B&W sub problems, found source to repair

[kurtholz]

Hey All

I thought i would share some info with you, apparently i have blown my sub as it rattles even at very modest low levels, and since i didnt buy it from the dealer, no warranty''

called B & W to replace the speaker its about $700 plus shipping

the guy i talked to was really nice about it, gave me this info on a company who rebuilds these subs, the guy at B & W said they do very good work, and in fact they use them also''

there price is less than $300 to rebuild it, and they offer a 1 year warranty

Ragnar/B & W services
suite 303
414 W. Sunrise Hwy
Patchogue,NY
11772

631-280-6559

they were really nice to work with, said they are backed up a little right now, will take about 3 weeks to get it fixed,

not a bad deal, repair a $2200 sub for less than $300,

just thought i would share the info, hope no one else needs it

Kurt

[george_k]

Did they repair it with genuine B&W parts?

[kurtholz]

i havent even sent it yet, but B & W said they use them on there repairs, the guy said it would sound better than the original, something about using stiffer somethings, i forgot what he said

i mean, B & W recommended them, at half the price, we will find out

isnt that kinda make you sick though, a $2200 sub, and the speaker is $700, think they are making some bucks on there stuff

Kurt

[chinets]

Kurt,
I hope they gave you genuine B&W parts ,because I really doubt it would sound better with other parts that are not Original B&W parts. If not B&W would have subcontracted all there SUBS to that specific company. Right??
Kurt stay of those Krells they are killing your speakers one by one. I recommend Rotel for you Pal as you are such a Krell freak you might end up loosing all your system day by day.
Just Kidding Kurt!!!!
Really good luck having it fixed and please notify me how it turned out. Hopefully better?? I just hope they fix it for you. Let us know pal??
Best wishes to you Kurt,
Chinets

[miner]

Which model of B&W sub are you having repaired Kurt? Did you fry a voice coil?

[Karma]

HI kurt,
When I was running my repair shop often I would get older speakers in with defective drivers. If at all possible I would replace them with original factory replacements. It was common, however, that the originals were no longer avalable. This would force me to use a speaker repair service in Albuquerque and have the driver rebuilt. In all cases, the work was excellent. Visually. you could not tell the rebuilt drivers from new. And they worked well when they were reinstalled in the box. But I don't know if they really matched the originals in all performance characteristics. I do know my customers never complained. I used new drivers even though they were always more expensive than a rebuild. Understand, a repair shop does not have the facilities to test the drivers other than the basic "do thay make sound and do they go loud?". That's about as much as I could do.

On principle, I would prefer new drivers. I don't know how a rebuilding shop, no matter how good, can guarantee the dynamic characteristics of the rebuild compared to the original. To some degree this IS rocket science. As you probably know, drivers are complex. On good speakers, they are usually purpose designed. How can a rebuild shop, dealing with a huge number of different drivers from different manufacturers rebuild each one to specific factory characteristics? It seems impossible to me.

Obviously, the skill and ethics of the rebuild shop is a huge factor. If a shop uses factory parts and is endorsed by the factory that is a good sign. However, if it were me, I would get a new factory replacement driver. This becomes more important the more expensive the speaker. It's the only way original performance can be guaranteed to be restored. Saving $400 on this seems foolish.

At the very minimum, I would question the rebuild shop VERY carefully. I mean, really, how could a repair shop actually better the components from the factory? Do they have a multi-million dollar R&D department researching minute improvements for B&W subwoofer drivers. Sounds like hype to me. I will admit that I am am very conservative on repair issues. I have learned through experience.

Sparky

[RobP]

Awhile back I had asked my dealer about recone parts for B&W and they said that B&W does not offer repair parts, you should be careful with that company, although I do not know all of the details, I would be leary of a shop that says that they can offer better than a factory original cone. I have done speaker repairs for years and large companies that do offer recone kits have specific guidelines and require the dealer to go through factory training to become a factory authorized repair center. I would ask if this guy is factory authorized, if he is not I would walk away and buy a new driver.

[Karma]

HI,
Here, here!!!! Yes,yes!!!

Sparky

[kurtholz]

hey all

well, B & W's service tech told me, that they sent there work to them, and that it would sound the same, ( i asked), since i really am not impressed with the B & W subs, i just want to get it fixed and outa here, Rell or Velodyne is calling my name

I talked the the company guy for a good bit, he seemed pretty sharp,

now, doesnt it bother anyone, that the retail on the major component of a $2200 sub is $700, i mean that's the scary part to me

i blew the tweeters out of my 803's a while back ( i know a pattern is developing here) hahaha, i got them from B & W for only $79 a pair'

now that really bugs me , that this incredible speaker technology in the 803 is a $79 part per pair

gotta say, i love my B & W's, i have had 3 different subs,not one i felt was worth owning, maybe i will chnage my mind when it comes back,

i'll give you a follow up

Kurt

[kurtholz]

oh by the way, it's an asw800, it rattles at even low levels,

like they all do, :-)

Kurt

[Karma]

HI kurt,
My ASW800's don't rattle even at high volume. They purr away.

Based upon your track record, maybe you should consider some pro level PA speakers. You clearly are expecting more out of your speakers than they can give. Watch out, you may be arrested for speaker abuse. 8)

Sparky

[miner]

My ASW800 purrs too. No complaints from me.

[kurtholz]

do you guys wire your subs thru a set of mononlocks like i do,2000 watts, or do you just use the sub output on your pre pro

maybe that is why i keed blowing them up

hahahahahaha, you know i am kidding, i think i will just do the new one from b&w, i really dont want to mess with it anymore,

i really dont abuse my subs, but i blow thru em like wives and oreo's

:-)

Kurt

[Karma]

HI kurt,
This sounds like some kind of rude wind resulting from eating beans. . Now that I think about it, maybe that's whats blowing your speakers.

Sparky

[kurtholz]

i must have been one rotten sob in my last life, the sub gods hate me'

2 velodynes dd12 or one Rel storm

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

inless that damn thing does sound good after a $700 investment

cross your fingers

L-)

Kurt

[RobP]

Kurt, when you say the woofer rattles, does it blow out the surround or does the VC make a clacking sound? Im wondering if your amp may be the problem?

[Karma]

HI Robert,
Good conjecture but I think it is the beans. All the subs that Kurt mentioned are selfpowered. I think it is simply too much volume. He also blew a tweeter. My experience with B&W's in my repair shop suggests that B&W speakers are unusually robust. It's the beans. :driving:

[kurtholz]

actually, i bought a used asw800, it was not right from day one, teh tweeters i hateto sayt,went because i ran a burn in CD to high'''

it could happenb to anyone, cmon

:-)

Kurt

[chinets]

Kurt,
It can Happen to Krell owners only who run there speakers at abusing highs that you should be arrested for disturbing the peace. Good Luck on the repair!!!
How loud did you play your 803's for the tweeters to burn out?????Just curious here but what has a burnt CD got to do with the volume?? Can you explain?
Take care Kurt, sorry for all your troubles and hope they are resolved soon.
Chinets

[kurtholz]

Hey Chinet's

well, i buy all that silly tweak stuff, what i did was play a BURN IN CD to loud, not a burnt cd, hahaha, now if you bought all the snake oil treatments like i do, you would know what these are

:-)

well, i chickend out, B & W is sending me a new one, maybe i will send the old one in to be fixed and keep it as a spare

kinda like being a jaguar owner, have to have 2 of them, one is always in the shop

hahaha

Kurt

[miner]

do you guys wire your subs thru a set of mononlocks like i do,2000 watts, or do you just use the sub output on your pre pro

maybe that is why i keed blowing them up

hahahahahaha, you know i am kidding, i think i will just do the new one from b&w, i really dont want to mess with it anymore,

i really dont abuse my subs, but i blow thru em like wives and oreo's

:-)

Kurt

I use the second set of pre-outs on my RC-1070 2 ch preamp.

[Ryx]

well i just thought I would add this, I bought a used asw cdm sub driver off e-bay a while back, driver only (1000w 12) and only paid $60 for it (I really didn't have a use for it but at that price I will find a use for it ) It arived and seemed to be in good condition, I tested it and it seemed to work fine.

just recently I noticed that the sub had a strange rattleing noise. (I had been using it hooked to a poweramp in a cheap box to try and get some of the break in done before I find a good home for it) after taking it out of the box I inspected it to see if I could find out where the noise was coming from, (there are only so many things that can make it rattle) and it turns out that it is the top spyder of the 2 has come unglued on about a 3" section around the voice coil, and is hitting the bottum of the cone making the noise. this for me is an easy fix, and I encourage you to look at your own sub to see if your problem is the same. If so just fix it yourself and keep it as a spare (if you have already ordered the new one)

let me know if your problem happens to be the same as mine or not.

[kurtholz]

thanks for the tip, i will take it apart tonight, i tried looking it over but i keep getting shocked, should i unplug it first?

just kidding

so how would you fix this, super glue it down, or what, i'm not much of a diy kinda guy,

thanks for the tips though, it's getting worse fast, so something is coming apart, sounds like a rattle from the middle of the speaker part

thanks again

Kurt

[RobP]

Kurt, you want to look for Ethyl Cyanoacrylate Ester instant adhesive, you can find it sometimes at plastic supply companys, it is much like superglue but its thicker and uses a fine mist spray activator to make it setup instantly. Alot of speakers are built using this adhesive. Make sure to use it in a well ventilated area, and not inside your home, this stuff stinks, the odor can linger for days.

[kurtholz]

well, i do think i found the problem, now , my desciption is gonna sound like a chicks, so please feel free to make fun of me, i'm used to it''

there are 2 tears on the copper colored material that goes to the magnet, seems like these must have given it up

since i'm getting a new one anyway, i used super glue gell on it, we will see in a few hours if it helps

i dont care, since i'll have it rebuilt anyway, and a new one from B&W will be here anyday

i really like the veloydyne and the Rells anyway, so this bad boy is most likely going for sale as soon as i get it working right

i am have a pair of Rowland monoblocks coming in for a demo, kinda anxious to see how they compare to the krell, which will be relegated to center and rear''if the rowlands can take the high volume this crazy OU fan dishes out

:-)

mint black Rotal 1095 in black soon to be for sale also

driven hard as hell, i mean ear bleeding and all, no wimpy used equipment for sale here

:-)

thanks for the help

Kurt

[chinets]

Kurt,
I was pulling your leg Pal!! I meant Burn In CD, but as you burn everything in your way and that poor equipment of yours that suffer at your Guantanamo Bay ..OOOps I meant your house .
By the way Burn In Cd's that are recorded in high volume can be very dynamic in sound but your trigger hands is always on the Volume pal !! and that is abuse!!!!
Hope all is fixed now? How much are you selling the 1095 for? Just curious??
Keep in touch Kurt you have my E-Mail.
Best wishes,
Chinets

[kurtholz]

Hey Chinet's

well, i think new retail was $2000, can't remember, so, since it has been owned by a famous abuser i was thinking $3500

hahahha

i don't know, probably $1400 would own it, it works most days ( kidding you know), and i use it for the surrounds, so you know i can't beat it up to bad

now, what you really need is a nice sword to hang over all that fancy equipment of yours

:-)

talk soon

Kurt

https://www.nihontoya.com

[Race Car Driver]

kurtholz
I know what you are talking about, when i replaced my tweater on my N802 for $99 shipped, i was in relief... but perplexed at the same time... $4000 speaker and a $100 tweater..... huh.. but was glad I wasnt paying $500 for that tweater!!!


Now how much are the woofers and mid drivers... Time to make a some phone calls to fullfill my curiosity.