Infinity RSe speakers/EMIT tweeter issue - need help!

[jpreza]

I picked up a pair of RSe speakers w/o tweeters for about $10 a year or so ago with the intention of finding a replacement pair of EMIT tweeters. Recently, I bought a pair of EMIT tweeters from a fellow AKer for a very good price. He tested them before shipping them.

I finally had a chance to hook them up and was listening to my favorite classic rock station here in Chicago. I noticed that no sound was coming out of the L tweeter and I thought WTH?! I rechecked the speaker cable as well as the speaker connectors on both my receiver and the speakers themselves. The tweeter setting knob on the back of both speakers is set to center. I also deoxit'd everything as well. Still same issue.

As a last resort, I swapped the tweeters from one speaker to the other, and the tweeter that was on the L channel now is working fine on the R channel. I removed the tweeter and the woofer on the L speaker to check the connection - I could feel the foam and the connectors back there and as far as I can tell, everything is connected.

I'm not sure what to do next. Need advice! I'll post pictures in the morning.

TIA....JP

 

[jpreza]

UPDATE: From reading other AK threads, it appears that I may need to recap these speakers. I'll need to open them up to double check the capacitor setup. I've read that in some cases, it is a single 9.5uF cap, but in others, there may be 2-3 caps set up in series or parallel. Does that make sense?

 

[goodolpg]

I always start with cheap and easy.
Is the fuse good? "looks good" isn't enough. Either replace with a known good fuse or swap the fuse from the working working cabinet to the other speaker. Can check fuse with a multimeter as well.
Are the fuse holder terminals tight against the fuse (making solid connection).?
You could try wiring the EMIT directly to the speaker wires USING CARE not to let the wires touch each other (shorting out and you'll have even more issues). With low bass and loudness settings, at low volume, just long enough to hear if the EMIT is working. It may sound "odd or scratchy" since there is no midrange or bass playing. And using a multimeter you could also make sure the EMIT is good. 3.2 to 3.6 readings are "normal" resistance (ohms) readings.
Looks like there might only be one cap according to Klaus's website? Recap would be easy enough though you may have to rip the crossover out (it may be stapled and glued to the cabinet) or remove the woofer and replace the cap through the woofer opening. Not fun but canbe done.
Good luck.

 

[jpreza]

I always start with cheap and easy.
Is the fuse good? "looks good" isn't enough. Either replace with a known good fuse or swap the fuse from the working working cabinet to the other speaker. Can check fuse with a multimeter as well.
Are the fuse holder terminals tight against the fuse (making solid connection).?
You could try wiring the EMIT directly to the speaker wires USING CARE not to let the wires touch each other (shorting out and you'll have even more issues). With low bass and loudness settings, at low volume, just long enough to hear if the EMIT is working. It may sound "odd or scratchy" since there is no midrange or bass playing. And using a multimeter you could also make sure the EMIT is good. 3.2 to 3.6 readings are "normal" resistance (ohms) readings.
Looks like there might only be one cap according to Klaus's website? Recap would be easy enough though you may have to rip the crossover out (it may be stapled and glued to the cabinet) or remove the woofer and replace the cap through the woofer opening. Not fun but canbe done.
Good luck.

You were right! From a distance, the fuse looked ok but on closer inspection, the fuse was blown. For some reasons, I'm all out of 1.25A fuses, so I'll need to go and buy some and report back.

 

[MarkRSIIIa]

Buy a couple, there still may be an issue inside. Also use a little sandpaper on the connectors.

 

[goodolpg]

You were right! From a distance, the fuse looked ok but on closer inspection, the fuse was blown. For some reasons, I'm all out of 1.25A fuses, so I'll need to go and buy some and report back.

Cool. Glad it was cheap and easy! Those 1.25 amp fuses used to be hard to find, they still might be. Several AK'ers substitute 1 amp fuses as they are readily available and potentially offer quicker protection if something is amiss.
Make sure you get 120V fuses. Auto repair places may have the correct amps but may be only rated for 12 volts which is the standard for automotive systems.

 

[jpreza]

Here are pictures of the original speakers before the upgrade. One question I have is why the EMIT cavity is different between the two. I'm wondering if the original owner did it or was it like this from the beginning?

 

[goodolpg]

How far apart are the serial numbers?

 

[MarkRSIIIa]

I restored a set of RSa's and they looked like they were a demo set or something they were so different. They also had one with a backer plate behind the tweeter and one was missing and it was not in the box. You could tell by looking at the back side of the board with a mirror where it was. You're gonna want to reinstall that. If not air will be sucked in around the tweeter causing vibrations or even a whistle sound. You are also going to need to put a blob of plumbers putty where the wires come through the hole for the same reasons.

 

[goodolpg]

OK, a thought just entered my feeble brain...there were two EMIT styles that had different depths, due to magnet thickness I think. 490124 is one example of the thin EMIT. I'm also pretty sure My .2 Infinitesimals use the thin EMIT and they have a solid backing plate. The two wires go through a small hole with some putty, possibly for sealing purposes I guess.
I wonder if the cab with the backing plate used the thinner EMIT? Is there a thicker EMIT in there? If yes that would blow that theory.

 

[jpreza]

OK, a thought just entered my feeble brain...there were two EMIT styles that had different depths, due to magnet thickness I think. 490124 is one example of the thin EMIT. I'm also pretty sure My .2 Infinitesimals use the thin EMIT and they have a solid backing plate. The two wires go through a small hole with some putty, possibly for sealing purposes I guess.
I wonder if the cab with the backing plate used the thinner EMIT? Is there a thicker EMIT in there? If yes that would blow that theory.

Both of my EMIT tweeters are the thin type. Therefore, I'm not sure if it'll make a difference based on the fact that the depths are different because the speaker serial numbers are non-sequential - 9315485 vs 9319342, so almost 4000 difference in the series.

 

[goodolpg]

I like a good mystery. And I don't have a good answer for the difference in the cabinets. Maybe someone will know.
4000 difference is probably weeks apart in production. Maybe.
I do wonder if a "regular" thickness EMIT would fit in the cabinet with the blocked off EMIT opening.
It's been talked about on AK about OEM crossovers differing from the "Official schematic" whether due to revisions or parts on hand during assembly.
One of the strangest things I've seen was a pair of crossovers for sale on ebay, Infinity used the black crossover plate that had let's say RSe printing and simply flipped it over and used it for lets say an RSa's. I guess Infinity didn't want to waste that black sheet of plastic. Odd for sure.

 

[jpreza]

I like a good mystery. And I don't have a good answer for the difference in the cabinets. Maybe someone will know.
4000 difference is probably weeks apart in production. Maybe.
I do wonder if a "regular" thickness EMIT would fit in the cabinet with the blocked off EMIT opening.
It's been talked about on AK about OEM crossovers differing from the "Official schematic" whether due to revisions or parts on hand during assembly.
One of the strangest things I've seen was a pair of crossovers for sale on ebay, Infinity used the black crossover plate that had let's say RSe printing and simply flipped it over and used it for lets say an RSa's. I guess Infinity didn't want to waste that black sheet of plastic. Odd for sure.

I like a good mystery too so I hope someone comes forward with ideas. What is interesting also is that I bought these used for a whopping $10 off FB marketplace a year or so ago. The seller said he had no idea what had happened to the EMIT tweeters. This tells me that he bought these off secondhand probably at a yard sale or even GW. The woofers are in excellent shape and most likely were refoamed at some point.

 

[goodolpg]

It would seem the surrounds must have been replaced if they are in good working condition, that's good so hopefully you won't have to worry about that for a while.

 

[jpreza]

I restored a set of RSa's and they looked like they were a demo set or something they were so different. They also had one with a backer plate behind the tweeter and one was missing and it was not in the box. You could tell by looking at the back side of the board with a mirror where it was. You're gonna want to reinstall that. If not air will be sucked in around the tweeter causing vibrations or even a whistle sound. You are also going to need to put a blob of plumbers putty where the wires come through the hole for the same reasons.

Are you the author of the video? Whoever did it provided a good tutorial on the restoration of the Infinity speakers.

 

[MarkRSIIIa]

It's mine and thanks. I did a whole series on my Infinity's and Infinity connected projects a couple years back. Really liked the way the RSa's turned out. I had a lot of parts left over and they were free 20+ years ago. I left them sit in a closet even though I could have used a couple parts out of them over the years, I never touched them, so they were still all there. It only took 20 bucks and some time to restore them when I did. No reason to leave them in the closet anymore.
Couple things about your project. Why the tweeters are/could be broken, the diaphragms are 40+ years old and in most case the metal strips come off the Milar and break or maybe someone just cranked it up too much and smoked them. They are not indestructible. One thing to consider is they are being sold on eBay and unlike us in the past, your diaphragms can be replaced for 50 bucks. I dusted 2 in my RS-IIIa's and just got the replacements Friday.
As for the thickness of the tweeter(s), I have the little chrome, the round black and the gray ones and they are all the same thickness (chrome are only slightly thinner). So they would all fit.
My set of RSa's were not close in serial numbers. I figure they were a demo set. Even the grill material was totally different from each other but still that Infinity brown. The speakers and crossovers matched but I could see the missing backer plate was there before and needed to be reinstalled with plumber putty behind the tweeter. Any air that seeps in or out alone will make the woofer not act right in what is supposed to be a sealed box and like I said before the metal tweeter plate is screwed to an imperfect wood board and can also vibrate or whistle. Its a simple fix.

 

[jpreza]

It's mine and thanks. I did a whole series on my Infinity's and Infinity connected projects a couple years back. Really liked the way the RSa's turned out. I had a lot of parts left over and they were free 20+ years ago. I left them sit in a closet even though I could have used a couple parts out of them over the years, I never touched them, so they were still all there. It only took 20 bucks and some time to restore them when I did. No reason to leave them in the closet anymore.
Couple things about your project. Why the tweeters are/could be broken, the diaphragms are 40+ years old and in most case the metal strips come off the Milar and break or maybe someone just cranked it up too much and smoked them. They are not indestructible. One thing to consider is they are being sold on eBay and unlike us in the past, your diaphragms can be replaced for 50 bucks. I dusted 2 in my RS-IIIa's and just got the replacements Friday.
As for the thickness of the tweeter(s), I have the little chrome, the round black and the gray ones and they are all the same thickness (chrome are only slightly thinner). So they would all fit.
My set of RSa's were not close in serial numbers. I figure they were a demo set. Even the grill material was totally different from each other but still that Infinity brown. The speakers and crossovers matched but I could see the missing backer plate was there before and needed to be reinstalled with plumber putty behind the tweeter. Any air that seeps in or out alone will make the woofer not act right in what is supposed to be a sealed box and like I said before the metal tweeter plate is screwed to an imperfect wood board and can also vibrate or whistle. Its a simple fix.

Thanks for your input. For your speaker where the back plate was missing, it appears that you were able to find it inside the speaker, is that correct? I didn't find anything inside of mine so I'm not sure what to do. I understand that for the other speaker, I can use the plumber putty once I pull the cables through.

 

[MarkRSIIIa]

The backer plate was not inside the box of mine (I think someone was screwing around inside over its history) but I could tell that there used to be one there by the chunked out wood on the backside of the hole for the tweeter, where it was broken out. Put the chunk of wood back in even if it's just so the speakers match. As I said it's a simple fix with any chunk of wood and a little liquid nails.

 

[jpreza]

The backer plate was not inside the box of mine (I think someone was screwing around inside over its history) but I could tell that there used to be one there by the chunked out wood on the backside of the hole for the tweeter, where it was broken out. Put the chunk of wood back in even if it's just so the speakers match. As I said it's a simple fix with any chunk of wood and a little liquid nails.

Ahh! Gotcha now. I have some plywood and a drill. Just need head to Home Depot or Lowes to buy liquid nails. Thanks again. I'll keep you posted.

 

[jpreza]

UPDATE: Got some liquid nail, used my saw to cut some plywood and attached it to the inside of the speaker. I need to let it cure for 24 hours before drilling the hole for the tweeter wires. I forgot to pick up plumber putty but I believe I have some in the house somewhere .

Once that is done, I need to stain the speakers (already sanded them). I hope to have this project completed this weekend. I will post pictures once it's completed.