Help! check old JBL Speakers before bye.

Help! check old JBL Speakers before bye.
Excuse my english i'm from Sweden.
I have found two old JBL speakers for sale.
How do I check if they are worth the price ?
It's two 4530 Horn (haven't opened them yet)
with two home made (ugly) top's with LE85 and 075
and I think they are 30 years old.
They have been stored for the last 20 years.
What should I check ? I have only tested them with a small amp (40w) so far I don't trust
the old (non JBL) passive filters.
I will soon test with two big amp's with a active filter.
But even with ny small amp and half volume they sounded a lot!
Do I need to change the diaphragms ? Do I need to re mag the magnets ?
The Price tag starting point is $570:-
I want to use them for garden parties :-)

Cheers
///imtkjlu

Sounds like a fair price. I would imagine if they sound fine with a 40 watt amp then they are in good shape. Back in my early JBL days I blew a few LE85 diaphragms with a 40 watt amp that I would overdrive at parties. Once I got a bigger amp I never had a problem.

I would make sure the LE85 has at least an 800Hz 12dB crossover. If you go with an active use a newer one, they are mostly 24dB per octave, that will help protect your LE85.

Have fun with them.

Widget

Welcome imtkjlu!

You should open the 4530 cabs and check the speakers if they are original. Often they change with cheap ones.

Thank you!
I will open them tonight.
Next test will be with two stageline amps 2*150 and 2*570 watt.
But I must first fix an active filter with 24dB per octave.
Any suggestion on split freq. 800, 1000 or 1200 hz ?
And should I bye new passive filter for split between 075 and LE85 ? and which split freq. 8000hz ?
Or shall I bye a three way active (I have a spare 2*150 amp).

And please more advice on this speakers for big parties, are they OK ?
I've found on Internet that new diaphragms are expensive (especially for the LE85).

Or shall I search for newer boxes ?

Many thanks for input!
///imtkjlu

It looks as if you've got nice high end componants. Look to see what woofers are in the bass cabinets. If the woofers are correct for those cabinets, you're going to have a pretty nice system. You'll need 2308 lenses to disperse your mids, but then you should be on your way. Bi-amping those cabinets and using a quality passive between the compression driver and the bullets is the best way to go.
Keep us posted!

Tom

Yea, imtkjlu, I've been following this Thread since the start - I agree with all the comments (saved me some typing... :rotfl: )

That network looks original JBL - the wiring colors and cabling look like they were taken from something else. Can you get any more pictures of that, and maybe the more keen here can identify what you've got? It looks like there were some L-pads, too. :hmm:

And, do tell us what the LF's are.

Just opened one 4530 (heavy job...)
Great the LF's are JBL 2205A!
I will post pictures tomorrow.

2205A looks ok ?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by boputnam

Yea, imtkjlu, I've been following this Thread since the start - I agree with all the comments (saved me some typing... :rotfl: )

That network looks original JBL - the wiring colors and cabling look like they were taken from something else. Can you get any more pictures of that, and maybe the more keen here can identify what you've got? It looks like there were some L-pads, too. :hmm:

And, do tell us what the LF's are.

---

L-pads ? Filter and cabling is a mess.
I think the speakers were put together -79-80 and from the beginning used
only with this filter and one amp for all 3 speakers.
Later they feed the 4530 with one amp and LE85/075 with one amp (still with this filter).
Since I don't know if they used an active filter or not I will get one before
A new test so I don't blow the LE85's.
///imtkjlu

:banana: I thought so!! From your first pics of the MF/UHF cabinet, those wires looked surprisingly like the L65 network. Bingo... Now we can go to work on what should be used there...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by imtkjlu

L-pads ? Filter and cabling is a mess.

---

:yes:

There they was - some "smart guy has taken them outa the circuit, but left some resistors there... :spin:

:confused:

Lookie at the mod for the LF connection. The cut BLK and GRN wires should go to the LF. The BLK is (re)connected properly, but the GRN has been re-wired somewhere non-traditional, to say the least... :(

Open (carefully) the LE85 and 075 and look at the dias.
If they are ok you doen`t have to remove them.
Build a new passive network or buy some JBL nets from ebay (3182 or 3120 for low-mid and 3105 or 3106 for mid-high).
Or use an active crossover (1000 Hz) for low-mid and passive (3105 or 3106)
for mid-high.
The 2205 looks good. Think this drivers are from the mid or late 70`s.
I use a 4530 with 2205A (bought in 79), 2441 and 2405H with 3182 and 3106 passive network.

Regards Eckhard