Celestion Ditton 15XR loudspeakers

Ditton was the village near Ipswich were the Celestion Rola company manufactured these speakers. Under the brand Celestion, the company acquired fame by producing guitar amplifier speakers, for the British Vox among others.

The Celestion Ditton 15XR is the upgraded model issued from 1970 on of the Ditton 15, a classic British speaker, produced end of the sixties among a long series of awarded models.

Maintaining the original 8 inch woofer backed by a same sized passive radiator named ABR (Auxiliary Bass Radiator), an improved tweeter named HD1000 allowed for a higher frequency range than the original Coles. All over the press they were considered to have a very good value for money, as the 15 series were the biggest selling bookshelf loudspeaker of its time.

The listening session reveals bright, a little upfront but transparent high frequencies, with harmonics going upper than the original model (we had the opportunity to compare as holding both in stock). A clean medium and good bass given the size complete the frame, but with not as much beef you way expect on punchy music (but you will not be seeking for a pair of Celestion then, will you?). They are better on jazz, blues, acoustic, vocals… The sound stage is deep and large as well, and the listening sensation is warm and relaxed. Their good sensitivity make them easy to drive even on a modest amplifier.