the secret lives of speakers

pixiedave

Never owning speakers of any great value,(until now ), I was wondering what the lifetime of a speaker is? How long will they last, will sound quality degrade significantly over the course of the warranty? As I do not expect to upgrade any time soon, when should I begin to think about selling and buying new? I am not a used warez buyer.

Any input is appreciated thanks

pjdami

Speakers can last over 20 years if they are kept in a climate controlled environment like your living room, are not abused, have good build quality, and are kept out of direct sunlight for hours per day.

Really, whether you want to change them after a while is up to you. This all depends if your musical listening tastes change over time, etc. Just because a speaker was designed 20 years ago doesn't mean that it can't sound just as good if not better than today's speakers.

An example, the owner of a local hi-fi shop in my area has some Spendor BC1 loudspeakers from the '70s. He carries a lot of the modern day speakers Vandersteen, JM Labs, Maggies, Paradigm, etc. and he won't trade in his BC1s for any of those speakers.

Paul

TrappedUnder Ice

I have some OHM speakers I bought in 90 and still sound/perform as good the day I bought them. A quality speaker treated right can last quite a while

madmax

From my experience, the older they are the better they sound. Things to watch out for are the foam surrounds some manufacturers use. The foam rots after 15 to 20 years. Other things to be aware of is that many adhesives get brittle after 20 yrs. For example, older polk speakers (after 20 to 25 years) have a magnet assembly glued together which will let go if a hard blow is given to them. (such as shipping abuse).
madmax

pixiedave

I figured that speakers had longevity, and as I dont move around much anymore (saw 300 Grateful Dead concerts from 1986 through Jerry's passing) and I no longer feel the need to crank Led Zepplin (or anything for that matter) I assumed these LSi will last my lifetime. Good to hear! Thanks for input.:D

George Grand

I have a pair of KLH Model 6's in my daughters bedroom, that I bought new in 1974. 10" woofers with treated, heavy paper surrounds, that sound as good today, as they did then.

I have a pair of ADC 303ax's on my desk at work, from the exact same time frame, that have all original drivers, and are another 10" two-way whose woofers will never need re-foaming.

Speakers with those kind of surrounds on the woofers, can last a VERY long time, if not electronically abused. Maybe longer than you or definitely maybe me.

George Grand (of the Jersey Grands)

brettw22

Originally posted by George Grand
Maybe longer than you or definitely maybe me.

Definitely Maybe? GG, time to let the Vino go........;)

reeltrouble1

My Fender Bandmaster guitar speaker cabinet has the same speakers as when I bought it in 1970. That is 34 years!!! They still perform very well.

reeltrouble1

My Fender Bandmaster guitar speaker cabinet has the same speakers as when I bought it in 1970. That is 34 years!!! They still perform very well.