# Old cabinet, new tweeter and woofers?



## huja2 (Nov 25, 2014)

Forgive my ignorance - I'm a newbie. I have an old set of bookshelves with real wood cabinets (JBL 2500) from way back when. Would it be practical to take the components of say a Wave Crest Audio HVL-1 and install them in the old cabinets? Or is a speaker designed for a specific cabinet for optimal acoustics?


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## fusseli (May 1, 2007)

The size and shape of the cabinet is a big part of the speaker design, and a properly designed electrical crossover will usually take those factors into account. If you happened to find a kit that had drivers of the right size that meant for a similar cabinet (the same tuning frequency and approximate outer dimensions) then you could get away with it. Otherwise it wouldn't generally be recommended. With help, you could also design something novel for your old cabinets.


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

Do the 2500's still sound good?


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## huja2 (Nov 25, 2014)

Well the JBL's specs are:
12mm titanium dome tweeter
5.25" woofer
12"H x 7.5"W x 6.375"D

and the Wave Crest HVL-1 are listed as
1" soft dome tweeter
5.25" woofer
12" x 7" x 9.5"

May have issues with cabinet depth.


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## huja2 (Nov 25, 2014)

willis7469 said:


> Do the 2500's still sound good?


They sound just Okay . . . but I realize they are being driven by a little T-amp so no telling what's the best they could sound. The speakers are ancient but have never been abused and look new. No scuffs . . . grills intact . . .


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## GCG (Aug 22, 2013)

Old doesn't have to mean they are going to display degrading performance. I've been unable to budget any replacements for my Infinity's that meet, much less exceed, their performance (1978 vintage RSb's - see avitar). If on the other hand the sound quality isn't up to what you want, I'd seek a replacement rather than cobble up something. You *might* get lucky but I wouldn't be comfortable with the odds.

My $.02

Addendum: You might look into a better amp first as stepping up in speakers may be more costly. Again just my $.02


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