Trouble is i keep blowing them....blown loads over the years the latest being my technics sbm500,,,i have thought of buying some wharfdale 18"" but the bass only goes down to 45 hz....im looking for ones that go lower than 30hz and can handle the power....and they need to be able to post them...thanks

Bose.....they have circuitry inside making them un-blowable

18” drivers those are big units, what are you trying to achieve / what size is your room / what amps are driving them etc

Don’t forget its distortion that blows speakers, are you feeding them with clean signal?

Sounds like what you need is a good subwoofer.

I am with toocool on this. You need a decent active sub like a REL Strata (from years ago so should be cheap by now) and let your stereo speakers handle mids and highs. 

Kef Reference speakers are fantastic VFM

and please don't use  so much signal boosting - ie equaliazation - of the lower reg

Agreed with the REL Strata or a discontinued mid-fi to high end powered subwoofer. Also 18" woofers are very slow and not very accurate, yes they move tons of air, but you can go with multiple 12" or even smaller. Check out the old VMPSS sub woofers also.

Hey there Reno. In 20+ years of owing Hi-Fi speakers I've never blown a single drive unit! Seriously dude, something needs to change in your set up. Toocool makes a great point about distortion and claret's on the money re sound enhancements.

Reno, what amps are you using? Let us know the makes/models (Technics I suspect ) and perhaps we can take it from there...then we'll happily take a look around for speakers I'm sure

ok thanks for your replies guys i have had a friend down for a couple of days so havn't had time to reply....yup it's technics gear im using...i think the amps i have are rated at 150w into 8 ohm....with some swanky 33 band eq pc thrown into the mix....i just need some good speakers lads..i managed to change the drivers and tweeters on my sb m500

but they just sound fooked,,,,i thought these were good speakers but to my discust there made out of that mushy wood...can't remember the name..but everything is loose because the screws are just spinning...the wood is just shit.....so new speakers needed...

Reno, what's your budget?

The amplification may be good and powerful but the equalizer is a complete waste of time if you are amplifying a good quality source. If you have a poor quality cd player for instance and are using the eq to make up for it's shortcomings you are sending a poor (and probably distorted) signal to the speakers. Crap in = crap out.

If there is nothing wrong with the source you need to ditch the eq anyway because it cannot add anything but noise and distortion. It can only take away quality.

The reason for your perceived need for eq could be something more fundamental. Do you need to get your ears syringed?

I know you like your bass but you have to be realistic. Seriously deep bass can only be achieved by shifting huge volumes of air; you won't get that using domestic HiFi kit without dedicated subwoofers like the REL that i suggested. If you wire it up correctly you will spare your stereo speakers from having to reproduce low frequencies any more and they will perform much better with the mids and highs that they are more suited to.

ey up  jules 500 to 1000 id say mate

i think the main problem i have is the eq but with it it sounds wonderful.....i went to a mates with one of those subs....his sub cost around 300 quid and honestly mate his sub dosen't even come close to the bass my system puts out......mind you im not sure i can run a sub nick...i need to check....mind you it is a power amp so it should do

You probably need to make your own for power

most speakers are not made for alot of high power

and they will blow

I made my own some years ago...i lent them to a friend temporally he then ended up in hospital spent 2 yrs in there and sadly passed away,,,anyway my point is i tried to get the speakers back as they were given to some other guy in my friends building but the barsteward wouldn;t give them back to me...they had 4 main drivers...just one driver cost £500...by god i wish i had them

Probably the BOSE 501 might work

there small and can handle some power 

and I see many for sale.

I think you misunderstand the type of subwoofer that I have suggested.

Typically in an A/V system where a multi-channel amp is used, a passive subwoofer would be used and this would be powered by the sub output of the amp. This is of no use to you.

Active subs like the REL are connected to the normal left and right outputs from your existing power amp. The low frequencies are then separated and amplified by the sub while the mid and high frequencies are sent to your stereo speakers. Therefore you only need your normal left and right channels from your Technics amp to make this possible.

You will be able to significantly boost your low frequencies without riisking damaging your other speakers but you have to ditch the equaliser.

You will just have to accept that the way you are doing things at the moment goes way beyond what domestic HiFi is supposed to be able to do and there will be casualties. You would be better off using a proper PA system and some serious stage speakers if you are intent on getting an ASBO!

You cannot achieve what you want with £500 - £1000. Good speakers that have big drive units are not cheap. Your amp needs to keep them in check else they will just run away.

You will just get woolly uncontrolled flabby in accurate bass, you need a very good amp to control a good speakers with units that size. Your Technics are not going to do that.

Like a few people here have said you need a good active subwoofer.

Them Technics sbm500 looks like a cool design

replace the drivers with higher power drivers

but theres not enough tweeters and midranges

for high power

thats why the Bose 501 will be better.