RT-16's with crunchy midrange

nola-polk
nola-polk Posts: 5
edited October 2007 in Troubleshooting
My RT-16s have crunchy-sounding midrange drivers. It appears to be most pronounced with sustained base notes. I hear an audible distortion behind otherwise clear vocals, etc. The odd thing is that it appears to be one of the midrange drivers in *each* of the speakers. Seems odd that they would both have a damaged driver.

Any thoughts?
Post edited by nola-polk on
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  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,029
    edited September 2007
    First off, welcome to the forum. Have they been moved recently? Can you feel a physical obstruction when you push the cone in?

    Does this happen at low levels, high levels or both?
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
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  • venomclan
    venomclan Posts: 2,467
    edited September 2007
    I had a pair of RT-16's for 6 years. Make sure that all the screws around the drivers are in tight. Also make sure that the rubber surrounds are clean, that no dust or debris have settled in the grooves.

    Since it is both speakers, could it be your amp clipping at all?
    Venom
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  • nola-polk
    nola-polk Posts: 5
    edited October 2007
    treitz3 wrote: »
    First off, welcome to the forum. Have they been moved recently? Can you feel a physical obstruction when you push the cone in?

    Does this happen at low levels, high levels or both?

    RE: Moved Recently: yes.

    RE: Physical obstruction: no they don't feel gritty. I'm not a big audiophile so my reference is musical equipment speakers. I know that on a guitar speaker if the coil gets blown it is hard to move the speaker cone and you feel this gritty / crunchy movement rather than smooth travel. That isn't happening here.

    RE: Low levels vs. high. I hear it mostly at low levels. I guess it could be that at higher levels the rest of the spectrum masks the distortion. But it is most prominent at low levels.

    I took off the speaker covers and put my ear to the each of the two identical speakers. One speaker in each cabinet was audibly distorting. So I disconnected those two and the sound cleaned up.

    That is where things stand now. The two offending speakers have been disconnected but are still mounted in the cabinets.
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  • nola-polk
    nola-polk Posts: 5
    edited October 2007
    venomclan wrote: »
    Since it is both speakers, could it be your amp clipping at all?
    Venom

    Thanks for the response. I have listed to the amp through several different sets of headphones and that sounds clean. So I guess that at least means the preamp is not clipping.
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  • nola-polk
    nola-polk Posts: 5
    edited October 2007
    Just wanted to try and reinvigorate this posting. Do I need to purchase new drivers?
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  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 7,658
    edited October 2007
    Hello,
    In all likelihood the drivers have become damaged and would need to be replaced. The way to test this would be to remove the working driver from one of the speakers and use it as a test driver. Put it in place of the two non-working drivers to see if it now sounds okay. If it proves to be the drivers, telephone 1-800-377-7655 for parts ordering, be sure to mention that you are a Club Polk member.
    Regards, Ken
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  • nola-polk
    nola-polk Posts: 5
    edited October 2007
    Sounds like a plan. I will try that.

    Best,
    Geoff
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  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 7,658
    edited October 2007
    Glad the information was helpful!
    Take care, Ken
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