J
Junk Yard Dog
Well-known member
Been wanting to post about this for a while and took my reply from another forum and am posting below here. Love my Splawn; it can be picky...but it's worth it.
I've been up and down this road with my OS 2x12 (which is diagonal) and the Creambacks M65 and H75. I play a 2014 Splawn Pro Stock. I initially loved the H75s, and still do, but for my setup, playing the same rock/hard rock/early metal in a cover band, the H75 mixed with a V30 caused some ear fatigue after a 4 hour show. I then swapped all kinds of speakers with various mixes. Keep the amp in mind; it's pretty picky with speakers and pickups.
I've now settled on a Celestion K100 (balanced with good mids, not overt, which is great for my Splawn which has plenty of mids) mixed with a Creamback M65. The K100 was MUCH WELCOMED difference compared to the H75; not harsh at high gain/higher volumes like the H75 could be (and it was pretty well broken in). The M65 warmed things up a bit, and has fuller, more rounded mids (less strident than the V30), so this really works well with my amp.
One thing I have learned, is that I don't need to play with as much preamp gain as I used to. Too much preamp gain at higher volumes can be harder to manage with speakers that "crunch up" or have "flavor/character". My band plays LOUD, like a rock band should. When I would select the solo/volume boost for leads, the H75/V30 combo seemed to crunch up too much and I lost articulation. I've found like that I like my amp to do most of the work, and like a speaker that can handle all the amp has to throw at it. The K100s do a good job of this.
While in this process, I also learned how to back off on the gain knob, letting the volume/power tubes do some work and blend the gain knob using a little less preamp gain than before.
I also took out the RFT 12AX7 (great tube, btw!! use it in other amps), and put back in the Chinese 12AX7B in V1. My Splawn can now handle the higher gain at higher volume much better it seems. It retains articulation better than when it had a high gain rated tube in V1. The Splawn circuit already has a lot of gain, so just get good tubes and everything balances out well.
LESSONS LEARNED (just my experience)
1. Creambacks are great speakers. M65 or H75 will depend on your overall setup and goals. Try them both with different configurations. The H75/M65 combo should mix well for most setups. If not, try a K100/M65
2. Celestion K100's are grossly overlooked speakers. They mix well with others and they are NOT (just) a heavy metal speaker.
3. Be careful of putting high gain rated/selected tubes in high gain circuit amps. Too much of anything can turn out opposite of your expectation.
4. Splawn amps rock. It may take some folks time to figure out how to optimize their sound depending on the parts equaling the sum, but it's worth it. Great tone and durability at a great price point.
That is all. Cheers!
I've been up and down this road with my OS 2x12 (which is diagonal) and the Creambacks M65 and H75. I play a 2014 Splawn Pro Stock. I initially loved the H75s, and still do, but for my setup, playing the same rock/hard rock/early metal in a cover band, the H75 mixed with a V30 caused some ear fatigue after a 4 hour show. I then swapped all kinds of speakers with various mixes. Keep the amp in mind; it's pretty picky with speakers and pickups.
I've now settled on a Celestion K100 (balanced with good mids, not overt, which is great for my Splawn which has plenty of mids) mixed with a Creamback M65. The K100 was MUCH WELCOMED difference compared to the H75; not harsh at high gain/higher volumes like the H75 could be (and it was pretty well broken in). The M65 warmed things up a bit, and has fuller, more rounded mids (less strident than the V30), so this really works well with my amp.
One thing I have learned, is that I don't need to play with as much preamp gain as I used to. Too much preamp gain at higher volumes can be harder to manage with speakers that "crunch up" or have "flavor/character". My band plays LOUD, like a rock band should. When I would select the solo/volume boost for leads, the H75/V30 combo seemed to crunch up too much and I lost articulation. I've found like that I like my amp to do most of the work, and like a speaker that can handle all the amp has to throw at it. The K100s do a good job of this.
While in this process, I also learned how to back off on the gain knob, letting the volume/power tubes do some work and blend the gain knob using a little less preamp gain than before.
I also took out the RFT 12AX7 (great tube, btw!! use it in other amps), and put back in the Chinese 12AX7B in V1. My Splawn can now handle the higher gain at higher volume much better it seems. It retains articulation better than when it had a high gain rated tube in V1. The Splawn circuit already has a lot of gain, so just get good tubes and everything balances out well.
LESSONS LEARNED (just my experience)
1. Creambacks are great speakers. M65 or H75 will depend on your overall setup and goals. Try them both with different configurations. The H75/M65 combo should mix well for most setups. If not, try a K100/M65
2. Celestion K100's are grossly overlooked speakers. They mix well with others and they are NOT (just) a heavy metal speaker.
3. Be careful of putting high gain rated/selected tubes in high gain circuit amps. Too much of anything can turn out opposite of your expectation.
4. Splawn amps rock. It may take some folks time to figure out how to optimize their sound depending on the parts equaling the sum, but it's worth it. Great tone and durability at a great price point.
That is all. Cheers!
