Repairing a car subwoofer with new foam around cone

[tjpgi]

Apparently a lot of sub woofers mounted in a car's rear deck deteriorate to the point that the foam ring around the cone of the speaker breaks down rendering the speaker useless. I have a 2001 Lexus GS 300 with a Mark Levinson sound system which is a propriety system for Lexus and sub woofer replacements are difficult to find. The speaker is a 2 ohm 40 watt setup with a 10" diameter. From what I have read on the Lexus forums, using an after market speaker even with the same specifications as the original can result in amplifier damage.
There is a "repair kit" available to repair the foam for $25. Has anyone used one of these kits or replaced their sub woofer with an after market brand specifically with a Mark Levinson sound system?

[Rick Hall]

... using an after market speaker even with the same specifications as the original can result in amplifier damage. ...

I smell BS. But even if you could find an 'almost equal' replacement, the sound quality may be degraded. But how much sound quality can you detect doing 60MPH down the freeway anyway?

Have you checked out partsexpress.com yet? I know they do speaker cone repair, and probably have the tools/jigs to make sure the cone is centered over/around the voice coil motor gizmo thingy (tm).

Rick

[Leo]

If there is a 2 ohm voice coil speaker in there now, any other 2 ohm voice coil speaker will not hurt the amplifier.  I guess the japs think the laws of science do not exist in the USA.  ohms law: E=I X R guarantees no extra current will be drained from the output transistors.

There is a company in Kokomo, IN that actually rebuilds high end speakers where the cones have seperated.  They have customers from around the world. 

I had an old set of Marantz speakers in the house where the suspension foam started to deteriorate on the 12 " woofers.  They still sounded great. I used silicon based glue and gently brushed a "patch" over the sections that started to split.  Over the course of 5 years, I kept patching until the entire foam suspension had become a silicon glue membrane.  If your speakers still have the voice coils in alignment around the magnet, I am sure the kit will work for you, as it installs over what is left.  Good Luck

[Pfloydgad]

www.partsexpress.com
They have everything you will ever need.
Your welcome,
Greg
oh yea, ride safe

[tjpgi]

Well thanks for all of the help. I had to take out the back seat, remove rear window side trim, remove third brake light, then remove rear deck cover to get to the sub. Well it is not the foam, it appears to be the voice coil. I'll replace the sub with a Mark Levinson, expensive but I know when the sub was working properly I had a great sound system. Thanks again for the suggestions.

[bbroj]

I have used suspension ring rebuild kits several times on home audio speakers with great success. While I am no audiophile, the repair worked perfectly and the sound quality, to my ears, did not suffer at all. Honestly, it was a huge improvement over the buzzing bass notes with the suspension foam missing or deteriorated. My Father had done this years before on his KLH home speakers, mine were KLH as well, and both repairs have lasted many years and sound great. For the small investment of time and money, I would try the repair first, I think you will be pleased.

Edit to add, I think this is where I got the kits from   http://www.newfoam.com/kits.asp

[Rhino]

If there is a 2 ohm voice coil speaker in there now, any other 2 ohm voice coil speaker will not hurt the amplifier.  I guess the japs think the laws of science do not exist in the USA.  ohms law: E=I X R guarantees no extra current will be drained from the output transistors.

This is certainly true up to a point. We are talking impedance not resistance. That is 2 ohm at a given frequency. But I would think that 99.9% of the time any 2 ohm woofer that is designed for what ever the continuous power output capability of the amp would not hurt your amp.

[tjpgi]

When I first took out the subwoofer I did not notice any tears in the foam. I however removed a plastic ring covering the outside circumference of the foam portion of the speaker and found total separation of the foam from the outer edge of the speaker. The rest of the foam and its connection to the speaker cone paper looked good. Last night I put a bead of 100% tub/shower silicone around the entire perimeter where the foam separation was. I then put the plastic ring in place and then put another bead of silicone around the perimeter. I let it sit all night and this morning reinstalled the speaker. Voila! it works. I'll see how long it lasts hopefully by the time it quits I will be ready for a new car since I have had this one for 12 years.