crazy v30 video

[NinjaRaf]

Not sure if this got posted before, but this video is nuts lol. Dude goes through basically every V30 version in existence, and basically shut down a lot of the nonsense we hear online about the V30.



Then he tests against some of the "new" ones that Fricker talked about...same kinda deal.



So basically the era that Nolly talks about seems legit...2000-2004 or so. But the rest all seem to be within production tolerance, including Mesa V30s...Even speakers in the same batch sold as pairs sound different. The newer video he talks about a different cone code having a different sound. Pretty interesting.

[GuitarBilly]

yeah I watched that video a while ago. It's crazy how much variance there is between models from the same batch, but then again, a large portion of a speaker is paper. And paper is one of the materials that is most susceptible to moisture, temperature, use, wear... you name it. So 2 speakers from the same batch could have sounded close to each other when they left the factory but once they're out in the wild, all bets are off, really.

It's cool to see a few myths debunked though, like the "Mesa" V30s or the "Marshall" V30s being that different than regular V30 speakers. Some are some aren't. I never thought that was that big a deal, since playing through the Mesa 4x12 or the Marshall AVs.. they sound like V30 cabs. At least within the tolerance.


It's crazy how guitar players are susceptible to stuff like that or the 5150 "block letter" thing when manufacturers themselves have repeatedly said it's nonsense. Obviously, everything works within tolerance ranges, so one unit might be slightly different than another, but it's usually pretty minimal.

For the 70s or early stuff, sure, there might be something to it (although that's impossible to qualify these days but that's a different topic). But manufacturing tolerances have been pretty tight for decades now.

[RaceU4her]

i have a bunch of v30s here im sure made at different times and factories, i cant say im in any rush to know though cause they all sound like v30s to me and the minor differences just isnt something im too concerned with, if i was recording for a living or had weeks of studio time to record guitars maybe id do some more deep dive experimenting

[EndTime]

I didn’t watch it, but for SuRE the Marshall is different. I think even Celestion admitted as much. Well so much as it’s still the “original” Vintage 30. In fact didn’t Celestion actually make it for Marshall initially? Plus I know the one I had was my fave vintage 30 and sounded quite a bit different than my more modern vintage 30 at the time.

The mesa is different but I’ve never compared 8ohm to 8ohm. As I know that changes things as well. That could be what I’m hearing. I think the current Mesa is still Made in UK.

But there is some horrific soundign vintage 30s. I’d say that started around 2010 or so cause I know that’s when I got my first ones and they sucked and then I found some good ones.

And I’ll just say Celestion claimed to have made dozens of changes to their speakers like the g12-65 and the t75 has gone Thru tons of revisions. Greenbacks all sound different from different eras. And what I’m seeing is this guy is saying they are all basically the same?? Doesn’t add up. The v30 has definitely changed Thru the years.

I will say I’ve compared similar year Chinese Vs UK and I didn’t hear any differences. So I don’t feel the China version is where it went bad. They simply changed it, like they did for countless other speakers

[NinjaRaf]

I think he’s saying you can’t really attribute any specific set of characteristics to certain eras or versions. Like the generalizations we make about them are not very accurate and the difference could just be up to production tolerance.

You can look at the k100s you bought from me as an example. Sounded like total shit compared to my last experience with them.

[GuitarBilly]

I didn’t watch it.

And what I’m seeing is this guy is saying they are all basically the same??

These 2 could be related.

He's saying the exact opposite of they're all the same. He is saying there are random variations across the all years and versions, even from the same batch. So it's difficult to pinpoint differences to an specific model or batch. And he recorded them all to demonstrate the difference.

Maybe watch it? It's a lot of talking but the audio comparison starts at the 53 minutes mark.

[screamingdaisy]

So, I'm about 40 minutes through and need a break. What I'm confused about is that I've just hit the part where he's saying he's disappointed that the Mesa and Marshall aren't standing out vs regular spec V30s.

... yet, when I listen to his clips, they confirm what people generally say about Mesa, Marshall and regular V30s. The Mesa's are generally smoother than a standard V30, which his clips confirm. The Marshalls generally are a bit more aggressive, which his clips confirm.

Unfortunately, he didn't test the 16ohm Marshall, which is what people are typically referencing when comparing a Marshall 4x12 to a Mesa 4x12, and I think it's reasonable to say that the 16ohm Marshall would be brighter and more aggressive than the darker/smoother sounding 8ohm Mesa.

Somewhere around 2006-2008 is when Mesa started getting pissed off at Celestion about the sound of their speakers, which I'd have to listen again, but I believe his tests confirm that detail. It's why Mesa started going to other manufacturers and had Eminence produce the Fillmore 75 for a bit. I had a 2008-ish Recto 4x12 that never produced the meat of my old 2001-ish Recto 4x12... but, if you listened to every speaker in the 2008 cab they all sounded different. There was no consistency.

My current cab is a Recto 2x12 that I pulled the 16ohm speakers out of and replaced them with an older pair of 8ohm Mesa OEMs... and, it sounds more or less like a Recto 4x12, but smaller. More mids and less brittle/scooped than a typical Recto 2x12 with stock 16 ohm speakers, also confirmed by his clips.

So... as someone who's nerded out on this over the years I like his tests thus far, but I think it's interesting that we're reaching different conclusions.

[NinjaRaf]

Yeah we all hear a little different. It was interesting to hear him go through the Mesa speakers. I agree with his findings. They didn’t sound that different from the regular versions. Minor changes that I think he could be right about regarding production tolerance. But like he said, too, it’s a pretty small sample size.

[JSutter]

The V30s in my Mesa 412 sound slightly different from each other. I noticed that years ago. Same with 8 vs 16 ohm. Like nearly every other aspect of gear, it's just the luck of the draw on what we get.

That would be hilarious if the only difference (aside from impedance) was the label or cosmetics. Still, it won't change a thing when it comes to sellers talking up the mojo.