Harley Benton G212 Celestion V30

So let me start by saying that i bought this HB 2x12 because i gigged with Marshall 4x12 cabs for many years and got tired of carrying around heavy cabs.

I needed a 2x12 that could sound big but would be lighter to carry. Ideally i needed something with Celestion V30's or similar.

After looking around the internet, i discovered the Harley Benton G212 Vintage and my first impression was :
"How can they sell a V30 loaded cab for less money than 2 separate Celestion V30 speakers?"

At this point, i immediately placed the order because this is a total bargain. You're basically getting the cab for free when you think about it.

When the cab arrived, it looked fantastic and the overall quality was even better than i had expected.

I plugged it in and A/B tested it against my trust old Marshall 4x12. Here's what i discovered:

The HB 2x12 sounded more defined than the Marshall 4x12. It handled the low end better and actually seemed to be more 'punchy' in those lower mid and bass frequencies.

The HB 2x12 also sounds a little more aggressive in the midrange in comparison. This is likely because the speakers are front loaded, which gives a bit more of that direct sound. This makes it extremely good for rock or metal tones! However, it'll do just about anything you can think of and still sound great.

The top end is clear and cuts through the mix always, but it never sounds shrill or harsh.

I have now owned this cab for 7 years and gigged with it many times and it's still holding strong and performing flawlessly. The tolex is still attached, the grill cloth isn't damaged... This is pretty impressive for a cab that is priced so low!

If you're reading this review and you're trying to decide on purchasing this cab... My advice is just to go for it. I really don't think you'll find a better cab until you spend 3 or 4x more money. And even then, it won't sound 4x better or last 4x longer.

This cab is perfect for me and i will for sure own more than one in future for my new rig!

I was looking for a closed back cab with v30s in my search for a better metal tone. This thing shipped really fast and I had it in 3 days. This was faster then most things I order on Amazon. I live in the west coast for reference. That cab seems sturdy and sounds way better and alot less fizzy then my open back with 2 70/80s. I am very happy with the sound and the speakers aren't even broke in yet. My only complaint is the packaging and quality. The cab came in a single layer box with foam on the corners. When I took it out there was two dents in the front of the amp. They are not super noticable, but still annoying. And probably the worst part is both top front metal corners are dented. This does not seems like it would have been shipping damage like the other dents. All the corners on the shipping box where still in good shape and with the foam on them it makes it seem like it happened before shipping. I would probably buy again because of the price point for a casual player. Just beware it may not come in perfect condition. For 100 in shipping some extra foam or better box would have gone a long way.

I own one of the first Vintage G212's, before the "Celestion" logo was added. To start any HB review, you should know already that any product Thomann sells under their own brand is a product you can trust. The quality is absolutely amazing and you don't have to pay for the middle man. The customer service is the best in the world and you should not be worried about ordering it.

I bought this for home use, right now a Carvin X100b series III (carpet) is plugged into it. The speakers bought seperately without this cab would cost more than the cab itself! As You probably know, the Celestion Vintage 30 is pretty much the standard for rock and blues music, being featured in many famous cabs and combos, including the famous Marshall Silver Jubilees. This is a great way to get into some of that magic on the cheap. Buy a Harley Benton Cab, and use the savings for a better head than what you're planning to get.

The sound is very well balanced, with the lows sounding natural and note definition being clear, mids coming through nicely (or not if you tone them down) and the highs being able to almost get a "buzzsaw" tone. It reacts very well to guitar swaps and any character coming from the instrument shines through very well both clean and distorted. It does everything you could ever want it to. What can I say. It's a guitar cab with two great speakers that just... works. I've been using it non-stop for 5 years almost daily for hours without any problems. If the name bothers you, the logo is easy to take off. I wouldn't however - be proud of how smart you are with your money and ears!

It is, like most cabs, pretty heavy, and if you want to take it gigging, it'd be wise to make sure you have someone available to help you unload it and set it up. With a standard Marshall-sized tube head it weighs enough to not be possible to lift it alone.

In the end, this is a great cab for very little compared to so called "brand" ones with absolutely no flaws in the worksmanship and gives you tone you just can't improve on... provided you have a good head, of course.

There's a popular YouTube video that compares this cab to a Mesa version with the UK Vintage 30's, and it is 100% clear to me that the Harley Benton cab had the two speakers wired out of phase, robbing them of all bass. In fact this cab has enormous bass when wired properly in phase. I will leave it to you to decide whether that was accident or intention. But I insist you disregard that video. They wouldn't sell any of these if they sounded like that.

These Vintage 30's are made in China, but they sound excellent. I had a pair of UK Vintage 30's for a decade that were a bit chimier than these in the mids. But I wasn't a huge fan of that chime. The Vintage 30 has become Celestion's flagship speaker. It's full range, well balanced, punches nicely, has decent detail through the mids...sounds nice on virtually any amp. The amp and guitar have controls that some players seem to have never discovered, and they hope somehow the speaker will compensate. No, learn your instrument. The speakers are a fairly subtle component of the chain, typically, and if not, they're tying your hands. The Vintage 30 is a genuinely all-purpose speaker, love it or not.

These cabs used to come front-loaded with the grill velcroed on. Here at the end of 2022 they are back-loaded and you will need to pull the back off to swap speakers.

For this absurdly low price, we can't have any other complaints. The cabinet is solid enough, the tolex not terrific but acceptable. They assemble these so fast the glue wasn't dry when they put the back on mine, and taking the back off required taking off the handles and using a soft hammer to tear the glued tolex (which even a razor couldn't reach). The grill cloth has waves in it. But no big deal, I already have the tweed and oxblood replacements ready to make this a much nicer look. They did the sawing for me for free, thanks.

The stereo/mono switch is handy not just for stereo but for easily converting this into your choice of 1x12's. If you load with different speakers, you can instantly hear just one of them, and swap to the other just with the jack. Great for recording versatility. Or you could do a fake Leslie if you have a stereo amp to run a plugin through.

I can understand the video as a desperation tactic to keep the cabinet industry going in light of this absurdly good deal. But go ahead and get this deal. And get the nifty Laney 2x12 as an open back option as I did. You have all the cabs you'll ever need then. And a nice set of speakers to start with.