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adding a tweeter to a cab without

synterx

synterx

Jan 24, 2005
1,706
270
Illinois
chicagorockhouse.com
#1
Is that a major hassle? 15" cabinet, has plenty of room to add one. It's a 4 ohm cab now. Could I buy one and throw it in a hole I cut? Do any tweeters have builtin crossovers to ease in wiring? don't know how a 1 x 15" cab would sound without a tweet. I haven't played through the cab yet, trying to decide if I should buy it or not. Just for practice purposes really.
 
#3
What are you talking about? Every friggin' bass cabinet I've ever owned has had a tweeter. Genz, SWR, Peavey, Epifani, Berg, they all have them. It's a 15" bass cabinet, there is no room to add a 10"er, good grief.

We are talking about a Peavey 115 BVX bass cabinet. It has one 15" and a round port on the front. I'm assuming they were designed to go under their 210 and 410 cabs. Thus, no tweeter needed. But I want to use it as a stand alone cab just for practices. If it doesn't cut it, I simply want to know if adding a tweeter/horn, whatever you want to call it, is possible. I know there is a crossover to deal with, but I'm hoping some aftermarket tweeters have something build in so I can literally drill a hole, mount the tweet, wire it up in parallel or series, what have you, and be done.
 
#4
You need a crossover that's designed for a 4-ohm system. I don't know if you'll find a 4-ohm horn, however. Most tweeters don't come with the crossover, because the crossover has to work with your woofer.

Next question is where does one cross over? 1KHz? 2KHz? 3.5K? Depends on the woofer. Peavey may be able to suggest a crossover frequency for that cab/woofer. If not, you have nothing to go on.

Cutting the hole is a pain: remove woofer, remove interior padding, cut hole, clean up cab, replace everything. Make sure the tweeter hole is airtight and allows no air leaks at all.

It's a lot of work, especially the part about finding the proper crossover.
 
#6
I may be wrong, but I read that Piezo tweeter ohmage is so low that you don't need to worry about them. I have added Radio Shack piezos to a couple of el cheapo combos with good results. I didn't put any kind of attenuator or crossover on them, got a hole saw and wired them in.
 
#7
yeah i was thinking about a piezo also ... i have some older peavey monitors with a 15 and piezo tweeter , no crossover , i disconnected the attenuator and it sounds great ... and i have played bass through it at low volumes ... i think youll be fine for practice ...
 
#8
Stinsok said:
I may be wrong, but I read that Piezo tweeter ohmage is so low that you don't need to worry about them. I have added Radio Shack piezos to a couple of el cheapo combos with good results. I didn't put any kind of attenuator or crossover on them, got a hole saw and wired them in.
Click to expand...

You are indeed correct that a piezo tweeter does not need a crossover. I would recommend adding a L-pad to attenuate the tweeter if need be.
 
#9
Wow, I'm a little surprised at the tweeter hostility here. It's not that big a job. You can get piezo (don't kill me, I'm just saying) for $1, cut a 3 inch hole, wire it DIRECTLY to your bass speaker (its technically not a woofer but a semi-full range speaker), it doesn't have to have a cross-over or even really have to be in phase (polarity).

Or go all out, buy a compression driver (eminence apt-80), do the same thing.


But,

I do recomend you add a toggle (on off) switch on the panel because you'll probably end up like me and just leave it off (unless you slap)


...let the hate mail begin...
 
#11
gregoire1 said:
Wow, I'm a little surprised at the tweeter hostility here. It's not that big a job. You can get piezo (don't kill me, I'm just saying) for $1, cut a 3 inch hole, wire it DIRECTLY to your bass speaker (its technically not a woofer but a semi-full range speaker), it doesn't have to have a cross-over or even really have to be in phase (polarity).

Or go all out, buy a compression driver (eminence apt-80), do the same thing.


But,

I do recomend you add a toggle (on off) switch on the panel because you'll probably end up like me and just leave it off (unless you slap)


...let the hate mail begin...
Click to expand...

That's how I did it. It all started because using a CD player through the amp sucked. There were no highs. A simple piezo did the trick.
 
#12
It seems like the general rule, around TB at least, with a typical 15" is to cross it over at around 800 hz to a midrange since when it "beams" you won't hear any upper mids above that unless you stand directly in front of it.

If you like the way typical two way 15" cabs sound, even though they're "technically inferior", you could just go by the manufacturer spec on whatever tweeter you use, and cross it over at 3.5 Khz or so. Compression drivers could be crossed lower, but an Eminence APT80 is not a compression driver.

http://www.diyaudioandvideo.com/Calculator/XOver/

The void that exists in most bass cabs between anywhwere from 1.2k to 3.5K before the tweeter kicks in never really bothered me much, personally, since that's what I'm used to hearing. TO EACH THEIR OWN, though.
 
#13
synterx said:
I guess if the 15" black widow in the cab is kind of full range, I won't need it. The peavey specs say they go up to like 3.5hz. Not sure, but that doesn't sound very high, sounds like a mid and below spec? I'm no hz expert.
Click to expand...

I have an old Peavey w/2-15 Black Widows. I added 2 tweets and I think the cabinet kills. Do it!! You know you want to!
 
#15
Wow this thread got off to a rough start.I agree with putting a 5" or 6" driver in.I have a 2x12 cab with a 6" 18sound and it sounds great.
There is plenty of knowledge here to help you out with it if you have a few tools.
Steve
Hellbastard said:
What if instead of a piezo you install a 5" or 6" driver? You'll get the highs without the brittle sound of a tweeter.
Maybe you'd like to check this thread fro another forum:
http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1073643
Click to expand...
 
#16
synterx said:
What are you talking about? Every friggin' bass cabinet I've ever owned has had a tweeter. Genz, SWR, Peavey, Epifani, Berg, they all have them.
Click to expand...
Not because it's the best way to do it, but because it's the cheapest. :eyebrow:
Add a six or eight midrange, use the same recommended driver/crossover as outlined in the fEarful DIY cab thread.
 

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