Ascend Acoustics CBM 170

[Tom Gee]

Hey guys,

It seems like the tweeter is out, on one of my Ascend Acoustics CBM 170s. Its an older one, not an SE.
I got them used, very cheap, but am considering replacing the tweeter, (not sure if its worth it, but)
anyone know what brand tweeter is used or could suggest a Parts Express replacement?

thanks

 

[rojo]

Hey guys,

It seems like the tweeter is out, on one of my Ascend Acoustics CBM 170s. Its an older one, not an SE.
I got them used, very cheap, but am considering replacing the tweeter, (not sure if its worth it, but)
anyone know what brand tweeter is used or could suggest a Parts Express replacement?

thanks

That'd be a better question for Ascend Acoustics. They might even be able to sell you a direct replacement tweeter (or pair). Don't penny pinch on this.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Agreed

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

We get this question a lot. You can’t just willy-nilly replace one tweeter with another. They each have different impedances and other parameters, and a speaker’s crossover is carefully designed to enhance, compensate etc. for those parameters and properly blend with the other drivers in the system.

Changing out the tweeter (or woofer for that matter) with something “off the shelf” – sure, you’ll get sound out of it, but it won’t sound the same.

If it were that easy there would be no speaker manufacturers as we know them. You’d just go into a “speaker store” and pick your cabinet, woofers, tweeters etc., cafeteria style (just as with all the other components in your system), and it would automatically sound great.

Like rojo said, contact Ascend and see if you can get a service replacement. They still make the CBM-170, so there’s a good chance you can. Failing that, another option is ebay where you can get a used one for parts.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[KEW]

Just to be redundant...

Ascend Acoustics (along with many other companies) does a good job of engineering/designing their speakers to get the most out of the components used. You really don't want to forego that in order to save a few bucks (not to mention that your left and right speakers won't have the same sound character). I would be very surprised if Ascend doesn't have a proper replacement tweeter on hand for a reasonable price; one of the best things about ID companies is customer service is not cut short since they depend on word of mouth reputation.
Let us know what they say!

 

[Tom Gee]

Thanks, I did shoot them an email and they have replacements for approx. $50 bucks.
I got these cheap, but they sound very good, so I have to decide if it's worth the $$ for me....or just invest the $50 into Elac uni-fi's or something else

 

[Agitater]

The UniFi speaker line is quite good, but it's not necessarily better than the Ascend CBM-170. The fact that you bought the Ascends cheap, doesn't alter the fact that they're quite good speakers. That said, if you can audition the Elacs at a shop prior to making a decision, you might find you really, really like your Ascends just fine. Fifty bucks for a new tweeter is about as reasonable as it gets for good quality drivers.

 

[JohnnieB]

I got these cheap, but they sound very good, so I have to decide if it's worth the $$ for me....or just invest the $50 into Elac uni-fi's or something else

If you do decide you dont want them, pm me. Depending on how "cheap" you got them, I may be interested in buying them from you.

 

[Tom Gee]

pm sent