Installing Speakon connectors into older Speakers

[Wooferhound]

I am not afraid to purchase older sound gear and upgrade it for my uses, and this includes speaker cabinets. I was perfectly happy using 1/4 inch connectors for all my speakers until a few years ago when I realized that The World is Changing and the 1/4 inch connectors were becoming unavailable or hard to find. So I decided to convert all my older cabinets to Speakon Connections. This has many advantages including TwistLock connect and 30 amps current capacity for solid high power connections. After all, the 1/4 inch connectors were originally designed for 200ma connections with telephones.

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I ordered some Chassis Mount Speakon connectors from Full Compass for $2.33 each or 25 for $2.10 each.
http://www.fullcompass.com/product/243526.html
These were combo connectors that will work with both connection types, Speakon or 1/4 inch, so I could use older cables and amps If I need to. I owned the 15/16 inch hole punch that is needed for the Speakon, plus a couple more holes are need to bolt the connector in. I use Locktite on the screws so speaker vibration and travel on the road won't loosen it up.

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I will remove one or both of the original connectors and install the Speakon connector in one of the original holes and Epoxy glue a small metal plate over the unused empty hole that is left over.

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I've gotten most of my system converted over and just have a few cabinets left to change out.

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A Community cabinet that was given to me with a blown woofer. I replaced it with a Black Widow and now I use it as a Drum Monitor.

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A Crate cabinet that had blown woofers. I replaced them with 15 inch Scorpions and use these mainly as Mids, or as lows for smaller systems. In my triamped systems I color code the Cables and speakers like traffic lights. Red-highs , Yellow-mids , Green-lows.

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A couple of Monitor cabinets that I got without any speakers. Used 10 inch Scorpions and 22XT drivers with an Eminence crossover network. Still need to change the connectors in one of them.

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An EAW cabinet that had a blown woofer. I replaced it with a Black Widow, then a connector change out and it's ready to kick.

[Three_Dogs]

I did that several years ago with some home made cabinets that I used to own. I bought some of the black steel prepunched metal plates that you can buy from places that sell components to build rack cases. Penn Fab or El Comm? I think was were i bought them. Speakon is the way to go, they never get unplugged by accident and they do handle much more current than 1/4" jacks do.

[Wooferhound]

All of the speakers shown are in pairs so there are twice as many as you see. Plus there are a few singles that I didn't picture, probably about 20 converted speakers in all. I have a couple of FH-2 cabinets in my storage unit, the ones that are as big as a refrigerator. Those were some of the first speakers that I converted to Speakon. I have a little laugh everytime I see Speakons on those speakers because a Speakon wasn't even dreamed of when those cabinets were made.

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Now I have a couple that I want to convert that will be a little harder to do. I have a MF1-X horn that I use with a Crate woofer more than once a week. Sometimes I Bi/Triamp this setup and sometimes I use the Full Range input with the internal passive crossover. I plan to put in 3 speakons: one for the Full Range input and the other 2 on the jacks with the Biamp functions. Then add a Toggle Switch to the horn to select between Biamp operation and the internal passive crossover.

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I've also got a 3020ht that has 3 speaker systems in it: Two Scorpion 15", Two Scorpion 10", and 2 horns. It can also be setup Full Range with it's own crossover or Tri/Quadamped. I plan to replace all 4 connectors with Speakons and add a 3-Way switch to the speakers to choose between Fullrange internal crossover or Triamp operation.

[ramar]

i was thinking of adding Speakon connectors too. i thought they could be wired with additional wires for bi/tri amping. how would the switches be wired in, what would their function be? now that i think about it, would it be to reduce the need for a separate midrange/high frequency Speakon connectors when tri-amping, as opposed to bi-amping (is that the difference between bi and tri-amping)?
i am wondering if i could wire the speakon connectors in 3 groups and avoid a switch; one by itself for mono/stereo, 2 for bi-amping and 3 for tri-amping? Six Speakeron connectors per speaker cabinet.

[Bartman]

There is no way to add a speakon for bi-amp purposes without using a switch if you want to also use it in full-range mode sometimes.

How to add a speakon connection for bi-amp use (this example is for an SP1G, but the concept is the same for any other speaker)
http://www.bartmanaudio.com/speakonconv ... peakon.htm

A speaker cabinet can be "bi-amp" and a system can be "tri-amp" or "bi-amp". A system with a sub and top if "bi-amp" means the sub is on one amplifier, and the top cab is connected to another amplifier using that cabinet's "full-range" (or "normal") input. A "tri-amp" system is the sub on one amp, the woofer of the top cab on another amp, and the horn on a third amp.

[Wooferhound]

I finally have all the switches I need to finish the last 2 cabinets pictured above.
These cabinets have an internal Passive crossover as well as Bi/Tri Amp jacks. But some of the 1/4 inch jacks do the switching that directs the correct signal to the horn. When I install the speakon jacks there will not be an automatic switch in the jack to make the connections so I will need ti install a switch and do it manually. The switch will decide if the speaker drivers are connected to the Bi/Tri Amp Speakons, or to the Passive internal Crossover connected to the Full Range Speakon.

Learn to do Biamping and Triamping, it makes best use of amplifier power and helps to protect the speakers.
http://www.rocketroberts.com/techart/multi_amp.htm

[Bartman]

The link in my post above addresses the 1/4" switching jack problem as well, and does so without having to modify the crossover circuit board at all and no needed extra switches installed.

[Wooferhound]

Finally it's getting warmer and I don't mind working in the garage so much. Most of my gear has been converted over from 1/4 inch to Speakon connectors. But I have 4 cabinets that have switched 1/4 inch jacks so I needed some extra parts and a bit of extra time to change them over.

I use my MF1-X horns on almost every event that I do. It is just a single Horn in a cabinet, they have RX22 drivers in them and provide great coverage. The Crossover is a little odd because it is designed to work with an external Bass cabinet either Full Range or Bi-Amped. It is a 600hz crossover at 150 watts RMS, 300 watts program. I had to use a small screwdriver to dig the gunk out of the screws to get them out.

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I use these horns setup Bi-Amped and Full Range so I decided to totally rebuild the crossovers with all of their original functions. I had a couple of metal plates made and then Drilled and punched them to accept the new connectors and a switch. I'm using Combo connectors which work with both the speakon or 1/4 inch styles.

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These crossovers are almost 40 years old and the 33mfd Electrolytic Capacitors were showing some stress so I decided to replace them with new bigger Metal Foil capacitors. Had to mount them on the back of the PCBoard because they were much larger than the electrolytics, then glued them down with epoxy glue. The connectors are Solder Terminals and the wire is 14ga so it takes a big soldering iron and some patience to melt it all together.

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So here is one of them mostly finished up and running in Full Range mode. Filled in the old screw holes with caulk and blasted it with some black spray paint. It works wonderfully and I'm very happy with the results. It did take a complete day and $80 in parts but I have so much more capability with this horn cabinet now.

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Now I have 2 more 3020 full range cabinets to do the same thing to . . .

[Rob22315]

Thanks for posting your project. I have a couple cabs I want to do this to.

[Dano0369]

Keep up the good work wooferhound, maybe nasa will let you wire that rocket to mars for sound!!!!

[Wooferhound]

Second cabinet from the bottom is my 3020 cabinets doing an event last weekend. When I unloaded them, I removed the crossovers in preparation for converting the 1/4 inch jacks to Speakon connectors. I disassembled one of them to see what condition it was in. I had given them over 400 watts frequently. Was surprised that it looked very healthy and did not look like it need any repairs. a quick look at the other crossover showed the same results. These things are huge compared to what you see on the outside of the cabinet.

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This will be very much like the last project, using switches to choose between Full Range and Tri-Amp operation. In another thread I found out that it is NOT a good idea to connect all the Negative (black) speaker wires together and just switch the Positive (red) wires, so my plan is to use three 2 pole 10 amp switches on each crossover and switch the Lo, Mid and Hi speakers individually. I'm waiting for the switches to get here and will be drilling and punching the new connector plates plus most of the new wiring.

[Wooferhound]

I finally acquired all the parts I need to convert my Peavey 3020ht cabinets to Speakon connectors. These connectors are Combo connectors so they will also accept 1/4 inch plugs too.

I took the passive crossovers out of the cabinets and gave them a good inspection, Generally I like to replace the old electrolytic capaciters with something new and hopefully better. However the original caps looked great so I didn't replace any of the parts on these PC Boards. The old Switching 1/4 inch connectors needed to be removed for proper operation after the conversion.

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In my last project with the MF1-X horn crossovers, I removed the old 1/4 inch connectors with wirecutters. it was difficult, messy and not eligant, so this time I decided to remove them by melting the solder with a Blow Torch then pulling them off. This was quick and easy but it did damage some of the solder traces on the PC Board and left some black ugly areas. I guess it's OK cause nobody will see it and I really did not need to use the traces that were damaged. You can also see that I have started soldering on the new wires that will connect it to the new connector plate.

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I got some blank sheet metal plates made, then drilled and punched the holes for the connectors, switches and mounting screws. Then it was time to add those parts. Plenty of Locktite was used on all the hardware so vibration wouldn't loosen anything up.

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New switches were needed to replace the switched connectors and provide all of the functionality of the original crossover. The switch Handles were a little too long and would have stuck out too far from the back of the new connector plate, so I latched onto them with Visegrip pliers and hacksawed to a shorter more acceptable length. after that a bench grinder to round the ends off. This was actually fairly difficult to do. The shorter handles are still easily operated.

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This is the back of the new connector plate. Everything is soldered, no screw connections. Using 12ga wire for the Full Range and Low connections, and 14ga on everything else. There was a lot of soldering because of the heavy gauge wire and a total of 38 connections to be soldered in each cabinet. In another post above, I said that I was using 10 amp switches, but I changed to 20 amp switches cause they were only 50 cents more per switch

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All the rework was done through a single 15 inch speaker cutout. Here it all is, fully installed into a cabinet. The old crossover is now mounted to the top of the cabinet, and the new connector plate is on the back with all the interconnect wiring. The original cabinets had the Lows daisy chained to the woofers. I changed that to an individual feed to each woofer separately, hoping for more power transfer equaling more Thump.

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This looks really good for tape measure and hand drill construction. Plugged it all up and they worked perfectly the first time. Both cabinets sound identical in Full Range mode. All the switches perform their job wonderfully. The crossover is rated 400w, but the cabinet Tri-Amped is capable of 1700 watts program, or almost 3500 watts for both of them. I'm Lovin' the idea of being able to use Speakon or 1/4 inch plugs interchangeability.

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I'm really wanting to try these 3020 cabinets Quad-Amped with an 18 inch subwoofer under them. They would be kicking Butt for quite a few hundred feet.

This completes the conversion of All of my speaker inventory to Speakon connections. The only reason I would need 1/4 inch speaker cables is to loan them to musicians that have forgotten their own. I'll still be making Speakon conversions to older equipment that I may purchase or to speakers that I could be rebuilding.

[ka7niq]

I finally acquired all the parts I need to convert my Peavey 3020ht cabinets to Speakon connectors. These connectors are Combo connectors so they will also accept 1/4 inch plugs too.

3020speaker-1.jpg

3020speaker-2.jpg

3020speaker-3.jpg

3020speaker-4.jpg

3020speaker-5.jpg

3020speaker-6.jpg

3020speaker-7.jpg

I'm really wanting to try these 3020 cabinets Quad-Amped with an 18 inch subwoofer under them. They would be kicking Butt for quite a few hundred feet.

This completes the conversion of All of my speaker inventory to Speakon connections. The only reason I would need 1/4 inch speaker cables is to loan them to musicians that have forgotten their own. I'll still be making Speakon conversions to older equipment that I may purchase or to speakers that I could be rebuilding.

Thanks for providing the link to this thread in another post! I have the Peavey MF 2 Mark III Horns that crossover at 800HZ.
I can see by the pict8ure of the crossover that Peavey used Mylar Capacitors, and they are a Forever Capacitors and will not need replaced. However, if you had a 33 mfd Electrolytic Capacitor, I probably have an Electrolytic in mine as well. I will replace it, but will not use a Metal Foil or Mylar Capacitor either. For one thing, they are pretty big, but they also let more signal through because they are a lower loss Capacitor. I will just keep it real simple, and replace my Electrolytic Capacitor with another Electrolytic, but one with a high voltage rating.

[Wooferhound]

I finally acquired all the parts I need to convert my Peavey 3020ht cabinets to Speakon connectors. These connectors are Combo connectors so they will also accept 1/4 inch plugs too.

3020speaker-1.jpg

3020speaker-2.jpg

3020speaker-3.jpg

3020speaker-4.jpg

3020speaker-5.jpg

3020speaker-6.jpg

3020speaker-7.jpg

I'm really wanting to try these 3020 cabinets Quad-Amped with an 18 inch subwoofer under them. They would be kicking Butt for quite a few hundred feet.

This completes the conversion of All of my speaker inventory to Speakon connections. The only reason I would need 1/4 inch speaker cables is to loan them to musicians that have forgotten their own. I'll still be making Speakon conversions to older equipment that I may purchase or to speakers that I could be rebuilding.

Thanks for providing the link to this thread in another post! I have the Peavey MF 2 Mark III Horns that crossover at 800HZ.
I can see by the pict8ure of the crossover that Peavey used Mylar Capacitors, and they are a Forever Capacitors and will not need replaced. However, if you had a 33 mfd Electrolytic Capacitor, I probably have an Electrolytic in mine as well. I will replace it, but will not use a Metal Foil or Mylar Capacitor either. For one thing, they are pretty big, but they also let more signal through because they are a lower loss Capacitor. I will just keep it real simple, and replace my Electrolytic Capacitor with another Electrolytic, but one with a high voltage rating.

Remember to use NonPolarized capacitors in your crossovers , especially if you use Electrolytics