lonestar I found that I had to run the treble and presence pretty high, especially with my humbucker guitars. With the V30s the treble and presence are more in the middle of their range when I get the amp dialed in. YMMV, but for the the V30s are better.

 

[Platypus]

What black shadow are you talking about? Mesa branded a few different speakers that way.

 

[citizen.one]

i think theyre talking bout C90. otherw were some MS12 eminences - 150w, never heard them and EVM12L, that i really love, C90 hate

 

[Fxrs]

C90 hate

Whew!! I was beginning to think I was the only one. Had on in my DC-5 for @ 11 yrs. Finally got some money together and threw in a Wizard. It's staying.

 

[citizen.one]

i think that you cant be alone
ive tried it with george dennis (czech boutique amplifier), they put there (i dont know why) celestion rocket, so the sound of this amp goes totally down, after putting there V30 the amp shines, it has sound like VoxAC30. But with C90 it just sucked, with caliber/rectifier/marshall/mark3,mark4 too
for me are the best EVM, than V30&old british G12T75, but evm leads, perhaps with dennis not so, because there is better some lower wattage speaker with milder drive than evm...

 

[mincy]

I hate the lone C90 in my Nomad combo. Just don't like the sound. Little to flat and slightly buzzy. I have a 212 oversized recto cab and a 412 traditional recto cab, both loaded with V30s and they sounded so much better with the Nomad. Then I got a Road King 412. 2 V30s with a closed back, 2 C90s with an open back. This cabinet kills the others. The combination of C90s and V30s is perfect. I had always uplugged the C90 in my Nomad when I used the external speakers, so I hooked up the Nomad with the 212, leaving the internal C90 hooked up (though moved to 4ohm load, with the 212 in the other 4ohm load) and though not as nice as the road king cab, it was a lot nicer than the 212 by itself. If I had to pick just one, I'd go V30 since I think it does sound better by itself, with a fuller sound. But if you have the option, the mix of speakers seems to bring out all the good characteristics of both and really fills out the sound.

 

[Boogiewan Kenobi]

The MS12-150 Watt with the ribbed cone is the best of the Black Shadow speakers IMO, followed closely by the EVM 12L. The C-90 were always too bright for my tastes. The Altec is the other speaker I use a lot. Hard to find, but in the Mark I it is great.

BWK

 

[user 7737]

C90 hate

Whew!! I was beginning to think I was the only one. Had on in my DC-5 for @ 11 yrs. Finally got some money together and threw in a Wizard. It's staying.

the wizard sounds a little bit like the V30 i think... i mixed them because i tought they were a little bit brighter... finally i can't hear the difference... maybe the wizard got more precision

 

[zebpedersen]

Put any new Mark IV next to one when they put EV's in and hear the difference! There's a reason they used them for 25+ years! The C90 colours the sound too much, the EV is much more Hi-Fi, which works really well with a Boogie.

 

[Fxrs]

C90 hate

Whew!! I was beginning to think I was the only one. Had on in my DC-5 for @ 11 yrs. Finally got some money together and threw in a Wizard. It's staying.

the wizard sounds a little bit like the V30 i think... i mixed them because i tought they were a little bit brighter... finally i can't hear the difference... maybe the wizard got more precision

The Wizard is most definitely brighter, and also much louder.

 

[edward]

I love the MC90, love the EVM12L, but don't love them both in every amp or cab. Widebody combos, small combos (a la MKIII), open-backed small 112s, closed thiele cab, various Marks, DCs, Subways ...I found that I will prefer one speaker over the other depending on the cab and amp. In other words, you can make "some" generalizations over each speaker's voice, but ultimately you must hear it in its native setting and then judge ...anything short of this is mere speculation. I am certain that I am not the only one here who has bought this or that speaker based on others' recommendations only to be less than satisfied once loaded up.

BTW, I didn't mention the V30s simply because I have no great love for them. Perhaps I haven't heard them in the right cab?

Edward