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[Sam Costa]

I mean take measurements with SMAART, REW or Sound Tools (from Studio Six Digital) to see how far you are from the factory drivers.  It could be better it could be worse.  In God we trust all others bring data.

Ah, I see what mean. Yeah I could take THOSE measurements.

I’m also considering upgrading my sub amps as well.
Currently have 1-FP7000 which has been an amazing amp, and I also have 2- 9.0’s which I plan on utilizing to power the next 2 or 4 SB750’s (depending how bass heavy the event needs to be) The old 9.0’s are work horses but not sure how much longer I will keep them. Would love another FP7000 but those are hard to come by sometimes.

[Rory Buszka]

Doing things right is never the least expensive option.  Have you ever measured the subs?

Let’s talk about ‘right’.

On the one hand, promoting that you have EAW SB750s isn’t strictly accurate, because you have non-EAW drivers. To promote your system that way, you need the original drivers - not  “18 Sound” or “Eminence”, but “EAW”, with “EAW” labels and part numbers. It is common for gear manufacturers to work with a transducer manufacturer to customize an existing product for that specific usage, and without contacting EAW you don’t know (and they are unlikely to tell you) whether the off the shelf driver is exactly the same as what they loaded the box with from the factory. So if you want to say you have “EAW SB750” subs to fulfill a rider, you had better be using the original EAW drivers, even if reconed with the original recone kit, because that is what the band’s engineer is familiar with. To tell them they are “EAW 750” but with a different driver, from the BE’s perspective that’s a bait and switch.

Now, let’s talk about what you have. the Definimax 18” drivers are obviously not the original drivers. But you bought them for a reason, and they seem to be working well enough. They are not chopped liver. Maybe your application does not demand strict adherence to rider acceptable gear. If that is the case, ask if the Eminence Definimax drivers are giving you a reason to throw them away. If not, and you like the way your subs sound and perform, and they aren’t getting embarrassed by the performance of the original drivers, then a) don’t throw away the Eminence drivers you have, and b) spend the money to buy the extra ones, don’t spend more than you have to by throwing away perfectly good speakers and paying a premium for enough factory original drivers to upfit your entire set of subwoofers.

If you don’t have to satisfy a rider’s prohibition against proprietary gear or a specific list of acceptable brands, and you like the speakers you have and want more of the same, then buy more of the same. No reason to change horses in the middle of a stream.

If you are buying from True Heart Sound, make sure you aren’t buying used drivers. If you buy new speakers (probably necessary to get them direct from EAW or a licensed dealer) then you know their history. If you are buying used, you don’t know the history of the speakers, or whether newer stock is being mixed with older or more abused stock. Also, I have had mixed success in the past buying some used speakers (a risk I knew I was taking) because they were not well packed, and they arrived with cracked frames. Buyer beware.

[John Schalk]

Currently have 1-FP7000 which has been an amazing amp, and I also have 2- 9.0’s which I plan on utilizing to power the next 2 or 4 SB750’s (depending how bass heavy the event needs to be) The old 9.0’s are work horses but not sure how much longer I will keep them. Would love another FP7000 but those are hard to come by sometimes.

IIRC there was a listing for several FP7000s on FB in the Everything Used A/V Gear group yesterday.

[Sam Costa]

Let’s talk about ‘right’.

On the one hand, promoting that you have EAW SB750s isn’t strictly accurate, because you have non-EAW drivers. To promote your system that way, you need the original drivers - not  “18 Sound” or “Eminence”, but “EAW”, with “EAW” labels and part numbers. It is common for gear manufacturers to work with a transducer manufacturer to customize an existing product for that specific usage, and without contacting EAW you don’t know (and they are unlikely to tell you) whether the off the shelf driver is exactly the same as what they loaded the box with from the factory. So if you want to say you have “EAW SB750” subs to fulfill a rider, you had better be using the original EAW drivers, even if reconed with the original recone kit, because that is what the band’s engineer is familiar with. To tell them they are “EAW 750” but with a different driver, from the BE’s perspective that’s a bait and switch.

Now, let’s talk about what you have. the Definimax 18” drivers are obviously not the original drivers. But you bought them for a reason, and they seem to be working well enough. They are not chopped liver. Maybe your application does not demand strict adherence to rider acceptable gear. If that is the case, ask if the Eminence Definimax drivers are giving you a reason to throw them away. If not, and you like the way your subs sound and perform, and they aren’t getting embarrassed by the performance of the original drivers, then a) don’t throw away the Eminence drivers you have, and b) spend the money to buy the extra ones, don’t spend more than you have to by throwing away perfectly good speakers and paying a premium for enough factory original drivers to upfit your entire set of subwoofers.

If you don’t have to satisfy a rider’s prohibition against proprietary gear or a specific list of acceptable brands, and you like the speakers you have and want more of the same, then buy more of the same. No reason to change horses in the middle of a stream.

If you are buying from True Heart Sound, make sure you aren’t buying used drivers. If you buy new speakers (probably necessary to get them direct from EAW or a licensed dealer) then you know their history. If you are buying used, you don’t know the history of the speakers, or whether newer stock is being mixed with older or more abused stock. Also, I have had mixed success in the past buying some used speakers (a risk I knew I was taking) because they were not well packed, and they arrived with cracked frames. Buyer beware.

Thanks for the input Rory, but at my level I dont need to worry about fulfilling particular riders...
Yeah I did see that True Heart has nothing but used drivers so, needless to say,  I wont be going that route. 

[Craig Hauber]

Thanks for the input Rory, but at my level I dont need to worry about fulfilling particular riders...
Yeah I did see that True Heart has nothing but used drivers so, needless to say,  I wont be going that route.

I'm almost entirely reconed drivers with all my vintage rigs.  Since I want all my drivers to start out approximately the same age in duty hours I like acquiring them blown already -much cheaper

[Matthew Knischewsky]

Thanks for the input Rory, but at my level I dont need to worry about fulfilling particular riders...
Yeah I did see that True Heart has nothing but used drivers so, needless to say,  I wont be going that route.

One of the main problems that I saw in my years of servicing EAW products was the use of inappropriate replacement drivers, re-cone kits and HF diaphragms. I have some musings as to why this happened over many years and different owners but the main take away should be that in almost all cases the performance of the speaker was compromised, often severely. My advice in cases like yours and not just pertaining to EAW is:
-Use the correct parts.
-If the correct parts are NLA use the manufacturer's recommended replacements.
-If the above options are not available do not guess which drivers may work. Even with carefully selected replacement drivers there may need to be cabinet tuning modifications made for adequate performance. Excellent drivers in an excellent box does not guarantee excellent results.

Most times when we got through the initial triage and started to come up with a rehabilitation plan it was realized that it would have been more economical to do the right thing in the first place. It's important to look at the total cost of ownership, and when that includes buying speaker cabinets at a bargain rate and loading them up with the correct components often times its less expensive to have bought something else in good condition. Or a new product with a warranty.

I'm not trying to sound overly harsh but I've been around this block so many times with people that should have known better, hopefully I can spare you some frustration by sharing the experience. If the Eminence drivers seem to work well enough for you feel free to keep using them but what you have is no longer an EAW SB750.

 Matt.

[Sam Costa]

EAW LC-1816 is the driver you want for the touring version of that sub.
It's a rebranded 18Sound 18LW1400.

The install model used another driver.

Thanks again for the info. I was able to track down a guy locally within 45mins of my house that can get these just above dealer cost. So I ordered up 8 of them.
I appreciate your input.

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