Observations on the greenback in my 18watter

[Moose]

Frankly, I hate it.

I had originally built a 2x12 with a greenback and a G12H for use with a trainwreck type amp I was cooking up, but I found the 'wreck really liked that cab with a pair of G12H. My other amps preferred the mix'n'match combo, but they don't have the harmonic complexity and I think the odd comb filtering between the mismatched drivers added a lot.

I had a spare G12H sitting around waiting to be in my 18 watt, so I decided to swap the greenback into the 18watt and the G12H into the 'wreck cabinet. Lots of folks here use the greenback, and the 18watt isn't overly bright, so I guessed it'd be good. For my taste, it wasn't.

I don't like it nearly as much as the G12H. The breakup character is different and it's generally punchier in the upper mids. It's very aggressive sounding, but it just gets edgier as things get louder. I'm guessing it would likely punch through a mix well in a group and record well (it always mic'ed up well when it was in the 2x12), but I think I've become a major fan of the G12H in general.

Until recently, I was always a major greenback fan. Maybe I'm getting old and my tastes are changing. At least I'm not addicted to the ever-increasingly priced blues.

[zaphod_phil]

There's a large body of opinion out there that says the non-Vintage Greenbacks are not best suited to open-back cabs. This is where the G12H evolution of the Greenback comes in. There seems to be a suggestion that vintage Greenbacks made in the old Celestion factory in Thames Ditton (vs Ipswich) were OK in open-back cabs, but I've not really been able to nail this theory down.

I use a G12H in my own combo and love the sound. I've also recently got an old Thames Ditton-made Greenback with a ripped cone, which I've had reconed, to try in a front-ported 1X12 cab. Now that it's been reconed I guess it won't sound like a genuine vintage Greenback.

[Psalm150]

I really don't like the recent greenbacks. I've only tried them in open back cabs, but they sounded just kind of unexciting to me. I replaced it with a blue and everything was better. Each freq. range was better (lows, mids, highs). They work, and they sound ok, but I don't want 'just ok' in my amp!

[Graydon]

Wow, you guys are hard on those little Greenbacks!

I love them. That is my number one speaker for a 1-12 combo and I'm not talking about my own personal preference here. My customers so far have almost all asked for Greenbacks with very few exceptions. I like them too. I think that the Blues sound great too, but not necessarily "better", just different. I'll admit, I haven't spent enough time with a G12H to decide if I might like that better but I certainly wouldn't kick a Greenback out of my studio. It has a classic British R&R sound that few others can match.

I had Guy Hedrick (of Guytron fame) in my studio a while back. We A-Bed a bunch of amps, and the 1-12 combo with the reissue Greenback always came out on top.

[Psalm150]

Maybe the greenbackas are more popular because the price isn't as totally insane as the blues!