do not buy any used speaker 'loaded' with anything. that of course goes for shipping as well. at best, the change in sound is subjective (moving the speakers may accomplish the change...and its lighter), and you hurt or impare future resale /shipping. the concept is dated, infinitely flawed (the arguments over what to fill it with have been around for decades)....all totems play quite well without going there as well as countless others. |
You make a good point, and I agree.
What I was wondering is if there is way to safely remove the mass, specifically from a totem sttaf, in oder to restore the speaker to 100% of its original condition preferably before shipping. |
. . . well I disagree with "do not buy anything" just because it was loaded. I own a pair of Totem Sttafs which is my second pair. The first pair I bought new and on the advice of Totem I loaded them (per spec'). When I upgraded to Mani-2's I sold them. Removing the loading is fairly easy. It requires removal of the loading compartment cover (a piece of tape) and laying the speaker on its back so the fill material can pour out. In my case I used lead shot and it ran out easily and completely into the bin I placed under the speaker. There was no damage to the speaker and noone would have noticed there was ever anything in them.
I recently bought my second pair (because I really missed the first) from the original owner who like me loaded them with lead shot. He too removed it prior to shipping.
the drivers or anything else. The only risk is if you drop the speaker. And there is a slight chance of tape residue being left on the veneer.
Removing kitty litter may be a little more difficult but I doubt it. Realise there is a separate compartment sealed off from the speaker enclosure for the loading material. There's no way for it to contaminate
Sttafs sound great when they're not loaded, but better when they are. Further, they are less tipsy when loaded.
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The last time I checked, Totem recommends loading speakers like the Arro and Sttaf. Having the seller remove the sand, kitty litter -- whatever -- is no big deal and certainly no reason not to buy. |
While any improvement in sound is ultimately subjective, I have owned Arro, Staff and Forest. ALL of them clearly benefited with mass loading. And this improvement was audible not only to me but to audiophile friends of mine, as well as my non-audiophile wife and kids. The benefits far exceeded what I was able to accomplish with tweaking speaker placement or even speaker cable upgrades.
And I agree that while taking the loading material out is a bit of a hassle, it should not be particulalry challenging. |
Rather than dumping it out risking possible damage to the cabinet why not use a shop vac which would certainly be cleaner more efficient in removing all the litter and minimize the mess and dust caused by dumping.
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why not use a shop vac for kitty litter, I agree this would be a better method. Probably more thorough and lower risk of dropping the cabinet. The only problem is the hole is smaller than most vac hoses, so you'll need a reducer. This wold work with sand too, but obviously not shot. |
totem also recommended 'beaks'...yeah, right. |
Yeah, beaks and mass loading are kind of the same . . . |
Be sure to impress on the seller that the removal of ALL the mass loading material before shipping is important.
A 25% full compartment is worse than a 100% full one. Think of the pile driver effect as the fill material moves around. They'll also cost less to ship if completely empty. |
Is the load compartment completely isolated from the rest of the cabinet on the sttaf?
If so, I don't see any issue with unloading at all, the issue becomes quite trivial actually. |
Is the load compartment completely isolated from the rest of the cabinet on the sttaf? yes, it's a separate chamber at the base of the speaker. It's purpose built for loading, and you're right - it's a trivial concern. |
A few specs of residual kitty litter doesn’t weigh much, I would not worry about it. As long as there sealed up appropriately.
"totem also recommended ’beaks’...yeah, right."
The beaks can make a dramatic difference. I hung around while a friend tuned his sttaf’s long after they endured plenty of break in time. Then beaks were installed. Unlike a lot of flashy gimmicks they are one of those things that just work. After beaks were installed they were partially loaded with Sudbury nickel.
dfelkai I recommend trying both, beaks and mass. Run them bare until you get accustomed to them, then do a before and after. Don’t fill them up at one go. Gradually load, test, repeat. When you pass an obvious sweet spot remove a little. Weighing each time you add makes it easy. |
Pretty sure that ship has sailed. The OP asked the question seven years go. But as long as we're on the subject almost all speakers have way too much filling inside. Most speakers sound much better with the bare minimum fiberfill, wool, what have you. Besides, Beaks aren't really mass loading, as it turns out. They are a point where resonance can escape the cabinets. |
Vac it off whatever remains. Plain and simple. You can also bring it to any automotive or tire shop so they'll stick blower in the port and blow it all out.
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I haven't experience with cats much -- mostly birds, but my question would still be as follows:
Less-likely cat will go into the speaker port to do his/her litter business, but what if mouse gets there? Is it possible? They might leave some feces for sure there...
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