I have watched many, many dozens of speaker demos on RU-vid. This is only the 2nd speaker demo I have EVER seen in which the guitar player did NOT use an assortment of effects boxes.!!...Simply amazing!! Oh, yeah, the speaker comparison....I'm going with the ET65. Thanks for the well produced video.
First time in the history of the RU-vid that someone actually went to the tone knob on a strat bridge pickup with a clean tone! There is hope for the universe. I attack this day invigorated!
That's the lovely and talented Hal Hawkins playing his Strat (I redid the electronics last week - see video) into his '65 Deluxe (that I rebuilt after it was in a fire). Amp settings the same. In the room, the ET65 had a bit more low end and the Neo Creamback was slightly brighter. Both great sounding choices for a Deluxe Reverb. I do think the slightly more present upper mids of the ET65 could make a crucial difference in a band context. That’s the part that’s hard to judge from hearing just the amp by itself.
I wouldn't have thought of using either of those speakers, but there are so many dozens of models now who can try them all? I usually use American speakers in American-type amps, English (UK?) speakers in those-type amps, but there are no rules except "WHAT SOUNDS GOOD IS GOOD", and that sounded very good Hal.............cheers!
Jon Newquist asked which speaker was my favorite. As I was playing......from where I was sitting...I could barely tell the difference. And I don't have Lyle's ear for sound. He can pick up all kinds of stuff that I can't. My fav would be the ET65. But the fact that I am used to that tone if probably a big factor. Thanks again y'all.
Excellent video! Thank you for doing this. I used the 8 Ohm Neo Creamback in a 1-channel AB763 combo I recently made and I’m really impressed with how it sounds. It’s not quite as efficient as some other speakers out there so it doesn’t get quite as loud, but the tone is great. Huge benefit too that the combo is only 30 lbs.
The Restored Amp sounds great, and both Speakers models work well with it. I preferred the ET65 for its airy articulation of your fingerstyle playing, as I also play that style on my Strat.
Both sound great! Interesting how things can sound different but great at the same time. If you would not have given speaker information, I seriously doubt anyone would think they’re hearing a “British” voice speaker. Beautiful full cleans. The idea that British mids are overemphasized is blown out of proportion in my opinion. Another beautiful sounding speaker from WGS is the 12” Invader. Don’t let the silly name fool you. Absolutely beautiful, especially for clean tones. I love swapping in upgraded speakers. Probably the most audible mod you can do to most amps. And don’t forget to break them in!
Hi, this man can play wow, at first I said oh Lyle has been practicing a lot this week, Hal Hawkings belly looks almost like yours :) Great tone from that ´65 DR and those fingers.
Hard to discern. To me the neo had more crisp bite, and the ET seemed warmer. I am not a strat guy, but damn they have one hell of a tone pallet and must be one of the most versatile guitars on the planet. Great vid. ;))
The Neo might have a bit more presence but it's very hard to say which one is better. I have 2 ET65's in my 65 Pro Reverb and love the sound, but I'd be super happy with the Creambacks
Amp sounds really good! The most articulate amp Fender has ever made, IMHO. And your playing is real fine. Regards speakers: Warehouse is more contemporary and articulate; Celestion is more vintage and warmer. Just depends on what your end purpose is. I personally prefer the Creamback ... very impressed in fact. Just my current opinion, of course. And your playing is a lot like my style.
I agree with those people saying the ET65 has a warmer sound than the Neo cream back. While the additional presence and detail in the high end of the Neo is something us half deaf guitarists typically enjoy, I see it as having the potential of sounding too harsh when you add overdrive. Also, great playing Hal! Everything in this video sounds good with your style of playing. I would be concerned that with my playing style, and right hand being more aggressive, would exacerbate the pokey nature of a Fender style amp, especially at higher volumes. For that reason, I would lean towards the warmer speaker for myself.
While I agree with you, the amp settings were the same for each speaker here. So the ET65 could have been made brighter and the Neo less bright with slight changes to the Treble pot setting. But this way revealed their inherent characters.
Great demo Hal and Lyle! I felt like the pick up selection was smoother with the ET 65. Individual pick ups sounded good with the neo, but seem to make awkward transitions. wish I could play like that guy.
I like them both. The et65 sounds rounder to me with a bit more bass and sweeter top end, cleaner also. The celestion has kind of a crispy top end. I would say I prefer the et65 but like them both. I guess that the celestion may sound better on that amp when cranked because of the tighter low end although the low end on the 65 is very firm. The et65 is one of my favorited on the amps I build along with the invader which has a more British tone. Very nice video. I would enjoy that amp with either of the two compared speakers .
Listening through my Steinberg interface, ATI power amp, and BA Reference speakers, both speakers sound great! I think the perceptible differences could be significantly reduced with the tone stack, or even more so with an EQ pedal. I think a more impactful factor would be that the ET-65 is a couple dB more efficient, so it will have more clean headroom, which could be a good or bad thing depending on what you are going for. That having been said, since the Neo Creamback is almost twice the cost, for me there isn't much need for it in a Deluxe or other combo that weighs ~40 pounds or less. Personally, the 3-1/2 pound difference in weight per speaker makes more sense in a 2x12 combo, cab, or even more so in a 4x12 cab. (We won't speak of the Quad Reverb, that thing is just too heavy for anyone without roadies anyway.) I think the real sweet spot for the Neo is in something like a vintage Pro Reverb, where you could use a single lower efficiency 12" with an impedance mismatch to get breakup at lower levels, and plug in the second 12" to get more headroom as needed. It also would drop the weight to ~46 pounds, only 4 pounds more than a 65 Deluxe Reverb Reissue!
I would say the comparison with the WGS and the Celestion are like comparing Staxx electrostatic "Ear Speakers" headphones with the Koss ES10 electrostatic headphones. Either one totally blows away anything else on the market as far as headphones, and they are both the pinnacle of excellence, but they are different from each other. That is all. They are both obviously far above & beyond standard headphones and they both sound great, but there are differences. That's it. You can't not like either one, until you see the price. Best headphones for under $5000. With over 6000 volts going to either side of your head it's gonna sound awesome.
I do prefer the WGS. It's warmer and smoother. But the creamback does sound great for a neo speaker. It's just a little brash, maybe. Probably would sound great dirty.
I have a question, on the 68 custom reissue deluxe schematic fender added 10k resistors on the grid input on the 12ax7s, the vintage schematic doesn't have them, I was wondering what effect this has on the sound / signal
Hey Lyle! Still enjoying the channel, and your livestreams. I was wondering how you think a regular, non-neo G12M Creamback would compare to the ET65? I appreciate your time and perspective.
@@PsionicAudio thanks for the quick reply Lyle. No rush on an answer here, but would it be safe to run my 66 Pro Reverb into a single 8 ohm speaker to test some options? Or would the 4 ohm transformer be in danger?
My ears must be stupid, I don't hear any discernible difference, then again I like the sound of the stock Jenson. Great demo, I dig that ONLY the amp was used without external effects.
Thanks for the video Lyle. I’ve been wanting to try the neo cream in my Deluxe for a while. I wanted to ask how you feel about 6L6 in a Deluxe Reverb? My tech made the switch in my amp because my deluxe kept burning screen resistors and having issues. Since making the swap I haven’t had those problems, but I often wonder what I’m giving up in sound and feel by switching from the 6V6 to 6L6. I appreciate your time. Nick
Hey Nick, sorry, saw this question in the live chat after it ended - I can't get to all of them, sorry. While 6L6s can be a bit harder on the power transformer and the output transformer impedance isn't optimal for 6L6s, it shouldn't hurt anything. It should never be *necesary* to change output tube types in a Deluxe. They can and should be completely capable of running 6V6s.
I have the WGS ET-10 (also 65w) in my '65 Princeton Reverb RI and it made quite an improvement to the mids, especially volume above 5. Your playing is so consistent betwen these two speakers that I'm not sure I can choose a favorite. Both sounded great.
@@halhawkins7641 Honestly, flubs are part of playing. What I took away is an admiration of your touch and confident ease. Well done. Which speaker is your favorite? That's really what matters. 😁
THANK YOU LYLE!!! This is how speaker (or pickup) evaluations should ALWAYS be!! How can one determine how a speaker sounds with overdriven tubes, speakers, and/or thru a bunch of digital pedals (Makes no sense, all that digital stuff going into an amazing tube amp!!!!). I've been trying to choose between different models of Princeton Reverbs, and different speakers into my Deluxe Reverb and my Blues Juniors. It is SO hard to find clean comparisons!!! THANKS AGAIN LYLE!!!! You have no idea what a relief it is to hear an HONEST comparison!!!
