• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Double Bass Wizzy 10 replacement driver options?

Feral Feline

Feral Feline

Jan 23, 2007
12,613
18,507
Honky Kong, ShangriLamma
#1
I've blown my Wizzy 10's driver, the midrange buzzes and fuzzes. It's not a grill rattle, it's the speaker, shot.

So, I recently found out that Monsieur Blais had great luck and sound replacing the wizzer-coned stock driver with an Eminence Alpha-10A.



What other driver options might I consider?



Many thanks in advance for your suggestions and consideration.
FF
 
#2
FWIW, I made a mistake, it's a Beta-10A, not Alpha...
But some thought food now:
I just got a new head, and I went back with the original driver...
Was the first head voiced with more highs, or the new one with less highs, I can't say but my point is that it also depends on the amp you're using.

Regards,
François
 
#5
Feral Feline said:
I've blown my Wizzy 10's driver, the midrange buzzes and fuzzes. It's not a grill rattle, it's the speaker, shot.

So, I recently found out that Monsieur Blais had great luck and sound replacing the wizzer-coned stock driver with an Eminence Alpha-10A.



What other driver options might I consider?



Many thanks in advance for your suggestions and consideration.
FF
Click to expand...

You might want to contact John Dong at EA they keep some back stock of their various drivers.
Not long ago, I was able to buy a set of drivers for my EA VL 208. The price was very reasonable.

Ric
 
#7
Is this close to what you're looking for? (see US Speaker website).

eminence_logo.gif
Genuine Eminence

LEGEND B102 - BASS GUITAR SPEAKER

  • THE EMINENCE LEGEND B102 IS A 10" BASS GUITAR WHIZZER CONE SPEAKER THAT HANDLES 200 WATTS RMS
  • WIDE FREQUENCY RANGE FROM 44HZ TO 4KHZ
  • LOTS OF PUNCH AND IS GREAT FOR POP AND SLAP BASS, JAZZ AND ROCK'N'ROLL
  • EMINENCE'S BEST ALL PURPOSE BROAD BANDWIDTH BASS GUITAR SPEAKER
  • NICE UPGRADE SPEAKER FOR BASS PLAYERS WANTING MORE HIGHS
  • NO CROSSOVER NEEDED. JUST PLUG IN AND PLAY!
THE WHIZZER CONE ALLOWS A SLIGHTLY MORE MIDRANGE & YET STILL HAS GOOD BASS!

legend%20b102front.gif
legend%20b102side.gif


add_to_cart_red.gif


Item Price: $94.99

Free UPS Ground Shipping in the U.S.

SPEAKER MODEL LEGEND B102
SPECIFICATIONS

Nominal Basket Diameter 10.3" / 262mm
Impedance 8 ohms
RMS Power Rating 200 Watts
Usable Frequency Response 44Hz - 4kHz
Voice Coil Diameter 2" / 50.8mm
Sensitivity (1W/1m) 93dB
Magnet Weight 45 oz.
Shipping Weight 10.0lbs. / 4.9 kg.
Recommended Enclosure (Vented) 0.63-3.0 cu. ft / 18-85 Liters
MOUNTING INFORMATION

Overall Diameter 10.25" / 260.4mm
Bolt Circle Diameter 9.63" / 244.5mm
Baffle Cutout Diameter 9.13" / 231.8mm
No. Of Mounting Holes 8
Mounting Hole Diameter 0.28" / 7.1mm
Overall Depth 4.33" / 110mm
MATERIALS

Basket Die-Cast Aluminum
Voice Coil Polyamide-Imide Coated Copper
Dust Cap Solid Composition Paper (inc. whizzer cone)
Cone Paper
Surround Cloth Cone Edge
Magnet Ferrite
THIELE-SMALL PARAMETERS

Resonant Frequency (fs) 48 Hz
Impedance (Re) 6.89 ohms
Coil Inductance (Le) 0.67mH
Electromagnetic Q (Qes) .42
Mechanical Q (Qms) 5.31
Total Q (Qts) .39
Compliance Equivalent Vol. (Vas) 65 Liters / 2.3cu.ft
Voice Coil Overhang (Xmax) 3.0mm
Surface Area Of Cone (Sd) .03449m2
BL Product (BL) 11.8 T-M
Displacement Volume (Vd) 104 cc
Diaphragm Mass Inc. Airload (Mms) 28 grams
Mechanical Compliance (Cms) .040mm/N
Legend%20B102%20graph.jpg


flag%20home.jpg


US Speaker, LLC
 
#8
I would not recommend the b102. I am using one in a small 1*10 enclosure for years now. It handles a lot of power and abuse and has been a reliable 'coffeshop gig' and rehearsal cab. I like it for slab, but imho it just does not sound right for DB. It has a spikey and pronounced upper mid range. The chart in the post above is deceiving as there's a lot more going on between 2 and 4 k. It makes for for a sound that for EB can vary from bright to gnarly, but I always have trouble keeping the DB from sounding harsh. It's not a thing I can EQ out, because of the spikeyness. This could very well be a matching thing between my bass and that speaker. And it can also be more of a problem for me because I like a clear sound on my DB. But I'd think that's why you'd want a wizzy in the first place. If old school thumb is what you want, you won't need much over 2k.

I'd also think a more standard 10" with a usable range to about 4k, like the beta or the deltalite by Eminence, would be a good choice (with the beta probably being a bit more reliable in the wizzy cab). On paper they show an even bigger bump from 2k up, but in practice they have a much more managable sound in that range for DB. Unless you really want a hifi like upper midrange and high freq response. If money is no problem you might try a coaxial speaker with a dome tweeter fitted at the back by one of the high end european brands. That would be a serious upgrade.
 
#9
Oh, and I should point out: al this advice is without checking how the wizzy cab would fit those speakers for low end response. The Wizzy's are ported, so fitting another speaker can have unexpected results. Especially as the wizzy 10 is advertised as being able to handle a low B well. If Francois has had good experiences with the Eminence beta that's valuable information.
 
#11
@Matthijs, Dank U well!

I'm hoping this thread/info helps other Wizzy10 owners, not just me. So that's some good food for thought you've given.

As for my needs, I'm playing rootsy pizz and slap DB through an Underwood, no gigs with slab so I'm not concerned with how it sounds on EBG. I play slab at home through a Micro Bass RX mostly, very rarely through the EA rig. I'm still learning what I like and don't like and how to get that info across in words. Money-wise, I'm a bread&butter budget guy who splurges on champagne & caviar occasionally, so while I splurged on EA gear, it was on sale; I'm unlikely to splurge on a coaxial domed Euro-speaker, but it could happen under the right circumstances. I'll probably start narrowing my choice down to stock or M. Blais' suggested alternative.
 
#12
Matthijs said:
Oh, and I should point out: al this advice is without checking how the wizzy cab would fit those speakers for low end response. The Wizzy's are ported, so fitting another speaker can have unexpected results. Especially as the wizzy 10 is advertised as being able to handle a low B well. If Francois has had good experiences with the Eminence beta that's valuable information.
Click to expand...
I see more the Wizzy 10 as vented than ported.
That said, I happen to have a Legend B102. :)
I'll try it this weekend and let you know how it goes for me...
 
#13
Feral Feline said:
:wideyed: WOWZERS!

@Don Kasper! What a post!

Certainly the price is a lot more attractive, I think. Actually, I can't remember how much the EA driver is, I may have an inflated price stuck in my head not based on any fact...
Click to expand...

FF,
Are you able to compare your/the EA Basket to the Eminence B102 in the photo above? (See the "side view" picture). We might be able to at least confirm that the EA raw speaker was manufactured by Eminence for EA.
I discovered years ago that Bag End drivers are manufactured by Eminence, (to Bag End's specs, I presume).
Thanks.
 
#15
I don't think the Wizzy 10 driver can be closely related to the B102, as the Wizzy 10 driver has a neodymium magnet and cast frame IIRC. So even if it is made by Eminence I don't think it has a close equivalent among their retail lines.
 
#17
Don Kasper said:
FF,
Are you able to compare your/the EA Basket to the Eminence B102 in the photo above? (See the "side view" picture). We might be able to at least confirm that the EA raw speaker was manufactured by Eminence for EA.
I discovered years ago that Bag End drivers are manufactured by Eminence, (to Bag End's specs, I presume).
Thanks.
Click to expand...

I'll take a lookie-loo over the weekend...
 
  • Like
Reactions: Don Kasper
#19
Tres Vite M. Blais! Interessant... il y a beaucoup les differences.

Okay, enough of my school-house attempts at French. Dangit I wish I was fluent ... in Cantonese (no offense, but it'd just be a lot more helpful where I'm at right now)...

The baskets, the wizzers, the structures surrounding the magnet/piston-portion of the drivers – vastly different. The implications... I've no idea.

While I know you can't judge a driver's capacity to produce bass freqs by its size (PJB, for instance), the smaller wizzer on the Legend says to me more high-end than the Wizzy's wizzer, but as stated I'm no Whizkid though I know enough not to whiz on the electric fence...

dont-whiz-on-the-electric-fence.jpg
BZZZT!


I mean, you look inside a grand piano and the low notes are made by really long, ie big, strings, while the high notes are made by itty-bitty shorties. Ergo could I suppose that the smaller wizzerooniki in the Legend is going to cause some treble?
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back