Fuzzy speaker

[charlie]

Hey guys,

Thought I would put this out there to see if anyone has had this problem, and hopefully get some advice on how to handle it.
The other night I was rehearsing some songs for Christmas gigs I had lined up when I heard a buzzing noise....kind of like when something is vibrating in response to a low frequency. Mind you, it was late...so the volume was not up loud. Nonetheless, I kept hearing the buzzing sound. I searched throughout the room to try and find the source of the sound. It wasn't until I bent down and heard the 18" speaker in my bass bin that I discovered the source of the sound. On certain low notes, the speaker was making a fuzzy sound. The bass notes were present but with a fuzzy sound...like I had a fuzz box on a bass guitar. So, then I used the eraser end of a pencil to lightly touch the speaker cone. It wasn't till I got to the dust cone that I was able to stop the fuzzy sound. The other bass bin sounded fine. I even swapped speakers on different sides of the amp to see if that would make a difference, but no difference. I lightly held the eraser to the dust cone and all the fuzziness stopped. What has happened here? Is the speaker getting ready to blow? Can I re-glue or silicone the dust cone to help with the fuzzy sound. One thread I read on another site recommended cutting a hole in the dust cone to alleviate the vibration and thereby stop the fuzzy sound. Or, do I see if the store I bought the bass bins from will swap me out for a good speaker? What would you guys do?

Thanks!

Charlie

[shyamwestwind]

I'm curious too and will wait, with you, for an expert's answer.

[JazzCat]

What ever you do, don't cut a hole in the dust cone. They are sealed to keep dust OUT. Even the slightest bit of dust in there will irreparably damage the speaker itself. If it turns out that it isnt 'broken' and in need of replacement now, it will be shortly after chopping a hole in it!

[thingyy]

My speaker maintenance.
Check cabinet for loose screws.
Clean and tighten springs on jack.
Check for poor or dry joints in soldering.
Check for debris on magnet cover.
Remove mummified vermin.{found a dead mouse in mine}
Clean folds in speaker with a soft brush.
Look for any splits in speaker around edges and cone centre.
If you find any damage use PVA glue and allow to dry.
If fault still exists get it re coned.

[JohnG]

Hi Charlie,

My guess is that Thingy's advice concerning PVA glue is the most likely to succeed from what you've said so far. But only a guess. But well worth going through his check list first.

You may need to squeeze some out (a little!) onto a piece of paper (I use tin foil) then using a thin needle (the kind used for darning socks) try to insert some around the edges of the dust cone. Try to be balanced with what you use, i.e. insert some on the left and balance the cone with a similar amount on the right, ditto top and bottom. Remember a little goes a long way with this stuff. Make sure you don't puncture the cone as you're doing it. I think I'd turn the unit on its back if that's possible. Check the drying time in the instructions before trying it out again.

But remember it's only my 2d worth.
I've never tried this repair myself.
Take care and good luck.
JohnG.

[thingyy]

Charlie,how did you get on with the speaker problems ? I would also suggest you swap amp outputs and leads to prove the fault.

[charlie]

Hey guys,

Thanks for all the info. I called the Peavey tech support folks and told them the speaker was still under warranty. I boxed it up and send it to them. I'm gonna let them figure out what happened with the speaker. Now if the speaker wasn't under warranty, I would have done the glue thing. One strange thing I do need to mention is that the louder I played the midi files, the less I could hear the fuzziness...I guess because the bass was pumping so loud...LOL. But, I knew something was wrong with the speaker, so I sent it off. Maybe the tech support folks will enlighten me as to what happened, and I in turn, will pass that info along.

Charlie