Hellatones anyone?

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Tuesday Sep 02, 2008

Anyone use/used Hellatone speakers? Basically, for those not in
the know, Avatar Cabs take a Celestion 30 and do some process
to "age" or loosen them up.

There are 60s and 30s, varying in Ohms.

As far as I know, other than some online demoes, I've not heard
one. Wondering if anyone's used them, thoughts, etc.

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Tuesday Sep 02, 2008

No Dave, I have not heard them first hand. Actually I've never heard of them. I'm gonna check youtube to see if there's any demos of them.
Sometimes youtube has some great reviews and tech/how-to videos. Youtube is really getting big and in a good way.

I'll be sure to let you know my opinion of them when and if I can hear a good audio of them.

**edit: I found this just a second ago:
http://www.avatarspeakers.com/hellatone.htm

Not really much help, but the prices seem fair to the market value.

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Tuesday Sep 02, 2008

There are some great reviews on Harmony Central. The company is reliable and efficient with their customer service and shipping department, so it seems that it wil be a smooth deal with no hassles, like long waiting periods and asshole employees to deal with.

http://reviews.harmony-central.com/revi ... %2030/10/1

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Tuesday Sep 02, 2008

And finally, here's some youtube for your listening pleasure:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOM172Ngfqk

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Tuesday Sep 02, 2008

Joe,

Ya. Have seen some good reviews and e-mailed back and forth with
the guy (Steve? Dave? Somethin' like that, I think). Seemed like they
knew their stuff (Which you'd think they would, I s'pose. though I've
seen mixed reviews on the Avatar cabs).

Can buy them direct for, like 80 Bucks or somethin' like that, or go the
EBay route.

Thanks for the YT links. Ya, I found a vid from a guy in Hungary doing
a demo with the VT50. Was pretty cool. Couldn't understand a word,
but it was a good demo of the amp's sounds (Think it had some mods
as well).

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Tuesday Sep 02, 2008

I'm really diggin the sound of these speakers! From what I gather, these Hellatones are Celestions that were broken in? Is that true or just a joke of some sort?

I really wish that I had another head and an empty cabinet, cause I'd seriously consider getting these, or Celestion Vintage 30's.

My rig/cab now is dialed in and setup for metal and thats it. I could get lighter, less compressed sound, but I don't wanna go messing my EQ all up.

I might look for a 50w tubed head, or maybe a 100w solid state, and build a cab around the head. I just feel held back by my sound, and I'd like to explore different sounds and stuff like that.

orangekick · Post by **orangekick** » Tuesday Sep 02, 2008

I had a set of 4 Hellatone 60L's in my Mojo 4x12. They were fantastic. These are the only speakers that sounded perfect right out of the box and never changed. I later swapped out two of the 60L's for Warehouse Veteran 30's because the 60L's had a bit too much low end for a stand-alone cabinet.

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Tuesday Sep 02, 2008

I'm a little confused, are the Hellatones built by Celestion?
Someone made a comment on a review that said "they are Celestions with a Hallatone sticker."

And yeah I guess that they were broken in before the customer gets them.

bassist_25 · Post by **bassist_25** » Tuesday Sep 02, 2008

I can't comment to the guitar speakers that you are talking about, but I have owned an Avatar bass cab. For the most part, I thought it was rather average sounding. It's definitely one of the best deals in its price range, but to hear some of the people on Talkbass speak, you'd think they were in the same league as Eden or Epifani. Sorry, but they're not even close.

The primary reason I got rid of it was because the box itself was so poorly constructed. The piece of wood dividing the port was never straight. The carpeting began coming unglued after about three months of gigging. Eventually, the box itself developed a rattle anytime I'd play an open E or anything lower. Apparently, the joints were coming undone.

I imagine I got a lemon as Avatar sells a lot of bass and guitar cabs. They wouldn't stay in business if they were selling junk. For the record, however, Dave is a very cool guy to deal with. I just got a bad cab, but the sound quality wasn't enough to make me want to try Avatar again. YMMV

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

Joe,

First off, you're a problem man! An instigator! I was considering
looking into these after I run the Carvin with the Eminences for
a while....but now...I'm thinking...

I think they just buy the Celestions, age 'em, and put their sticker
on.

By the way, because of my recent spending and a lack of room for
all this junk, I'm selling my H&K SS Head (100W) if you're interested.
Just got it a couple of weeks ago and have only plugged it in...3x, if
that.

It has a good sound. I've never done anything to push it, or even close,
so dunno about stage volume, but it's an H&K, so the build should be
solid.

I'm never taking another stay-cation again. It's more expensive than a
long trip.

Paul,
Was thinking you'd had an issue with the Avatars. That was a big
part of the reason I went with Lopo (Which I'm extremely happy with).

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

I will definitly consider that as an option. I'm torn between building another rack or just going with a head this time, like a 50w Tube, or 100w SS, like I stated.
If I went rack again, I am thinking about a Mesa 20/20 or something similar. I'd like to have a lower Watt rating not only for a different approach and sound, but also for practicing. My rig now is too loud @ any volume to play at night or early morning.

Besides bro, that's what the tech is for right? Influencing one another to try different things! But I'll accept the instigator badge, cause I am sometimes.

orangekick · Post by **orangekick** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

Yes, they are simply Celestion speakers that have been broken in before they're sent out. They rebadge them as Hellatones and sell them cheaper than normal Celestions.

Dave at Avatar is a nice guy who really just wants to give great products at a great price.

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

orangekick wrote:Yes, they are simply Celestion speakers that have been broken in before they're sent out. They rebadge them as Hellatones and sell them cheaper than normal Celestions.

Dave at Avatar is a nice guy who really just wants to give great products at a great price.

Thanks, I wasn't sure exactly what they were, you know how sometimes guys refer to something as a rebadged whatever? I'm not at all questioning the quality or service, they seem to take their company and customer serviec in high regards.

I think that the pre-aging process is a great idea, for the vintage tone freaks to just have something to install and play right away knowing what it's gonna sound like, and to beat all have a full warranty.

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

Joe,

Ah, geez. In the YT vid, the guy is using Celestion Golds. They are
incredible. In some speaker "shootout" they beat everything. Every
person doing the tests said they sounded great with no matter what
amp was being used and better than anything else.

Granted, tone is subjective...but that's pretty definitive.

They also go for close to $300 each...

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

$300 is crazy for 1 speaker, but I guess if tone has a price, that's what you pay then, right? It's too rich for my blood.

Just like the Celestion 'G12EVH' Van Halen speakers that go for $210 a piece. But that there might be an example of merely buying the 'name' and not the product. I mean really if you think about that, how many things does EVH have his name on that are not really the best of products?

I guess when dealing with brand name vs. quality, everything is subjective and biased.

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

Joe,

Ya. That's just too much. I'm sure in the grand scheme, they may be
worth it, but when there's a difference of $200 each and you have other
considerations to where that could go and how many people are going
to pick up on the difference, it's a bit ridiculous.

Plenty of people are NOT using them and getting a great sound.

OrangeKick,

You're liking the Warehouse speakers, then, eh?

orangekick · Post by **orangekick** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

VENTGtr wrote:OrangeKick,

You're liking the Warehouse speakers, then, eh?

Yes. I think they sound better than Celestions in the room and miced. I wouldn't say that they are the be all end all speaker. Currently I have been favoring my Marshall 4x12 that has 2 Warehouse Green Berets along with 2 Celestion V30's. That cab has something really cool going on with those speakers together.

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

Interesting. Thanks much.

orangekick · Post by **orangekick** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

No problem. I have a little bit of a problem with my gear, so I tend to try A LOT of stuff.

lonewolf · Post by **lonewolf** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

A Celestion Vintage 30 costs $119, shipped

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ ... sku=660230

A Hellatone Broken-in Celestion Vintage 30 cost $93, shipped, $83 in quantity of 4

http://www.avatarspeakers.com/hellatone.htm

Hellatones make sense to me.

metalchurch · Post by **metalchurch** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

Yeah it would make sense from a money aspect for sure. My question is if you go that route and buy the Hellatones, which are already broken in, would they wear out faster, and be more susceptable to damage compared to a brand new V30?

Of course 'breaking in' a speaker is mainly just playing it at different volumes and time periods, mainly to loosen up the paper and cone part, right? So I guess they really wouldn't be thrashed and uabused, and therefore are not a gamble compared to buying new.

I think that I almost answered my own question, but I don't really understand what I just told myself.

Banned · Post by **Banned** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

The Shadow currently has an Avatar cab with Hellatones, so he can offer some insight too. It's a very nice sounding cab.

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

So...it's true...The Shadow knows...

orangekick · Post by **orangekick** » Wednesday Sep 03, 2008

metalchurch wrote:Yeah it would make sense from a money aspect for sure. My question is if you go that route and buy the Hellatones, which are already broken in, would they wear out faster, and be more susceptable to damage compared to a brand new V30?

Of course 'breaking in' a speaker is mainly just playing it at different volumes and time periods, mainly to loosen up the paper and cone part, right? So I guess they really wouldn't be thrashed and uabused, and therefore are not a gamble compared to buying new.

I think that I almost answered my own question, but I don't really understand what I just told myself.

Speakers are fragile, but they are not that fragile. If you put Hellatones in a cab and you take the same amount of care that you normally would with that cab, your speakers should last years. It's just like anything though, you could blow any speaker right out of the box or they could get cranked for years with no issues.

I have had the Hellatone 60L's for 2 years now and have had no issues. We also play loud and I have run all kinds of stuff through the cab with no issues at all.

VENTGtr · Post by **VENTGtr** » Tuesday Sep 09, 2008

Well, ya miserable sum'bits. I ordered one to throw in the cab.

Have 2 Ems in now. One is older, a bit looser and warmer, the
other is made to be pretty stiff and brighter. Have to experiment,
as usual, to see how these work together, etc.