Don't expect the impossible from a 15 inch driver!!

[Rick James]

The 15" sub sitting right here by me fires 1200w at will and even in rough conditions never shown discomfort.

That's not likely. Others have already pointed out that the thermal limit isn't what matters, the mechanical limit is. Even if the amp can't push the driver past xlim if it drives it past xmax the distortion will be pretty bad. To handle 1200w without going past xlim a 15 inch driver would need about 14mm xmax, which is very rare with pro sound drivers. Even the 1200 watt 18 sound 15LW2400 has only 10mm.
The size of the amp doesn't mean you're using all of its power, it just means how much it might be capable of with speakers that won't reach their mechanical limits first.

 

[aborgman]

That's not likely. Others have already pointed out that the thermal limit isn't what matters, the mechanical limit is. Even if the amp can't push the driver past xlim if it drives it past xmax the distortion will be pretty bad. To handle 1200w without going past xlim a 15 inch driver would need about 14mm xmax, which is very rare with pro sound drivers. Even the 1200 watt 18 sound 15LW2400 has only 10mm.

My cab has a Kappalite 3015LF:

Xmax: 9.6mm
Xlim: 17mm

It has a pretty equal thermal and mechanical limit in the cab it's in.

Which is VERY unusual for a bass cabinet.

 

[Jazz Ad]

Active cabs are tweaked to match power delivery with the speaker precisely.
DSPs also help defining the limits within which the amp will work.

 

[agedhorse]

Just to clarify, the Subway cabinets specify both thermal AND mechanical limits, along with the bandwidths. The 115 is rated at 400 watts "RMS" thermally AND mechanically.

 

[Hounddog409]

My Mesa Subway 115 will take 300 watts and ask for more. Like Dose said, it's all about the driver and cab design.

What kind of cab is it?

I put 800 w into a pair of Epifany UL 2 1x15

 

[Mark Andrew]

I put 800 w into a pair of Epifany UL 2 1x15

Wow

 

[Mark Andrew]

My cab has a Kappalite 3015LF:

Xmax: 9.6mm
Xlim: 17mm

It has a pretty equal thermal and mechanical limit in the cab it's in.

Which is VERY unusual for a bass cabinet.

Seems to be allot of love for the kappalite 15's on here. ...

 

[GreyBeard]

Easy one - tube amps generally don't have high pass filters built-in while modern SS amps do. It's the excess excursion from the subsonics that does them in. Sealed cabs are more immune to this, ported cabs not-so-much.

Which is why tube amps work best with sealed cabs

 

[hondo4life]

Seems to be allot of love for the kappalite 15's on here. ...

I love mine so much (in a fEARful cab). Why use anything else?

 

[Hounddog409]

Wow

Mesa D-800 into the 2 Epifany UL2 1x15's. as seen in the photo.

sounds. freaking. awesome.

Though have not had the volume much past 12...and that was at an outdoor gig. 2 guitars, drums, keys. plenty loud enough - and was not even plugged into the PA.

I am forbidden to turn it up past 6 o'clock at home after the Hummel incident.

 

[dheafey]

Seems to be allot of love for the kappalite 15's on here. ...

It's an amazingly good speaker and at 8.6 lbs, stupid light for what it does. Not cheap at $200USD but buy once, cry once.

 

[BadExample]

Just to clarify, the Subway cabinets specify both thermal AND mechanical limits, along with the bandwidths. The 115 is rated at 400 watts "RMS" thermally AND mechanically.

It's a shame more manufacturers don't rate their cabs at the maximum safe wattage rather the VC burn rating of the drivers.

Inflated ratings sell better. I imagine there is a healthy mark up on replacement drivers. I wonder how many cab makers stand up for their buyers and cover burned VCs under warranty. Short term biz planning...

One thing I dig about Eminance is many of their bass speakers have free cab plans give a max wattage for that paticular design, plus an HPF freq for safe operation. That at least gives me a feel for what's safe.

Left hand typing on my phone sux. I think Im done here until my right thumb grows back. If I post again this summer, expect extreme snarkism.

 

[mmbongo]

I put 800 w into a pair of Epifany UL 2 1x15

I do the same when I use both of my Mesa Subway 115's. I make club Owners now sign a release saying I am not responsible for roof repairs after I tear that sucker off.

 

[lpbfender]

Just to clarify, the Subway cabinets specify both thermal AND mechanical limits, along with the bandwidths. The 115 is rated at 400 watts "RMS" thermally AND mechanically.

Love real numbers rather than the puffery that's out there! My old Acoustic Control Catalogue stressed "440 Watts Peak" for the 361 Amp/cab. Sad to see the return of misleading wattage claims -but not with Mesa.

 

[Love_Bass]

Tinnitus - is the sensation of hearing ringing, buzzing, hissing, chirping, whistling, or other sounds.

That's very possible - I know

 

[monsterthompson]

The diameter of the driver tells you one thing about that driver.

 

[wneff]

The 15" sub sitting right here by me fires 1200w at will and even in rough conditions never shown discomfort.
It's all about proper choices, design and construction. If you keep destroying speakers they are probably not fit to your use OP.

Thats because the speaker is made in Germany.....

 

[Razman]

From the looks of it me thinks we need to have a thorough, in-depth discussion of the differences between Class A/B, Class D, and tube amp watts to clear up any misunderstandings. This would also include sub-type discussions including Trace Elliot watts, and possibly GK watts (RB series), what "heft" actually means vs. the 1200 TB opinions of it, and then we'll segue into speaker size - specifically, how 10" and smaller drivers suck for super low frequencies (everyone knows that you need 15's for that - duh ) and we'll conclude class with the ever-reoccurring question about whether one can blow speakers up by under-powering them (spoiler alert - yes, you can!)

Geez folks, all of this information is available out on the networkwebz, why don't you believe any of it???

Raz

 

[agedhorse]

we'll conclude class with the ever-reoccurring question about whether one can blow speakers up by under-powering them (spoiler alert - yes, you can!)
Raz

Hate to be a spoiler alert spoiler, but no you can't.

You can over-power inadvertently with an amp that's smaller than what's needed, and that smaller amp can indeed deliver more than rated power when overdriven.

 

[Mark Andrew]

The diameter of the driver tells you one thing about that driver.

From the looks of it me thinks we need to have a thorough, in-depth discussion of the differences between Class A/B, Class D, and tube amp watts to clear up any misunderstandings. This would also include sub-type discussions including Trace Elliot watts, and possibly GK watts (RB series), what "heft" actually means vs. the 1200 TB opinions of it, and then we'll segue into speaker size - specifically, how 10" and smaller drivers suck for super low frequencies (everyone knows that you need 15's for that - duh ) and we'll conclude class with the ever-reoccurring question about whether one can blow speakers up by under-powering them (spoiler alert - yes, you can!)

Geez folks, all of this information is available out on the networkwebz, why don't you believe any of it???

Raz

Watt err I mean what? No we don't have to cover all that again I was just having a bit of a rant and got some nice info on 15's in the process...