Celestions G12-65: T3120 v T3054

[nlee1221]

Hello good people,

I have the opportunity to get my hands on an angled Marshall cab from the late 70s with the Marshall labeled 65 watt celestions T3120. I also have the chance to get a mid 80s JCM800 b cabinet with T3054 65 watt celestions. I don’t care about resale value or rarity, but are these speakers identical?I’m assuming both have the 1777 cones. I would prefer the b cab but I don’t quite know if the g12-65 with the Rola stamps are original since Marshall stopped using them in the mid 80s. Gunning for early Metallica tones since I have a JMP 2203 that would pair real nicely with 65s. Any advice, insight, or suggestions are much appreciated!

 

[BygoneTones]

Same speaker I think in theory. T3120 is the Marshall label version. T3054 likely just has the standard Celestion label. Whether they were made slightly differently for Marshall as a custom order, it's possible I guess, but I think the difference in tone would be minimal, and cork sniffing territory. Usually even when you compare speakers of exactly the same model that are that old you will hear some differences anyway just due to the ageing process.

 

[racerxrated]

Hello good people,

I have the opportunity to get my hands on an angled Marshall cab from the late 70s with the Marshall labeled 65 watt celestions T3120. I also have the chance to get a mid 80s JCM800 b cabinet with T3054 65 watt celestions. I don’t care about resale value or rarity, but are these speakers identical?I’m assuming both have the 1777 cones. I would prefer the b cab but I don’t quite know if the g12-65 with the Rola stamps are original since Marshall stopped using them in the mid 80s. Gunning for early Metallica tones since I have a JMP 2203 that would pair real nicely with 65s. Any advice, insight, or suggestions are much appreciated!

They are different, in my experience. The 3120s are a much brighter version to my ears; when I read how the 65 is a 'dark' speaker I thought no way, my 1979 cab is as bright as my 1974 M25 cab. Maybe brighter. But the T3054s are a good bit darker. With the same EQ settings on a 2203 for instance. If you turn up the presence and/or treble on the 3054 cab you can match the tone of the 3120 cab.
In the end, they are still 65s and are killer with any Marshall imo. My fav 65s are the Marshall label T3120s. Maybe the best 'bloom' speaker at volume, they turn into monsters if you have the opportunity to really put the screws to them volume wise.

 

[GIBSON67]

Get the slant with original speakers...m2c. I had some T3120's and some 3054's, no preference IMHO.