JBL 2385 Horns

[tubekarma]

I have a pair of these horns and a couple of questions about them.

1. One horn has a crack that I am getting ready to repair. What material are they made of? They appear to be made of molded ABS. If so, I could use ABS cement which is a solvent cement with some body that would be perfect for the repair.

2. Can anyone recommend current production drivers for these horns? (2 inch throat, four bolt pattern.)

From the manual:
The 2385A will accept the 49 mm (2 in) diameter
throat 2446, 2450, or 2485 compression driver. With
the addition of the 2327 adapter, the horn will
also accept the 25 mm (1 in) throat 2426 driver.​

Thanks in advance,

John

 

[tubekarma]

First, I have 2385 horns not the 2385As. To answer part of my own question: These horns are made of ABS and fiber so Oatey medium body black ABS cement and a couple of clamps worked perfectly to fix the crack. Applied the cement on the outside of the horn, pushing it into the crack and then clamped it. Clean up was simple, just trim off the excess cement on the inside with a sharp knife.

https://www.oatey.com/2373626/Product/N/Oatey-ABS-Medium-Bodied-Black-Cement

Still looking for driver suggestions.

Best,

John

 

[donprice]

Application? How low do you need to go and how high? New drivers can be brutally expensive and may not have much performance benefit over the older drivers for home use.

 

[GordonW]

The JBL 2440, 2441 and 2445 horn drivers will also fit anywhere a 2446 will go.

2445s sell for reasonable prices on that auction site.

Regards,
Gordon.

 

[tubekarma]

Application? How low do you need to go and how high? New drivers can be brutally expensive and may not have much performance benefit over the older drivers for home use.

The truth is I am not at all sure. The horns fell into my hands without drivers and I want to experiment with them. I rigged up a simple adapter for a couple of smaller compression drivers I have. The results were promising so I want to dig in a bit deeper to see what the possibilities are.

 

[tubekarma]

The JBL 2440, 2441 and 2445 horn drivers will also fit anywhere a 2446 will go.

2445s sell for reasonable prices on that auction site.

Regards,
Gordon.

Thanks, I'll have a look.

 

[mhardy6647]

The 2441 is a pretty nice driver (as is the 2440).


DSC_7248 by Mark Hardy, on Flickr

 

[DaaDaa]

What is the difference Between 2440, 2441, 2445 , and 2446?

I have very nice wooden horns to use but their opening is exactly one inch, is there any point in trying to mount these 2 inchers on them or is it a lost cause?

 

[Tom Brennan]

What is the difference Between 2440, 2441, 2445 , and 2446?

I have very nice wooden horns to use but their opening is exactly one inch, is there any point in trying to mount these 2 inchers on them or is it a lost cause?

Mainly differences in magnet materials (Alnico or ferrite) and diaphragm materials (aluminum or titanium). Once I could'a rattled off the exact differences but no longer. Many JBLites prefer the sound of aluminum to titanium. My experience is that both sound good.

According go the EV PA Bible necking 2" throat drivers down to 1" horns causes dips and peaks in the response. Necking 1" drivers up to 2" horns is OK though.

 

[DaaDaa]

i dont have any experience with any of these drivers but based on passed experience with regular tweeters I would prefer not to go with Ti.
these are my horns and I am hoping to use them for everything above 1khz and I would like to get the best mid range performance posasible.

 

[Tom Brennan]

these are my horns and I am hoping to use them for everything above 1khz and I would like to get the best mid range performance posasible.

Ahh, the mighty Smith horn. Nice. Did you make them?

I had a pair made according to the 1950s magazine article and used them with 1" JBL drivers. They sounded nice, no nastiness.

 

[DaaDaa]

Ahh, the mighty Smith horn. Nice. Did you make them?

I had a pair made according to the 1950s magazine article and used them with 1" JBL drivers. They sounded nice, no nastiness.

no I ordered them built for a very low crossover point. i just fired them up for the first time around 10am today with faital pro 1 inch compression drivers: https://faitalpro.com/en/products/HF_Drivers/product_details/index.php?id=502010310

crossed over digitally via miniDSP at 1khz with 42db roll off. woofers are vintage JBL LE14A. results are fantastic. best sound i have been able to get yet. I am absolutely thrilled. i havent even applied room correction. high freq is sillky smooth and detailed. great imaging.