Adding insulation to a Peavey 215 BW cabinet?

[shoot-r]

Did a search...nothing I could find on insulating this particular cab was helpful.
There isn't any insulation on the interior surfaces, has anyone added insulation to the interior of the "thin", Peavey 215 Black Widow cabinet?
What did you use?
What were the results?
Thanks to all...

[billfitzmaurice]

Use either 1" thick polyester batting (available at upholstery shops), felt carpet underlayment or egg-crate foam, stapled or glued in. The difference in the midrange clarity will be substantial.

[NickRich]

Great !
A friend of mine suggested the same thing : adding insulation to my Trace Elliot 2x15.

Will try this at once.

[shoot-r]

Originally Posted by billfitzmaurice

Use either 1" thick polyester batting (available at upholstery shops), felt carpet underlayment or egg-crate foam, stapled or glued in. The difference in the midrange clarity will be substantial.

Thanks Bill.
I wouldn't think the cost of insulating a cab would be very costly, is there a reason why some manufacturers don't add it to their cabinets?
Also, thanks for getting me started on the "two" 210's stacked as a vertical stacked 410.
Went with your suggestions awhile back and my stage rig is now a vertical stacked 410 set-up.
Love it!

[lbwdog]

From another thread.

Quilt batting from michael's. 8 bucks with the 40% off coupon for a huge roll.

[shoot-r]

Originally Posted by lbwdog

From another thread.

Quilt batting from michael's. 8 bucks with the 40% off coupon for a huge roll.

+1 and thank-you sir...
The wife just announced she wants a new foam pad for the bed.......................................guess where the old one's going, , or atleast I'm gonna try it and see what happens!

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by shoot-r

is there a reason why some manufacturers don't add it to their cabinets?

You can't see it.
Saving five bucks worth of materials and another five bucks labor adds up over a few thousand cabs.

[Kindness]

Originally Posted by shoot-r

Did a search...nothing I could find on insulating this particular cab was helpful.
There isn't any insulation on the interior surfaces, has anyone added insulation to the interior of the "thin", Peavey 215 Black Widow cabinet?
What did you use?
What were the results?
Thanks to all...

I added 1" thick polyester batting (about $10 from Jo-Ann's Fabrics) to the bottom, sides and back of my B-15N a few weeks ago. The midrange went from annoying to beautiful.

[Oren Hudson]

shoot-r - Does your cab have the original BW's in it? If so, I'd be really grateful if you could tell me the model/letter numbers on them. I've re-habed the same cab that didn't have BW's and can't seem to find which BW was the original for that cab. I'm assuming that yours is an early 80's or somewhere in that area. I've gotten lots of BW recommendations from lots of folks in the know, including Peavey, but I'm interested in what BW was originally put in that cab from that era. Maybe even some pics? Many thanks.

[MrHeadfirst]

i have a sunn 2x15 cabinet, originally had no insulation. i installed heavy carpet padding to the inside, stapled down. it ended up sounding great, really cleans up the sound the low/mid range, added a certain amount of punch imho.

[SurferJoe46]

Is there a thread on this insulation and sound deadner idea?

If not - what is generally the reason for adding padding, foam, etc.

What freqs does it attenuate the most - the least?

How would one go about 'tuning' their cab for a special purpose with just padding/insulation?

This might be a good area to investigate if it hasn't already been done so.

[Stumbo]

Originally Posted by SurferJoe46

Is there a thread on this insulation and sound deadner idea?

If not - what is generally the reason for adding padding, foam, etc.

What freqs does it attenuate the most - the least?

How would one go about 'tuning' their cab for a special purpose with just padding/insulation?

This might be a good area to investigate if it hasn't already been done so.

Speaker Cabinet Insulation

[SurferJoe46]

Originally Posted by Stumbo

Speaker Cabinet Insulation

OK - I read it and still don't see any chart or significant insulation/deadening values per frequency or even to the idea that a certain insulation or material is better than another for cleaning up HIGHS or MIDS bouncing around in the box.

We all prolly want the LOWS to go unchecked or not hampered anyway - so what's the goodest idea to get the transient waves all corralled and deadened and keeping pressure off the speaker cone?

I'm gonna go back and post a few questions there.

Thanks for the info and reference.

[shoot-r]

Originally Posted by Oren Hudson

shoot-r - Does your cab have the original BW's in it? If so, I'd be really grateful if you could tell me the model/letter numbers on them. I've re-habed the same cab that didn't have BW's and can't seem to find which BW was the original for that cab. I'm assuming that yours is an early 80's or somewhere in that area. I've gotten lots of BW recommendations from lots of folks in the know, including Peavey, but I'm interested in what BW was originally put in that cab from that era. Maybe even some pics? Many thanks.

Oren,
I've only had the cab for a few weeks, but I'd say from the "80's" to be about right.
The gentleman I got it off of said it was all original except for the casters.
I'll drop you a P.M. when I do the insulating and let you know what it says on the speaker magnets.

[Goodlawdy]

I picked up the same cab in great condition last weekend at a pawn shop. I swapped out one of the original non bw speakers with a reconed eminence legend I had laying around. The first thing I noticed when looking inside was the lack of insulation. The speakers in this one have flat square magnets.

It sounded great at the gig. The extra speaker area and height made hearing myself so much easier. To me, this is what bass is supposed to sound like. I've got a couple of eminence basslite c2515's on the way from Sundogue that I'm going to throw in there this week.

I'm going to pad the inside too.

[FuzzBoxVoodoo]

Goodlawdy,
I also have a Peavey 215 with Eminence Legends still non insulated and I am very happy with it but I will be curious to see what you come back with after you finish it.

[Oren Hudson]

Originally Posted by shoot-r

Oren,
I've only had the cab for a few weeks, but I'd say from the "80's" to be about right.
The gentleman I got it off of said it was all original except for the casters.
I'll drop you a P.M. when I do the insulating and let you know what it says on the speaker magnets.

Thanks - I appreciate your help. BTW - sometimes, the numbers/letters are shown just above the speaker terminals.

[shoot-r]

Originally Posted by Oren Hudson

Thanks - I appreciate your help. BTW - sometimes, the numbers/letters are shown just above the speaker terminals.

B.W.'s are out of the cab, P.M. has been sent.

[Goodlawdy]

For mine, I used a combination of scrap foam and something I picked up at the hardware store called duracool, which is used in HVAC filters I think. It feels like insulation but with a spongier texture.

I would definitely recommend insulating this cab. I liked it before, but there was a little harshness. It sounds a lot better when I dig in now.

[hrgiger]

Here's a thread I started on this subject when I was but a learner and Bill brought me along Its even got a Peavey cab w/ black widows... and pictures!

Really no insulation in my big 3620!