how to salvage this rig?

[bolophonic]

I am sitting on an empty Hartke 1155 combo. The original Hartke 15" speaker was killed by a four-year-old child who poked holes through the grille with a toothpick about 10 years ago.

A few days ago, I threw an 8ohm Peavey Black Widow in the cab. I tried running the original Hartke 3500 head through it, as well as a GK 700RB II. It sounds decent at low volume, but does not sound great when played at a usable level... very muddy and farty and hard to dial in a good sound.

I would like to be able to resurrect this combo because it was a nice compact rig that I could take anywhere without worrying about wear and tear. So I have a couple of questions:

1. How can I improve the sound of this cab without having to buy a new speaker? The inside dimensions are:
21.5" H
19.25" W
13.5" D
and the two port lengths are 2.5"

2. How can I successfully add a matching Hartke 2x10" that also has no speakers in it? (I actually found this cab for free a few weeks ago.) This one has inside dimensions of:
17.5" H
19.25" W
13.5" D
and the two ports are 3" wide and 3" deep.

3. I have a lead on a nice Ampeg SVT III (NON-pro) that I think might suit my sound better than the GK, but I want to see if I can make the cab work before I try it out. Opinions? The 3500 has been through hell in the last 15 years and the only other rig I have owned is an Ampeg SVT-350 and 4x10" classic.

[millsbass5]

The Hartke: Been in a little fire,huh?? I had an Acoustic 370 back in the day that literally burned in a bar fire. Still played though. Can't say enough about those amps!!
I'D GET HER GOIN' AGAIN!!

[JimmyM]

call larry hartke and show him that pic. he may not be able to help you get it going for free, but he would probably hook you up for a good price.

[MAMMOTHvolume]

Can't really retune the box without the speaker specs but that box is tuned pretty high at the minute which might be leading to it getting farty

[lbwdog]

I'm sure Eminence has a good match for it.
I'd get the dimensions, find the tuning, and match up one of their Neos with it.

[will33]

I'd get a real hartke replacement for the 15 in the combo as it'll be made to work with the box and the crossover for the little mid there. That'll make a good sounding combo. Figure out what to do with the 210 extension after that, likely eminence replacements of some sort.

[scowboy]

If you still have the speaker, can't you greet re-coned?

[bolophonic]

Originally Posted by MAMMOTHvolume

Can't really retune the box without the speaker specs but that box is tuned pretty high at the minute which might be leading to it getting farty

What speaker specs in particular do I need in order to retune the box?

The 3500 once had every knob RIPPED off by a well meaning band mate who tried to help me load out of a recording session a while back. My favorite disaster was playing in the worst bar in Chicago around 1996 and having the entire ceiling over the "stage" cave in on us. I would be almost ashamed to show this to Larry Hartke, although I just realized that it is still working with the original preamp tube!

Thanks for the responses so far!

[bolophonic]

Originally Posted by scowboy

If you still have the speaker, can't you greet re-coned?

The original speaker went into the trash during the Clinton administration. I recall being frustrated at how difficult it was to get a replacement speaker.

[251]

Originally Posted by JimmyM

call larry hartke and show him that pic. he may not be able to help you get it going for free, but he would probably hook you up for a good price.

You might also ask Larry Hartke if he will re-cone your speaker & how much that will cost.

[staindbass]

try blocking those ports with a board to see if it gets rid of what is bothering you. i think a misaligned sealed cab sounds better than a misaligned ported cab. johnny a.

[will33]

Taking measurements of the inside of the boxes, diameter and depth of the port tubes and a pic and parts count of the crossover would go a long way in picking out a replacement other than the original hartke 15.

[bolophonic]

Originally Posted by will33

Taking measurements of the inside of the boxes, diameter and depth of the port tubes and a pic and parts count of the crossover would go a long way in picking out a replacement other than the original hartke 15.

Um.... are you referring to this information?

Originally Posted by bolophonic

1. How can I improve the sound of this cab without having to buy a new speaker? The inside dimensions are:
21.5" H
19.25" W
13.5" D
and the two port lengths are 2.5"

2. How can I successfully add a matching Hartke 2x10" that also has no speakers in it? (I actually found this cab for free a few weeks ago.) This one has inside dimensions of:
17.5" H
19.25" W
13.5" D
and the two ports are 3" wide and 3" deep.

[will33]

The combo has crossover and a mid, those parts are going to matter. Sticking any 15 in there may work as far as driver protection but depending on the impedance at the crossover frequency could overlap with the mid causing interference or leave a hole in the sound, 8ohm speakers are not 8ohms across the entire frequency band, it can be as low as 5 in some places and as high as 20 or 30 in others.

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by bolophonic

1. How can I improve the sound of this cab without having to buy a new speaker? The inside dimensions are:
21.5" H
19.25" W
13.5" D
and the two port lengths are 2.5"

It appears that those ports are 4" diameter, and if so that cab is tuned to about 60-65 Hz. It should be tuned to 40-45 Hz, which requires 8 to 11 inch ducts.

[bolophonic]

Originally Posted by billfitzmaurice

It appears that those ports are 4" diameter, and if so that cab is tuned to about 60-65 Hz. It should be tuned to 40-45 Hz, which requires 8 to 11 inch ducts.

Yes, sorry... they are 4" ports. So extending the ducts would improve the sound? What if I took out the 5" tweeter (which doesn't seem to be working)? Would turning this into a single 15" cab with an extra port give me any improvement on the sound?

I appreciate the info GREATLY!