Help, My VM1's just blew up!

[AngusUK]

After years of good service, my front VM1's seem to have been destroyed. OK, they are sometimes driven quite hard but my amp (Sony ST-DB930) only has 100W per channel which would seem a good match to the 100W VM1. Both speakers seem to have been destroyed, and music now sounds like a few grains of rice rattling in a tin can. The rear and centre units remain fine.

Any suggestions what can have happenned?

Is there any hope - like a fuse inside or could it be that crossover is damaged and I could repair that without having to replace the speakers? I don't see how to get inside these units, what's the secret?

They are just inside warranty, so I guess I could send them back. Meanwhile the shop has gone bust though, I suspect returning them will be complicated, so any advice would be gratefully received.

Many thanks!

[BassThatHz]

You could try disconnecting the rears and fronts, then put the fronts in the rear and see if they still sound broken. If they do then its the speakers for sure. If they don't then its your amp or wiring. When you disconnect the fronts check to see if the pos/neg terminal wires are touching, if they are and your speakers are fine when playing in the rear then the amp is most certainly blown from low resistance.

Were you listening to the system when this damage occurred?

[hifiguymi]

Unfortunately, B&W doesn't put fuses in their speakers. It sounds like the woofers are "blown up" if not the tweeters as well. If you have your receipt any B&W dealer should be able to help you get them fixed. B&W is pretty good about warranty repairs even if the speakers didn't fail due to defect as long as you don't do it habitually.

I would recommend a better receiver than your Sony. It may not prevent this from happening again (that depends on how loud you listen compared to how loud those speakers will play in your room), but it would go a long way to it. When you look at amplifier power, look at the means in which they get there output rating (how many channels driven, what frequencies, what impedence, etc). The receiver you have is a nice unit, but Sony is infamous for rating their receivers with one channel driven, at 1 kHz, and at 6 ohms. There are plenty of others that will do it with two channels driven, full bandwidth 20Hz - 20 kHz, and at 8 ohms.

Best of luck.

Eric

[AngusUK]

Thanks for the advice.
Yes, I did try all the basics and in some ways might have been happier if it was the Sony that had failed - I never really liked it that much. I am now running in Stereo only with the previous rear speakers at the front and all sounds fine.
Eric, I will certainly take your advice about a new receiver, just not right now. I chose the Sony after it came top in a couple of reviews, but as I said above, I never really liked it. I found the remote useless and the connections and ways of switching always seemed a problem compared to my other components. Even now I run with the subwoofer connected at both high and low level, but that's another story.
Of course I am highly suspicious about the amp, because the speakers failed just like that, both at once. We'll see what B&W think!

When I bought the amp forums like this were rare (as I remember...) and so buying today, I think one can get much better advice compared to a magazine review when one is never quite sure if a rave review is down to product quality, the advertising spend of the manufacturer, or the quality of lunch at the press launch. The only trouble with forums is finding the time to give the attaention they deserve.

Thanks again.