Totem Model One: Woofer buzzing, help please?


Hi I just got a pair of these >10 year old Totem Model 1s. I love the sound but there is this "buzzing" coming from the woofer when I play certain bass heavy tracks.

My amp is barely past 9.30-10 oclock position, so its not as if I am blasting it.

Considering the age of these speakers, Has my woofer blown?

Would a solution be as simple as getting a replacement pair of woofers and hooking them up?

If so,

a) Can I get them directly from Totem (I'm in asia and don't want to have to go to the "authorized dealer" who will most probably charge me an arm and a leg for the replacement parts)

b) Is it easy to replace woofers myself? I'm pretty handy, but if there is a lot of complicated soldering/other not so obvious things involved, it might be better to leave it to the pros.

Thanks :)
powster

Would a solution be as simple as getting a replacement pair of woofers and hooking them up?

Yes - provided you find the correct replacement woofer from Dynaudio. It is very easy to replace woofers in most speakers. I am not familiar with Totem One's but I expect is is a simple matter.

However, Dynaudio stopped selling drivers to DIY and hobbyists around 10 years ago - so good luck! Your best bet is probably Totem but it will likely be fairly costly as the reality is that it is expensive for boutiques to support a 10 year old product when they OEM all the critical bits in their designs. (Remember Dynaudio makes money on parts, Totem cannot sell you a replacement part at a loss - so they make money, and finally no dealer in their right mind would take some risk to help you for no profit. All this is necessary otherwise these people go out of business)

You may be able to find someone who can repair/rebuild the voice coils but I doubt it is worth it unless they happen to be local.

In the end it may be simpler to look for another used old pair on line. My recommendation to those making serious investments in high quality 10 year old used speakers is to check whether the company still supplies replacement parts...many do but most do NOT.
no dealer in their right mind would take some risk to help you for no profit. All this is necessary otherwise these people go out of business
You'd be surprised at how some high-end audio dealers/manufacturers are loyal to their customers, replacing broken goods at a loss or for no fee at all. If the companies in question have that "big box" mentality, than expect the @uck you treatment.
Thanks everyone so much for your replies :)

Anyway, I've emailed totem to see if they'll mail me a set of replacement woofers, if that doesnt work, i guess I'll have to go back to the local distributor...

One more thing though:

The buzzing doesnt ALWAYS happen. If i listen to regular non bass heavy stuff, the speaker sounds perfect, only specific tracks will the buzzing rear its ugly head!!

How do speakers usually react to bass heavy tracks? If it is NOT by buzzing, then I'll know for sure that the woofers have blown. Last thing i want to do is fix something that isn't broken :)

Any input would be much appreciated :)
Call Dynaudio, they may have stopped selling to the hobbiest market but they still provide replacement drivers for any speaker they have ever made. You will need the 6 digit part number on the back of the driver as well as the model #, which in the case of the Model 1 is the 15W75.