I have no idea what to do with my cab (need help!)

OrphicTrench

OrphicTrench

Nov 1, 2012
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4,571
Quebec city
#1
Sooo... I have an old Trace Elliot 1524 cab that has seen better days. It's a 2x15 with 300 watts of power at 4 ohms.

I recently blew up the top speaker and sent it to the vet for service. What I learned in the process is that the speakers in my cab weren't matched speakers. In fact, the one that blew up was the original, but it seems as if it had already been repaired once in the past (the cone was reattached, or something like that). The other speaker was replaced by one of the previous owners. It's an Electro-Voice 15BX (815 2628).

Now, if I could find another EV 15BX to stick it in there, I would certainly do, but these are nowhere to be found. I did find an original Celestion Trace Elliot speaker on the bay (TE-BS-15300-8), but if I buy that one (which will end up costing me more than 200$ with taxes and shipping), I will have to repair the one that's gone bad (which will cost me an extra 150$). Having said that, I could still sell the EV speaker by itself and that will cover some of the costs.

The other choice, as Downunderwonder suggested in this thread, would be to get a new pair of Eminence 3015 Kappalites, but that will cost me way more than I had expected. BogeyBass suggested a pair of Eminence Gamma 15A2, which are way more affordable and will fit with the cab just fine.

I'm really not a WinISD expert so what do you guys think? Should I go for the original TE celestion speaker and repair the farting one or should I get two new ones? Also, would it be possible to get a speaker that would have similar specs as the original (meaning that I would repair the blown one, buy a brand new one that matches it and sell the EV)?
 
#3
Yes, sorry. I forgot mentioning that I'm thinking costs in canadian dollars... The best deal on kappalites I found so far is 250$ each plus 70$ for shipping and taxes (CAD). I'll call some of the local shops tomorrow to see if I can find something better. Thanks!
 
#6
You should stick to 4Ω (2x8Ω) and 2x150W (300W) or a bit more, depending on which amp you use. Then calculate your cabs inner volume. The drivers recommended volume (close to VAS- check the specs) you prefer should be 1/2 the cabs, since you have 2 drivers in there.
After all that you should calculate if your port is still the correct size. (it/they'll cuff if to small, and loose low-end when to big)
;)
 
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#7
Depends what you want from the cab and your budget. For $400, you can buy a complete other used cab. If you loved the tone/size/weight/look of your Trace cab, then it might be worth fixing up.

Yes - you're on the right track by knowing you need speakers with the proper specs to fit your cab. Sorry, I'm no better at the software than you though.

On the ohm side, I'd be tempted if buying 2 new speakers, to either have higher wattage capacity or have it at an 8 ohm cab so you don't feed it too much juice and blow another speaker. Again, it really depends on your use for this cab. Is it your only cab? Do you gig with it? Band practice? Bedroom cab?

Depending on your demands and plans for the cab, I'd be tempted to stick cheaper/used speakers in there as a cheap fix and again depending on your needs, use the remaining funds to buy a second cab. But if you love this one, then fix it up (or find another used one for less).

Ps - I wouldn't run mismatched pairs of speakers in a cab. Maybe save your stock speaker broken and try to find another used EV to put in there? I wonder if any old Peavey speakers would be suitable as replacements?
 
#9
Bedroom cab??? You must be kidding!!!!! This was my band practice cab and I gigged once with it in the past. It never failed me until I abused it a little with fuzz feedback. Then it started farting after long practices (3 or 4 hour practices). At the beginning the problem was intermittent but then it became permanent. I think I waited too long before sending it for repair.

In any case, now I have a 410 cab that I like much more but there's no way of telling if I wouldn't like the 1524 better as I always played it with unmatched speakers. So all this talk made me realize: I wouldn't mind investing a little to make this cab great again (no pun intended). I may even change the tolex if I find the courage to do so. Making it loose a little weight would be good too!

About the amp, I always used a TE GP7SM250 with it, but I recently bought a TE AH350SMX and I was tempted to try it with it too. If the experiment is not conclusive, I may very well sell the cab, so that's not a big deal. On the other hand, if I build a Supercab, custom looking and all, I'm probably going to keep it and try as many heads as I can until the perfect match is found.

You guys are inspiring. Thanks to you I now have a big project for the summer.
 
#11
OrphicTrench said:
So all this talk made me realize: I wouldn't mind investing a little to make this cab great again.
Click to expand...
I chose the same course of action with an old '70s EV B115-M cabinet a few years ago. In my case, it was working fine and sounded good, but it weighed over 90 lbs. and was only rated for 200W.

I needed, first, to fend off an onslaught of TB naysayers who told me that choosing drivers for an existing cab (instead of designing a cab around the drivers) would never work and that the best I could possibly hope for was that, by dumb luck, I might end up with a cab that sounded okay.

From my experience I can now tell you that it was worth fending them off. Yes, it's always better to design cabs around their drivers, but great results can be gotten the other way around if you proceed carefully.

Once I provided internal dimensions for the cab and information on the port, other, more helpful, TB'ers - I'll call them yeasayers - were able to guide me through choosing the right drivers, tuning the port and designing a custom crossover. I also got some help from the vendor himself (I got the drivers from U.S. Speaker Repair) who ran some of the numbers in his software.

The end result for me is a cab with twice the power rating which weighs 30lbs. less and sounds much better while still retaining some of the sonic personality of the original.

I say go for it. You'll learn a lot in the process, you'll have fun and you'll end up with a more useful cab, even if it doesn't sound exactly like it did originally.
 
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#12
I think I have one more question. There's some sort of foam inside the cabinet. Not thick at all and almost airy. You can see it a little in this picture. It was added by one of the previous owners. Do you think I should keep it or take it off? I think it was glued although I'm not completely sure. Not quite sure either as to how it affects the sound exactly.

e9d2486.jpg
 
#13
OrphicTrench said:
Yes, sorry. I forgot mentioning that I'm thinking costs in canadian dollars... The best deal on kappalites I found so far is 250$ each plus 70$ for shipping and taxes (CAD). I'll call some of the local shops tomorrow to see if I can find something better. Thanks!
Click to expand...

Buy them from L&M, there is no need to pay shipping since they are a dealer. I paid around $250 for my 3012LFs a couple years ago. This is still over your budget though.
 
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#15
DiabolusInMusic said:
Buy them from L&M, there is no need to pay shipping since they are a dealer. I paid around $250 for my 3012LFs a couple years ago. This is still over your budget though.
Click to expand...

If you're talking about Long & McQuade, they don't have any Kappalites nor Faitals at the moment.

Downunderwonder said:
As I recall, the tuning on that cab is right in the breadbasket of 3015 range.

The foam won't have much effect.
Click to expand...

Awesome. I'll look into it. Made some calls to the local shops but the guys that take the special orders are out till Monday.
 
#17
Downunderwonder seems to feel that cab is tuned close enough for 3015s.
He usually knows what he is talking about.
3015s get used in TL606s with good results,
so it is not unreasonable to guess EV M series would be a workable
and less expensive option.
Not as robust or light as the 3015s, but I would guess you might score a pair for about
half the cost.
Just another option, if cost is a primary factor.
 
#18
B-string said:
You could check prices on Faital 15PR400 drivers in Canada, I don't know if they would be any less. JohnK_10 uses those in a few cabs (sound a lot like old JBL's with much better power handling).
Click to expand...

OP,

If you are interested in buying new higher power drivers, I definitely suggest reading up on the voicing differences between the Eminence 3015 and the Faital 15PR400. In general the Eminence is described as more muscular sounding. I believe the Faital has slightly better dispersion, a smoother frequency response, and goes a bit higher and lower.

Anyone have links to the Dually recordings that demo how the sound varies with these two drivers? I can't seem to find them anymore.
 
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#19
johnk_10 said:
here's an example of what i'm trying to describe. and BTW, IMO, the 3015's are no slouch at all.

i made a couple of clips a little while ago with my SVT7 Pro that just arrived today to give you and idea of the differences between these two fine speakers. (all the controls on the amp were set at noon, '71 jazz bass with rounds, recored on a Zoom H4n 8" off of the speaker:

Faital 15PR400

Eminence 3015
Click to expand...

Here you go! These are my two options by now. It will be a killer cab either way. Can't wait to make a choice and go forward with the customization.
 
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#20
For the moment, the highest powered head I own is a Trace Elliot AH350SMX (350 watts at 4 ohms). I know I'll be just fine with the 3015's, but will the Faitals blow it up? This is kind of a concern for me because it means that I'll have to buy a new head before even being able to try the cab... :(
 
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