OT Speaker Cabinet Repair

[SpeakerOfMyHouse]

Infinity RS4 cabinets (two).
Replacing speakers (two each = four).

The front screen is broken. Screen is the cloth covered pop-on and off
front speaker cover.
It is approximately 5/8" thick that runs fully around the speakers.
This pop-on screen is made of press-wood material and is brittle and
with a black cloth cover and logo.

Just trying to pop off this screen caused it to break.
Thin sides, around one inch wide near the 8" speakers.
Probably dried out.

I have no means to rebuild this thing (two speaker cabinets with same
problems) and am wondering the best way to fix it.

I doubt that gluing will do it. Some breaks have crumbled and there is
nothing to glue there.

The black cloth cannot be removed easily. Drat !

Is there some thin material that will really stick to the backside of
the screen and "seal" the multiple breaks with affecting the speaker ?

If I had the tools, I would cut a groove lengthwise maybe 1/8" deep over
the break and epoxy in a stiff wire rod.

 

On Wednesday, 20 December 2017 18:16:04 UTC, SpeakerOfMyHouse wrote:

Infinity RS4 cabinets (two).
Replacing speakers (two each = four).

The front screen is broken. Screen is the cloth covered pop-on and off
front speaker cover.
It is approximately 5/8" thick that runs fully around the speakers.
This pop-on screen is made of press-wood material and is brittle and
with a black cloth cover and logo.

Just trying to pop off this screen caused it to break.
Thin sides, around one inch wide near the 8" speakers.
Probably dried out.

I have no means to rebuild this thing (two speaker cabinets with same
problems) and am wondering the best way to fix it.

I doubt that gluing will do it. Some breaks have crumbled and there is
nothing to glue there.

The black cloth cannot be removed easily. Drat !

Is there some thin material that will really stick to the backside of
the screen and "seal" the multiple breaks with affecting the speaker ?

If I had the tools, I would cut a groove lengthwise maybe 1/8" deep over
the break and epoxy in a stiff wire rod.

Various options
1. remove loose crud, wrap sellotape round 3 sides of the gap/join, fill with resin or no more nails type stuff in layers
2. Cut a replacement from plywood or OSB, add new cloth
3. Use them without it
4. Steal cloth from front covers of a larger junk pair
etc etc
For a thin add-on layer I'd look at metal, or if you've got 5 or 6mm to spare then pvc sheet would do.


NT

 

[N_Cook]

On 20/12/2017 18:15, SpeakerOfMyHouse wrote:

Infinity RS4 cabinets (two).
Replacing speakers (two each = four).

The front screen is broken. Screen is the cloth covered pop-on and off
front speaker cover.
It is approximately 5/8" thick that runs fully around the speakers.
This pop-on screen is made of press-wood material and is brittle and
with a black cloth cover and logo.

Just trying to pop off this screen caused it to break.
Thin sides, around one inch wide near the 8" speakers.
Probably dried out.

I have no means to rebuild this thing (two speaker cabinets with same
problems) and am wondering the best way to fix it.

I doubt that gluing will do it. Some breaks have crumbled and there is
nothing to glue there.

The black cloth cannot be removed easily. Drat !

Is there some thin material that will really stick to the backside of
the screen and "seal" the multiple breaks with affecting the speaker ?

If I had the tools, I would cut a groove lengthwise maybe 1/8" deep over
the break and epoxy in a stiff wire rod.

For a similar situation, I hotmelted the corners of the frame to the
cabinet. A pair of thin gauge hooks, bent rod, that will pierce the
cloth, so you can pull on , while the glue is cooling.
Place a label on the back , saying use low temp hot air gun to free the
corners. First corner , just set in place, then the hook opposite, then
the other pair stretched while cooling.
If remnant bits of frame rattle , or other problems, at least you can
heat up and return to as-was, and try again with some reinforcement or
something.

 

[pfjw@aol.com]

Wax paper and JB Weld, with pressure.

Use the wax paper as a 'resist' to prevent the JB Weld from sticking where it should not. Use the pressure to hold everything flat during the cure. Then use an X-Acto or razor to trim off the flash after the cure. I have repaired similar damaged which is holding to this day (over 5 years).

Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA

 

[Dave Platt]

In article <p1e9cv$23cv$1@adenine.netfront.net>,
SpeakerOfMyHouse <SpeakerOfMyHouse@SpeakerOfMyHouse.COM> wrote:

The front screen is broken. Screen is the cloth covered pop-on and off
front speaker cover.
It is approximately 5/8" thick that runs fully around the speakers.
This pop-on screen is made of press-wood material and is brittle and
with a black cloth cover and logo.

Just trying to pop off this screen caused it to break.
Thin sides, around one inch wide near the 8" speakers.
Probably dried out.

I have no means to rebuild this thing (two speaker cabinets with same
problems) and am wondering the best way to fix it.

Honestly, I think that you might find that building a new one is going
to be easier and less frustrating than trying to fix something that is

(1) falling apart, and
(2) probably not made in a way which anticipated it ever being
repaired.

Once that sort of cheap pressboard starts to disintegrate, the problem
will only get worse. My impression is that the glue holding the
particles together starts to fail due to age, humidity, mildew, etc.
In order to really stabilize it you'd have to saturate the material
with a new resin of some sort... and this would almost certainly gunk
up the fabric.

I'd look at building a new set of frames - either out of
better-quality hardboard (e.g. Masonite) or out of flat strips of
decent wood, glued together in the corners. This is not-terribly-
difficult hand-tool work. Then, get some new grill cloth (you can buy
the real stuff from MCM and various speaker supply companies, or find
an open-weave fabric of your liking at a fabric store). Fastening it
onto the frames can be done with adhesives, or (if your frame material
is thick enough) a staple gun with short-legged staples.

 

[Bruce Esquibel]

SpeakerOfMyHouse <SpeakerOfMyHouse@speakerofmyhouse.com> wrote:

Infinity RS4 cabinets (two).
Replacing speakers (two each = four).

I have no means to rebuild this thing (two speaker cabinets with same
problems) and am wondering the best way to fix it.

If those are from the early/mid 1980's and don't have sentimental value, do
yourself a favor and sawsall them into the garbage.

They sucked.

I had both the III's and IV's back then and brand new besides the imaging
those produced, the sound to those were flat and lifeless. No dynamics. If
you started to crank the power up, the fuses blew and usually did nothing to
protect the tweeter, which probably hasn't been available in 20 years.

Nice cabinets for towers, excellent soundstaging but nothing else.

There has been too many technology advancements in cone material, magnets,
basket and cabinet construction where those are only worth furniture value.

-bruce
bje@ripco.com

 

[N_Cook]

On 21/12/2017 12:43, Bruce Esquibel wrote:

SpeakerOfMyHouse <SpeakerOfMyHouse@speakerofmyhouse.com> wrote:

Infinity RS4 cabinets (two).
Replacing speakers (two each = four).

I have no means to rebuild this thing (two speaker cabinets with same
problems) and am wondering the best way to fix it.


If those are from the early/mid 1980's and don't have sentimental value, do
yourself a favor and sawsall them into the garbage.

They sucked.

I had both the III's and IV's back then and brand new besides the imaging
those produced, the sound to those were flat and lifeless. No dynamics. If
you started to crank the power up, the fuses blew and usually did nothing to
protect the tweeter, which probably hasn't been available in 20 years.

Nice cabinets for towers, excellent soundstaging but nothing else.

There has been too many technology advancements in cone material, magnets,
basket and cabinet construction where those are only worth furniture value.

-bruce
bje@ripco.com

Ah yes, developements like PbF solder at VC/pigtail unions.