A pair of 2245's, finally!

[Doc Mark]

Greetings, All,

Well, yesterday, I made a long drive to check out, test, and possibly purchase a pair of 2245's that were purported to have JBL cones, and only be in need of re-foaming. I worked that trip to coincide with two eye exams in downtown LA, and that worked out well.

When I got to the sellers, he was already waiting for me, and took me in to see the JBLs. I inspected the cones, and everything else, and they, indeed, do look to be original JBL 2235 transducers, and yes, both of them need a re-foaming. I had taken along my old HP tone generator, and once it had warmed up, I swept each woofer from 200hz to around 20hz, at fairly low volume, whilst the woofers were resting on their backs. The seller had cut out the dust cap of one of the woofers, and though both speakers passed signal just fine, the one missing it's dust cap seemed a tad loose, to me. If I took my time in the sweeping, both responded just fine. However, for the one w/o it's dust cap, if I swept quickly down to around 20hz, the cone began to flop around too much. The spiders on both speakers seemed fine, and other than needing new surrounds, I believe (and HOPE) that they will be a good purchase. Because of the one speaker, the seller was willing to negotiate the price a little, so I got paid $85 for the one with it's dust cap, and $40 for the one w/o the cap.

Now, I have to decide whether to take them to Ken, at Upland Speaker Service, as I have done in the past, or buy some new surrounds and dust caps, from Rick Cobb, and give this a go. In truth, I am leaning heavily towards having Ken do the work, as he has most certainly earned my trust with his stellar work in the past. In any case, once these two 18" woofers are finished, I will have finally collected all the drivers I wanted for some JBL projects I've had in mind!!

So, with the 2245's on the bottom, I add a pair of 2123's I got from Bart, years ago, and either some 2420's that I already own and horn, or a pair of 2445's I got from Todd, again, years ago, combined with some JBL 2397 horns, and topping if all off with some 2405's on the tweeter end. My original idea was to make separate boxes for each transducer, and be able to slim things down a little, leaving the 18's in no less then 8 cubic foot boxes, and making the other enclosures to compliment the other drivers. I also have thought of having two enclosures per side, one for each woofer, and one which holds the remaining components, sized to fit slimly over the bass box. I have enough amplifiers, plus two electronic crossovers, which can be put to use making this an actively crossed system, but I also would not mind playing around with some of the newer crossover designs that I've read about here at LH.

In any case, I'm glad to have finally scored a pair of 2245's, with their proper JBL cones, and do hope that they only need a good re-foaming to make serviceable. I'll post a few photos later, of the 2245 speaks I got yesterday. I think the price for the pair was fair, and appreciate the sellers willingness to negotiate a bit on the final deal. Thanks for all those who have chimed-in over the years I've been asking about all this, and I'll keep you posted as to how things go on the re-foam. Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

P.S. Interestingly, the connectors on these two 2245's are a bit different from one another, which leads me to believe that one was made slightly later than the other. I'll show the difference in the photos, later.

[Lee in Montreal]

You got a good deal

Lee

[Mr. Widget]

Take 'em to Ken. You won't regret spending a bit more knowing they've been serviced by the best.


Widget

[hjames]

Absolutely! You got a killer deal on the speakers, sounds like it would be very worthwhile to know that the 2245 speakers
are absolutely right before you start experimenting with multi-driver configs! Good luck to you!

Take 'em to Ken. You won't regret spending a bit more knowing they've been serviced by the best.


Widget

[Doc Mark]

Greetings, Friends,

I agree with you, and as I was leaning towards taking them to Ken anyway, I am most certainly doing to do that. I'll experiment on lesser speakers, as far as re-foaming goes. Thank you, again, for your comments and suggestions, and I'll keep you posted as to how it all turns out. Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

[martin_wu99]

Greetings, All,

Well, yesterday, I made a long drive to check out, test, and possibly purchase a pair of 2245's that were purported to have JBL cones, and only be in need of re-foaming. I worked that trip to coincide with two eye exams in downtown LA, and that worked out well.

When I got to the sellers, he was already waiting for me, and took me in to see the JBLs. I inspected the cones, and everything else, and they, indeed, do look to be original JBL 2235 transducers, and yes, both of them need a re-foaming. I had taken along my old HP tone generator, and once it had warmed up, I swept each woofer from 200hz to around 20hz, at fairly low volume, whilst the woofers were resting on their backs. The seller had cut out the dust cap of one of the woofers, and though both speakers passed signal just fine, the one missing it's dust cap seemed a tad loose, to me. If I took my time in the sweeping, both responded just fine. However, for the one w/o it's dust cap, if I swept quickly down to around 20hz, the cone began to flop around too much. The spiders on both speakers seemed fine, and other than needing new surrounds, I believe (and HOPE) that they will be a good purchase. Because of the one speaker, the seller was willing to negotiate the price a little, so I got paid $85 for the one with it's dust cap, and $40 for the one w/o the cap.

Now, I have to decide whether to take them to Ken, at Upland Speaker Service, as I have done in the past, or buy some new surrounds and dust caps, from Rick Cobb, and give this a go. In truth, I am leaning heavily towards having Ken do the work, as he has most certainly earned my trust with his stellar work in the past. In any case, once these two 18" woofers are finished, I will have finally collected all the drivers I wanted for some JBL projects I've had in mind!!

So, with the 2245's on the bottom, I add a pair of 2123's I got from Bart, years ago, and either some 2420's that I already own and horn, or a pair of 2445's I got from Todd, again, years ago, combined with some JBL 2397 horns, and topping if all off with some 2405's on the tweeter end. My original idea was to make separate boxes for each transducer, and be able to slim things down a little, leaving the 18's in no less then 8 cubic foot boxes, and making the other enclosures to compliment the other drivers. I also have thought of having two enclosures per side, one for each woofer, and one which holds the remaining components, sized to fit slimly over the bass box. I have enough amplifiers, plus two electronic crossovers, which can be put to use making this an actively crossed system, but I also would not mind playing around with some of the newer crossover designs that I've read about here at LH.

In any case, I'm glad to have finally scored a pair of 2245's, with their proper JBL cones, and do hope that they only need a good re-foaming to make serviceable. I'll post a few photos later, of the 2245 speaks I got yesterday. I think the price for the pair was fair, and appreciate the sellers willingness to negotiate a bit on the final deal. Thanks for all those who have chimed-in over the years I've been asking about all this, and I'll keep you posted as to how things go on the re-foam. Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

P.S. Interestingly, the connectors on these two 2245's are a bit different from one another, which leads me to believe that one was made slightly later than the other. I'll show the difference in the photos, later.

Even needing re-foaming and one without dust cap,125$ is a very good deal for a pair of 2245

Congrates,you shrewd man

[Doc Mark]

Greetings, Martin, and All,

Thank you, very much! I am pleased with the purchase. I also explained that, if the loose driver turned out to be bad, then I was just buying the core, and he was happy to negotiate the price. I was happy, and he was happy, so all was good. Here are some photos of the 2245 woofers that now live here.













I have hopes that both woofers will be just perfect, after Ken does his JBL Magic on the pair of them. We've talked via email, and will be arranging a time for me to transport both drivers down to his shop for the needed work. I'm excited, and very happy to have finally found a nice pair of these!! The seller actually had two more, but he had already refoamed them, himself, and changed the dust caps. However, he was seemingly unaware of T/S parameters, and had no idea what "Aquaplas" was, until I told him. So, I am glad that I got these before he worked on them, and know that Ken will bring them back to JBL specs. Thanks for looking, and as any projects come to the fore, time-wise, I'll let you know about them. Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

[robertbartsch]

.good deal.... I have a pair of these. They like BIG power and big cabs!

[Doc Mark]

Greetings, All,

Yesterday, I drove down the mountain, and as it was my 64th birthday, made a present to myself of dropping the two 2245's off at Ken's place for new surrounds and dust caps. It was great to see Ken again, and we spent some fun time talking about JBL, systems, food, medical ills, food, medicine, food, and myriad other topics! Oh, and did I mention that we talked about food? (Food is good, and good food is even better!) After some cursory testing, and inspection, Ken recommended I also get the spiders replaced, and as he is the JBL Doctor, I happily agreed with his diagnosis. I going to have to get a few of the food recipes he mentioned, and give those a try. Made me hungry, just talking about them!!

By the way, Mr. Widget, Ken asked me to pass along his best regards to you, Sir, and shared a few stories of shared adventures past!

Now, I'm on the hunt for a good 4645 cabinet, to go along with the one I already have, so I can get started playing around with some JBL combinations I've gathered over the years. Though I feel like a traitor to our beloved L300's, I DO want to see how much difference it makes to have a pair of 18's on the bottom, and a pair of 10's to handle some of the critical stuff in the mid/range area. And, the 2397 is going to be a part of this mix, too, though I may, or may not use them with the 2445's I got from Todd. Might have to seek out some 2441's with proper diaphragms, or may just stick with 1" drivers instead of going 2". Lots to consider, and lots of fun in store. I'll post photos as some of this actually begins to come to fruition. Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc (64 years young, and still lovin' "things JBL"!)

[robertbartsch]

Are you planning to use these as separate channel subwoofers or to supplement the two-channel LF material you are feeding the L300s in stereo mode? I would recommend the subwoofer arrangement because that is where the really LF material is sent by recording engineers.

In any event, they really need BIG power to shine. I'm driving a single 2245 in a very big cab with a Dayton 1000W plate amp and I would describe it as adequate. I have also tried driving them with a bridged Crown XLS 800. Surprisngly, the Dayton plate amp sounds much better...

I have two more 2245s in smaller cabs that I need to decide how to power... Currently, I am leaning toward the plate amps...

[maxserg]

Lucky guy!

for your 2397 JBL recommends the 2440 driver so equivalent driver would be best and the lowest 800hz xover but they recommend 2500hz (for power specs) with any other drivers like 2440/2420. Good project!

[Doc Mark]

HI, Robert, and maxserg,

Thanks, Gentlemen! I think Ken (Edgewound) should be getting close to being done with my 2245's, and look forward to going down to pick them up. Regarding power, I don't think I would want, nor need, a 1,0000 watt amp, but who knows until I try. I'll be using a bridged Crown DC300A on each side, for the subwoofers, and right now, H/K amps for the rest of the drivers. With Winter coming on fast, my ability to build any cabinets will be finished until Spring, as I have to work outside, underneath the carport, and we live in the mountains. Should get plenty of snow this Winter, which is good. In any case, we'll see how it all turns out. I'm really looking forward to hearing the 2245's, and also the 10" mid-bass and 2397/2445 combination! I already know that I love the 2405's when crossed over at 8K, or higher. To my ears, crossing those over lower only makes them sound spitty and hissy, and remove their otherwise smooth response. I'm still keeping an eye open for a single 4645 cabinet, in good condition, and then some of the fun can begin!! I've even considered placing 4645 cabs, in their sides, with an L300 on top of each one, just for fun! But, I'm most interested in incorporating the 2245's and the other components into the system, so as to compare the sound to that of the L300's. Good fun, in any case. Thanks, again, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

[mech986]

Here's one in Las Vegas, but is that too much $$$ (has driver) or too far away? It is best offer though.

http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/ele/4176153604.html

[Doc Mark]

Good Morning, Bart,

Thank you for sharing that link. Vegas is not "too" far, depending on the time of year, and our business demands. However, comparing what is being offered, to what I have, the box looks different to me. On my 4645, bought from Grumpy, there is not enough room to place a decal between the woofer and the ports, as is shown in the photo of the offered item in Vegas. And, the offered box has some sort of corner clips, probably plastic, whilst my own 4645 has none. Last, do the ports look too small, to you? They do to me. Could be the photo, but those just don't look like actual 4645 enclosures to me, and truthfully, I have no need of a the speaker that is a part of that system. So, I'll probably pass on that one. Many thanks for your suggestion, though!

I did find a source for a 4518 box, and it's from the Gentleman from whom I bought the two 2245's. But, I've seen the boxes, and they, too, are made differently than the 4645 that I have, plus they have a horrible carpeting job on each one, and what appears to be a tad of water damage to the edges of the enclosures. I think that, after having to strip off the carpet, and possibly reinforce and repair the water damage areas, I would probably rather wait for a decent 4645 box to come along.

You had mentioned, a very long time ago, that you knew of a few 4645 boxes in the San Bernardino area that might be available. Did those eventually find a home? You had written that they were stored outside, which was very probably the kiss of death to such enclosures. Best to you and your wonderful family this Christmas, Bart, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

[Doc Mark]

Greetings, All,

Waiting for another 4645 cabinet to come along, is like waiting for any other JBL offering. HARD to do!! I have been giving the 4518 another thought, but still think that, with patience, a better 8 ft3 box will come along, without having to do all the repair and retrofit that the 4518 box would require. I've never tried to remove a carpet kit before, but am thinking that the mastic, or whatever else they used to glue the carpet down, would be a bear to remove. I keep telling myself, "patience, patience", and know that's the best thing. Hey, I waited for the 2245's, and plenty of other JBL truck. So, I guess waiting for a proper 1st generation 4645 cabinet is the best way to go. Sorry, just rambling to my JBL friends, who "understand" such things!! Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc (tapping his foot, counting the seconds, and preparing to wait......!)