Peavey LOW RIDER 15 Specifications

Peavey Low Rider®18

00479910

Peavey Low Rider 15

00493710

INTRODUCTION

The new Low Rider driver series represents a milestone in high-powered sub-woofer design. An incredible 1,600 Watt program rating and extra-long cone excursion provide maximum amounts of amazingly clean, deep bass.

The Low Rider is a superior choice for the bottom end of any high-powered sound system, from DJ rigs to the largest professional touring shows.

DESIGN

The Low Rider utilizes a variation on the existing Kevlar

-impregnated cones used on all Black Widow®speakers. The new cone is stronger and tougher and uses an innovative asymmetrical-M surround for superior excursion and motion control.

High quality spring terminals accepting large gauge wire are attached to large diameter, high-current tinsel leads with silver solder to withstand high currents, high temperatures and long excursion.

The massive new voice coil uses polyimide-insulated copper ribbon wire, edge-wound and bonded onto an incredibly durable and heat-resistant polyimide composite former. The coil’s winding length of 1.150" is an amazing 80% longer than Peavey’s standard Black Widow coil. The long coil has much more surface area to dissipate heat, and its increased length drives the cone to a far higher excursion. The coil is overcoated with a tough thermoset epoxy for added durability, abrasion resistance and heat dissipation.

The coil wires are solderless diffusion welded to high-conductivity OFHC copper ribbon leads, which are embedded inside the former assembly and soldered to the tinsel leads with high temperature silver solder. The solder joint is then coated

with a special, thermally conductive silicone adhesive for encapsulation and heat dissipation.

The voice coil assembly is bonded to the Kevlar cone and new, incredibly tough plastiseal-coated Nomex

progressive-roll spider using a thermoset epoxy originally developed for attaching nose cones onto ICBM missiles–truly an aerospace-grade adhesive. The spider and surround are bonded to the frame with a strong, toughened cyanoacrylate adhesive, which is also used to bond the dustcap to the cone.

The magnet structure is all-new and was designed using extensive Finite Element computer modeling. The back plate/pole piece is cold-forged from a single massive billet of ultra-low carbon steel, includes Peavey’s patented Focused Field Geometry and is undercut to allow greater coil travel. The pole is extended beyond the front plate to improve coil cooling and make it more magnetically linear, and the front plate is 10 mm thick to match the long voice coil and provide a better path for heat and magnetic energy. The result is 50% more total magnetic gap energy than can be found in the standard Black Widow Super Structure magnet assembly.

A patent-pending vent plate greatly improves voice coil cooling. This heatconductive, ported and finned aluminum ring delivers cool air pumped by the spider directly to the voice coil to keep operating temperatures under control. The improved cooling increases power handling and reliability and reduces power compression.

The cast aluminum frame is tough and rigid and has the strength needed to hold the cone and huge magnet assembly in perfect alignment. The deep dish design and large spider clearance make high excursion and high output possible.

These dynamic new drivers also utilize the user-friendly Black Widow replaceable basket assemblies with Rubatex

gaskets.

The result of these specially designed components are truly amazing loudspeakers. The Low Rider’s astonishing low frequency output is due to its high power handling capability and its 1.4" of available cone movement. These speakers can also be used with small enclosures, adding a new dimension to compact, high output sound reinforcement systems.

SPECS

PEAVEY ELECTRONICS

ENCLOSURES Net volume Vent diameter Vent length V

box tuning F3, -3 dB

cubic feet/liters (qty) inches/mm inches/mm frequency in Hz point in H

Small Vented Box 5.0 / 142 (2) 6" / 152 15.25 / 387 37 40

Medium Vented Box 6.75 / 191 (2) 6" / 152 12.75 / 324 34 35

Large Vented Box 9 / 255 (2) 6" / 152 12 / 305 30 31

Single-Reflex Bandpass Sealed: 4.0 / 113

Vented: 3.5 / 85 (2) 6" / 152 5.0 / 127 65 40 ~ 104

Features and specifications subject to change without notice.

Peavey Electronics Corporation • 711 A Street • Meridian • MS • 39301

(601) 483-5365 • FAX (601) 486-1278 • www.peavey.com

80304779

ONE YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY

NOTE: For details, refer to the warranty statement. Copies of this statement may be obtained by

contacting Peavey Electronics Corporation, P.O. Box 2989, Meridian, MS 39335

Suggested enclosures

For those who want to build their own enclosures but don’t want to go through the design process using driver parameters, Peavey provides the following optimized designs:

For Low Rider 18:

1. Small Vented Box This enclosure is as small as many 15" cabinets but has better bass performance and handles tons of power. This design is an excellent choice for large touring systems because it can handle a large number of enclosures at the same load-out volume.

2. Medium Vented Box This enclosure offers an exceptional combination of deep bass extension, high power handling and reasonable size. It is capable of extremely high output below 40 Hz.

3. Large Vented Box This box produces superb performance in the bottom octave for high level playback, movie theaters, special effects and permanent installation. It reduces power handling by at least 15% but offers usable output to 25 Hz.

4. Single-Reflex Bandpass This special design uses the enclosure as an acoustic filter for shaped response. It’s not as efficient as a vented system, but it doesn’t require a crossover for sub-woofer use.

1. Small vented box This incredibly tiny enclosure has good bass performance and serious power capacity. An excellent choice for very compact, high powered systems and bass guitar/keyboard enclosures.

2. Medium vented box This enclosure is an exceptional compromise of deep bass extension, high power handling, and compact size. It is capable of extremely high output to below 40 Hz for excellent performance.

3. Large vented box The large vented box extends superb performance into the bottom octave for high level playback, movie theater, special effects and permanent installation. The enclosure reduces power handling by at least 15% but offers usable output to below 35 Hz.

4. Single-Reflex Bandpass Special enclosure design that uses the enclosure as an acoustic filter for shaped response. Not as efficient as a vented system, but it doesn’t require a crossover for subwoofer use.

ENCLOSURES Net volume Vent diameter Vent length V

box tuning F3, -3 dB

cubic feet/liters (qty) inches/mm inches/mm frequency in Hz point in H

Small Vented Box 2.0 / 56.6 (2) 4 / 102 12 / 305 45 48

Medium Vented Box 3.0 / 85.0 (1) 6" / 152 12-3/4 / 324 38 40

Large Vented Box 4.5 / 127.4 (3) 4" / 102 12-5/8 / 321 34 33

Single-Reflex Bandpass Sealed: 1.8 / 51.0

Vented: 1.3 / 36.8 (3) 6" / 102 9-3/4 / 248 78 45 ~ 131

REPLACING THE SPEAKER BASKET ASSEMBLY

1. Prior to the replacement procedure, clean the work area of all metal objects and other debris.

2. With the speaker laying face-down, remove the three screws on the back of the magnet

structure with a 7/16" nut driver.

3.. After the screws are removed, lift the magnet structure off the basket frame.

4. Clean the voice coil “gap” before the magnet structure is placed on the new replacement basket

(see illustration). Fold a piece of masking tape onto itself several times, sticky side out, and insert it into the voice coil “gap.” Run it all the way around the “gap” several times to remove all particles and other trash before placing the magnet structure on the new replacement basket.

5. Holding the magnet structure in a slanted position, gently lower the structure down into the basket so it rests inside the magnet structure counter bore, align the screw holes and lower the structure into place. Insert screws and tighten.

STEP 1

STEP 2

STEP 3

STEP 4

For Low Rider 15:

Nomex is registered trademark of DuPont

Rubatex is a registered trademark of Rubatex Corporation

APPLICATIONS

The Low Rider®is specifically designed for sub-woofer use, with extremely high output capabilities and massive power handling. While most sub-woofer applications are below 150 Hz, it is usable to frequencies as high as 500 Hz.

The compact enclosure designs are ideal for instrument amplification and high portability applications such as DJ and small touring bands. They provide solid bass performance in extraordinarily small enclosures. Bandpass enclosures also fit into this range as stand-alone subwoofers.

The medium-sized enclosures are still smaller than usual and have more bass extension and much higher output capabilities than conventional designs. They are excellent choices for high performance sound reinforcement. These designs are the best combination of size and bass performance.

For permanent installations and applications requiring extremely deep bass performance, the large vented enclosures are ideal. The low frequency extension and high sound pressure levels these systems can produce is astounding. As is typical in large, vented systems with low vent tuning, power handling is reduced by at least 15% due to the increased cone excursion.

Due to the Low Rider ’s high output capabilities, excessive levels may cause structural damage to buildings or induce permanent hearing loss, nausea, vertigo or intestinal disturbances in listeners. Please be cautious when setting maximum sound pressure levels.

ENCLOSURES

To assist with the growing interest in home-built enclosure designs, Peavey includes complete parameter data on these drivers and also provides the user with several recommended enclosure designs. This information and much more can be found at www.peavey.com.

The 18" Low Rider driver performs best with vented enclosures between 5 and 9 cubic feet (142 to 255 liters) and vent tunings from 30 to 45 Hz. The Low Rider 18 is optimized for vented systems but will also work with appropriate singlereflex bandpass enclosures. Sealed, infinite baffle, horn, transmission line and dual-reflex bandpass enclosures are not recommended.

The Low Rider 15" driver works best in vented enclosures between 2 and 5 cubic feet (56.6 to 141.6 liters) and vent tunings from 34 to 45 Hz. It can also be used in certain single-reflex bandpass designs. As with the Low Rider 18, sealed, infinite baffle, horn, transmission line and dualreflex bandpass enclosures are not recommended.

Active filtering must

be included with amplifiers greater than 750 Watts. This filter should be a high pass 24dB Butterworth at a minimum of 25 Hz for the 18" and 32 Hz for the 15". Filtering is also recommended below 750 Watts in order to conserve amplifier power and reduce excessive cone motion. Failure to use filtering with high power operation may cause driver damage that can void your warranty.

Enclosures should be built of quality 3/4" to 1-1/4" (20mm to 32mm) marine, 7-ply birch or other high-grade plywood. If you must use construction-grade plywood, inspect each sheet thoroughly and use grade BC or better. Do not use plywood thinner than 3/4" Other materials such as particle board and MDF are not acceptable.

Use a quality wood glue and fit joints tightly. Dado corner joints are highly recommended. Wood screws or a pneumatic nailer should be used to assemble the enclosure during gluing to maximize joint strength.

Strength of the completed enclosure has a great effect on the bass performance of the finished system. Internal bracing is required to improve the structural strength of the cabinet. Low Riders can generate enormous forces inside the enclosure, and panels that aren’t stiff enough will vibrate – reducing bass and creating undesired sounds of their own. If your cabinet vibrates or if the cabinet panels are not stiff enough, add more bracing.

Vents shown in the examples require standard Schedule 40 PVC pipe for vent construction. The pipe should be dadoed tightly into the back of the baffle and glued firmly in place with high quality epoxy or high strength industrial-grade hot glue. Roughen up the outside of the pipe to improve the glue bond. Radius the insides of the vent ends to improve air flow and reduce vent noise.

Vents for these enclosures are much longer than typical for a sound reinforcement sub-woofer. This reflects the special characteristics of the Low

Rider’s design that make it possible to combine a large, high excursion woofer with an unusually small enclosure. For best performance, the inside ends of the vents should be a distance of at least one vent diameter from any interior wall of the enclosure. The vent should be straight, without elbow fittings or other methods to bend it for greater length. Vent diameter should not be decreased, as high air velocity will result in noise and reduced power handling.

Be sure to allow for the displacement of the vent, bracing and woofer in your enclosure design before building it. Mistakes in net volume will mis-tune the enclosure and can drastically reduce performance. This requires a considerable amount of planning before construction, but is well worth the extra effort.

Line the inside of the enclosure with polyester fiber batting such as quilt stuffing. For bandpass loosely fill the sealed side, leave the vented side empty, and place the Low Rider ’s magnet in the vented side for cooling. The batting material should conform to California bedding fire codes. Attach the batting with spray adhesive or staples and keep material away from the end of the vent tube where it can be pulled in by air flow.

Handles, protective corners, cabinet covering, grille materials and crossovers are available through Peavey Accessories. Take particular care when positioning handles, as sub-woofers tend to be large and heavy.

Do not use 1/4" phone plugs or jacks in the construction of your enclosures. Power capacity of Low Rider sub-woofers is well above safe limits for phone plugs and jacks. Neutrik

Speakon®connectors are highly recommended, and internal cabinet wiring should be at least 16gauge stranded copper wire.

Flying of sub-woofers is not recommended. An array of sub-woofer enclosures at ground level will typically outperform any other possible arrangement.

These instructions are a general guideline for design. Proper construction techniques, good planning and common sense will result in a reliable, high quality, high performance system.

Peavey in no way accepts liability for any damage, accidents or injury that may result from design, construction or operation of enclosures using this information. Due to Peavey’s continuing

SPECIFICATIONS 1808-8HPS Low Rider 18 1508-8HPS Low Rider 15

Part # 00479910 00493710

Size: inches / mm 18 / 460 nominal 15 / 380 nominal

Frame OD inches / mm 18-1/8 / 460 15-1/4 / 387 mm

Bolt circle inches / mm 17-3/8 / 441 14-9/16 / 370mm

Cutout diameter inches/mm 16-3/4 / 425 14 / 356 mm

Depth 6-3/8 / 162 5-1/4 / 133

Impedance: 8 Ohms 8 Ohms

Power Capacity: 3200 Watts peak 3200 Watts peak

1600 Watts program 1600 Watts program

800 Watts continuous per AES 2-1984, 800 Watts continuous per AES 2-1984,

40 Hz – 400 Hz 50 Hz – 500 Hz

Usable frequency range: 25 Hz ~ 500 Hz 30 Hz ~ 500 Hz

Cone: Kevlar impregnated cellulose Kevlar impregnated cellulose

Voice coil diameter: 4"/100 mm 4"/100 mm

Voice coil material: Polyimide coated copper ribbon wire Polyimide coated copper ribbon wire

Polyimide-impregnated Polyimide-impregnated

fiberglass former fiberglass former

Nomex stiffener Nomex stiffener

Solderless diffusion welded Solderless diffusion welded

OFHC copper leads OFHC copper leads

Net weight lb. / kg: 22 / 10 21 / 9.5

nom

(ohms) 8 8

evc

(ohms) 6.21 6.21

Sd(Square Meters) 0.1237 0..084

BL (T/M) 22.73 22.73

Fo(Hz) 28.9 33.9

Vas(liters) 403.9 155.1

Cms(uM/N) 185.9 154.8

Mms(gm) 163.2 142.3

8.770 10.669

0.356 0.364

0.342 0.352

max

(mm) 9.6 9.6

Le(mH) 0.87 0.83

SPL (1 W 1m) 97.3 94.4

no(%) 2.65 1.61

Vdcubic inches / milliliters 145 / 2375 98.4 / 1613

max

(Watts pgm.) 1600 1600

Disp (inches

) / milliliters 235 / 3852 211 / 3458

efforts to improve products, features and specifications are subject to change without notice.

PARAMETERS

Thiele-Small parameters for Low Rider subwoofers follow. This data is for use in designing enclosures. Numerous software packages are available that use this data to simulate the response of the driver and enclosure together for optimum performance in any application.

PARAMETER DEFINITIONS

nom

: The nominal impedance of the

driver in Ohms.

evc

: DC resistance of the driver in

ohms Also known as Re.

Sd: The functional radiating surface area of the cone assembly in meters2.

BL: Efficiency of the voice coil and magnet system in Tesla meters.

Fo: Free air resonance. Also known as Fs.

Vas: Volume of air having the same compliance (springiness) as the driver ’s suspension.

Cms: Restorative force of the driver’s suspension in micrometers/Newton.

Mms: The total mass of the moving parts of the loudspeaker, including the air load, in grams.

Qms: Resonance characteristics of the mechanical factors of the loudspeaker.

Qes: Resonance characteristics of electrical factors of the loudspeaker.

Qts: Resonance characteristics of the electrical and mechanical factors combined together.

max

: Distance the cone can move in one direction before the coil begins to leave the magnetic gap.

Le: Inductance of the voice coil in millihenries.

SPL: Typical sound pressure level at 1 watt, 1 meter.

no: Electrical-to-acoustical conversion efficiency in percent

Vd: Air displacement of the driver from negative Xmax to positive Xmax, .

max

: Maximum continuous program power in watts.

Disp: Volume displaced by the driver inside the cabinet when mounted on its rear flange.

Low Rider 15: Small vented 2.0cf Fb45 Low Rider 15: Medium vented 3.5cf Fb38 Low Rider 15: Large vented 5.0cf Fb34

SPL, dB

100

10 Frequency, Hz 50 100 Hz 500 1K

SPL, dB

100

Low Rider 15: Name:Single reflex bandpass 3.0cf

Low Rider 18: Small vented 5.0cf Fb37 Low Rider 18: Medium vented 6.75cf Fb34 Low Rider 18: Large vented 9.0cf Fb30 Low Rider 18: Single reflex bandpass 7.5cf

Frequency, Hz

50 100 Hz 500 1K