please recommend a 12" Eminence driver for me

[runmikeyrun]

I was looking at Eminence 12s about a year ago and have finally decided it's time to pull the trigger on something for my 4x12. I currently have one 4x12 loaded with some cheapies I had lying around, which sound surprisingly good. I play with a good amount of distortion, and want to biamp my power amp- distorted sound through my existing 4x12, and clean sound through the 4x12 I want to load. I have used Eminence drivers in the past and really like them- I have a 2x15 loaded with Eminence Deltas.

I was looking at the Eminence neos but is it just me or did the price on those almost double? I could swear they were around $80 last year, now they are $145. That WAS my first choice, but not any more.

So now i'm looking at a Beta-12A-II, at $75 each. 250w RMS, 4.4mm xmax. The wattage rating should be ok, but is that going to be enough xmax? I play a 5 string tuned to B, and the power amp driving it will be about 750w (4x250=1000w) although i've read on here that speakers are only really useful for about half of their RMS rating before they start to bottom out and break up. I am afraid of bottoming them out.

Since I'm planning on just running clean bass through this cab, i want to make sure good strong low end is going to be present. I also want to make sure a good midrange is there, because in the future I may use this cab for distorted bass. Are the betas known for good smooth midrange?

Sorry for all the questions, and obviously if you have suggestions for a different driver i'm open to them.

[billfitzmaurice]

No one can recommend anything without complete dimensions of the cab.

[NKBassman]

Also, shoot Eminence an email as well. They've been really quick at answering my emails in the past.

[anonymous02282011]

what bill said ...

oh, and China recently jacked up the price of neo

[runmikeyrun]

The dimensions of the cab are 30"x30"x14". External measurements of course. It's made of 3/4 ply, so internal dimensions would be 28.5"x28.5"x12.5"

While i'm at it, here are the complete specs:

Specifications: • Power handling: 250 watts RMS • VCdia: 2" • Le: 0.64 mH • Impedance: 8 ohms • Re: 5.0 ohms • Frequency range: 43-3,800 Hz • Magnet weight: 38 oz. • Fs: 47 Hz • SPL: 98 dB 1W/1m • Vas: 4.2 cu. ft. • Qms: 6.00 • Qes: 0.50 • Qts: 0.46 • Xmax: 4.4 mm •

Thanks guys.

EDIT- after playing with a speaker box calculator online (http://www.diyaudioandvideo.com/Calculator/Box/) it seems like each driver wants 3.08 cu ft and my entire box is only about 5.5 cu ft, well short of the 12 cu ft i'd optimally have for 4 drivers. So, at this point, what can I do? Will insulation increase the cu ft my speaker "sees"? Do I need to think about ports? Or am I just going to deal with an inefficient cab that's not working to its full potential?

[Alex1984]

Originally Posted by adbass

what bill said ...

oh, and China recently jacked up the price of neo

Sounds like China's quickly becoming the next Canada. (I should hide before people start blaming us again)

[Rick Auricchio]

Originally Posted by runmikeyrun

Will insulation increase the cu ft my speaker "sees"? Do I need to think about ports?

No and Yes.

[dhomer]

Let me run some stuff through the ol'ISD.. My gut instinct tells me this ain't gonna work too well, but.. I'm assuming the cab is sealed?

[dhomer]

My gut was pretty accurate. You're looking to get loud, low and clear 5-string with a 5.5 cu.ft 4-12 cab.. it ain't gonna happen. To get a good 5-string tone, you need FLAT response between 60-100Hz. I tried the Beta, the Delta 12LF, Deltalite 2512, and the Basslite S2012 in that cab, and they all model pretty much the same.. badly.. All were -3db in the 80Hz range, and dropping off pretty rapidly under that.. The Beta was actually the worst of the bunch. Not only was there no low end, there was a 1.5dB boom at 150Hz..

There are workable solutions, but you'd have to turn that 4-12 to a 2-12 and make some ports.. and spend some money...

[runmikeyrun]

Thanks Dhomer for the help, i appreciate it. That being said, aside from turning it into a 2x12 what are my other options? Should I try a more PA or full range suited driver? Something that doesn't require as much volume as those drivers?

[runmikeyrun]

I downloaded WinISD, i'm assuming that's what you're using? Anyhow, i imported the Eminence Beta 12A-II specs and created a new speaker- I think the Beta that's saved in there is a different animal.

I adjusted the program to use a vented enclosure, and adjusted the speaker box's dimensions to my existing boxes. Using (4) 4" vents @ 0.11" deep (basically just holes drilled in the front baffle) i'm getting a flat response with good bass- I'm not getting roll off until around 60 hz, and -3db is at about 38 hz. If i did it right, I think it might be ok.

If you want, PM me your email addy and i'll email you the saved file I created.

Thanks for your help.

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by runmikeyrun

If i did it right, I think it might be ok.

You didn't. You'd only get that result with 5.5 cu ft per driver.
The cab you have is correctly sized for electric guitar. It simply cannot work well on bass with more than two drivers.

[runmikeyrun]

gotcha... I do appreciate everyone's input! Thank you very much for your help I might just keep an eye out for a used Peavey TVX 412... they're pretty good on bass when driven hard.

[dhomer]

Mikey, if you would like, PM me.. I may be able to help

[5StringPocket]

+1 on a used one. For the money you'd spend redoing this old box you'd probably do better picking up a good used 212 bass cab. Lots of good ones out there which handle 5-string very well. A well designed 4 ohm 600 watt cab should handle most gigs with FOH support. 412's are available if you need that much output and don't mind the weight. Schroeder does have a 1400w (thermal not displacement rating) 412 that only weighs 65 lbs.