B460 and JBL Pro Sub opinions anyone?

[Izzy Weird]

Hello

I am new to this forum but not new to JBL. Years ago I designed systems for dance clubs in the US and Canada, most of them were 4-way amplified with 18" vented-box subs. Commonly used components were 4560 boxes, 2395 lenses, and 2405 tweeters. As with my personal system, I often used 1" drivers on the lenses.

I have two JBL B460 subwoofers (ser. 20198, 20177) bought about 1985. I also have a pair of 2245H drivers as spares.

The two OEM 2245H drivers that came with the cabinets have no JBL nameplate on the back, and are merely stamped 2245H. My recollection is that before they were first re-coned, the original cones had a white coating on the back, but were grey in front. Is there anywhere I can obtain replacement cones that are more like the original ones? I would like to auction these two subs on eBay with fully re-coned (as original as possible) drivers.

Second question: I want to switch to a pair of larger commercial subs like the 4642A or the ASB6128V. Has anyone had experience with either of these two JBL Pro subwoofer systems? There is quite a difference in price between the two. The drivers seem to be quite different as well.


Thanks in advance,


Izzy
Serious JBL fan for many years

[rloggie]

Do you have a price in mind for one or both of the B460's or are you set on epay? PM me if you like. Thanks.

[Izzy Weird]

Hello Robin,

Given the interest these seem to be getting on eBay, I expect I will auction them. Unlike one seller, I plan to put both up at once, but one will be a Buy-It-Now private auction with only one buyer buyer approved, the winner of the auctioned unit. The winner of the main auction will have first option on the BIN, at the same price. That way eBay will get their due, and both speakers can be viewed simultaneously on eBay.

Someone in Toronto just sold another B460 tonight:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MEWA%3AIT&rd=1

B460s seem to be coming out of the woodwork, so to speak.

I am working a contract job with long hours, so I will not be selling these for a while yet. I'm going to replace them with bigger commercial subs before I sell them too.

Right now I'm really bummed because I'm down to one sub. I just unplugged the other because the surround was separated for the full 360 degrees. And both my spare 2245H drivers need re-coning too. Serves me right for not staying on top of the situation. I got over ten years of use out of that driver. Once the surround was completely gone I could easily hear the voice coil rubbing. That was the first point I realized there was a problem. Oops.

Regards,
Izzy

[Don Mascali]

http://www.iceco.com/JBL/4645c.pdf

They aren't pretty but they kick ass. The current price runs about $800 each.
List on the drivers is almost $600.

When I got mine I was going to cover the cabinet with oak veneer plywood to match some other stuff I have but the black works well below my projector screen. Anything else would just call attention to the "BIG BOXES" down there.

[4313B]

Those prices seem low Don.

[Don Mascali]

I bought one last last spring for $803.00 delivered. The cheapest Google shows is $850 now, so I guess the prices are creeping like everything else these days.

It's still a hell of a deal.

[Izzy Weird]

More bang for the buck in an ugly commercial speaker.

The rest of my system is ugly, the pretty walnut veneer B460 cabinets have always looked out of place. There are others who appreciate nice furniture, to each his own.

That sub is in the same class as a B460, IMHO, but at a fraction of the price, whether you look at original new prices or current eBay prices.

Look at this ugly subwoofer.



I got a quote of a tad over $2000.00 each, about a year ago from a JBL Pro dealer. List price is over $3k I think. Two of these are a heck of a lot more speaker than a pair of B460s.


Izzy

"One never has too much headroom in the first two octaves."

[Alex Lancaster]

Izzy, just trying to save You money; if You have the 2 B460´s and 2 2245´s, why don´t You build 2 ugly black boxes with the same volume and ports as the B460´s?, I have 4 2245´s working at home and I don´t see anybody needing more, just mo.

[Izzy Weird]

Hi Alex,

Thanks to the demand for B460s, it would be cheaper to sell them and buy new ugly subs. Unfortunately I don't have access to a shop for building enclosures.

I have limited space for subs, so the ones pictured above will have to lay down on their sides.

Izzy

[Zilch]

http://www.jblpro.com/ae/pdf/spec_shts/ASB6128V.pdf

Fine, but it's 4' deep.

Look at Vertec, too....

[MartinM]

Izzy,

It seems the B460 cabinets are really what folks are after...
I was, and still might be... You might make out even better selling the empty B460's, and either keeping, or selling the 2245's.

How much ya' want for empty cabs???

Martin

[Izzy Weird]

Hello Martin,

I have the original OEM drivers and two spares. Three need a recone right now. My guess would be that the B460s are worth more with good original drivers in them.

After I get the new subs, I'll probably put the two B460s up for auction. They are worth more to others than to me. And I really prefer ugly speakers anyway.

I was hoping to find someone who had experience with the 4642A and the ASB6128V, or perhaps someone who had at least experience one or the other.

Izzy

[pelly3s]

I would assume the ASB6128V is a lot like my double 18's with the 2258's in them. They are violent boxes but they wont go as low as a 2245. Although those cabs are bigger than mine so they do go a little lower. My boxes are something like 24(w)x32(d)x44(h)

[Izzy Weird]

Hi pelly3s,

Uh oh, "violent" is not a word I want to see associated with a subwoofer I would use. Violent is a word I would associate with subs like those of Cetec Gauss or Cerwin Vega. If the ASB6128V is JBL's contribution to that sort of "very rugged but lacking finesse" tradeoff, I would prefer to pass on them.

Someone suggested making cabinets for 2245H drivers, but I don't have a wood shop. It might be worth having custom cabinets built, though. I think it would be fun to take the two 2245s I have and add two more, but use them in a 4 driver array with 4 independent (and large) sealed enclosures. Although I used vented boxes almost exclusively in nightclubs, I have always preferred the sound of sealed boxes.

This is probably better for a new thread, but I suspect the unloading at low frequencies would be reduced by having an array of four 2245s. The additional SPL capability of an array of four might also help to mitigate the problem.

Izzy