Restoration Tips 4: Speaker Repair

[blackjack6934]

Great. video, I'm getting ready to fix a 12 inch 1937 field coil speaker. This helps a lot.

Thanks

[bandersentv]

@blackjack6934 Good luck!

[o0DeathStrike0o]

My plug(speakers jack) fails,i have two subwoofers,one failed on left side and one failed on the right side,how do i fix it?now my two woofers have only 1 speakerjack left of each :( HELP!

[bandersentv]

@o0DeathStrike0o Maybe clean the jack contacts or re-solder the connections to them. If the jack contacts are broken, you may have to replace the jacks.

[o0DeathStrike0o]

@bandersentv could they burn out?cuz i like to listen to the music wery loud :)

[bandersentv]

@o0DeathStrike0o i doubt it unless they used jacks or wires they aren't rated to handle the power you're putting into them.

[LordNikonPL]

i have paradigm monitor 9 150W speakers and i burned my coil in tweeter second time with a 100W amp 85% listening to music. I dont want to spend mone on a serwice. coil is good but solder from coil to wire is damaged. how to fix it ?

[ashebiara10]

@bandersentv

then i guess it should be ok .. i just saw a bottle of clear tacky glue in my mom's sewing desk and i don't see much diference so i will give it a try and see how it turns out .. the only thing that worries me is that the material of the cone seems to be much harder that the one on the speaker in your video because it's from a bass guitar cab.. i don't know if the coffee filters that you are using on this video will work in my situation...

[ashebiara10]

is there a diference in using the clear tacky glue instead of  the one that you are using in your video ?? is the clear one suitable for this kind of application ??

[bandersentv]

@ashebiara10 Sorry, I don't know. I've never tried the clear glue.

[cheechandchongarebro]

lol you said t bag

[oblivikid]

hi i don;t know if you can help but i have a pair of mezzo 2's and the woofer on the right speaker does't produce sound but the tweeter does i don't play them loud so do you know what has happend thanks

[bandersentv]

@oblivikid if you have an ohmmeter, check the woofer's voice coil for continuity. It may be open. If it is, maybe a wire broke loose and you can solder it back on. Otherwise, you may hove to replace it.

[oblivikid]

@bandersentv thanks i'll have to check!

[eschelar]

That is really cool!

Very nicely thought out.

I'll be using some coffee filter on some nice large cabinet speakers I got recently as a gift. 2x15 plus a mid and a tweeter in a 4 foot high box. Yum.

[mostwantd1]

Nice job. Are you the janitor from scrubs? You sound like him. :P

[iorixs]

wow! nice job!

[jks2]

you can laquer the conus as well to make it stronger

[Thermionman1970]

Hello! I have a 15 watt alnico speaker that I got off ebay with the same kind of huge hole .I will eventually have it reconed but I want to try this method and see if it will work okay first.Cool!

[bandersentv]

@Thermionman1970  Good luck. That's exactly the idea I was trying to get across. This repair technique doesn't eliminate the need to recone. It's just a quick, simple, cheap way to get a speaker going again.

[suikoden1995]

Yes that´s rigth but this is cool too. J collect very old radios that´s the reason why I ask. Do you know in which this "device" was????

[suikoden1995]

Do you know how old this very old speaker is (that´s the first generation of speakers)

[bandersentv]

@suikoden1995 Yes, it's from a 1931 Westinghouse WR8. It's fairly early as field coil speakers go, but there were earlier types like moving iron horn.

[codyiscdr]

t bag lmao

[FANTonsil]

Person or whoever you want to be called.

Listen if you paint the membrane wih this kind of paint it will definitely increase the xmax lowering the power of the cone. Anything to say to that?

[bandersentv]

@FANTonsil This is an 80 years old speaker with brittle cone paper and leather surround patched with paper and glue. I don't think a thin layer of water based acrylic paint is going to have any effect.

[FANTonsil]

@bandersentv I will bet my head it will. It always does. unoticable to the ear but definitely shortening the lifespan of the speaker. IT must be a high quality driver if its kept that long

[xboxfaceplate]

just buy a fucking recone kit well in this case throw that fucking shit in the garbage

[bandersentv]

@xboxfaceplate Apparently the concept of repairing valuable antiques is lost on you.

[xboxfaceplate]

@bandersentv there is no fucking money in it so what the fuck is the point

[bandersentv]

@xboxfaceplate A fully restored WR8 can fetch $1,000.

[hydrolisk1792]

Wow, that is freaking amazing jwhat you did with that speaker. I love seeing you restore things insted of throwing them away :) I used some Duco cement on the westinghouse speaker insted oif replacing it. It turned out really nice too :)

[HDXFH]

Is that wood glue, i know if you mix that with water, you can do a similar thing, thanks for the vid, i have a set of old speakers, i would like to restore

[bandersentv]

@HDXFH I used Aleene's Tacky Glue. It's designed for use with fabric and stays flexible.  I've heard Elmer's white glue works well too. Good luck.

[GrandCaravanSE]

Wow, you just gave me a reason to not throw away speakers with holes. I am going to try this next time. where did you get that glue?

[bandersentv]

@GrandCaravanSE Joann Fabrics. You can get it at Michael's too. Probably any fabric or arts & crafts store will have it.

[GrandCaravanSE]

@bandersentv Thanks, i can't wait to get a damages cone to try and Fix it.

[4evaclapham]

I admire your ingenuity and perseverance, most modern day people would simply give up and dump the speaker. well done !!

[bandersentv]

@4evaclapham Thanks! I should have mentioned in the video that this is a fairly uncommon 1930 RCA field coil type speaker from an even less common Westinghouse WR-8 Columnaire radio. Definitely worth preserving.

[aoxilus]

I mean, why not to buy the CONE on ebay?

[bandersentv]

@aoxilus I wanted to preserve the original leather surround and paper cone.

[aoxilus]

@bandersentv Oh that is cool

[aoxilus]

why not just to replace everything? goto to ebay.com

[bandersentv]

@aoxilus This is a rare speaker from about 1930.  I've only seen one of them in the last couple years on ebay. It sold for over $100 plus another $30 or so for shipping. They weight about 25 lbs!

[someofem]

This is good stuff. Thank you man. I am a guitar repairman and needed a few tips on damaged speakers. I had a beautiful old Electrovoice that slid slightly as I was ready to mount it in a cabinet, cone went face down over edge and tore it severely. I used a little silcone and even with the missing pieces it still sounded good, both with guitar and in stereo! Now I can take it the rest of the way with the patches. Black silicone is a good adhesive and also has lots of give to it when set. Thanks!

[Restomanas]

Thanks you really help me. i have really old speaker and i trying to fix him

[bandersentv]

@Restomanas You're welcome - glad I could help.

[BlokeFromBattersea]

Oh no - this will not work - coffee filters??

[bandersentv]

@BlokeFromBattersea Sure it will. It's a traditional repair material. Empty tea bags and tissue paper work well too. You just need something lightweight that the glue will bind too.

[BlokeFromBattersea]

Oh no!!

[acidfriend47]

hey by the way

Is it possible to Connect to different speakers together?

I mean I have the Right and left Speakers, but I dont have a subwoffer with the same brand of speakers.

But i do have this other brand of subwoffer, but is it possible to connect it to the two speakers and still work properly?

[acidfriend47]

okay I'm guessing they rip because they are old and because the music is loud. but once its ripped how do you know if its best to repair the speaker than to buy a new one?

[bandersentv]

@acidfriend47 Often rips are caused by someone poking a tool, screw or finger through them. Very easy to do when working on old sets.

This first couple speakers I show are 3.2 ohm PM speakers that could be replaced with modern ones fairly easily. However, that last one is a field coil speaker. If you want to use a modern PM speaker, you'll have to modify the radio which I really hate doing. Another option is to have the speaker professionally re-coned.

[BrunoDzogovik]

Very nice and more simple than I expected.

[darbits2009]

good job men!!!!

[ZmajSnoshaj]

Masterpiece... I'll use this method to fix the cone on mine..

Thankfully there's no gaping holes like on the one you demented on...

I'll get around to that one of these days....

[MrMrshl]

Hi,

Thanks for this video, just tore a vintage celestion g12 taking it out of its cab. Much appreciated !

[sweetgunsling]

thanks this help a lottt

[dstonz]

Big help on this. Poked a hole in my Jackson TV speaker, found your post on VideoKarma and followed the link. Thanks!!!

[ClactonRadio]

Good video but think it would just be way easer buying a new one.

[bandersentv]

Where are you going to buy a new field coil speaker for a 1930s radio ? Occasionally a used one shows up on eBay, but expect to pay big bucks for the nicer ones.

[cvwtzhaar]

Hi, what kind of Transformer is that? did you say Iso Tech?

Where can I get one? Can it be used all the time with an old radio?

I have a restored RCA 29K, Could I plug the radio into that sort of transformer so I can run the radio at 110 volts? all the time?

Thanks

[bandersentv]

Hi,

It's an RCA WP25A ISOTAP. I suppose you could run it all the time - I only use it while working on radios that need a lower voltage or isolation protection for hot chassis.

A less expensive option is to use a 'bucking transformer'. Try search the Internet and you should find several simple circuits.

[rusholmemike]

nice vid

I have used the same basic technique of PVA type white glue and patches - I've never needed a real big section and thought your method of creating a new one from the existing come was just great.

I also found on some old speakers with rubberised surrounds liquid latex glue "Copydex" brand in the UK is also useful

thanks for the upload - really enjoyed it

[bandersentv]

Glad you liked it. This old Westinghouse speaker has a leather surround that was kinda dried out. I used a little Kiwi leather lotion on it and it seemed to revive it a little.

[bandersentv]

Thanks!

I get nervous too - ya gotta show that HV some respect.

An ARF (antique radio forum) member recently scored some industrial grade wax and sent me a couple pounds. It's great stuff for recoating old parts so they don't arc.

I hope your set really does work. To some folks "work" just means the tubes light up and it hums ;)

[umajunkcollector]

I have some frenz that are into model car kits. I was thinking restoration is simular. It's an ART. I like your speaker cone fixes, coffee filters, great idea. I have not done old TVs yet, mainly rekee players and radios. I get nervous around those Horizontal circuits, not experianced with HV.I remember as a kid that flybacks would go bad, especially in RCA sets. Wax and heat = troubles. I'm gettin my first old 50s Admiral this week, I heard it works too.

[bandersentv]

Thanks! I'm starting on fixing up the cabinet now. This is the most damaged set I've ever worked on.

[benno6664]

awesome work dude