I was trying to find the crossover frequency. They are either a 3 or a 3.5 way. The mid-woof is quite large making me think the woofers are cutting over early.
Major Contradiction, Can you replace foam surrounds with Rubber Surrounds on Speakers ???
Hi Guys, I have a major
conundrum to decide, and need the experts in the community to help. I have the Wilson Watt Puppy 6's and have 4 woofers that need re-foaming.
Here's the issue, First, according to Wilson, I had called 2x(at different times) and asked to speak with a speaker engineer, Both times the knowledgeable staff member that answered the phone said that wasn't possible, but would relay any message to them on the spot and get back with me while I hold. My question was: Can you replace the foam surrounds on the Wilson speakers with Rubber Surrounds . After waiting on hold for about 5 minuets, he said "yes, you can",
I Then proceeded to call the well regarded Miller Sound in PA, who is recognized to one of the best in the Industry to do the replacing of speaker surrounds. I proceeded to ask the same question to him, and he said, "No, & that it would change the sound of the speaker and to only redo them using foam surrounds to preserve its original sound quality" . I see no other supporting evidence one way or the other on the net. What do you folks say and please elaborate one way or the other to help me justify my decision. Thank you, Rich
Here's the issue, First, according to Wilson, I had called 2x(at different times) and asked to speak with a speaker engineer, Both times the knowledgeable staff member that answered the phone said that wasn't possible, but would relay any message to them on the spot and get back with me while I hold. My question was: Can you replace the foam surrounds on the Wilson speakers with Rubber Surrounds . After waiting on hold for about 5 minuets, he said "yes, you can",
I Then proceeded to call the well regarded Miller Sound in PA, who is recognized to one of the best in the Industry to do the replacing of speaker surrounds. I proceeded to ask the same question to him, and he said, "No, & that it would change the sound of the speaker and to only redo them using foam surrounds to preserve its original sound quality" . I see no other supporting evidence one way or the other on the net. What do you folks say and please elaborate one way or the other to help me justify my decision. Thank you, Rich
Showing 5 responses by dletch2
If I remember, the woofers on the Watt Puppy's cross over at quite a low frequency (pretty much subs). Changing to rubber is likely to have pretty minimal impact on the performance because of the function of the surround at those frequencies. Keep in mind it was already likely working fairly well with old degraded foam which will be nothing at all like new foam. Most newer foam is much better with UV inhibitors to reduce degradation if you stick with foam. |
You got some GREAT advise from a professional rebuilder, why are you asking. You got some generic advice from a rebuilder who probably did not consider how the product was used in application, in your specific model of speaker. Great rebuilder. I have used them myself a few times. Does not change the validity of the answer. When you asked Wilson, did you communicate which model of speakers you were trying to repair and what drivers in that speaker, or was it a totally generic question? If you asked specifically, then the answer has a lot more merit than generic. Whatever you change to, it is going to change the sound from home they sound today. Period. |
Using much more concise language and detail, erik communicated what I tried to above. At resonance (QMS) for a woofer, the spider, conductivity of the former, etc. are dominant. Push the woofer to the upper end of its frequency range and that changes, and for high frequency drivers, it can be critical across the range. Think of a simple filter. At 1/10 the cutoff frequency of that filter there is no impact. As you approach the cutoff, the impact is noticeable. |