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Question for you speaker junkies SWR related

Discussion in 'Amps and Cabs [BG]' started by lowfrez, Aug 8, 2003.

  1. Aug 8, 2003 #1
    lowfrez

    lowfrez Guest

    Aug 15, 2001
    the castle of aaaaaaaaaagghhh
    Hey all,

    my rig: swr 8x8 and swr sm400s

    Had alittle problem with my rig this week, i played a few outdoor shows where my amp was going pretty strong, but (no clipping) it was going thru the front end and i was just able to hear it.

    Anyway we had alot of extention cords and the power was being split up alot and i think the voltage was going below 120.

    then, in the middle of the set my speaker started making a scratchy sound when i hit low notes.

    turns out it was just one speaker, poped the grill off, pulled out the speaker and one of the connections was severed. It was the braided cable that goes from the speaker cone itself to the connection on the speaker connection.

    I was able to fix the problem, by using a electrical gator clamp and clamping the severed wire back together.

    also, can this be repaired easily, i'd like to take it to be fixed by a pro.

    I'd just like an explanation of what you guys think happened?

    thanks in Advance,

    Gary
     
  2. Aug 8, 2003 #2
    brianrost

    brianrost Gold Supporting Member

    Apr 26, 2000
    Boston, Taxachusetts
    Those small wires can come loose due to vibration. If they actually BREAK you can completely lose the signal, if they just tear sometimes thy rub against the cone (sounds like the speaker is blown) or you get intermittent signal.

    I've had this happen a couple of times. It's not super common but not really unusual either.

    It probably is not related to any abuse of the speaker.
     
  3. Aug 8, 2003 #3
    Mcrelly

    Mcrelly

    Jun 16, 2003
    Minnesota, USA
    did it break at the solder connection? bad solder connection. when you were first describing your symptoms I thought "oh, no he warped is voice coil!" bad voice coils will "scratch" and probably not make much music.

    if the wire just needs to be reconnected to the terminal, ask an electronics friend who knows proper soldering techniques to help you resolder it. it is possible to solder wires improperly and not get good connection. ask him if he knows what a "cold solder joint" is, if he doesn't find someone else. You DON'T want a cold solder joint. if the wire broke in the midde of the strand or near the cone you might want to take it to a pro-audio repair shop.

    Swr stuff is too good to do a half-a$$ed repair.

    good luck
     
  4. Aug 9, 2003 #4
    lowfrez

    lowfrez Guest

    Aug 15, 2001
    the castle of aaaaaaaaaagghhh
    The wire broke in about the middle of the wire,

    I fixed it with a small gator clamp for now, but it was only making the scratching noise when the wire was just bearly touching it, and not when it was fully unconnected. I'm guessing that was the noise of the bad connection.

    There's no other damage to the speaker, and when i clamped the wire back the thing sounded as if brand new.

    I know about sodering and cold soder, but i'm not sure i can do a good job in the little space in that 8" woofer, and i'm gonna take it to a pro ASAP.

    thanks for the replies guys

    Gary