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IMF owners thread!

Graphicalman said:
Wow, that was a quick response.
I totally agree with you on hearing and have looked at the Falcon Acoustics website - in fact they are only a couple of hours drive from myself - I also noticed that the expense for the components is really affordable - perhaps this is something that I should undertake, however I will need a lot of advice on how to proceed and what it actually entails doing this modification/upgrade.
Now that you have triggered my curiosity about what improvements I will reap I can see that this is a project that will have to be undertaken, even if only just to satisfy my curiosity and to prove yourself correct.
Any guidance that can be given will be warmly accepted, thank you.
Graphicalman.
Click to expand...

I'll be happy to provide some advice to you. I'm at work so can't do a full write up at the moment but I will do one later.

For starters, do you have access to a solder iron and are you familiar with using one?
 
That would be amazing if you have the time and thank you very much in advance.
Yes, I do have access to a solder iron - in my teenage years I used to love undertaking Maplin's electronic construction projects, so yes I have experience of using one, although probably a little rusty but will soon get into the swing of it.
I look forward to hearing from you later.
Graphicalman
Graphicalman 0001.jpg
 
Hi,yes the recap will give you back the original.When you do it, make one speaker, for comparing the sound of recap speaker with the one with the old caps.And tell us your expérience. Best regards,Yvan.
 
Hello and good afternoon everyone,
Can anyone give advise if I am ordering the correct capacitor pack from Falcon Acoustics for my IMF TLS80 Mk I. I have selected the Alcap 2% plus the P/E capacitors as well - is that correct? See attached photo of the order.Capacitor Set.JPG
Thanks everyone, Graphicalman.
 
Graphicalman said:
Hello and good afternoon everyone,
Can anyone give advise if I am ordering the correct capacitor pack from Falcon Acoustics for my IMF TLS80 Mk I. I have selected the Alcap 2% plus the P/E capacitors as well - is that correct? See attached photo of the order.View attachment 954181
Thanks everyone, Graphicalman.
Click to expand...

That's the right kit. P/E means the polyester capacitors are included which, are not necessary, so you can leave those out if you wish. The only reason that is included as an option is if the ones you currently have are not working. Polyester capacitors typically last forever so yours should be okay, but may not be a bad thing to have as a back-up.
 
Hi and thanks for replying,
I will order them this afternoon so that I will receive them before the weekend - guess what I will be do this weekend!
Do you have any pictures or links which show what I am letting myself in for.
Thanks in advance, Graphicalman.
 
Graphicalman said:
Hi and thanks for replying,
I will order them this afternoon so that I will receive them before the weekend - guess what I will be do this weekend!
Do you have any pictures or links which show what I am letting myself in for.
Thanks in advance, Graphicalman.
Click to expand...

I used to have pictures but lost them some time ago. Below I will list the steps required to complete the task:

Tools/Parts needed:
  • Solder Iron
  • Solder
  • Solder Removal Tool
  • A cloth
  • Capacitors
  • Screwdriver
  • Needlenose Pliers
  • Brush with stiff bristles
Process:
  • First lay the speaker down on its back. The easiest way to complete the recap is by working on the crossover with it still attached to the speakers, so it may not be a bad idea to place the speaker on a table so you can stay seated.
  • Lay down the cloth near the Kef B139 woofer (the oval woofer). Unscrew the Kef B139 driver and place it on the cloth (so as not to scuff up the baffle).
  • The crossover unit is located behind the Kef B139, you will see it right away. It is glued onto the foam that you see - to remove it, you will need to carefully pry it off. The glue is quite old now (over 40 years) so it should come off fairly easily. Use the stiff bristled brush to remove the excess foam from underneath the crossover.
  • Next pull the crossover out of the speaker and leave the wires attached. The reason it is easier to work on it this way is because there are 12 wires in total and reconnecting them would be quite a tedious task, unless you are planning to replace all of the wiring.
  • Now begin replacing the capacitors. For soldering tips, I recommend watching YouTube videos on the subject. If you have something that you don't mind destroying to practice with, I recommend doing that first before working on the crossover. The only thing I will mention here is that the crossover is old, so you want to be careful as to not apply too much heat and lift the traces.
  • Once all the capacitors are in place, snip off the ends. Replace the crossover inside the cabinet, and fire it up for a test.
  • I recommend that you recap one speaker and test it against the original one so you can hear the difference for yourself.
  • The other capacitors are located on the speaker terminal on the rear of the speaker. Replace the Kef B139, and flip the speaker over. Remove the speaker terminal, and then replace the capacitors there.
That's about it for getting at the crossover. It's a pretty straightforward process, the only challenging part is the actual work itself as not removing the crossover from its wiring can make it a bit awkward, but very doable.

Let me know if you have any specific questions.
 
Hi, Thanks so much for the information, while awaiting parts I will study your guide thoroughly - I have ordered the parts and also a new de-solder iron (see picture) as I cannot find mine from years ago. I have set aside the weekend to do the work providing all parts arrive on time. Also I will take lots of pictures of my progress, but more importantly taking your advice, I will complete one first to compare the results.
Thank you again for such good advice, Graphicalman.
De-Solder Pump.JPG
 
Graphicalman said:
Hi, Thanks so much for the information, while awaiting parts I will study your guide thoroughly - I have ordered the parts and also a new de-solder iron (see picture) as I cannot find mine from years ago. I have set aside the weekend to do the work providing all parts arrive on time. Also I will take lots of pictures of my progress, but more importantly taking your advice, I will complete one first to compare the results.
Thank you again for such good advice, Graphicalman.
View attachment 954216
Click to expand...

Perfect, that will do the job. It sounds like you're set! I will be around for part of the weekend so if you get stuck somewhere and need pointers let me know. I'll be checking the thread. And of course others can chime in too I'm sure :)
 
Thanks for the encouragement to get on with the job and the offer of help if I get stuck. No doubt there are others reading our conversation and of course I will welcome any comments to date and in the future.
Graphicalman.
 
Graphicalman said:
Thanks for the encouragement to get on with the job and the offer of help if I get stuck. No doubt there are others reading our conversation and of course I will welcome any comments to date and in the future.
Graphicalman.
Click to expand...

You're welcome! I'm glad that you've decided to take the plunge as, IMF speakers are excellent and deserve the very best treatment. I consider them some of the best speakers produced in their time. They do many things right and I still have yet to hear bass reproduced as well as an IMF can.
 
Totally agree, that is why I have kept mine for 40 years and the reason why they deserve the very best treatment to celebrate their birthday.
Keep your fingers crossed all goes well - as they say watch this space!
Graphicalman.
 
Hello.
I got an old, beaten up pair of Super Compact II from a friend of mine, missing all speakers. B200 purchased from the Netherlands, tweeter, midrange and new caps from Falcon.
Unfortuanatelly the crossovers is missing the resistor. Does anyone know the value on this resistor? This is the only part missing from getting new life into what was considered dumpster material.
Thanks in advance from Norway.
 
Thank you Graphicalman.
Not the same crossover, a lot more parts on this, but I think the Studio Monitor got a switch on the crossover that my Super Compacts do not have.
I have compared my crossover with the supplied scematic, and my missing resistor must be the R3, 33ohms. This makes sence as my crossover parts had 33 ohms resistors (with some other values).
Now I can assemble the speakers back to its former glory.
 
Hi Mavesan,
Great news that you can complete the project and pleased that I was of some assistance.
Post some pictures if you have any and let everyone know how they sound when you have finished.
Graphicalman.
 
hi, just received the new copper foil inductor s (4) for each speaker, here some pictures.With this jumbo size I have to make the x over outside.Can't wait to hear the improvment over the original.They are 16 ga. 2 smaller size, 14 ga. 2 bigger size, compare to 22 ga. ?20170706_131411.jpg 20170706_131535.jpg
 
Hi, have to ajust all inductors to the originals specs,when you buy these foils coils they don't come with the exact specs, so I just order a inductance multimeter for adjusting all of them to the right number, I will take the resistance of original coil and compare with the new ones,this take time but with patience I will succeed.
 
Hi all!
I'm currently refurbishing a pair of IMF CM3's. Now that I was ready to put the drivers back in I found out that the foam surrounds of the 4/200 drivers had decided to tear :(
As I have a pair of spares I'd like to try and recone them as a try-out. Once I started I got annoyed by the dirt and dust the goo had attracted on the - always sticky - cone and had hoped to remove the dirt and dust to no avail. I've tried methylated spirit and contact spray but that didn't work. Does anyone with what I'll be able to remove it? I also read in a thread that Visaton sells the goo which I would want to reapply, as it seems to affect the (intended) sound. Does anyone know what it's actually called?
 
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