Energy ESW-M8 amp module?

[LKB]

Greetings:

My old Energy ESW-M8 sub has died (no power, no indicator lights, fuse is not blown). Sean at Simply Speakers advises that Energy no longer supports these and replacement parts are not available from Energy.

Any suggestions for a replacement plate amp (existing plate size is 7.31"x7.31") or external amp?

LKB

 

[charles 1973]

My Energy S10.3 sub stopped working a few years ago. I tried everything, still wouldn't work. So I put it in the store room for a few months. Before I take it to the dump I tried it one more time. Works perfectly now.

They tell me sometimes the units processor malfunctions and it must be re- booted. This takes much longer then the 15 seconds it takes for some devices. Sometimes weeks.

Parts Express has some good subs for less then it would cost to repair yours if it needs more then re-booting. You should check then out.

 

[bimasta]

My problem is finding new foam surrounds, for Energy 8" subs. Subwoofers are usuallly "long-throw" drivers, and the surrounds have a "high roll" to handle the distance in a linear way.

Any suggestions?

 

[swechsler]

If you're using the system with an AVR, just pick up an inexpensive used commercial amp to drive it. You don't need a built-in crossover since the receiver has one.

 

[LKB]

If you're using the system with an AVR, just pick up an inexpensive used commercial amp to drive it. You don't need a built-in crossover since the receiver has one.

Thanks; that’s indeed how it’s being used.

Any suggestions on a particular amp to look for, or how much power / how many watts I need for this sub? (The specs on the Energy sub show its plate amp at 1200 watts, but I doubt I ever had it loud enough to use more than a fraction of that.)

Another option I’m thinking about: Arylic makes some inexpensive WiFi streaming modules that make doing whole house audio ridiculously easy, at a fraction of the price of Sonus or similar commercial products. (They also have a EQ app that you can use to set the crossover and other tuning, as well as doing things like setting various aux pins to output a signal to trigger relays, etc.) One of them (https://www.arylic.com/collections/diy-audio/products/up2stream-amp-mono-board) has a 100w amp on the board, so that you can convert a passive speaker (or pair) to a powered wireless speaker.

Would 100w be enough to drive the single 8” active speaker in the Energy sub? I’m not needing to recreate club levels of volume or shake the furniture . . . .

 

[swechsler]

Any suggestions on a particular amp to look for, or how much power / how many watts I need for this sub? (The specs on the Energy sub show its plate amp at 1200 watts, but I doubt I ever had it loud enough to use more than a fraction of that.)

I didn't realize that this was one of those mini subs. I doubt that it was providing 1200 watts RMS, though. The commercial amp I frequently recommend is the Rane MA-6S. It's a 6 channel amp but you can bridge two channels to 300 watts into 8 ohms. Depending on what else is available, you can sometimes find QSC or other brands inexpensively. Note that these amps typically use a balanced input but it's trivial to convert to RCA; there are diagrams online to help you. Do your due diligence before making a purchase; some commercial amps are designed to drive 70V systems and can't be easily converted to use with a standard speaker.

Would 100w be enough to drive the single 8” active speaker in the Energy sub? I’m not needing to recreate club levels of volume or shake the furniture . . . .

I doubt 100 W would be enough. Due to the small size of the enclosure, Hoffman's Iron Law says you'll need more power than the typical standard size powered sub. Also note that the price of that amp doesn't include a power supply. Plus, I don't think that's a true 100W RMS; in the specs it lists:

Speaker Power Mono
100-W into a 2-Ω BTL Load at 24V
60-W into a 4-Ω BTL Load at 21V
30-W into a 8-Ω BTL Load at 18V​

So before doing anything, you should determine the impedance of the driver. If it's 8Ω, that amp will be almost useless. Even if it's 4Ω, 60W isn't much.

 

[Old Oiler]

I know this is an old thread, but thought I’d note that I have an Entergy ESW-M8 that I bought back in 2012. It worked for about 2, maybe 3 years and it just quit working also. I’ve taken it apart to look at the circuit board, etc. and for the life of me, I just cannot find what it wrong with it.

Mine actually powers up with the blue LED illuminated. The fuse is not blown, it just will not produce sound. I‘ve taken all of the connections apart and reseated them, just to be sure. Nope. Won’t work.

I have been looking for a replacement plate amp as well and have never been able to find one. I just took the sub apart again this afternoon and used a multimeter on it, to no avail. I thought I’d give the internet one more search and found this thread, but it looks like an actual replacement plate amp has never been found. I hate to throw this thing in the garbage, because it looks brand new and the build quality seems great…….except it does not work.

When I originally bought this little sub back in 2012, I also bought a Velodyne MiniVee 8. That sub has been wonderful to this day. Wished I had bought two of them instead. Sadly, they are no longer made. Looks like an SVS 3000Micro sub will be next.

Cheers