Dreaded Noob Topic: Replacing a speaker

[Jack]

Hey all.

I have, like, and use a Phonic iSK 8A powered wedge. It's nothing special. It's not my Barefaced FR800, or either of my bands RCF or even Alto gear. But hey, it was £30 on ebay and it consistently allows me to hear vocals over stage din. A lot of my gigs are ampless these days, and sometimes it's even my only source of stage bass (helped by the main FOH subs of course). Recently: fart, boom, splosh. Broken speaker. I don't know what did it. Maybe I overcooked it on a gig.

 

Are there any decent replacement speaker options or is it time to file the whole wedge under 'B'? What do I even need to start making educated guesses? Internal box size is about 19.1 liters, minus driver, port and bracing (so what, 17-18l?) And there are 2 ports with a 50mm diameter and about 8cm deep. The internal amp provides 300W and I totally forgot to look at what the original speaker was. I know I'm going to get lots of 'not worth it' responses and fair enough. Are any of the cheaper speakers on Blue Aran even worth it? Can you get a decent speaker for less than say £40? Probably not.

 

Is there anything I can to save this wedge!?

[itu]

I suppose that you have checked if there are any loose parts that make the noise (check the magnet, too).

The easiest fix is to replace the element with another similar one. The change itself is simple if the new element fits the hole. The system was designed with that particular element. But if you are willing to try, get another with similar dimensions (frame is not equal every time, you may need to do some fitting) and power handling and hope for the best.

If I was you, I would contact Phonic and ask for the replacement type or the part itself.

Edited July 15, 2019 by itu

[casapete]

Yeah, start with contacting the manufacturer. You could also consider having the driver repaired maybe? Try Wembley Loudspeaker for a quote.

[email protected]

[Dan Dare]

I wouldn't agonise over a replacement speaker too much if you are only looking at a budget model. Just buy something that looks half promising and try it. You aren't going to find meaningful reviews of £40 drive units. You haven't lost much if it doesn't work, but I suspect pretty much anything will equal what is in there at the moment...

[stevie]

You really need to take the driver out and have a look at it. Chances are it's a 4-ohm driver, in which case you're going to struggle to find an aftermarket replacement. As has been mentioned, chassis size is likely to be a problem - they're not all the same. I agree with the suggestion of trying the manufacturer. You may be pleasantly surprised.

[Phil Starr]

I'd agree with Stevie, if as I suspect you have a 4-ohm driver then the crossover is going to be way out but if it is an 8 then the Fane 8-225 is a nice driver with a good spec for the price and matches your cab, though it's more than you paid for the cab. I wouldn't trust their specs, you won't find an 8" bass speaker that handles 350W or that produces 124dB probably anywhere but not in a budget cab.. At least it means you don't have to worry too much about power handling though.

[Stub Mandrel]

700W peak power?

It's obviously designed to work with a super-inefficient car audio speaker....

https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=350W+loudspeaker&ref=nb_sb_noss

[Balcro]

To echo Phil Starr, the FANE Sovereign Pro 8-225 is the best fit I've seen for a cabinet of about 18 litres net volume. It models in winISD very well. It's not 100% but I'd say it's 95%. Bear in mind the impedance change from 4 to 8 mentioned above, but otherwise it's definitely a get-out-of-jail choice.  

A quick search showed Blue Aran selling it for 2 different prices - one at £46.84 and the other at £56.88, depending upon the day in question. Fitting in your speaker cab depends on the frame shape, the overall diameter and the diameter of the fixing holes. Some older models appear to have shaved sides to the frame.

See here for dimensions.

https://www.fane-international.com/downloads/FANE-SOVEREIGN-8225-DS141117.pdf

By the way, if you look at the data sheet - see the General Specifcation section which shows how "power handling" can be inflated!

Your unknown original speaker is in fact only rated at 175w - it depends which website you're looking at.

Edited July 18, 2019 by Balcro

[Phil Starr]

Of course we are only assuming the speaker is 8ohms, I may have some good news; the passive version is 8ohms and it's likely the active version uses the same parts. 4ohms was a good shout from Stevie because it's a way to get more power out of a cheap amp and bump up your figures in the sales literature, if you offered me better than evens I might take a punt on it being 8ohms all the rest of the range are 8 ohms unless they have twin bass drivers http://www.phonic.com/speakers/isk-8-deluxe/

to understand the ratings AES is based upon measurements on how much heat the speaker can handle. (it's as near as you'll get to the rms rating) Music power is simply doubling the AES and Peak Power doubling again hence yours is 175,350,700 and the Fane 225,450 and 900. The main issue on heat dissipation is the size of the voice coil, the Fane has a 2" coil and the Phonic probably 1.5"

The figures in the Phonic brochure claiming 124dB only really make sense if the speaker is around 95 dB sensitivity that's close enough to the Fane which is only 97db over part of it's range. I don't think you'll find a better match.

I've just read your initial post again. I don't think this speaker was ever enough for bass on-stage you've probably driven it beyond it's excursion. The Fane is a much better driver but I'd be very careful about using a single one for bass.