Air Core Inductor falls off crossover during shipping

ATC already got back to me regarding next steps in their repair/troubleshooting process. Fast response and service! I've sent them over some photos and the serial numbers to determine the exact model of these.

They've also put me in touch with their US distributor who can assist with repairs! So far so good.

My security torx set arrives later this week hopefully, so I can get at that crossover and figure out what all needs to be done with it.

With the help of my security torx set and right angle screw driver which turned out to be invaluable, I disassembled the speaker tonight.

Cheap harbor freight/eBay tools:





After removing the three security torx screws holding in the silver tweeter waveguide, I slowly and carefully lifted the front baffle. When I did, i realized the baffle was in contact with the wires that were connected to the tweeter and the top of the tweeter lifted off as well with it. The bottom/magnet part is adhered to the cabinet somehow, maybe screwed in from behind. I've illustrated what I mean here:



There's only one way to remove the baffle, by lifting it straight up, and it wasn't clear to me that the tweeter's leads were in contact with it. I don't really know how I could have prevented this, and I'm not sure if it's by design. So, I might be needing a new tweeter as well. But if you look at the way the faston connectors get recessed into the holes in the cabinet, I'm not sure of any other way you'd be able to get a good grip/leverage on them in order to connect or disconnect them. Anyway, I've reached out to ATC for clarification on this.

As I made my way into the cabinet after removing the woofer, I think it's worth mentioning that the woofer is connected using spring loaded banana plugs! Very nice:



Speaking of the woofer, it's massive and uses a huge magnet structure, check it out:





Finally, getting to the crossover we can see that the heavy inductor fell off and partially unraveled, but that it's ends are still firmly soldered to the PCB. Additionally, looking at the lower left hand side of the crossover, we can see that the action of it falling off has severed the positive wire connection to the woofer. Guess that explains why I didn't hear anything at all from the woofer.

I hardly heard anything from the tweeter either. Is it possible that the violent action of the inductor falling off and moving around inside the cabinet also pulled/shocked the wire that was running to the tweeter, and that's why it's now separated and hardly making any sound? Just a thought, might be off base.





Also, @F1nut, Bennic caps!!!

I've emailed the photos to ATC and will let you know what they say.

Here is what ATC said:

"From a disassembly point of view that all looks fine, this earlier version is more fiddly to service than the current one, because of the baffle, as you have found out. The tweeter coming apart is normal. The tweeter cone/coil/magnet/assembly should stay with the cabinet, the flange stays with the baffle. You will need to remove the crimps next. Be very careful removing the crimps, and note polarity, of course. White pos, Yellow neg. Needle nose pliers are probably the right tool to use here.

Next, I would pop the magnet out, it will push up from behind, as it is just sitting in its gasket. Then carefully drop the cone/coil back on to the magnet, it will self-locate, but we must be careful of dust/debris getting stuck in the gap, remember that there is ferro fluid in the gap.

When you come to reconnect the tweeter, feed the wires though the baffle first, reconnect, and then drop it very carefully back into the hole in the baffle. When you replace the baffle, it will all reseal as there is a gasket behind it.

As regards the choke, that looks pretty straightforward, if you have the soldering skills. I would remove the crossover completely, and desolder the choke completely, then rewind the tails back into the body of the choke. You can then reseat it on to the PCB, and secure with silicone sealant, (bathroom sealant) and then secure it properly with two cable ties.

You also need to reterminate the speaker connection for the LF, of course. Then you can test it with the drivers, as it stands, and if all is OK, you can then reassemble it all properly."

Haha! I appreciate the generous offer Trey, but I was just kidding. I'd have to pull the other one and give it the equal treatment to do this "right". Just not sure I'm looking to put more money into these right now, as tempting as it is to get rid of the Bennic caps.