• The move to the new server is done. There are some software and database maintenance updates in process. This has us passing the hat around to help out. We appreciate any donations. Seriously, even a dollar helps. The payment page may be found here - https://www.audiokarma.org/support.html

Is it normal that all my vintage speakers have died on me in last 2 years

G

G7Trader

Active Member
Nearly Every speaker I have brought in last two years has died on me.

My Beovox P30 one woofer started making distorted sounds, got it replaced.

My Beovox S45 same issue.

My Beovox S75 a tweeter has gone completely dead and remaining 3 tweeters in the pair are sounding a lot less trebly. I did a nichicon full recap a few months ago.

A DIY Kef Concerto came with a distorted woofer.

Is this normal? Are vintage speakers very unreliable?

I have found when i sell speaker parts on ebay they usually fly out the window.
 
Register to hide this ad
Not enough info.
Are you buying used or new speakers?
How do you listen?
What amp are you using?
How much power?
How loud do you play your system? (Wide Open often?)
Loudness and bass/Treble controls set flat or boosted?

Are you playing video game audio or Movies through your system?
Are you playing your electric Bass, Guitar or Keyboards/Synth through your stereo system?
(sorry, have to ask)
 
I've been using various vintage speakers for many years, and the only ones I would call unreliable were Magnepan MG-IIb, with the corrosive glue.. I've also had some woofers where the glue holding the spider in place let loose, and caused a buzzing sound. As a general rule, vintage speakers are very reliable given proper care and feeding.
 
Have all of these been used with the same amplification? Maybe you are passing excessive DC current?
 
40 years old B&O....
I hope my M70's stay ok for a while.

Having all loudspeakers from same brand and era makes the chance of them dying within the same time period bigger......
 
Sandstrom said:
Have all of these been used with the same amplification? Maybe you are passing excessive DC current?
Click to expand...


You mention in your other thread that your Pioneer amp running on one channel is getting hot. Yes, amplifiers do get warm - or even hot - but "hot" is a subjective term.

If all of these speakers failed on the same amplifier, I would look into servicing the amplifier. Oscillation could also damage speakers and cause overheating issues.
 
Stop using Beovox :-)

Are you matching impedance etc correctly or just driving them too hard ? If the latter, why not consider adding a sub to your rig to take some of the bass duties off the vintage speakers ?

I've had many pairs of speakers from the 70s and early 80s and none have died on me. Many were in need of refoam etc when I got them but once done they performed fine.
 
Sandstrom said:
Have all of these been used with the same amplification? Maybe you are passing excessive DC current?
Click to expand...

^ This. The only speaker I killed was my own idiot fault. I hooked up some JBL LX44s to an amp I had just acquired to test it in a hurry. My mistake, immediate excessive DC output killed both woofers. Live and learn.
 
I read the title of this thread and immediately thought DC offset from the amp. I also saw the other thread where your amp isn't even functioning on one channel anymore. I would wager the non-functioning/out-of-spec amp is killing your speakers.
 
The first step is to stop running all. Do a dc offset test on your amp/amps/receivers. If offset is bad, do the adjustments necessary to return to spec. If offset is good, the question is what is the wattage of the amp/amps in your system? A low wattage amp is more likely to be driven into clipping, which, like DC volts, can kill a speaker dead as a doornail. Are you running more than one speaker per amp? Is the speaker running in parallel or in series? Report back on these questions and let's see if we can get you squared away and safe for your speakers. There are threads here on AK that will tell you about this stuff. Do some research and update your knowledge. Fill us in on your level of knowledge at this time.

bberkom beat me to the offset question. He is just so fast.
 
KingBubba said:
The first step is to stop running all. Do a dc offset test on your amp/amps/receivers. If offset is bad, do the adjustments necessary to return to spec. If offset is good, the question is what is the wattage of the amp/amps in your system? A low wattage amp is more likely to be driven into clipping, which, like DC volts, can kill a speaker dead as a doornail. Are you running more than one speaker per amp? Is the speaker running in parallel or in series? Report back on these questions and let's see if we can get you squared away and safe for your speakers. There are threads here on AK that will tell you about this stuff. Do some research and update your knowledge. Fill us in on your level of knowledge at this time.

bberkom beat me to the offset question. He is just so fast.
Click to expand...
Hey, I wasn't the first to mention DC offset. Just the first thing I would check if my amp was frying speakers!
 
Well....let's see. The woofers in speakers with relative low power handling are buggered, and the tweeters are buggered in the pair having greater power handling.

I've drawn a different conclusion than either DC offset or oscillation.
 
I've never had problems with my S75's and I've cranked them several times, even with their original notorious crossovers.

There's more going on here than just "failed old speakers". I think the OP needs to provide more details...
 
As for those asking is it my Pioneer SA-9500 II no I only got this a few weeks back.

I was using a Rotel RX-602 on all of them.

I used the SA-9500 II on the beovox about 2 weeks ago and the tweeters sound dull.

A week before that I connected 2 speakers to a Rotel RX-802 then a 3rd 4 ohm subwoofer speaker in the third speaker slot and blew the amp maybe this has effected the tweeters, 1 tweeter dead, remaining 3 not as trebly this one might be my fault.
 
AK prevents you from posting too fast so that bots can't be used to attack the site (I assume).

As for 'dropping the kids off at the pool', thanks for sharing...I guess? o_O

@whoaru99: Were you going to share your conclusion or wait for the OP to take another dump first? :dunno::rflmao:
 
Oh, I almost forgot: Have a dozen pairs at least of vintage speakers, they never die except for a blown tweeter in a very demanding speaker that overloaded an underpowered receiver.

Are your older speakers recapped? Drifted caps put tweeters at risk in particular.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom