DGBass Posted July 4 Share Posted July 4 Something else to consider if you are planning to replace with a new driver, and while not as sonically important, is whether whatever driver you choose will actually fit the existing cutout hole in the speaker box. For example, the Faital Pro 15PR-400 won't fit these types of TE combo cabs or the standard similar 1153 cabs. The cast frame basket on the FP is decidely larger than the original pressed steel Trace Eliot branded Celestion speakers. The Faital Pro does however work perfectly as a drop in replacement to the bigger 1518 TE cabs. The FP might fit your cab with a bit of woodwork ( removal ) to increase the cutout size, however the front mounting flange is also very much deeper which means there is precious little space between the speaker and the grille. A large cone excursion might actually contact the steel grille. The SICA/JENSEN driver mentioned also has a slightly larger basket diameter and mounting circle than typical Celestion or Eminence pressed steel baskets. Lavoce interestingly have a wide range of pressed steel basket drivers in traditional and neo magnet configurations and these are much nearer or similar to Celestion dimensions. I was wondering why Ashdown suggested the Pulse 15 and one reason may have been that it will probably drop right in the hole and the mounting screw holes will line up. There may be other Celestions or even Eminence units that might be more suitable sonically and will fit( sorry can't suggest any!). Basically, not all 15 inch drivers are the same size🙄 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted July 16 Author Share Posted July 16 On 04/07/2024 at 17:15, DGBass said: Something else to consider if you are planning to replace with a new driver, and while not as sonically important, is whether whatever driver you choose will actually fit the existing cutout hole in the speaker box. For example, the Faital Pro 15PR-400 won't fit these types of TE combo cabs or the standard similar 1153 cabs. The cast frame basket on the FP is decidely larger than the original pressed steel Trace Eliot branded Celestion speakers. The Faital Pro does however work perfectly as a drop in replacement to the bigger 1518 TE cabs. The FP might fit your cab with a bit of woodwork ( removal ) to increase the cutout size, however the front mounting flange is also very much deeper which means there is precious little space between the speaker and the grille. A large cone excursion might actually contact the steel grille. The SICA/JENSEN driver mentioned also has a slightly larger basket diameter and mounting circle than typical Celestion or Eminence pressed steel baskets. Lavoce interestingly have a wide range of pressed steel basket drivers in traditional and neo magnet configurations and these are much nearer or similar to Celestion dimensions. I was wondering why Ashdown suggested the Pulse 15 and one reason may have been that it will probably drop right in the hole and the mounting screw holes will line up. There may be other Celestions or even Eminence units that might be more suitable sonically and will fit( sorry can't suggest any!). Basically, not all 15 inch drivers are the same size🙄 Sorry for the delayed response, thanks for this, it's really helpful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted July 16 Author Share Posted July 16 I plugged the cab in again last night, and the noise was pretty bad, almost like I had a fuzz pedal on at a low level... The weird thing is, when I gently touch my finger on the edge of the cone, the noise goes away and it sounds great! Could it be micro tears in the cone or the suspension? I can't visibly see anything. Just wondering if there's any way way to test this? I'm convinced the speaker isn't shot, but there's something up with it..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Fitzmaurice Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 It could be a suspension separation from the cone, it could also be the voice coil is rubbing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemmywinks Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 Your best bet might be to just wait it out for a used driver of your choice to show up on eBay, I scored the Basslite in my little 1x10 for £24 by doing this and breathed a massive sigh of relief when I won it! Sucks that you put so much effort in to make a nice cab on the cheap only to be stuck with either using a rubbish replacment driver or spending more than the cab is worth on a decent one. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lfalex v1.1 Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 On 15/04/2024 at 16:54, stevie said: The internal volume of the Trace 1153 is approximately 90 litres and and it's tuned to 45Hz. I modelled both drivers before recommending the Faital Pro. It's a good, modern driver. If you can get it for a good price, you should. Modelling is only useful if you know what you're aiming for. Otherwise, it's a trip down a rabbit hole. Uh... That box isn't a 1153 carcass. I had a H122smx combo, and it was slimmer than a 2103h and slimmer than the 1153 upon which it often stood. Same drivers (originally) in the combos as the cabs, but the ports are shorter. Reasons for shallower box? Twofold. 1) You'd never find the connections on the rear of the amp even in daylight; they'd be buried 5" into the sleeve in which the amp sits 2) That TE Achilles' heel. Weight. The H122smx was already brutally heavy. Any more MDF and no one would be able to move it at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted July 16 Author Share Posted July 16 21 minutes ago, Lfalex v1.1 said: Uh... That box isn't a 1153 carcass. I had a H122smx combo, and it was slimmer than a 2103h and slimmer than the 1153 upon which it often stood. Same drivers (originally) in the combos as the cabs, but the ports are shorter. Reasons for shallower box? Twofold. 1) You'd never find the connections on the rear of the amp even in daylight; they'd be buried 5" into the sleeve in which the amp sits 2) That TE Achilles' heel. Weight. The H122smx was already brutally heavy. Any more MDF and no one would be able to move it at all. You're quite right of course. If you read the thread further, I took measurements and we calculated it to be just under 60L, tuned to around 60hz 😊 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted August 4 Author Share Posted August 4 Right, bit of an update! 🤞 I decided to dismantle and check everything thorough one last time this morning, before admitting defeat and buying a new speaker. Wiring, solder joints etc all good, checked all around the speaker again for any signs of splits, delamination where bonded, etc, and I can still find nothing wrong.... Now, some people had suggested rotating the speaker, so last time I had it out I turned it 45° to where I had it before. It made no difference, maybe even worse. When I reassembled everything today, I turned the speaker a further 45°, which although it's sideways to the floor, is back to the original orientation from when it was a combo .... And bugger me it sounds fine! Not a hint of distorting or weirdness! Whether it is due to orientation, or is just a complete fluke I don't know, but it's working for the time being. 3 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 (edited) Okay, so the noise is back 😅😭 I'm convinced now that there must be some debris in the voice coil, so I'm currently trawlig YouTube videos to see how I go about removing the dust cap and cleaning it out. It's no use to me as it is, so I've nothing to lose. If I make a mess of it (likely), I'll order the LaVoce speaker recommended by Bill. 👍 Edited August 14 by TRBboy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 Hey folks! 👋 😁 Finally, Blue Aran have the La Voce back in stock, so I've ordered it today! Couple of questions though: 1) should I fix it via the screw holes in the surround, or use the original TE clamp system that's holding the original speaker in? Any pros/cons either way? 2) I've bought some wadding to insulate the cab, is there a preferred method of fixing it in? Staple gun? Hot glue gun? Thanks! 😊🙏 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonK Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 (edited) Thanks for reminding me of this thread - can I do a mini-hijack/contribution as in the last few weeks I have run into speaker issues with my old 2103x TE cab. I picked it up second hand about twenty years ago. The bottom speaker started farting out a couple months ago and on closer inspection it seems that someone had replaced it and I had only just noticed! So I gave it to my electronics guru friend last week who pulled out the speakers and noted that the numpty who had switched the speaker had replace the original 16 ohm speaker with a 8 ohm one, meaning the cab had been running at about 5 ohms the whole time I had it! So I'm now on the hunt for a replacement speaker, but unlike the OP a 10 inch rather than 15 inch. I'd thus be interested to stay updated on your experience of fitting the new speaker! Can't believe I never noticed the mismatch before as it is so obvious when you look for it: Top "good" speaker: Bottom (apparently replaced by a numpty) and now farting out speaker: Edited October 1 by SimonK 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Downunderwonder Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 5 hours ago, TRBboy said: Hey folks! 👋 😁 Finally, Blue Aran have the La Voce back in stock, so I've ordered it today! Couple of questions though: 1) should I fix it via the screw holes in the surround, or use the original TE clamp system that's holding the original speaker in? Any pros/cons either way? 2) I've bought some wadding to insulate the cab, is there a preferred method of fixing it in? Staple gun? Hot glue gun? Thanks! 😊🙏 Spray glue or paste glue I think. Hot glue not sharing the load around. Staples not friendly to speakers if they get loose. Nothing wrong with the original clamping to reuse. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 1 hour ago, Downunderwonder said: Spray glue or paste glue I think. Hot glue not sharing the load around. Staples not friendly to speakers if they get loose. Nothing wrong with the original clamping to reuse. Thanks very much! I did wonder about spray glue, but was trying to avoid it 😅🥴 Probably the best option though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonK Posted October 2 Share Posted October 2 ...so having looked back through this thread would anyone have a suggestion on a replacement 10 inch speaker for the 2103x TE cab, or would they recommend a replacement pair, or would I need to give you all the internal dimensions before anyone will tell me? If it helps the two 10 inch speakers are boxed off from each other so it looks like two separate enclosures. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nekomatic Posted October 3 Share Posted October 3 20 hours ago, SimonK said: ...so having looked back through this thread would anyone have a suggestion on a replacement 10 inch speaker for the 2103x TE cab, or would they recommend a replacement pair, or would I need to give you all the internal dimensions before anyone will tell me? If it helps the two 10 inch speakers are boxed off from each other so it looks like two separate enclosures. If someone knows the cabinet they might be able to suggest without measurements, but if you can supply measurements then people will definitely be able to help out. It looks like this is a two-way cab with 5" midrange drivers as well as the 10" speakers, I assume these have their own sub-enclosures to isolate them from the main volume? You’d need to give the dimensions of that as well as that volume needs subtracting from the main enclosure. Also the diameter and length of the reflex ports, which will tell us how the cabinets are currently tuned. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevie Posted October 3 Share Posted October 3 A pair of Celestion Pulse 10s will work in your cab and is likely to be an upgrade to the original drivers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted October 3 Author Share Posted October 3 Got insulation done this evening, and the LaVoce fitted, sounding good so far! Thanks for all your help guys 🙏 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonK Posted October 3 Share Posted October 3 2 hours ago, stevie said: A pair of Celestion Pulse 10s will work in your cab and is likely to be an upgrade to the original drivers. Thanks - although do you know if they do a 16 ohm version as I can only see 8 ohms in the normal places (Thomann etc.)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevie Posted October 4 Share Posted October 4 The 8-ohm version is the only one available unless you're a manufacturer, I'm afraid, @SimonK. The only 16-ohm driver I can find that would work is the Eminence Basslite 10. I'd be reluctant to use that personally because it has a nasty resonance at around 1.5kHz that will tend to dominate the sound - based on the info in the spec sheet rather than experience in this case. Faital Pro make some decent 16-ohm tens, but nobody stocks them in the UK and you'll have to order them specially. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonK Posted October 13 Share Posted October 13 On 04/10/2024 at 09:58, stevie said: The 8-ohm version is the only one available unless you're a manufacturer, I'm afraid, @SimonK. The only 16-ohm driver I can find that would work is the Eminence Basslite 10. I'd be reluctant to use that personally because it has a nasty resonance at around 1.5kHz that will tend to dominate the sound - based on the info in the spec sheet rather than experience in this case. Faital Pro make some decent 16-ohm tens, but nobody stocks them in the UK and you'll have to order them specially. I think in that case I will hold out for something second hand - sooner or later a suitable 2x10 that I can cannibalise will show up. Thus said I'm not in too much of a rush as I picked up another 2103x two weeks ago, used it yesterday and it works beautifully, so this second one will wait in the workshop for a while. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonK Posted October 14 Share Posted October 14 On 03/10/2024 at 20:18, TRBboy said: Got insulation done this evening, and the LaVoce fitted, sounding good so far! Thanks for all your help guys 🙏 Just saw the port covers "Frost Bass Amplification" - sorry if I missed it from earlier, but where did you get these as nothing comes up on google? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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