Refoaming a MW6511
intangible
Posts: 262
I had the grills off and noticed a couple of small tears in the surround of a MW6511. I'm not sure how they got there, and I'm sure it makes any difference, as I wasn't able to tell just by listening to them, but I figure if it is a simple fix, then I might as well take care of it. Has anyone refoamed one of the older Polk drivers before? (Is it still called refoaming when the surrounds are rubber?) Can I just use any old 6.5" rubber surround, or do I need a proprietary part? Anyone have a good guide to the process?
Post edited by intangible on
Comments
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Sorry you are going to need a new replacement driver. I would contact Polk CS via the phone. Mention that you are a Club Polk memeber.
BenPlease. Please contact me a ben62670 @ yahoo.com. Make sure to include who you are, and you are from Polk so I don't delete your email. Also I am now physically unable to work on any projects. If you need help let these guys know. There are many people who will help if you let them know where you are.
Thanks
Ben -
I'll offer this until you find a replacement.
I had a small tear in the surround of a car speaker once and repaired it with a little rubber cement (inner tube patch glue). The repair was permanent even with the temperature extremes, vibrations and grime of a car environment. Just use enough along the edge of the tear, enough to seal the air leak.
A product like Stix-All may work also but could effect the compliance of the rubber if too much is used.
StanStan
Main 2ch:
Polk LSi15 (DB840 upgrade), Parasound: P/LD-1100, HCA-1000A; Denon: DVD-2910, DRM-800A; Benchmark DAC1, Monster HTS3600-MKII, Grado SR-225i; Technics SL-J2, Parasound PPH-100.
HT:
Marantz SR7010, Polk: RTA11TL (RDO198-1, XO and Damping Upgrades), S4, CS250, PSW110 , Marantz UD5005, Pioneer PL-530, Panasonic TC-P42S60
Other stuff:
Denon: DRA-835R, AVR-888, DCD-660, DRM-700A, DRR-780; Polk: S8, Monitor 5A, 5B, TSi100, RM7, PSW10 (DXi104 upgrade); Pioneer: CT-6R; Onkyo CP-1046F; Ortofon OM5E, Marantz: PM5004, CD5004, CDR-615; Parasound C/PT-600, HCA-800ii, Sony CDP-650ESD, Technics SA 5070, B&W DM601 -
I'm sure some kind of voodoo could be done to redo a rubber(butyl) surround entirely but you need a new driver. No, it's not called refoaming. While small tears and nicks can, from some member successes on here, based on severity....you're looking for a whole driver in the end.
It's not a rare driver on the used market so just keep your eyes peeled.CTC BBQ Amplifier, Sonic Frontiers Line3 Pre-Amplifier and Wadia 581 SACD player. Speakers? Always changing but for now, Mission Argonauts I picked up for $50 bucks, mint. -
Oh well, I suppose I'll just leave it alone unless I run across a cheap replacement. As I said, it doesn't appear to be noticeably affecting anything. Thanks.
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Oh believe me, it is. Push your PR in while your ear is next to the tears. You will hear air rushing out. Not good.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Oh believe me, it is. Push your PR in while your ear is next to the tears. You will hear air rushing out. Not good.
+1
I picked up a set of SDA's with almost half of the drivers having small rips in them. They sounded "good", and I paid a fair price, so I wasn't too concerned at the time. But, I still looked for and found the replacement drivers a couple months later. Both myself and a friend (who was at my house when I replaced them) were amazed at the bass response after I replaced the drivers. We agreed it was a night-and-day difference. It was well worth the time, effort, and money to replace them.
Losing air = losing pressure = losing bass. -
I can give you an intact cone-surround-basket assembly if you feel like performing the "surgery"
Just pick up the postage and it's all yours. -
I have no doubt it is affecting the bass response, but I have them crossed over around 70Hz, so the sound doesn't change much in the end.
gdb, I don't know that I'm comfortable messing around with the voice coil; I don't have the steadiest hands in the world. Thanks for the offer, though. -
You can patch them with some clear or black silicone and a q-tip from the rear. just do a even thin coat over the tear, or pin hole and don't glob it on. I hear you can also use rubber tire cement but I never have tried it.
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intangible wrote: »I have no doubt it is affecting the bass response, but I have them crossed over around 70Hz, so the sound doesn't change much in the end.
Well, you can't know that as you have only heard it/them with the tears. Besides, even crossed at 70Hz, you are losing bass.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
intangible wrote: »I have no doubt it is affecting the bass response, but I have them crossed over around 70Hz, so the sound doesn't change much in the end.
gdb, I don't know that I'm comfortable messing around with the voice coil; I don't have the steadiest hands in the world. Thanks for the offer, though.
You could cut some tiny little patches from my donor piece and lay them over the tears ( I first typed "teats" :biggrin:) with a little butyl juice and, bada bing.....yer back to relative airtightness, and flexiness within parameters! PS.... pull all your drivers and give them a JB Weld glue job, you never know when that vintage adhesive is going to let go !
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I really wish Polk would start making replacement surrounds for these, we all could have saved countless MW if they would. I successfully removed one surround off a blown Polk MW and put it on a MW with a ripped surround but it took all day.
