Speakers...Speakers...Speakers...

FrizzleFried

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Evidently my Seeburg juke ised 5OHM 12" speakers. Do you know how freakin' hard it is to find a 5OHM speaker? The only ones I can find are old old old used Seeburg speakers that are beat to hell and pretty expensive considering the condition.

My understanding is that the less the OHM rating the less resistance the speaker has which means more power to the speaker. That said, an amp rated for 5OHM can overdrive the transistors pushing a smaller ohm driver (the common examples given at running a 4ohm driver with an 8ohm amp)...

There is a single ohm difference between the 5ohm amp and 4ohm drivers that are commonly available. I don't "crank" the juke at all... is it still a bad idea to go with 4ohm speakers?

From what I read I can go to 8ohm speakers and they'd be a little less efficient ... but again, I don't crank the junk really... so would I be better off going with 8ohm speakers?

I ask Ron Rich and of course he says to go with the original 5ohm speakers... but I'm not looking for authenticity... just good sound... and my current speakers are ripped. Thanks!
 
Jesus... it's looking like the average re-cone price is about $80.00 per speaker... and that is BEFORE shipping (both ways)... running an 8ohmer from the local Best Buy is looking MUCH more appealing... I couldn't give a crap about authenticity in a 1979 Seeburg DS2 frankly...
 
8 ohm will be lower in volume plus the speaker crossover network inside the juke may not work properly.

The 8 ohm speaker will not hurt the amplifier. Some modern speakers may not fit in the hole cutout in the juke cabinet.
 
8 ohm will be lower in volume plus the speaker crossover network inside the juke may not work properly.

The 8 ohm speaker will not hurt the amplifier. Some modern speakers may not fit in the hole cutout in the juke cabinet.

Would a 4ohm speaker sound/work better? Sure, I wouldn't want to push it as it's got slightly less resistance, but 4ohm is surely much closer to 5ohm than 8ohm is...

Again, I only run my juke at about 1/3 to 1/2 volume at best.
 
If that's a model DS juke, that's an early 1960's design amplifier with germanium type transistors. They are real particular about going lower in impedance...they don't like it. Considering germanium transistors are getting harder to find and very expensive, go with an 8 ohm speak.
 
If that's a model DS juke, that's an early 1960's design amplifier with germanium type transistors. They are real particular about going lower in impedance...they don't like it. Considering germanium transistors are getting harder to find and very expensive, go with an 8 ohm speak.

Sorry Ken... I got my models confused ... I had a DS... this is an SMC... (1979 Disco model)...
 
Alternatively I am actually considering picking up a "re-conning kit" and re-conning these myself. Has anyone ever done it? I think this would be a pretty kickass project to tackle...
 
I watched a video and it looks totally doable. I was going to mention it before. How much are the kits? Looks fun for sure.
 
I've repaired some speakers and I didn't find it much fun. For a juke of that vintage, I wouldn't think keeping it authentic is worth it. I'd just throw some nice 8 Ohm speakers in there instead. I've seen some 6 Ohm speakers... not sure how hard those are to find.
 
What I am worried about is that going with a differed OHM speaker is going to throw off my crossover network enough that it's going to sound like crap. 4OHM and I have too much bass coming out vs the horns...8OHM and I have way too little bass vs the horns...
 
I would probably just go with the 4 ohm if Ken thinks the transistors will hold up.

If it sounds shitty, (doubtful) you can just adjust the crossover components. Passive x-overs are just a cap, coil, and maybe a resistor. There are formulas out on the net that you can use.

There is also the sensitivity of the speaker to take into consideration. A 8ohm driver can actually be louder than a 4 ohm, at the same wattage, if it has a higher sensitivity rating (1w/Meter).
 
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