delta 10's replacements in Portabass 2x10?

[NJBassist]

I need to up my power but want to try to do it using the Ampeg Portabass 2x10 cabinet I already own. I was thinking of getting 2 Delta 10B speakers for it....upping the power to 700 watts. Just trying to get some opinions here..... do you think those speakers are just too much for that cabinet? The head is an Eden WT-405.
Thanks!

[billfitzmaurice]

Wattage ratings are meaningless, they have no relation to how loud the driver will play, and Delta 10s in particular are mediocre. Depending on the cab size the drivers you have already may be as good a result as you can get. You can only get so much from a 2x10. If it's not enough your best bet is to add another.

[BassBrass]

But they aren't bad for the price...I use 2 in a PV Tour 2-10 w tweeter and they are decently loud and tough midrange speakers. I'd never try to use them alone...they simply don't go that low. I use them on top of a 15 or 18 basically so I can hear my mids (tone) in a loud band (and it makes 4 ohms with the other cab). btw, I did destroy the previous neo drivers PV had in there rated at half the wattage of the Deltas, and now I'm using twice as powerful an amp (700w) and distortion, and speakers rated almost double the head...the Deltas have never come close to complaining, so watts means something, not nothing.

[Eric Moesle]

Keep in mind that speakers almost NEVER blow because of exceeding the wattage rating (i.e. when the voice coil melts).

They almost always blow when the speaker exceeds its mechanical limits.

If you are looking for replacement speakers, look at the XMAX and XLIM specs and ignore the wattage rating.

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by Eric Moesle

Keep in mind that speakers almost NEVER blow because of exceeding the wattage rating (i.e. when the voice coil melts).

They almost always blow when the speaker exceeds its mechanical limits.

Sort of. Most drivers die from excess heat in the coil, usually the result of pushing the driver beyond the point where additional power in gets no more volume out, and then pushing it even more when thermal power compression sets in and added power input results in less output. The resulting long term heat build up can toast a voice coil even at well under the driver's rated power. The cause is pushing the driver past xmax, the damage is usually electrical, but only in the sense that electric current provides the heat that melts the insulation off the coil and releases the magic smoke.

[danomite64]

I also have a Portabass 2-10 and I would like to get better sounding 10's for it. I'm not concerned with more power (the head is only 250 watts), just a better sounding set of speakers. I tried a set of Eminence Gammas, knowing they wouldn't be much better than the stock Auras, and they aren't.

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by danomite64

I tried a set of Eminence Gammas, knowing they wouldn't be much better than the stock Auras, and they aren't.

They may not be even as good, Gamma's have half the xmax required for bass. Basslite S2010s are far better.

[Jerrold Tiers]

I would think that nearly ANYTHING would be better than the original stock 10s......

If there is one thing that really sucked with Ampeg, it is the lack of anything resembling volume from the Portabass speakers.... Very late ones are almost acceptable, but earlier ones are , well, very quiet..... They have nice tone, particularly with amplified upright, but volume? nope....

But you should probably run the numbers on the cab volume ans see what will work reasonably. Just sticking speakers in may not give you anything you want.....

[danomite64]

The outer dimensions are 15"W x 24"H x 15.5"D. The depth varies from to to bottom though. My cab is at the church I play; I'll get the inner dimensions for volume Thursday when we rehearse. Just guessing I'd say the inner dims are 13.5"W x 22.5"H x 13.25"D (bottom) x 10"D (top)

[danomite64]

The inner dimensions are 13 1/2" wide X 11 1/8" deep on the top, and 13 1/2" wide X 13" deep on the bottom. It's 22 3/8" tall in the inside. There's a 3/4" thick dividing board in the center, with a 6" X 3" cutout in the rear for the jack plate, and a 3" X 5 1/4" in the front for the horn. I drew it up in Autocad:

[billfitzmaurice]

That's about 1 cu ft per driver, and in a sealed box of that size no driver is going to give a very good result.

[AlexanderB]

I use two Deltalite II 2510 as an upgrade in my EBS ProLine 210 (which was originally loaded with Gamma 10"s).
The power handling and clean output is much higher (as they have at least twice the Xmax of the Gammas) and they also sound much cleaner in the upper mids. (If that is what you are looking for.)
There is however not really any deeper or "fatter" bass from them until you add some EQ.

/Alexander

[AlexanderB]

I would consider adding a bass reflex vent to your cabinet to get at least some lows out of it. A 4" diameter pipe (or corresponding area) tuned to 50Hz or so would be a good place to start. Use winisd to find exact tuning.

[danomite64]

I'm not looking for more power, and considering the place I play at , the lack of boominess my current configuration has is a plus. I use this at my church's fellowship hall, which is a concrete room with a wood cathedral ceiling, shaped like a gym or lunchroom. The stage is raised and inset, we have electric drums, a poor PA, and the guitarist and I each have our amps in front of us, facing us. The house bass amp was a Hartke Kickback with a single 10 (which sucks but I could hear it), so hearing myself with my Portabass rig is no problem. My head is set flat, because boosting the low end would just cause boominess. I have fretted and fretless Jazz basses, 2 Soundgear 800's, and an ATK. I tend to use the Jazzes, because they sound better with the amp, but I bet I could improve the amp's tone with better speakers. I could rear port it, or take out the horn and front port it. But, what I really want is sweeter sounding mids. I also use a Sansamp and an ART tube compressor.

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by danomite64

But, what I really want is sweeter sounding mids.

The only way to make an accurate prediction of what might give you what you want is by seeing detailed driver data sheets on what's in there now. Otherwise it's pure guesswork.

[danomite64]

A data sheet for the Aura speakers? I've never seen one. They'd probably weigh more than the speaker itself!

[AlexanderB]

Going for distorsion data to pick the right replacement?
Well, that leaves Eminence out of the picture as well. Never seen any distorsion data on any of their transducers...

Alteratively the OP could listen to the information from well informed, experienced and discriminating posters on this board.

[popgadget]

When I toasted the Auras in mine, I couldn't find any neos with acceptable T/S numbers. I ended up with eminence BP102 legends. I used the 8 ohm versions in parallel for a 4 ohm cabinet.
They are noticeably heavier, but sound better to me.

[danomite64]

Originally Posted by AlexanderB

Going for distortion data to pick the right replacement?
Well, that leaves Eminence out of the picture as well. Never seen any distortion data on any of their transducers...

Alternatively the OP could listen to the information from well informed, experienced and discriminating posters on this board.

I'm not the OP, but I listen to everything Bill and Jerrold say. I haven't even come close to toasting my Auras, so I have time to continue listening.

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by AlexanderB

Going for distorsion data to pick the right replacement?

Frequency response and all the T/S specs that determine how a driver works are what matters.