Sunn Bass Cab restoration

[greensea]

hello all:

i am about to take ownership of this http://www.falsenegative.org/greensea/sunn215.jpg">2x15" cab. i have a couple questions for any sunn gurus out there:

1. what model number is this cab? the current owner says its not on the cabinet.

2. there is only one speaker in it and it has 2 tears in it. the speaker is a JBL 130as. what are suitible replacement speakers for this cab? i will be using it with a sunn concert bass head.

thanks for your help!

-brad

[greensea]

sorry about the giant image! this forum software doesn't seem to allow preview or editing!

one more question i forgot:
3. is it cost effective to replace the vinyl stuff (named??) on the outside of the cabinet? where would i buy it if i wanted to?

thanks,
brad

ultra-newbie bass player

[Tom Loizeaux]

If this is a 2 15 cabinet it's probably called a 215S or 215M cabinet. Sunn did have versions of their cabinets available with JBL 15s in them, so your might be a 215JBL. The JBL 130as is a version of the JBL D130 made for Sunn...a very good guitar speaker if you like clean and big! You can get the replacement Sunn Tolex from Smartparts or Fender. If you find a quality EXPERIENCED cabinet refurbisher, you could easily get this re-covered. (Rogers Amps, etc.) Is it worth it? Gee, dedends on your priorities.
Good luck,

Tom

[greensea]

Thanks for the info! What other speakers work well with this cabinet?


Thanks,
Brad

[Geoff]

Not familiar with this exact model of cabinet but the interior volume is probably rather small (around 4.5 sq. ft.).  Anybody?  What kind of port does it have?  I know my '76 215B is about 4.68 sq. ft. not including the side shelf port.  For bass, make sure you get a replacement speaker with a low-ish Vas and low Fs, for starters.  Lots of 15" replacement have a low Fs but they are designed for big cabinets with a low enclosure tuning.  The Sunns aren't tuned all that low.  I have the discontinued EV 15BX speakers in mine, they are great and rock-solid but they are kind of expensive.  I'm sure Eminence makes a comparable model for less $$.  Once you find out your box tuning and volume, you can use a shareware/freeware plotting program to test out the theoretical performance of various replacement drivers in your cab.  Parts Express is one company that gives the T-S parameters of all their drivers.

Good luck,
Geoff

[greensea]

Great! Thanks for the technical info. I'll measure the volume tonight and mess around with the program. Can you please tell me what the technical name for this kind of port it? The cab appears to be PA cab with the tweater hole covered. Here's a picture without the grill.

Thanks,
Brad


http://www.falsenegative.org/greensea/sunncab.jpg">

[skippy]

the FIRST thing you want to do is remove the insulation, it completely defeats the purpose of the ported design.  as for the speakers, i have a 215B loaded with eminence (i can't recall which ones though).  they work very well with the cabs.  if it were me, i spring to recover.  good lick. [/u]

[Anonymous]

Skippy's statement about not needing the insulation in this cabinet is incorrect. All cabinets benefit from using insulation on the interior walls.
  This cabinet appears to have the very early Sunn 2-15 port design. It also shows that a tweeter, of some type, was included and shows what appears to be a crossover mounting area on the rear panel. Sunn did make a PA that used this type of configuration, with the tweeter being the JBL 2402 "bullet". They also mounted a JBL compression drive and large folded lens on top of their 2-15 bottom. It's hard to tell from he photo if this is one of those cabinets or one that was modified by someone to mimic that design.

Tom

[Isaac]

I don't agree, Tom. The fact that the fifteens are offset implies that this is an original Coliseum PA cabinet. I suppose that this could have been done later, but I doubt it, especially considering that the tweeter hole has been covered.

You're right about keeping the insulation on the walls. Insulation can have a negative effect, if the cabinet is stuffed, but merely lined is almost always good, cutting down on internal reflections that can hurt the sound.

Sorry, Skippy.

[Rocketboy]

The cabinet appears to be a Coleseum PA bottom of later manufacture.  The really old ones had a removable back, as opposed to a removable grille.  The acoustic damping material need only be applied such that no two parallel surfaces are uninsulated.  Typically it would be one side, the bottom, and the back.

To use this cabinet for bass, blank the round tweeter opening.  I believe a JBL service center can recone a D130F to a K140.  I think the frame and magnet are identical.  I think.  If you can get them to talk to you, JBL can confirm whether or not that is so.  Eminence must surely offer 15's with similar T parameters.

Nice cabinet!

[Isaac]

No, the magnet structure of the D series and the K series are quite different. The only difference between a D130 and a D140, though, is the cone, IIRC, and reconing can effectively change one to the other.

[Bill Matthews]

I have the same looking cabinet, but my 15's are not offset, and I have no hole for a tweeter.  Anyone have any idea what it is?  It came with 2 16 ohm JBL D-140's.  It has no crossover in the back, just a small plastic jack cup about an inch around.  I got it for nothing from a guy who said it was taking up too much room in his office.. I didn't dare ask the next question..  When he said " free"  I said " is for ME "

[Rocketboy]

Wow.  Congratulations Bill.  That sounds like a 200S cab.  Wanna sell it?

[Bill Matthews]

What are the dimentions of the 200 cab?  The dimentions of mine are 46" tall 30" wide and what looks to be 14 3/4" deep. Is this the 200 cab? I have another 2x15 cab that is the same size as my 6x12 cab, what could that one be if this is a 200 cab?