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Replacing a Tweeter

stettoman

stettoman

Sep 8, 2003
196
240
66
Colorado Springs, USA
#1
I've decided to replace drivers in my Ampeg rig and am really getting an education in replacement part mechanics. The cab under the knife is an obscure SVT 50DL produced for two years in the early 90's, and I'm stunned by the virtually total lack of any component data regarding these 150 lb. brontos. I had originally mistakenly assumed that the drivers were all of Eminence origin, but. Not. So. Much.
The 10s are Eden HC 1060 F's, the tweeter a Le Son, and though I haven't pulled the 15s yet, the baskets (1 is visible through the grill, as it faces backwards), are not of any Eminence design I've ever seen. I know that Eminence manufactures many other companies' drivers to custom specs, Eden included, but did they make the Edens in 1991?

Anyway, my question to any savvy enough to know is; Is it true that I can replace a piezo horn with just about any other piezo that fits in the hole? I've heard that the impedance in piezos reach 1000 ohms and better, and some actually read as capacitance on a meter...I can't find any Le Son dealers in my neighborhood, so I'm looking at a CTS KSN-1005, rated at 100 watts...The hole matches (*wink-wink*)...

Any help is appreciated...
 
#2
stettoman said:
I've decided to replace drivers in my Ampeg rig and am really getting an education in replacement part mechanics. The cab under the knife is an obscure SVT 50DL produced for two years in the early 90's, and I'm stunned by the virtually total lack of any component data regarding these 150 lb. brontos. I had originally mistakenly assumed that the drivers were all of Eminence origin, but. Not. So. Much.
The 10s are Eden HC 1060 F's, the tweeter a Le Son, and though I haven't pulled the 15s yet, the baskets (1 is visible through the grill, as it faces backwards), are not of any Eminence design I've ever seen. I know that Eminence manufactures many other companies' drivers to custom specs, Eden included, but did they make the Edens in 1991?

Anyway, my question to any savvy enough to know is; Is it true that I can replace a piezo horn with just about any other piezo that fits in the hole? I've heard that the impedance in piezos reach 1000 ohms and better, and some actually read as capacitance on a meter...I can't find any Le Son dealers in my neighborhood, so I'm looking at a CTS KSN-1005, rated at 100 watts...The hole matches (*wink-wink*)...

Any help is appreciated...
Click to expand...

Keep in mind that most cheap tweeters sound cheap: peaky and harsh. The LeSon is the best of the lot for piezo. Now is your opportunity to get the kind of highs you want. Anything from dynamic horn with crossover, to 'plug the hole' (no tweeter). Does this cab have any crossover components visible? What are the internal dimensions, and how many chambers does it have? Are the drivers all working properly?
 
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#3
Yup, part of the process will be to pull and dissect the crossover, check for any non-factory enhancements (the guy at Eminence claims that the 10 inch Edens in the upper chamber can't be original, they're being replaced as well), and replace hardware such as input jacks. Haven't measured for chamber dimensions and porting yet, I wanted to start with the little 2" piezo...

Now that you mention it though, I'm not that big a fan of screeching high end in a bass rig, might just plug the hole.
 
#5
OK, so the decision has been made (and the band agrees, for whatever that's worth) to sh-can the piezo and plug the hole. Not sure what to do with the connection, though. I still haven't had a chance to pull the crossover and see if the piezo was wired separately into it (but I assume it would have to be). I suppose I can simply leave the dead unit as it is...

The Eden HC 1060 F's are next, they are getting more distorted every time I plug into the unit. With the cost of shipping, reconing and shipping back likely twice the price of a comparable pair of 10" Eminence or even Peavey drivers (Pro 10, 1008-8 HE BWX ), I've decided to do exactly that-Replace them. I only bring this up for the opportunity to draw a few opinions and advice from the speaker guys. I'm kind of sold on the Eminence CA10-16, sight unheard and everything. I guess that's on faith, as I have some BP102's that I love but don't come in 16 ohm. The Edens are only rated at 100 watts, obviously the Eminence drivers are higher. I know, higher power handling often doesn't mean crap, depending on application...So...

I haven't done the math, but the chamber the Edens are in looks to be approx. 2.5+ cu. ft. The chamber has a slanted face and is vented. I've seen the Jerry McNutt figures, so I imagine this chamber would be very close to right for either the BP102 (8 ohm rewired in series) or the CA10-16 (wired as is, parallel). But there are other models and brands out there I could consider, and I'm sure I could make my eyes glaze over in no time...BTW, the Edens are full range and when they were clean they carried all the high end I needed on stage. FOH guy is on his own, but hasn't complained yet...

Any thoughts?
 
#6
If you have 16's in parallel now, you need 4's to put in series, or 16's to put in parallel, (or 4 8's to put in series parallel, but that's not going to fit your box) - you are looking for an 8-Ohm load if it's 16's in parallel now.
 
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#8
I ordered a pair of Delta-10B's instead of the CA10-16's. I know they are very different units, and the Deltas are gonna add a few lbs. to the cab overall, but the specs felt better to me...I've read a lot of reviews and input from the speaker geeks, and the overall gist I get is that there's about a 50-50 chance I'm really going to love these in combination with the Delta-15LFA I just installed in the lower chamber.

I've wound up changing the entire dynamic of this cabinet, the original designer might possibly choke on his tongue over it. I removed the two opposing 16 ohm 15" Eminence drivers in the lower chamber and installed just one 8 ohm, the afore mentioned Delta LFA...The low end is so enhanced and smooth compared to what I had that I'm really happy with the mod. The 10s are being delivered today, and I will lament/brag by Monday morning as to what creature I've created...
 

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