Tangband W4 driver fatique already?

[Coconutout]

hey guys i have a pair of statements which ive been enjoying day and night ever since i built it last summer. never too loudly tho. but i'm ashamed to admit that there were couple of unhealthy signals fed thru it in the past- once when i did no realize my dac wasn't meant to handle Dolbi or DTS signals (you can only imagine what a horrible noise i got as a reminder) and couple of loud thumps when the preamp was turned off before turning the amp off. also my apartment's seen some dramatic temperature flux in last couple months (crazy LA weather) and just now i plugged in a single mtm center speaker to test out some tones. and i coulnd't help notice how much 'crispier' the mtm sounded compared to what i've gotten used to from the statements. of course the statements have far superior sonic qualities than this sub Nat-P quality MTM but still, it just sounded more 'fresh'. could it be that the statements have already developed a driver fatigue due to my less than perfect TLC in the past? or am i just imaging things? i mean is it possible for such a good driver to go bad so quickly? i appreciate any kind of input. thanks.

[ThomasW]

The "horrible noise I got as a reminder" statement, makes me think this action may have damaged the drivers.

It's really impossible to answer your question unless you've ruled out driver damage.

In addition you're fundamentally making apples vs oranges comparisons given the fundamental differences between a pair of NatP and the Statements.

[Dennis H]

That DTS noise would be most likely to affect the tweeter and the thumps would be most likely to affect the woofers so the mids would probably be the last to go. Check the ribbon to make sure it isn't stretched out of shape and put your ear next to each of the drivers to make sure it's playing. If the ribbon looks okay, the 2 mids (same speaker) are playing the same volume, and same with the 2 woofers, they are probably okay. Do both speakers sound exactly the same? If so, the crossover is probably okay too, or at least you made the same mistake on both crossovers. Have you double and triple checked the crossover wiring and the driver polarities? We've all wired drivers backwards before and that can sound funky.

You said the MTM is "sub Nat-P quality". If it's like some speakers, it's tuned to sound "impressive" rather than accurate so people will buy it in the local Best Buy. One of the qualities I've noticed about really good speakers is they can sound a little boring if you're used to the old boom and sizzle thing.

[Coconutout]

thanks dennis. i hope what you're saying is the case here. the statements sound fine and have been all this time. it's just that ive been worried from my past mistakes and hooking up the MTM today broke the camel's back so to speak. i think the statements being a dipole design also factored in to how 'crisp' they were sounding compared to the mtms which were sealed. hopefully this was just a false alarm. I just examed my ribbons close-up with a flashlight and one of them i see little imperfections on the edges of the silk. they're very tiny perforation like marks on the edge of the ribbons. doesn't seem to affect the sound. should i replace it? if yes, how important is it to get a matching pair? thanks.

[Dennis H]

I just examed my ribbons close-up with a flashlight and one of them i see little imperfections on the edges of the silk. they're very tiny perforation like marks on the edge of the ribbons. doesn't seem to affect the sound. should i replace it?

Nah, that just sounds like typical manufacturing marks. If you overdrive one, it will straighten out the zigzag shape and it will droop in the gap. If you REALLY overdrive one, it will snap the ribbon and it won't make any sound at all.

[Jed]

I'm sure you've checked your wiring until you have checked it so many times you can't bare to check it again. Of course, then take a break and make sure the wiring is ok once more. All of us miswire something at some point and the "less crisp" comment sounds like a classic out of phase miswire if you ask me.

JedK

[Coconutout]

i just checked the wiring last week. i think it's just the album i was listening to that made me have this whack idea. mp3 files that i think were burned from an LP... which i was playing thru winamp wav output. lol. i really should show my speakers more respect than that.