Black Widow Speakers Good Speakers?

[jazzbass_5]

Also, they have a foam filter under the screen filter that is accesable when you remove the magnet. That foam becomes dry and turns to powder when you touch it after so many years. That powder crap can get caught in the voice coil and stick causing a rubbing sound BUT can be cleaned from the voice coil and Kapton VERY CARFULLY with some fine sand paper. Usually it's on the inside of the Kapton as these voice coils are edge wound. If it's on the voice coil itself be VERY CARFUL removing it and try your best not to sand the enamel off of the coil wires.
@agedhorse any other tips on this?

 

[jazzbass_5]

I came here today because I saw this pair of Peavey SP2 below they sell near me. Loaded with 15" BW. Aren't they just beautiful? 2x200w (Just GAS-dreaming).
I intensively used a 15"BW in a Peavey TNT 300 combo for 20 years. Never had to complain, the neighbours did though. They said it was too loud, and we were rehearsing in a sub -2 concrete basement. Effective speaker I conclude . Sold it +15 years ago (2003-ish) for an ampeg when the amp blew off. 1980's Peavey TNT 300 owners

May all bass players be safe from Covid pandemy!

View attachment 3799395

I have 2 of these that were given to me unloaded and missing the horns, the friend who gave then to me has the horns and said he would (at some point) get them to me. I think they're worth reloading and decent for small venues (albeit a bit heavier then what's available nowadays). I do like restoring decent old stuff.

 

[jazzbass_5]

Cat piss. Or some kind of gnarly bug spray.
It's grody.

"grody" lol, you must be in the same age bracket as most of us, haven't used that word in years.

 

[squarepeg]

"grody" lol, you must be in the same age bracket as most of us, haven't used that word in years.

Ew, grody to the max. Gag me with a spoon.

 

[Redbrangus]

IMHO, the Peavey SP-2 (pictured) was one of the worst sounding PA speakers on the market when they were originally sold back about 40-plus years ago, and speaker technology has advanced considerably since then. I can't imagine any circumstance where it would be worth the effort to 'restore' them, especially if one had to invest any money in replacement components.

I'm reminded of an interview I read with a Waco, Tx-area musician who had been to David Koresh's Branch Davidian farm and jammed with the band they had; his assessment of the musicianship was succinct, "They sucked pretty good." I feel exactly the same way about these speakers. YMMV

 

[jazzbass_5]

IMHO, the Peavey SP-2 (pictured) was one of the worst sounding PA speakers on the market when they were originally sold back about 40-plus years ago, and speaker technology has advanced considerably since then. I can't imagine any circumstances where it would be worth the effort to 'restore' them, especially if one had to invest any money in replacement components.

I'm reminded of an interview I read with a Waco, Tx-area musician who had been to David Koresh's Branch Davidian farm and jammed with the band they had; his assessment of the musicianship was succinct, "They sucked pretty good." I feel exactly the same way about these speakers. YMMV

That's a good point, they are taking up a bunch of room in my heated practice area and I've never heard many reviews on them although I havent looked (and will be now). I could reclaim the room and be very happy instead of hanging on to them for an extended period of time as they are not a priority.

 

[Redbrangus]

That's a good point, they are taking up a bunch of room in my heated practice area and I've never heard many reviews on them although I havent looked (and will be now). I could reclaim the room and be very happy instead of hanging on to them for an extended period of time as they are not a priority.

I always felt like their overall bulk and weight was among their many disadvantages. Ditch 'em and reclaim the real estate is my advice.

 

[agedhorse]

Definitely a BW. Not sure which basket model I need to replace it.
View attachment 3800208
Big hole and rip. It's been repaired once already as well.

That damage is unlikely (but still possible) to be the cause of your symptoms. At this point I would verify that there are no amp problems first. Once you have this sorted out, I would recommend the 1505KA-8DT with the shorter wound high efficiency voice coil since your amp is relatively low power.

Also, they have a foam filter under the screen filter that is accesable when you remove the magnet. That foam becomes dry and turns to powder when you touch it after so many years. That powder crap can get caught in the voice coil and stick causing a rubbing sound BUT can be cleaned from the voice coil and Kapton VERY CARFULLY with some fine sand paper. Usually it's on the inside of the Kapton as these voice coils are edge wound. If it's on the voice coil itself be VERY CARFUL removing it and try your best not to sand the enamel off of the coil wires.
@agedhorse any other tips on this?

Never use sand paper of any sort near the magnetic gap of a speaker. Regular lacquer thinner will dissolve the foam residue by soaking business card stock in the thinner and running it around the gap. It may take 10 cards worth to complete the job. The same solvent can be used to clean the inside of the bobbin if necessary.

 

[jazzbass_5]

That damage is unlikely (but still possible) to be the cause of your symptoms. At this point I would verify that there are no amp problems first. Once you have this sorted out, I would recommend the 1505KA-8DT with the shorter wound high efficiency voice coil since your amp is relatively low power.


Never use sand paper of any sort near the magnetic gap of a speaker. Regular lacquer thinner will dissolve the foam residue by soaking business card stock in the thinner and running it around the gap. It may take 10 cards worth to complete the job. The same solvent can be used to clean the inside of the bobbin if necessary.

The Kapton I worked on had the foam stuck to the inside of Kapton itself, (the wire wrapped on the outside was clean) . I used some 800 grit sandpaper (with the basket removed) to remove it then cleaned it with a soft cloth but the lacquer thinner plan would have been much safer.

 

[agedhorse]

The problem with using abrasives is that the gap metal is treated with either a plated surface, a painted/thin powder coated surface or on some older speakers a sacrificial surface treatment. The treated surfaces are very thin and easily damaged. Also, the abrasives are difficult to clean completely, especially when combined with any magnetic particles.

This is especially critical in tight gap speakers like the JBL D and K series.

 

[Bassdirty]

I was a Peavey guy in my early days playing on the road. My weapon of choice was the 1820 cab with a MKIV head..

I don't have one bad word to say and much respect for the peavey gear of that era. I dont think you could go wrong with those speakers.

I had that head as well, got it used (at GC for $99) for the practice space. It worked great, sounded decent and had an Italian Flag painted (poorly) on the top of it.

Had lots o peavey gear back in the day. (guitar and bass). Solid stuff. and relatively inexpensive.

Brings me back.

 

[Bassdirty]

The greasy feel is probably the polyolefin breaking down, ...

Or the cat Piss..

….
.. the carpet has a greasy feel to it, some rips and smells like cat piss.

 

[JGbassman]

I had that head as well, got it used (at GC for $99) for the practice space. It worked great, sounded decent and had an Italian Flag painted (poorly) on the top of it.

Had lots o peavey gear back in the day. (guitar and bass). Solid stuff. and relatively inexpensive.

Brings me back.

In the 70’s and 80’s, Peavey was on the cutting edge of technology, be it amps, pa gear, cabs or instruments.

Scoff as some might now, Hartley put a lot of time and money into R&D, and it showed. Not to mention he had some pretty inventive minds working for him as well. Even the black widow’s changeable basket system was geared to getting the working musician back up and running in minimal time. The T-40, although cumbersome, was a technological masterpiece of flexible tonality with a traditional look and feel. It’s quality smoked Fender and Gibson at the time, and today as well.

That being said, the Megabass amp was absolutely on the cutting edge. With a variable crossover, twin “digital” 200 watt power amps, front mounted in/out effects sends, built in chorus, switchable full range or bi amppable, full range or individual di sends, a low z instrument input (this was the wave of the future then) and all that in a high tech rack mountable configuration. The only thing missing was it’s ability to fly to the moon, lol.

This amp was Peavey’s technological flagship, and was way ahead of the game. Even today, if you add an aftermarket preamp on the front, it gets very loud and is extremely flexible.

It doesn’t get used much anymore by me, but it still keeps up with a majority of amps, including my SVT rig.

Peavey was off the radar for many years, but after buying the rights to Trace Elliott, the technology bloodlines have shown up again with the ELF, one of the smallest 200 watt amps on the market. It’s very minimal, but has a great preamp and DI. Not to mention it sounds great and is plenty power formost clubs. Once again Peavey has found a way to help out the working musician.

Peavey May have very well been the working man’s musical gear, but it was on the edge of technology at the same time.

I will always have huge respect for the man and his company.

 

[Heavy Blue]

"grody" lol, you must be in the same age bracket as most of us, haven't used that word in years.

Ew, grody to the max. Gag me with a spoon.

Lol! Early 80’s alert! Shoulda posted a Valley Girls vid.

That damage is unlikely (but still possible) to be the cause of your symptoms. At this point I would verify that there are no amp problems first. Once you have this sorted out, I would recommend the 1505KA-8DT with the shorter wound high efficiency voice coil since your amp is relatively low power.


Never use sand paper of any sort near the magnetic gap of a speaker. Regular lacquer thinner will dissolve the foam residue by soaking business card stock in the thinner and running it around the gap. It may take 10 cards worth to complete the job. The same solvent can be used to clean the inside of the bobbin if necessary.

Good to know about the lacquer thinner as I’ll likely be doing this at some point down the road. Thanks AH!

 

[HagenToke]

Peavey is great. I've regretted selling all the Peavey stuff I've ever let go. If anyone is saying it is sub-par, they haven't listened to old Metallica.

 

[chadds]

In the 70’s and 80’s, Peavey was on the cutting edge of technology, be it amps, pa gear, cabs or instruments.

Scoff as some might now, Hartley put a lot of time and money into R&D, and it showed. Not to mention he had some pretty inventive minds working for him as well. Even the black widow’s changeable basket system was geared to getting the working musician back up and running in minimal time. The T-40, although cumbersome, was a technological masterpiece of flexible tonality with a traditional look and feel. It’s quality smoked Fender and Gibson at the time, and today as well.

That being said, the Megabass amp was absolutely on the cutting edge. With a variable crossover, twin “digital” 200 watt power amps, front mounted in/out effects sends, built in chorus, switchable full range or bi amppable, full range or individual di sends, a low z instrument input (this was the wave of the future then) and all that in a high tech rack mountable configuration. The only thing missing was it’s ability to fly to the moon, lol.

This amp was Peavey’s technological flagship, and was way ahead of the game. Even today, if you add an aftermarket preamp on the front, it gets very loud and is extremely flexible.

It doesn’t get used much anymore by me, but it still keeps up with a majority of amps, including my SVT rig.

Peavey was off the radar for many years, but after buying the rights to Trace Elliott, the technology bloodlines have shown up again with the ELF, one of the smallest 200 watt amps on the market. It’s very minimal, but has a great preamp and DI. Not to mention it sounds great and is plenty power formost clubs. Once again Peavey has found a way to help out the working musician.

Peavey May have very well been the working man’s musical gear, but it was on the edge of technology at the same time.

I will always have huge respect for the man and his company.

Mr. P got loans and built his factory in a depressed area, employed the local workforce and developed a competitive product. Isn't that a novel concept for other companies looking to come home from elsewhere? He did this when?

Since some of his gear was for a low price point it gave the name an "it's cheap stuff" vibe. There were some hi-end pieces that were quite good. Some sound company riders would say "no Peavey."

I had a TNT for six months. It didn't sound great. One day I plugged my friends tan 60's Fender Concert head into the TNT's cab. Sounded identical at living room levels. Warm and harmonically complex. Wait for it...The Peavey would lose it at regular playing volumes. The very high THD was rearing it's head.

The BW loaded Peavey cabs of the time were indeed an upgrade to the stock offerings.