newbie buys Maximus speakers at GW. Any info?

[TechRocks]

well, here's some more picks to follow...I did find that both tweeters do not work...what's more likely the problem...drivers or caps? Can I use Deoxit on the volume control in hopes that the tweet will come back to life? The mid sounds very sweet indeed...too bad there's not optional remote available

 

[budgetaudio6]

belated welcome...could be the caps gone dry...

 

[TechRocks]

caps?

so what caps should I use...is there a particular brand/manufacturer...and who sells them other than Radio Shack?:scratch2:

 

[johnda]

Parts Express, Dayton caps. You can order them online. If you get inside, try to read the values. The Daytons will be for a higher voltage rating, but it's the capacitance value you need to match. I used them to fix my Nova 8 speaker and the sound is beautiful!

 

[1newbe]

Well, a month or so ago I picked these up and since I cannot take the grills off (short of destroying them with a screwdriver...any tricks here?), i would like for you guys especially oconnorweb since I believe that I have these...never have posted before but I feel we all have an affinity for this stuff...will try to post pics...

Frames look stapled on, see the holes on the baffle. Use something much thinner than a screwdriver and lots of patience. Had a pair of dynacos that were glued, wasn't as big an issue as the grill cloth was torn and toast, had to rip the cloth off and work the frame off with a razor blade and thin piece of metal. Hope you dont have to go to such an extreme as your cloth looks good. Good luck

 

[budgetaudio6]

Before you get into cap replacement. See if you can get the tweeter out. If not, try alligator clips on the tweeter terminals and use a battery to see if they make scraping noises when you scrape the wires on the battery terminals.

 

[michiganpat]

so what caps should I use...is there a particular brand/manufacturer...and who sells them other than Radio Shack?:scratch2:

where are you located? if you're in MI, I recommend erse pulseX from meniscus in Grand Rapids

http://meniscusaudio.com/capacitors-c-101.html

 

[TechRocks]

caps?

I'm in central Texas...hope to try the posted methods...thanks a lot guys! I have a couple of speakers to fix-up...Some month prior, I scored my ultimate score...I acquired 4 Sony ss-m9b's...the mid's are shot and finding original ones might prove very difficult, as will finding a suitable replacement driver so i will just enjoy them as they are for now...as soon as i am able, i'll post pics of them.

I'll work on the Maximus first, then some Boston Acoustics 150's that need re-foaming. Thanks again guys...keep the friendly advice coming

 

[TechRocks]

Maximus24 update...

did the removal of the grills...quite a PITA but carefully did it and saved the grills...future audiophile helping out...the other was asleep on the job

 

[TechRocks]

Maximus24 update...

Very interesting setup on the drivers...pretty cool orange dome on the midrange...only expected one tweeter but it seems this has a supertweeter as well

more pics included...

 

[toxcrusadr]

Those look soooo...1972? Which is not an insult by any means. There were a lot of manufacturers around that time making these kinds of speakers. Heavy particleboard cabinets, real walnut veneer, decent but not high end drivers, usually not much of a crossover, and fairly uniform grille cloth. I had a pair of Utahs (a better known name perhaps but same style). I've seen various ones go past on AK. They were often sold regionally by chain stereo stores. Gotta love the cabinets!

Good luck with em.

 

[TechRocks]

Maximus24 update...

So, can any of you guys id the supertweeter? I now noticed the number and letter. I had no choice but I had to take out the woofer...notice the stamp on the pic...wonder where these guys got their stuff...pics to follow.

 

[TechRocks]

Maximus24...caps/crossover

So here's where the fun starts! I did the best i could trying to find the cause of the tweeters not working...my real question is whether I should replace all caps or just the grey one...if you see the gray cap, the ends seems to have buckled...the gray one says...Temple, 25v 2MFD, non-polar T245, Japan...the other blue one says (i think they are identical but will check it out) 25v 4.7 uf, non-polar, Japan...there is a local electronic store, Altex, i will check if they carry Daytons...any help here is truly appreciated.

I am also thinking in-terms of upgrades...seems like overkill but I'm already here ...if you guys have any ideas, please share them...pics to follow...

 

[TechRocks]

Maximus24 update...

Here's the woofer and the stamp on it...pic to follow

 

[toxcrusadr]

Square magnet, deffly a CTS woofer, some of those were pretty nice and a LOT of speaker makers used CTS drivers.

Replace both the caps, they don't cost much and will usually make a huge difference. The 2.5 is for the tweeter, the 4.7 goes to the mid, I would guess. Problem with a local elec. shop is they probably won't have a nice film and foil audio grade cap. It'll be cheap stuff, it will work, but why put in an 89 cent cap when you can have a really nice one for $2, since you're going to the trouble anyway. That's the way I look at it. But, the cheap one won't hurt anything, and it will keep the bass out of your tweeters, so it will prolong the life of the speaker.

 

[TechRocks]

So are Daytons the way to go...or do you have any you can recommend...you are right on the earlier comment about the cabs...theses things are as solid as a rock!

 

[toxcrusadr]

The Dayton metalized polyprop are fine for mid-level speakers and are less expensive than the film and foil. That's what I'd use.

Since the caps are mounted right on the drivers it appears that's pretty much it for the crossover. You could always put a higher quality crossover in, with some inductors to make it a 2d or 3d order, but OTOH it can take quite a bit of engineering to get that just right. You can always mess with that later if you want to. If you just want to get these running to listen to them, rather than take up tinkering in a big way, just replace what's there and you'll notice an improvement.

 

[TechRocks]

Dayton caps

thanks for the input...just ordered these through Parts-Express so they are on their way!

In the meantime, I will be putting in the re-foamed woofers on my A-150's...can't wait to get all my stuff going

 

[frankxbe]

Square magnet, deffly a CTS woofer, some of those were pretty nice and a LOT of speaker makers used CTS drivers.

Magnavox and Klipsch. come to mind There were many others using them and O.E.M. too.

 

[KingKoopa]

I just bought a pair. Maximus 2.2. No markings on the drivers. Small 2-way, 6 1/2" woofer. Sounds really good.