EV B115 alternative

[Blue]

Anyone ever have one of these? I picked up one for a near steal ($140) … and the reason is clear: they weigh 1,000,000 pounds - that 6" midrange weighs as much as the woofer.

But boy do they sound Great … huge fundamentals with plenty of zing on top.

Has anyone A/B'd to find a modern alternative which doesn't break the back?

 

[Wasnex]

Anyone ever have one of these? I picked up one for a near steal ($140) … and the reason is clear: they weigh 1,000,000 pounds - that 6" midrange weighs as much as the woofer.

But boy do they sound Great … huge fundamentals with plenty of zing on top.

Has anyone A/B'd to find a modern alternative which doesn't break the back?

I used to be interested in the 3-way versions of those cabs...perhaps the S18-3 which weighed 120lbs .

The frequency response of the B115M is not particularly flat:

Per the spec sheet, the woofer should be an EVM15L. It's a great sounding driver but fairly limited in regards to power handling and LF response. Be careful.

Ref: https://products.electrovoice.com/binary/B115-M and B215-M EDS.pdf

I used to run a pair of 3-way JBL 4628Bs. Probably the highest fidelity rig I ever had.

AFAIK, nobody currently makes anything like the VMR driver.

Accugroove and Acme make 3-way cabs. Of course there is also Greenboy fEARful and fEARless.

Baer and Genzler make 2-way cabs with cone mid drivers.

Bergantino has put out runs of 2-way cabs with cone mids...but not currently AFAIK.

 

[Blue]

Not sure if it's intended, but the whole cab (mdf?) seems to extend the speaker - sound fills the room. Note this was very early Theil / Small parameter designs - as really demonstrated . Monster Sound

 

[agedhorse]

It had a nice extended mid tone, but not terribly rugged. The VMR driver failed often in this application unfortunately.

Because of the response, it was often seen as very articulate compared with other cabinets of the day. It was also one of the heaviest cabinets for its size.

 

[bottomzone]

These cabs were part of Stanley Clarke's live rig back in the day which sounded good to my ears! But 120 lbs??? His roadies couldn't have been too happy!

 

[Blue]

The 2x15 May weight 120 … this is the 1x15 which weighs a mere 70-lbs … and that 6" VFR is 20 of that 70.

 

[beans-on-toast]

Not sure if it's intended, but the whole cab (mdf?) seems to extend the speaker - sound fills the room. Note this was very early Theil / Small parameter designs - as really demonstrated . Monster Sound

At one time EV used what they called RoadWood, an engineered mdf type wood. It was an inch thick, hard, and the cabs could take quite a pounding. I've bounced mine around for 40 years and they are like new. No chips or cracks. They do sound good. Only downside is the weight.

 

[Blue]

Must be it … pretty solid cabinet. I recently moved it to a practice place where it gets cranked weekly (Traynor Mark II head, of course, with weight being a non-issue). I'll probably take it to one or two larger stage gigs just for *****&grins, but it be nice to find a modern alternative - which means lighter … hence the OP.

 

[Lo-E]

… this is the 1x15 which weighs a mere 70-lbs

Filled with helium, maybe!

I think mine weighed in at closer to 95. Because they don't handle a lot of power and have very low resale value I turned mine into a big experiment: I swapped the 8" mid driver out for a modern, Eminence 6" mid and the EV 15 for a Faital.

With tons of help from smart people here I was able to re-tune the box for the Faital and design a new crossover for the mid. The end result sounds very similar to the original format, handles more power and, at just over 60lbs, weighs 30lbs (!!!) less.

Was it worth it? Nah, probably not really. At 60# it's still pretty heavy and, even though it sounds very good, that new technology is still being limited by an ancient cabinet design. Sure was fun, though, and I do gig with it occasionally - and it sounds great.

If you really want a similar sound in a smaller, lighter package maybe talk to Don Oatman at Low Down Sound. He builds custom cabs, has done a lot of multi-driver designs and his cabinets are well made and sound good. His prices are pretty attractive, too.

 

[Blue]

The spec sheet sez 90 something - I'm sure that's correct - I always thought my upper lifting limit was 70-ish … but apparently I'm so strong, I can pick up 90 something and call it 70.

 

[Lo-E]

The spec sheet sez 90 something - I'm sure that's correct - I always thought my upper lifting limit was 70-ish … but apparently I'm so strong, I can pick up 90 something and call it 70.

My bathroom scale called it around 95.

I couldn't believe I shaved a whole 30# off it but, as you say, that original mid driver was 20# of that. The EV 15 is no featherweight, either!

Any modern 15/6 is likely to decimate the old B115 in terms of power handling, low end extension and weight. A fEARful 15/6 or one of Don's fEARful-ish designs would do it easily. Compared to the EV they might actually sound TOO good!