"Building" a tube combo (tech expert needed!)

[Penepasta]

Hello all,

I recently found a 1970's Sears BXL-60 15" bass combo amp at a thrift store for 20$, I totally fell in love with the way it looks and it's rugged simplicity. I was wondering if, down the road, it would be possible to take out the amp electronics and essentially replace them with the internal electronics of a tube head (I was thinking a Traynor YBA-1). After looking at the measurements of the head and my cabinet, they seem to be of a similar size. I'm looking for anyone who's done this sort of thing before or would has experience with electronics work.

[JimmyM]

I'd restore it as close to stock as humanly possible. There's no way that cab would take a 200w tube amp, so just appreciate it for what it is....a cool little low wattage tube bass combo.

[Muziekschuur]

If you put a neodynium driver in there. It will be twice as loud because of increased efficiency. A tube amp this size (40 watts?) (2x el34 ?) can handle easily a second cabinet. Just make a second cabinet wich looks like it would match this one. Then refinish both cabinets and use new fronts and call it a day.
With two neodynium (12 inch) drivers it will be loud enough to play with any band and it will look like a million dollars.

The neodynium driver can be easily taken out and restored with it's original driver.

Enjoy it.

[JimmyM]

Neo drivers are getting harder and way more expensive to find. And twice as loud is being very optimistic. Full range neo drivers can go a little louder than their ceramic counterparts, but not twice as loud. And that cab is so shallow that it's totally going to limit how loud you can go with a neo driver to about the same as a ceramic driver in the same cab.

[Bassmec]

Originally Posted by Muziekschuur

If you put a neodynium driver in there. It will be twice as loud because of increased efficiency. A tube amp this size (40 watts?) (2x el34 ?) can handle easily a second cabinet. Just make a second cabinet wich looks like it would match this one. Then refinish both cabinets and use new fronts and call it a day.
With two neodynium (12 inch) drivers it will be loud enough to play with any band and it will look like a million dollars.

The neodynium driver can be easily taken out and restored with it's original driver.

Enjoy it.

It should be immediately noted that neo 12inch drivers so far, while very desirable for a number of reasons.
Are not so far close on efficiency IE spl 1w 1m to 30 year old Alnico magneted driver.
Light weight yes!, high efficiency, well not so far.

[fdeck]

The challenge of converting to a tube combo is sealing the speaker cabinet while allowing air flow for the tubes.

[1n3]

Originally Posted by JimmyM

I'd restore it as close to stock as humanly possible. There's no way that cab would take a 200w tube amp, so just appreciate it for what it is....a cool little low wattage tube bass combo.

I think this is a solid state combo, but aside from that, I agree with Jimmy.

My Silvertone guitar amp cab is built from some kind of fiberboard; not very strong. Yours may be the same. The speaker won't take many watts. Overall, not a good upgrade candidate.

[JimmyM]

Mi mistako, 1n3. Looked like it could have been tubes but you're no doubt right.