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What to do with a bad GK NEO speaker?

rocksmoot

rocksmoot

Mar 7, 2013
360
111
Tontitown, Akansas, USA
reverbnation.com
#1
My GK NEO 410 "developed" a bad speaker last week. :) The annoyingly hideous distortion led me to inspect the drivers and a simple cone push-test revealed one with a rubbing voice coil. Since the cabinet is about 3 weeks out of warranty, I ended up purchasing a new one from GK's online store, thus inflicting considerable pain on my wallet but succeeded in restoring the glorious tones to which I've grown accustomed.

Now I have a bad speaker laying about that I'm reluctant to simply throw away. In its own way it is quite beautiful, a work of functional art, and I'm wondering what I should do with it. Is there some kind of recycling option available, or should I bite the bullet and re-cone to have a spare?

What would you do?
 
#3
rocksmoot said:
My GK NEO 410 "developed" a bad speaker last week. :) The annoyingly hideous distortion led me to inspect the drivers and a simple cone push-test revealed one with a rubbing voice coil. Since the cabinet is about 3 weeks out of warranty, I ended up purchasing a new one from GK's online store, thus inflicting considerable pain on my wallet but succeeded in restoring the glorious tones to which I've grown accustomed.

Now I have a bad speaker laying about that I'm reluctant to simply throw away. In its own way it is quite beautiful, a work of functional art, and I'm wondering what I should do with it. Is there some kind of recycling option available, or should I bite the bullet and re-cone to have a spare?

What would you do?
Click to expand...
If you have a young son, or some other boy in your life, give it to him. Talk about a great big smile! He'll get that magnet out of there somehow.
 
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#5
Neo magnets are very strong. You can put it on the end of a stick and use it to pick up nails out of your driveway, etc.

While you're fashioning that, you can methodically cut the speaker apart piece by piece and get/give a lesson on how speakers work.

The rest of the frame could become a potted plant holder, lampshade, or anything else a creative mind sees in it.
 
#6
When I swapped out a speaker in my 112 cab a few weeks ago they gave me a break on the price for sending them back the old speaker. Otherwise I would have thrown it out or tried to sell for $5 to someone that wants to try to fix it.
 
#7
socialleper said:
When I swapped out a speaker in my 112 cab a few weeks ago they gave me a break on the price for sending them back the old speaker. Otherwise I would have thrown it out or tried to sell for $5 to someone that wants to try to fix it.
Click to expand...

I didn't think of that, great idea. Wish it had occurred to me before I bought the replacement. Those babies are pricey.
 
#8
will33 said:
Neo magnets are very strong. You can put it on the end of a stick and use it to pick up nails out of your driveway, etc.

While you're fashioning that, you can methodically cut the speaker apart piece by piece and get/give a lesson on how speakers work.

The rest of the frame could become a potted plant holder, lampshade, or anything else a creative mind sees in it.
Click to expand...

That would go great with my toilet bowl planter.
 
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#15
BassmanPaul said:
Aaaahhh! The voice of reason from SoCal. If in doubt get a gun!! :(

I'd call GK and see if they offer a re-cone service. They make their own drivers so I would think that getting one re-coned would be a reasonable thing to offer.
Click to expand...

I'm thinking that this is the route I'm going to go. I can't imagine it being much less than a new speaker, but I can't help feeling that it would be an awful waste to toss the bad one. I mean think about all the engineering and industrial effort that this poor little stricken speaker represents!
 
#16
If you want to save the planet, the voice coil will likely be copper, possibly aluminum, the frame will be either aluminum or steel. You can take those to a scrap metal yard/recycler. You might get enough to pay for the gas you burned driving over there....or not.

Or just give it to a homeless guy to turn in with his beer cans.

You can keep the cone to cut up for shims to use on bass and guitar necks.
 

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