Mach One help...

[dorsett33]

I just picked up a pair of Mach 1's--the 4029 version and the woofers were all rusty, moldy and contained no foam surround because it had deteriorated. When I pulled out the woofer the back said 6ohm on both. I thought the 4024's were 8ohm and the 4029's were 4 ohm??

I plan on getting two new woofers from PE.

Finally, what can i use to replace the stinky, moldy yellow insulation that was in each speaker? Thanks again!

 

[MAXZ28]

Got any attic insulation laying around?

 

[Dan ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ]

Pink Panther or yellow attic insulation will work just fine and better than fiberfill in my opinion.

 

[Copa1934]

Pink Panther or yellow attic insulation will work just fine and better than fiberfill in my opinion.

+1, there was a thread where an AKer posted scientific tests demonstrating the effectiveness of the products and preferred fiberglass.

dorsett, have you checked CL or esteal first? Originals can still be had fairly cheap. Sometimes already foamed, though I'd rather do my own, which I have like 4 or 5 pairs now.

As for impedance, early were 8 and latter were 6 ohm. Check out this dedicated link before diving into any fixes, corrections, repairs etc. http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=261425

 

[rmeade]

there is a lot more on Mach 1 4029 on AK, use search. why do you think that the woofers can not be repaired ($30 for surrounds) and that a replacement is needed ($160)?

This is about DIY (do it yourself).

Mach 1 are good speakers and deserve a rehab, but be cautious on investing a lot of money. This is true on any speaker. The goal is high sound quality for dollars invested. The Mach 1 are at a sweet spot in the market, demand and price are low compared to sound quality delivered (always subjective assessment). If you start pumping money into these you will never be able to recover it. If, however, you take the DIY route you can definitely improve sound quality for modest investments.

 

[dorsett33]

Regarding Esteal and CL--I looked around....found nothing really.

I thought I could use attic insulation--just checking with the 'pros' fist.

Good point Rmeade although the brand new replacement is on sale for $59.95 over at Parts Express. Guy on phone said they will be on sale till they sell out...no longer will be stocked.
Finally, which 15" replacement woofer would I get from PE if I went that route...the 8ohm or the 4ohm since mine were 6ohm. Thanks again for the quick replies!

 

[dorsett33]

On the back of the speaker it says "Input 8 ohms" but there was a 6 ohm woofer inside each?

 

[dorsett33]

Now you all have me thinking...maybe I just will refoam these 6ohm woofers. I did my Mach II woofers with no problem. Came out nice.

Question: how do you get this black plastic ring/bezel off that is around the metal woofer without breaking it? Seems like it has small plastic rivets holding it in place or something. Before I go and break it I figured I would ask.

 

[RS Steve]

Just had my modded 4024a mach 1s hooked to my pioneer SX1080 and was spinning some old albums, Steve Miller (fly like an eagle) Eric Clapton, Aerosmith, sure was sounding great.

The machs are sure worth fixin up! :thmbsp:

 

[zoomie]

Go with a dayton classic woofer its cheaper and has better specs, unless your a pureist then the pe replacement varient works well. Use poly fill to replace the old stuff its easier and makes the bas less muddy

 

[Copa1934]

Now you all have me thinking...maybe I just will refoam these 6ohm woofers. I did my Mach II woofers with no problem. Came out nice.

Question: how do you get this black plastic ring/bezel off that is around the metal woofer without breaking it? Seems like it has small plastic rivets holding it in place or something. Before I go and break it I figured I would ask.

First remove the plastic retainers on the back, gently. Then pry the ring, it's usually glued on to prevent vibration. Again, go gently. Most of mine were relatively easy but one was rather stubborn and took more patience.

I believe VL suggested the 8-0hm version as it DCR's closer to the 6-ohm and doesn't impact the xover as much.

 

[dorsett33]

So how exactly do you remove these plastic retainers?

 

[dorsett33]

Used very small flat blade screwdriver to pry up the retainers. Now its the old glue thats a pain!

 

[Copa1934]

Used very small flat blade screwdriver to pry up the retainers. Now its the old glue thats a pain!

Different methods. Last time I pried them up from the inside edge, where the surround would have been. If you can manage it you can run a utility knife under the frame, being careful not to cut the pins off for the retainers. You can also tap, lightly, on the lip of the trim piece from the backside of the woofer. In this case it helps to have an extra set of hands or something to hold the woofer into position.

It is a PITA, but if they hadn't glued those buggers on they would have vibrated like crazy. I didn't reinstall mine when I re-assembled them. Actually, I believe I couldn't due to the dimensions of the surround, but not positive on that one.

 

[dorsett33]

Thanks for the help Copa. One off, one to go.

What did you use for woofers?

I plan on refoaming these but it could be a real PITA getting off all of this old glue and re-gluing them.

 

[Copa1934]

Thanks for the help Copa. One off, one to go.

What did you use for woofers?

I plan on refoaming these but it could be a real PITA getting off all of this old glue and re-gluing them.

Excellent. OK, everyone has there own technique, but here goes. With the Mach's in particular I run a utility knife, almost flat, under the surround. Then with the woofer face down and part of the edge hanging over a counter (table, desk, whatever works) I use the same utility knife, again almost flat with the cone, and scrape the surround off with outward strokes. I try to keep the knife at an angle such the blade edge almost faces outward, not perpendicular with the cone. The idea is to scrape and not cut into the cone. I've also had the edge at a 90 degree angle to the cone and scraped away the surround. It helps to have cotton balls or facial pads (like used for cleaning off makeup) with alcohol or nail polish remover to clean the blade frequently. If you don't the blade, or whatever you use, will become very sticky.

For cleanup I use cotton swabs (Q-tips) and nail polish remover to remove the residue left behind.

If you haven't done this before, go to youtube there are many really good vids with great tips and examples. Some you may want to avoid, BUT make good examples of what NOT to do. Also, if you can dig into a speaker that is not salvageable, maybe something cheap from a thrift store or maybe a friends blow driver from their car.

 

[michiganpat]

Now you all have me thinking...maybe I just will refoam these 6ohm woofers. I did my Mach II woofers with no problem. Came out nice.

Question: how do you get this black plastic ring/bezel off that is around the metal woofer without breaking it? Seems like it has small plastic rivets holding it in place or something. Before I go and break it I figured I would ask.

the plastic rivets pull/twist off. the ring is also glued around the perimeter. take a utility knife around the perimeter between the plastic and metal basket to cut the glue and then it'll pop right off.

Fiberglass is much better at lowering system Q than polyfill, so use regular house insulation, and stuff it a little heavier than stock. also, do all the VideoLady tier 1 mods as documented in the big Mach 1 thread.

 

[dorsett33]

To quote one of my favorite bands...

"The Time has Come Today!"

Never before seen, all three of the Mach Series speakers together in one picture!

ENJOY!

Im in the process of performing VL's mods to the 1's, thus the missing woofer which needs to be refoamed.

 

[Copa1934]

To quote one of my favorite bands...

"The Time has Come Today!"

Never before seen, all three of the Mach Series speakers together in one picture!

ENJOY!

Im in the process of performing VL's mods to the 1's, thus the missing woofer which needs to be refoamed.

I think you should have turned the volume down before blowing the woofer entirely out of the cabinet! Hmmm, I'll have to post all my Mach's for fun. I know where a pair of Three's are but haven't been able to make contact with the owner.

El Tres Amigos! Aha!

 

[dorsett33]

I just couldnt turn these down! With the original boxes and a 10-band realistic graphic equalizer. My CL score of the month.

In great shape overall....just the typical surround foam rot so I will refoam these and possibly do VL's mods.

Turn it up!!