Paper or plastic?

curtpenn

Member
As previously reported, I cleaned all the pots on one of my mute Q2s this past weekend. Got motivated to do the other one last night and am pleased to report that everything is now functional! That said, I have a pair of poly Watkins woofers donated by a buddy who was parting out his 2.5s a few years ago that I recently refoamed. I installed it in the cabinet I reworked last night. Haven't had the time to listen closely yet. Hoping to get to this weekend. Just wondering if there are any opinions here about the pros and cons of switching to poly?

Pics of the inside of one pot before cleaning and the two Q2s:

 
That white vinegar sure does work on those pots doesn't it. Beatiful Pair of Speakers!

I'm kinda knowledgeable but others here are much wiser than myself. That QLS original Woofer should be a dual voice coil 2/4 ohms. The 2.5 should be the same. And they're all foam to the best of my knowledge so performance wise I'd think your good to go with either one. Should be good with whatever you can match one to the other.
 
I listen to both but not in the same speaker. Tend to think the poly is supposed to be better but to tell you the truth in a blind test I doubt I would tell the difference. Millersound rebuilt two pair of Watkins for me. Replaced the old damaged paper cone with new modern paper cones. Also replaced the spider and surrounds, balanced the cones, shimmed the magnets and dampened the baskets. It was a lot of work for what they charge. Anyone with clapped out Watkins woofers should send them to him for a complete rebuild.
 
Infinity insisted that there was no difference in the sound of the poly vs. paper. However many people have a favorite. When I spoke with Bill Watkins Jr. a few years ago, he indicated a preference for paper...

Compared to some I've seen, those pots were pretty clean!
 
So, I decided yesterday to put my other poly woofer in the Q2. Was really surprised that it wouldn't fit as it was about .125" larger in diameter than the existing paper woofer. Couldn't get it into the bezel. Then noticed that my two "original" paper woofers have different sized magnets. The serial numbers on the cabinets are 7101981 and 7102435. At the moment, just have one of each. Can't really hear any difference, so guess it doesn't really matter. Just annoying.
 
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