Pretty sure I narrowed down where the issue is, here's the bullet points for those who want the tl;dr on my situation and troubleshooting:
Signal path:
Bass -> GK 700RB-II (Pad on, Contour and Presence at 0, 4-string setting, EQ at noon, boost at 12 o'clock)-> Avatar 1x12 Delta with tweeter (via 1/4" speaker cable)
- Heard buzzing sound from cab and (at the time) seemed like no volume was coming out
- Switched batteries in bass, same result
- Switched to different known-working bass and cable, no difference
- Tried both basses and cable in a smaller combo amp, no problems with sound
- Turned volume up higher on GK and Avatar rig, sound came from woofer, but buzzing sound was still coming from tweeter
- Turning down attenuator for tweeter reduced buzzing, but an increase in master volume rendered the same result with more output from amp.
- Zero issues with woofer if tweeter is turned all the way down, even up to far louder volumes.
**After having played through this rig multiple times, the tweeter issue only started now. I have used multiple basses through this cab without issue for the past couple of weeks at very light volumes**
-> Not exactly itching to buy new parts just to test, but is there anything else to narrow down whether it's the crossover or tweeter that's having issues? I DO want to have a working tweeter, as the woofer is an LF driver and voiced pretty low IMO.
For some context, I am not the first owner of this cab, but it appears to be a stock Avatar ported 1x12 with the ceramic Delta (4 ohm) and their stock crossover and tweeter. The crossover (or just attenuator maybe?) is different than the one I had in my neo 2x10 from them. The one in the 1x12 just looks like a massive pot instead of a circuit board. Just appears to be screwed into the input panel on the back, some parts are hot glued down, but I don't think it'll be rocket science to pry the stuff off and start anew.
I'm not a fan of this cab being 4 ohm, or only having 1/4" input jacks (I prefer Speakon), but since I got the cab used for $200 out the door, I'm not exactly itching to sink 50-100% of the cost into getting this thing precisely how I like, since it's just for jamming at home. No tweeter is a bit of a dealbreaker for me, but replacing the tweeter itself (and leaving the crossover in place) would seem the easiest and possibly cheaper alternative.
-Is there a certain wattage or resistance rating I should be going for?-
Since it's just 1/4" from the amp into the attenuator and then woofer, I'm not certain how the power handling is regulated or what the best practice with that would be. I've read the resistance value of the tweeter is irrelevant (it's 8 ohm, my woofer is 4 ohm, but the cab reads 4 ohm on my multimeter).
-Would a beefier tweeter (or crossover) be of any value to me with this rig?-
At 4 ohms of resistance, the GK 700RB-II is slamming this cab with 480w of power. The Delta woofer is rated for ~500w RMS, so I should be good there. Not too sure if that could be why the Tweeter got fried.
However, I have run the amp nowhere NEAR that level of output.
We're talking 7-8 o'clock on master volume, boost at noon, and pre volume at noon with pad on. No pedals run in front, just bass to amp. This thing has come nowhere close to being "pushed" IMO.
If it's JUST the tweeter, I've spotted a few $30-50 replacements that may do the trick. While the possibility of a total overhaul is there (replace 1/4" with Speakons, add a mid-driver instead, crossover, etc.), I would much rather put that money towards a NEW cab if I want that much improvement. For $200, I would be fine with this as long as there's a working tweeter....anything else I can do with a multimeter or 9v battery to test before I starting hitting "Proceed to Checkout"?
Signal path:
Bass -> GK 700RB-II (Pad on, Contour and Presence at 0, 4-string setting, EQ at noon, boost at 12 o'clock)-> Avatar 1x12 Delta with tweeter (via 1/4" speaker cable)
- Heard buzzing sound from cab and (at the time) seemed like no volume was coming out
- Switched batteries in bass, same result
- Switched to different known-working bass and cable, no difference
- Tried both basses and cable in a smaller combo amp, no problems with sound
- Turned volume up higher on GK and Avatar rig, sound came from woofer, but buzzing sound was still coming from tweeter
- Turning down attenuator for tweeter reduced buzzing, but an increase in master volume rendered the same result with more output from amp.
- Zero issues with woofer if tweeter is turned all the way down, even up to far louder volumes.
**After having played through this rig multiple times, the tweeter issue only started now. I have used multiple basses through this cab without issue for the past couple of weeks at very light volumes**
-> Not exactly itching to buy new parts just to test, but is there anything else to narrow down whether it's the crossover or tweeter that's having issues? I DO want to have a working tweeter, as the woofer is an LF driver and voiced pretty low IMO.
For some context, I am not the first owner of this cab, but it appears to be a stock Avatar ported 1x12 with the ceramic Delta (4 ohm) and their stock crossover and tweeter. The crossover (or just attenuator maybe?) is different than the one I had in my neo 2x10 from them. The one in the 1x12 just looks like a massive pot instead of a circuit board. Just appears to be screwed into the input panel on the back, some parts are hot glued down, but I don't think it'll be rocket science to pry the stuff off and start anew.
I'm not a fan of this cab being 4 ohm, or only having 1/4" input jacks (I prefer Speakon), but since I got the cab used for $200 out the door, I'm not exactly itching to sink 50-100% of the cost into getting this thing precisely how I like, since it's just for jamming at home. No tweeter is a bit of a dealbreaker for me, but replacing the tweeter itself (and leaving the crossover in place) would seem the easiest and possibly cheaper alternative.
-Is there a certain wattage or resistance rating I should be going for?-
Since it's just 1/4" from the amp into the attenuator and then woofer, I'm not certain how the power handling is regulated or what the best practice with that would be. I've read the resistance value of the tweeter is irrelevant (it's 8 ohm, my woofer is 4 ohm, but the cab reads 4 ohm on my multimeter).
-Would a beefier tweeter (or crossover) be of any value to me with this rig?-
At 4 ohms of resistance, the GK 700RB-II is slamming this cab with 480w of power. The Delta woofer is rated for ~500w RMS, so I should be good there. Not too sure if that could be why the Tweeter got fried.
However, I have run the amp nowhere NEAR that level of output.
We're talking 7-8 o'clock on master volume, boost at noon, and pre volume at noon with pad on. No pedals run in front, just bass to amp. This thing has come nowhere close to being "pushed" IMO.
If it's JUST the tweeter, I've spotted a few $30-50 replacements that may do the trick. While the possibility of a total overhaul is there (replace 1/4" with Speakons, add a mid-driver instead, crossover, etc.), I would much rather put that money towards a NEW cab if I want that much improvement. For $200, I would be fine with this as long as there's a working tweeter....anything else I can do with a multimeter or 9v battery to test before I starting hitting "Proceed to Checkout"?
