Poll

Woofer blown in one side, tweeter blown in the other, do I?

Swap drivers to make one really fantasic speaker. The other one, not so much.
3 (13.6%)
Plug in old Silicon Chip half and third octave EQs until the Mic reports a flat EQ.
0 (0%)
Figure out the Q of the boxes and and see if anyone on the forum can help source replacement drivers.
4 (18.2%)
Stop being a cheap bastard and spend money on some new gear.
15 (68.2%)

Total Members Voted: 22

Author Topic: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.  (Read 4041 times)

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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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[ Specified attachment is not available ]I've got a pair of Energy brand speakers from 199? They have mostly preformed more than adequately above the desk at shitpost central.

They have served their master well. However they seem to have endured one too many mix-down. I'm sad to see them go. But like all good things, well, you know how it is.  :(

The company that produced these 20-25 years ago, unfortunately, is not the same and seems to offer no support or even a close to direct replacement or parts.

I welcome any suggestions some new and fancy but I have a wishlist this time:

Port front facing not rear facing.

Slightly bigger enclosure and woofer. There was a larger model I wished I had bought.  :'(

Passive. If you suggest a active (and likely noisy) speaker, I will swear at you and call yo mama what she is.  >:(

Looking for mid price range. Not cheap rubbish. Not boutique nonsense either. Something decent that might last another quarter century.



« Last Edit: March 07, 2022, 06:33:36 am by Ed.Kloonk »
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Offline Muttley Snickers

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #1 on: March 07, 2022, 07:15:27 am »
I have a set of black front ported Wharfedale Diamond 8.2's you can have, the woofers are both good but too muddy for my liking and one tweeter doesn't work, it measures open so probably requires replacement. These speakers have bi-terminals and a bridging link.

If your cabinets are in good order I would recommend just getting some replacement speakers, Radio Parts used to have a good assortment. You should list the dimensions of replacement woofers and tweeters in addition to your location for postage calculations.
 
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Offline magic

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #2 on: March 07, 2022, 07:58:49 am »
Voted 1 because zero clue about speakers repair but I know there are recordings in mono out there :D
 
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #3 on: March 07, 2022, 08:03:47 am »
Voted 1 because zero clue about speakers repair but I know there are recordings in mono out there :D

 ;D

George Martin, Bless him. All that remastering. He reckoned that the mono ones on the early ones are the shit.
 :-+
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #4 on: March 07, 2022, 08:06:13 am »
Wouldn't It Be Nice (Mono) - The Beach Boys

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Online MarkF

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #5 on: March 07, 2022, 08:53:59 am »
I have a set of Polk Model Nine floor speakers from the late 1970's.
They have one mid-range and a soft dome tweeter in the front, three mid-range speakers and a passive woofer in the back. 
They stand about waist high and you place them about 12" from the wall to get the reflection correct. 
They are comparable to the Bose 901's for half the cost.

They lasted for about 20 years until the foam mounting around each cone of the mid-range speakers fell apart. 
I was able to find replacement mid-range speakers and they've been good ever since.
All eight of them bad.  You don't have anything to complain about.   :-DD



Last year my Pioneer 1010 receiver (100W per channel) went out.  No more tunes for me...  I suspect it needs re-capped.
« Last Edit: March 07, 2022, 08:55:50 am by MarkF »
 
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Online themadhippy

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #6 on: March 07, 2022, 11:31:05 am »
Option 7- spend more money than a  new pair and getting the existing drivers reconed
 
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #7 on: March 07, 2022, 11:53:00 am »
Option 7- spend more money than a  new pair and getting the existing drivers reconed

Yes, I want this approach. Would like suggestions for something new and nice.

Fixing the woofer is a possible but finding a new pair tweeters that will drop in without needing to mess the x-over too much if there's a nasty notch, I dunno. Might fix them up for a rear-setup Floyd session.
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Online RJSV

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #8 on: March 07, 2022, 02:55:39 pm »
  Off the wall variant:
   I'm thinking old school GUITAR AMP ...sincerely

What if you go in WholeHog, and find a couple medium sized BASS GUITAR AMPs, say having 10 inch speaker,
like a high school orchestra Bass player might exhibit.
Two of those, each are really really close, or maybe 3 inches taller/wider, it's more a cosmetic match left and right.
Tweeters, you could use ¢ 75 cent piezo elements schotch taped to whatever. But if that's at work, not living room, hmmm : skip the tweeter part, just buy a candy bar, if that's like, forklifts passing by the aisle etc
 
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Offline rdl

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #9 on: March 08, 2022, 05:21:02 am »
Maybe check at diyaudio.com If there are decent replacement parts available for your speakers, probably someone there will know.
 
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Offline twospoons

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #10 on: March 08, 2022, 09:03:42 pm »
How's your carpentry? You can build your own from scratch and get good speakers for reasonable money + a little effort. Oh, and bragging rights.
I built some floor standing 3-way speakers using Vifa drivers 30 years ago, and they're still going great.  Only one driver replacement - after my amp blew a mosfet and dumped DC into one bass driver.
diyaudio.com is definitely a good place to start.
 

Offline AlfBaz

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #11 on: March 09, 2022, 12:26:13 am »
I'm extremely sorry for mentioning the book of faces but I've recently been in the market for some full sized speakers, bass mid and tweeters and there's a good range of second hand ones on there for less than a hundred bucks, especially if you don't mind rough, dinged up enclosures.
Very local to me too, looks like there's a bloke in my town that has heaps of old hi-fi stuff.
You never know what's around the corner in your neighbourhood

<abe simpson rant>
A lifetime ago I use to source 10" etone speakers from a guy in Sydney, no more than a couple of 100m from central. 30 bucks a pop and they were great for refurbing guitar amps. Very punchy sound and on par with good old fender twin reverb amps
<end>
 
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Offline LaserSteve

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #12 on: March 09, 2022, 04:34:13 am »
Yamaha HS-7 or HS-8. Add center sub if needed.
Bit pricy..but Oh, what fun. I Have a pair for my personal stereo. When I need to mix or master something, or for small group at Church, or lunch party at work, I can grab and go.

Steve
« Last Edit: March 09, 2022, 04:37:31 am by LaserSteve »
"When in doubt, check the Byte order of the Communications Protocol, By Hand, On an Oscilloscope"

Quote from a co-inventor of the PLC, whom i had the honor of working with recently.
 
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #13 on: March 09, 2022, 09:28:17 am »
I have a set of Polk Model Nine floor speakers from the late 1970's.

Good 'ole Polk.

Starting to warm up to either Polk S20 or the R200. Can't make my mind up about which tweeter. I believe if I can give them a bit of clearance from the wall and be prepared to adjust it a bit, the rear port's OK. But we still call them 'book-shelf' speakers.  :-\

Still gotta do a few more calcs to figure placement/separation etc. Rough sums a few days ago indicated that the newly mounted 2nd monitor has to go and have a more normal side by side dual monitor setup. Booo.  :(

« Last Edit: March 09, 2022, 09:53:03 am by Ed.Kloonk »
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #14 on: March 09, 2022, 09:51:51 am »
How's your carpentry? You can build your own from scratch and get good speakers for reasonable money + a little effort. Oh, and bragging rights.
I built some floor standing 3-way speakers using Vifa drivers 30 years ago, and they're still going great.  Only one driver replacement - after my amp blew a mosfet and dumped DC into one bass driver.
diyaudio.com is definitely a good place to start.

I built a few in the late '80s. Back in those days I could pick drivers from spec sheets and build boxes to match the drivers and the room they were going into. We had a couple of shops that could supply all you needed (Jaycar and Altronics). They even had the inner cloth and grill fabric. Was so easy.

I used to do the x/overs myself and if need be with one rare stubborn case, add a notch filter. I never bought any Vifa drivers, but I got some pretty good results with well-chosen foam surround ones combined with mids and tweeters.

When the stubby, fat enclosures started to go out of fashion, I was happy that the newer, smaller woofers, doubled up could reach the lows and substitute the 12" and 14" monsters. Just as well, cos by that time I wasn't allowed to bring these 20"+ wide speaker boxes into the house.  :)

 :-[

I seem have nerded out. Sorry.  :)
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #15 on: March 09, 2022, 10:08:27 am »
I'm extremely sorry for mentioning the book of faces
Momma turn around a spit on the ground!

Quote
but I've recently been in the market for some full sized speakers, bass mid and tweeters and there's a good range of second hand ones on there for less than a hundred bucks, especially if you don't mind rough, dinged up enclosures.
Very local to me too, looks like there's a bloke in my town that has heaps of old hi-fi stuff.
You never know what's around the corner in your neighbourhood

<abe simpson rant>
A lifetime ago I use to source 10" etone speakers from a guy in Sydney, no more than a couple of 100m from central. 30 bucks a pop and they were great for refurbing guitar amps. Very punchy sound and on par with good old fender twin reverb amps
<end>

A few years ago I stumbled upon a really nice ancient Revox receiver/amp. Bit of a deceased estate sort of thing. I'm sure the person didn't know just what they had but understandably grateful to have matters taken care of.

A little bit of contact cleaner on the pots and matched up with similar vintage giant speakers, it found a new home in the workshop of a relative, who is grateful to have workshop tunes but surely also unaware just what he has. He's a fierce eBay-er, one day the penny will drop.   ;D
« Last Edit: March 09, 2022, 10:12:00 am by Ed.Kloonk »
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Online MarkF

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #16 on: March 09, 2022, 12:18:08 pm »
I have a set of Polk Model Nine floor speakers from the late 1970's.

Good 'ole Polk.

Starting to warm up to either Polk S20 or the R200. Can't make my mind up about which tweeter. I believe if I can give them a bit of clearance from the wall and be prepared to adjust it a bit, the rear port's OK. But we still call them 'book-shelf' speakers.  :-\

Still gotta do a few more calcs to figure placement/separation etc. Rough sums a few days ago indicated that the newly mounted 2nd monitor has to go and have a more normal side by side dual monitor setup. Booo.  :(

I bought my Polk's when I was in college.  There were two stereo stores in town about two blocks apart.  One had the Bose 901 and the other the Polk Model Nine.  I would go in one store and listen for a while, then run up the street and listen to the others for comparison.  Price one out.

The store with the Model Nine's one day had two pairs setup.  Two left speakers beside one another and two right speakers on the other side of the room next to each other.  The second pair made a hugh difference.  Much fuller.

As far as placement goes, I just moved them around till they sounded good.  Although, the difference is more imagined than actual.  Around 11" with a slight (5 degree angle) is where I ended up.  The wall material makes more of a difference.  For example wood paneling verses drywall.  They still sound like new today even with the replacement mid-range speakers.  I was able to find a local store at the time that was able to match the original ones.
 
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #17 on: March 09, 2022, 12:32:17 pm »
I have a set of Polk Model Nine floor speakers from the late 1970's.

Good 'ole Polk.

Starting to warm up to either Polk S20 or the R200. Can't make my mind up about which tweeter. I believe if I can give them a bit of clearance from the wall and be prepared to adjust it a bit, the rear port's OK. But we still call them 'book-shelf' speakers.  :-\

Still gotta do a few more calcs to figure placement/separation etc. Rough sums a few days ago indicated that the newly mounted 2nd monitor has to go and have a more normal side by side dual monitor setup. Booo.  :(

I bought my Polk's when I was in college.  There were two stereo stores in town about two blocks apart.  One had the Bose 901 and the other the Polk Model Nine.  I would go in one store and listen for a while, then run up the street and listen to the others for comparison.  Price one out.

Gotta ask. Did the 901's come with that [essential?] active eq in those days?
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Online MarkF

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #18 on: March 11, 2022, 11:21:50 am »
I don't remember the Bose EQ at all.  Is this what you are talking about?

At quick Google search:


"The EQ Box and The Moment of Truth

Because the Bose 901 makes use of nine full-range drivers, it takes advantage of an inline equalizer to make the speakers sound the way they are intended. Traditionalists, before you cry foul, think of the popularity of DSP-based speakers these days. Bose achieves a similar, if less sophisticated and considerably less-expensive effect with a passive EQ.  The manual states the EQ can be used with series V 901s, but earlier models require the proper box.

If you are using a receiver, the EQ must be placed in a tape-monitor circuit, or between amp and preamp if you have separates. The supplied pair of three-foot RCA patch cords gets the ball rolling. The EQ features a two-position button: position one offering a flatter response, and position two adding a slight bass bump, not unlike the loudness button on a 70s receiver. Finally, there are two sliding controls for mid-bass and mid-treble, the latter claiming the most control over the overall tonal balance."
 
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #19 on: March 11, 2022, 12:00:57 pm »
I don't remember the Bose EQ at all.  Is this what you are talking about?

I wonder if the EQ was snake oil. Of was the 901 just a glorified mid-range speaker.

Found this:
Quote
You can use the Bose without the EQ but they won't sound as they are supposed to.
If you can't find the Bose EQ for your series 901 then get any graphic equalizer and adjust the sound to your taste. Add bass from about 60hz down. Add high frequencies to taste. Boosting more than 3-6db isn't a great idea.   :palm:
To use any EQ you will need a way to connect it. Most AVRs will not have a place for you to do that.
https://forums.tomsguide.com/threads/bose-901-equalizer-needed.445482/

Plot thickens.
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #20 on: March 11, 2022, 12:06:36 pm »
The 901 Series 1 from 1968:

Quote
Electrically, the Bose 901 is rather inefficient, and the 18 dB of bass boost supplied by the equalizer requires huge reserves of amplifier power if loud low-frequency passages are to be played.

https://www.soundandvision.com/content/flashback-1968-bose-901-speaker-system
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Offline MK14

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #21 on: March 11, 2022, 03:37:42 pm »
Wouldn't It Be Nice (Mono) - The Beach Boys



No, BIG MISTAKE!

The solution is to use these:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/164401549165



Polished Lepidolite Tumblestone 15-25mm Reiki Chakra Healing Crystals

Put one in each speaker/tweater, it can take up to 3 months for the healing 'repair waves' to work.

Then listen to the 'Rolling Stones'. But please keep the volume down, or you will end up breaking the speakers again.

« Last Edit: March 11, 2022, 03:40:39 pm by MK14 »
 
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #22 on: March 11, 2022, 08:46:22 pm »
Make a grown man cry.

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Offline Jeff eelcr

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #23 on: March 12, 2022, 05:23:56 pm »
Bose also made a receiver with the EQ built in to it.
Jeff
 
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Offline Ed.KloonkTopic starter

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Re: Ed's new bookshelf speakers. Suggestions welcome. And a fun poll.
« Reply #24 on: March 25, 2022, 02:56:43 pm »
Moar Polkery..

Much want.
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