# Looking to build a set of speakers...



## seabisquit2 (Aug 18, 2008)

I would like to build a set of speakers, just to say I built them. I have several projects, (3)amp repairs, (4) receiver repairs, (4) sets of speakers to replace crossovers in. I am just crazy about the thought of doing these repairs and projects, mainly for therapeutic reasons and self gratification rewards and some to sell to upgrade my system. I am always looking for things like this to do. Right now I have started a very demanding project in Downtown Atlanta (JOB), that may curb my personal projects for a while but I will document and share as time allows.

Rick


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## Mike Cason (Mar 17, 2007)

*Re: Your future projects.....*

Rick,

Congrats on your new job! Keep the Home Theather Shack Forum handy because we have a bunch of fellows here that love to prey on newcommers; I mean, help everyone we can! :nerd: 

I'm a member in many forums, but the folks here are the best and so this is where I spend most of my forum time. We have a very wide variety of forum topics availble to assist you and some extremely knowledgeable folks who have been building speakers for a long time, that are anxious to jump on your questions like a pogo stick. :jump:

Beleive it or not, Les Paul at his age, is working on a new pair of ears with I beleive 11 different companies to assist those of us who have abused ours for so long and can't hear very well. He won't put his name on the finished "Les Paul hearing aid" until he's satisfied with the final product. I don't think they will have an xmax of much more than 33 mm. 

Take care, and welcome to the forum.

Mike


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## seabisquit2 (Aug 18, 2008)

*Re: B & O Redline 60's for sale.*

Just for giggles, I do have a pair of Klipsch KG 3.2 That I would love to get back in the lime-light. I would like to replace the caps on the crossovers. What are the best caps on the market to replace these with to make them sing again¿¿¿ It is my understanding that the original caps were, well, trash for a lack of a better word. This would be my first solder and replace job. I do have a new (Fluke 179 multimeter) that I am just learnign to use. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Oh and thanks for the warm welcome,
Rick


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## Mike Cason (Mar 17, 2007)

*Re: B & O Redline 60's for sale.*

Hey again there Rickster.....

Open up your speaker and find the values of the capacitor. ie 6.8 uf, .50 uf, and so on.

Go to www.partsexpress.com and look up Jantzen or Solen under the mfg column on the left side of the page. Either capacitor will do a fantastic job. Don't buy the cheapies. Stay withing a 10% tolerance of the ones you have removed and you should be ok. You can even parallel two of them (not series wired) to get the value you need for a single capacitor. Purchase a "pencil" type soldering iron and good audio grade solder, lead free. They are both very reasonable.

Soldering is as easy as pulling a tooth from a great white shark at 20 ft in the dark......nothing to it! :unbelievable:

They also make a squeeze bulb that when you heat the solder up, you compress it and suck the liquid solder right off of the joint. (Not the one you rolled this morning). You can bump the crossover on a hard surface lightly while the solder is in the molten state, and most of it will come off.

Simply insert the new cap into the hole left behind from the removal and use just enough solder to make a good connection. It doesn't take much. It should have a shiney finish when you are done. Capacitors go in either way, so you can't screw that up. Leave plenty of lead wire on the capacitor for your first time doing it in case you have to re-attempt this feat. I always secure my capacitors and xover parts with a hot glue gun, and others like to use wire ties.

Here is a crossover I upgraded on some Bang and Olufsens I picked up. Take one out, and put the next one in. Your old caps may say 60 or 100 volts, but don't pay any attention to that. The higher voltage ones work well and afford more protection.

Hope this helps you on your first voyage....:T
Mike


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## seabisquit2 (Aug 18, 2008)

OK, this is the deal. I had my Klipsch KG 3.2's hooked to my Marantz 2215B fro a short period of time. The sound was incredible. after a few weeks the bass sounded muddy. I was told to replace the capacitors as this may be the culprit. I searched far and wide for a place to replace these and I found one (Audio Lab of Atlanta), they build speakers. After talking to them they said that it did not sound like the caps to them because the original caps that were on the board were very good poly caps and the likelihood of them going bad were slim. They told me that if anything I should replace the electrolytic one (purple). So I bought these yellow ones and replaced before I read your reply today. They also told me that there is a chance that the woofer is just old and died¿¿¿¿. If this is true, what is a good replacement woofer for this enclosure?
Oh yes and the surounds are in excellent condition.


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## Mike Cason (Mar 17, 2007)

First off, I would borrow another receiver to make sure that isn't the culprit. You might take them to an audio store or a friends house too. If you feel it is the drivers, you should contact Layne Audio to see what they offer. I have a bunch of other links, but try them first. They also provide crossover upgrades if the parameters don't match the rest of the drivers:

http://layneaudio.hypermart.net/

Let me know how it works out for you...:jiggy:

Mike


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