Hello, new to the forum.. thanks for having me. I currently have
2 EV ETX18SP subs, in the last 1.5 years both of the drivers have shredded. Now you might think over driving them, certainly not the case neither of these speakers were ever driven passed the 1DB increase on the volume control. 80hz was the regular frequency and crossover set for SUB only to allow Mids/Highs to be connected to output of the sub. It seems to me the EV 18inch drivers are just poorly made and cannot handle the bass output with such a short throw. My question, If I match OHMs, And get as close to DB rating as I can, could I add a more powerful car audio 18inch sub to replace these junk EV drivers? Has anyone ever done this? Thanks in advance.
2 EV ETX18SP subs, in the last 1.5 years both of the drivers have shredded. Now you might think over driving them, certainly not the case neither of these speakers were ever driven passed the 1DB increase on the volume control. 80hz was the regular frequency and crossover set for SUB only to allow Mids/Highs to be connected to output of the sub. It seems to me the EV 18inch drivers are just poorly made and cannot handle the bass output with such a short throw. My question, If I match OHMs, And get as close to DB rating as I can, could I add a more powerful car audio 18inch sub to replace these junk EV drivers? Has anyone ever done this? Thanks in advance.
Personally I would suggest something from B&C, probably could find one that matches TS parameters of original quite good and those drivers are high quality. Maybe look for 18TBX100, 18TBW100, 18NW100, they are very good mid-price options. Try to find TS parameters of original driver and find close match.
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The EV drivers are custom made to a price point and as such they are only just good enough for general uses, I think the drivers thermal capacity is it's biggest weakness. However I would not suggest using a car audio driver they generally don't have anywhere near the correct sensitivity for PA applications, there should be a PA sub driver that would swap in. The right way to do this is to model drivers in a program like WinISD for the enclosure volume and port dimensions of the EV cab.
I did this upgrade with a pair of passive EV EKX18's I acquired with blown drivers, in my case there was a Celestion 18 that was a good fit.
I did this upgrade with a pair of passive EV EKX18's I acquired with blown drivers, in my case there was a Celestion 18 that was a good fit.
My concern is, since they are powered by onboard amplification, there might be high amount of dsp correction applied, so they can get maximum out of relatively non-impressive driver. Definitely agree with @conanski about car audio subwoofers lacking sensitivity and not being really optimal for this use.
Thanks for the info, I was not aware of the higher sensitivity between the two. Some have had success with this replacement from Rockville. Never heard these before, however there is a decent video that says it worked well.
https://a.co/d/gKBW10A
https://a.co/d/gKBW10A
I kinda doubt this woofer will survive long term use at high levels, I think it would be best to find driver with similar T/S parameters with 4" VC and neo magnet from better brands in my opinion. What is your budget for 1 driver?
Also sensitivity at 105db seems impossible with this driver, I don't believe this is realistic. Most decent drivers have a 97-99db sensitivity in general
Also sensitivity at 105db seems impossible with this driver, I don't believe this is realistic. Most decent drivers have a 97-99db sensitivity in general
I don’t really have a budget, I need something reliable. Unlike these paper EV drivers. I need to just determine which one fits without modification and is close to the enclosure requirements. Feel free to post a few
Links if you have experience. These drivers need to handle heavy bass for DJ events
Links if you have experience. These drivers need to handle heavy bass for DJ events
"TS"
specs? Also, the current driver is 8ohm, these are 4 I am sure that will be an issue for the AMP right?
there are also 8 ohm versions, be careful - other specs differ slightly between different nominal impedances of drivers. Not sure about price in US but here in europe is about 250-300 euro. TS parameters determine the behaviour of driver in enclosure, you should try to match them with original. Since there is no info about original driver parameters I would probably try 18TBX100 since its commonly used in many bass refex cabs and reliable. Cannot gurantee 100% tho since there are many variables. Since there is need to handle heavy bass i would definitely go for driver with decent X Max and large voice coil for cooling,
Here is example of T/S parameters
Here is example of T/S parameters
What are the internal dimensions of the ETX enclosure and also what are the port dimensions... depth plus width and length?
There is some EQ applied to broaden/flatten the response but from what I discovered doing this with my EKX boxes is that it's minimal and that makes sense... a reflex sub really doesn't need a lot of help, the amp module does include a ton of protection though so I think a different driver would be pretty safe as long as it is suitable for the enclosure.
For what it's worth here is the OEM EKX driver and it's replacement.
One thing you may see here is the difference in the driver bolt pattern, I had to drill new holes and add a few more T-nuts and bolts.
One thing you may see here is the difference in the driver bolt pattern, I had to drill new holes and add a few more T-nuts and bolts.
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Idk what EV is doing regarding sourcing their drivers , I have heard a lot of driver failures on those etx subs. ZLX and EKX are lower priced line , ETX suppose to be the premium at that price level.
But EV is cutting corners in a bad way using cheapo drivers inside the ETX's
In the other hand, a local DJ guy I know lost 2 of his 4 ETX subs around 2 yrs ago ,he replaced the drivers with BC 18TBX100's on all of em , he is a happy camper now.
No more blown boxes anymore, and he push the boxes hard all nite.
There are other pro audio drivers like Faital,
Ciare, Eminence , LaVoce, 18sound , BMS , Beyma, RCF but can't tell you what model will fit the ETX, I'm just sharing what I have seen a local guy did with his etx boxes.
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Yup I believe 18TBX100 is a way to go. Very good and reliable driver. I use 18SW115 and they get abused a lot and no failures so far. But with relatively low power from that amplifier i doubt you could really push even 18TBX100 to its limits so since you are on a budget is definitely a great choice.
I agree, 18sw115 are more suited for horn cabinets as I have seen , idk of bass reflex designs with the sw115 ,but the tbx100 fit in a lot of BR cabinets.
Just a note :
Idk if EV use a 4 ohm driver , since this plate Amps are class D , they tend to use 4 or less ohms custom made drivers to squeeze every drop of power from the amp.
Just a note :
Idk if EV use a 4 ohm driver , since this plate Amps are class D , they tend to use 4 or less ohms custom made drivers to squeeze every drop of power from the amp.
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That original looks cheaper than the Made In China 18 that PE sells for $150. 6 hole mounting and flimsy cone that they try to reinforce with ribs.
TBX100 was B&C’s flagship driver for years before all the super-stroke neo’s and 14000 watt amplifiers started appearing. And all of their bigger sub drivers (4” and larger coil) are available in both 4 and 8 ohm.
TBX100 was B&C’s flagship driver for years before all the super-stroke neo’s and 14000 watt amplifiers started appearing. And all of their bigger sub drivers (4” and larger coil) are available in both 4 and 8 ohm.
ALl I find on the B&P speakers is a 4OHM option, The original EV driver is an 8OHM. WHat impact would this make on the built in 1500 watt amp running a 4 ohm driver instead of an 8 ohm?
OK I found one on Reverb 8ohm, disregard.. 353.00 not a bad deal. Ill let you all know how it works. Thanks for all the comments!
If amplifier is 4ohm stable there would be some benefits. But since EV used 8 ohm maybe amp was not meant for 8 ohm loads. I believe you will get louder and cleaner output with approx the same power from 18TBX100 and with 8ohm driver keep amp running cooler and not under too much stress when pushed all night. It should be very reliable setup. Go for 8 ohm version. Also maybe contact B&C Distributors, they should have 8ohm version and might give u good pricing.