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Old 08-16-2005, 10:45 PM   #1
GOT_WRX
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Default Need help with Voicecoil alignment

Hey all, is there an instruction of how to align a voicecoil properly before applying glue so that it wouldn't touch the magnet when the cone is pressed down?

I took the speaker (165V2) apart to reseat the voicecoil because it created a lot of noise at high volume. Seemed as if it was touching/scratching somewhere inside.

Thanks in advance.
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Old 08-16-2005, 11:37 PM   #2
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Old 08-16-2005, 11:51 PM   #3
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whew...boy did u take on a job lol
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Old 08-17-2005, 03:34 AM   #4
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yes, there are instructions on the net, but you usually need to take off the dustcap first and then use shims between the coil and magnet pole...
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Old 08-17-2005, 08:24 AM   #5
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Thanks! Just found out useful info on the site. Looks like I have to crack open the dustcap somehow and reuse it later.
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Old 08-17-2005, 08:41 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GOT_WRX
Hey all, is there an instruction of how to align a voicecoil properly before applying glue so that it wouldn't touch the magnet when the cone is pressed down?

I took the speaker (165V2) apart to reseat the voicecoil because it created a lot of noise at high volume. Seemed as if it was touching/scratching somewhere inside.

Thanks in advance.

Really, no foolin'?

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Old 08-17-2005, 08:48 AM   #7
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Yeah really. Took me literally 3 hours to take apart everything because I had to be careful on what I cut. Dealers told me Focal stopped making reconing kits for this model anymore, so I just wanted to give it a try.

If I mess it up, new CDT EF61 is waiting on the line.

So far, I was able to take off the surround rubber 100% without any problem, and spider also with a bit of bad cuts, but still in good shape. The challenge would be removing/cutting the dustcap to insert the shims.
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Old 08-17-2005, 11:37 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GOT_WRX
Yeah really. Took me literally 3 hours to take apart everything because I had to be careful on what I cut. Dealers told me Focal stopped making reconing kits for this model anymore, so I just wanted to give it a try.

If I mess it up, new CDT EF61 is waiting on the line.

So far, I was able to take off the surround rubber 100% without any problem, and spider also with a bit of bad cuts, but still in good shape. The challenge would be removing/cutting the dustcap to insert the shims.
Don't cut the voice-coil away from the cone neck just yet. You've already got the surround & spider separated, you should be able to flop the assembly out leaving the tinsel leads intact. This will let you examine the voice-coil.

The voice-coil became damaged (likely via overdriving it) and banged against the pole/top plate of the magnet. This might have bulged out the voice-coil former and that is what is scraping. Is the former aluminum and is the damage visible? Can your smooth it out? This may be all you need to do for repair. This damaged may have also happened because it was improperly aligned at the factory.

To fix, you need to do is align the entire assenbly, not just the voice-coil in the cone neck. The voice-coil does not need to be removed from the neck. You'll need to remove the dustcap & shim between the voice-coil & magnet pole. For shims, you can use sheet brass shim stock. You should be able to get that at NAPA or other hard core auto parts stores. Cut strips & space them at 120-degree intervals. If they don't take up the slack & center, you'll need 3 more strips inserted between the first ones & the pole. You'll need to buy a few different thicknesses in order to get the proper fit. Consider this first exercise a test run.

Now, remove everything and run a glue bead around the spider & surround deck. Glue needs to be robust. Cyano is fine but you need to use slow set to allow you to push down the pieces into the glue and clamp them. You can use binder clips from Staples, etc.

Lastly, assuming you got the dustcap off in one piece, make a small masking tape handle for it. Cut a strip of tape 3/8" wide & fold it over & make a "T". The top of the "T", the sticky parts, gets stuck to the cap. The non-sticky part is your handle so you can center the cap back on the cone. If the cap is paper/fiber/fabric-based, Elmers glue is fine. If it is plastic, cyano again. Leave the tape in until the glue cures.

Once you have successfully completed the above, you are fully qualified to put the wings back on flys, heads back on chickens, build the USS Enterprise inside a Jack Daniels nip, etc. Personally, I'd stake out eBay and find the mate to the woofer you need. I've done the above operation plenty, but only when serious scratch is at stake such as a 50 year-old Altec coaxial and so on. Your time IS worth something.

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Old 08-17-2005, 09:15 PM   #9
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Hi, I put the shims as you instructed after cutting the dustcap off, and finally glued it. Voicecoil had no damage at all. When I push the cone down with 3-4 point equal pressure, it still hits/scrapes something at the bottom. Could it be either the magnet or the coil is not 100% perpendicular and angled slightly?

Oh well, I am ordering CDT today.

Thanks for all your advice. It's been a great experience though.
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Old 08-18-2005, 01:11 AM   #10
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maybe the speaker has demon spirits trapped in it and it is haunted... Nothing is worse than a speaker haunted with the ghost of some crazy stereo freak who died in a tragic amp install accident!!!
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Old 08-18-2005, 01:26 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GOT_WRX
Hi, I put the shims as you instructed after cutting the dustcap off, and finally glued it. Voicecoil had no damage at all. When I push the cone down with 3-4 point equal pressure, it still hits/scrapes something at the bottom. Could it be either the magnet or the coil is not 100% perpendicular and angled slightly?

Oh well, I am ordering CDT today.

Thanks for all your advice. It's been a great experience though.
It may just be hitting the bottom. Not a defect, just past the point of linear travel. The real question, is does it do it (after your repair) with music playing through it? If yes, a steep high-pass on the amplifier driving it may fix that. Sounds like the problem is at the limits of excursion.

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Old 08-18-2005, 03:57 AM   #12
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I had the same problem for two reasons:

1) magnet assembly came partially loose and slid out of alignment (presumably related to water damage)

2) basket got bent and put magnet out of alignment.

if either of these things are true, nothing you do to the VC is going to get it to line up right.

#2 I fixed by beating the magnet with a rubber mallet until the noise stopped. I'm still using that speaker 6 years later. #1 I gave up on.
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Old 08-18-2005, 12:22 PM   #13
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Actually the voicecoil doesn't just hit the bottom of the magnet when pressed down. It starts scraping the sides when it's pressed half way down. It was working fine until some water drops went into the vent hole in the middle of the magnet and started rusting.

I beat the crap out of the speaker everywhere and now it doesn't make that sound when pressed down. I will hook it up to the amp, and see what happens.

Those speakers are rated at 75RMS, 150W max. and I am using Phoenix Gold Titanium Ti400 which delivers 100W per chan.

Thanks for all the tips.
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Old 08-18-2005, 12:29 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GOT_WRX
Actually the voicecoil doesn't just hit the bottom of the magnet when pressed down. It starts scraping the sides when it's pressed half way down. It was working fine until some water drops went into the vent hole in the middle of the magnet and started rusting.

I beat the crap out of the speaker everywhere and now it doesn't make that sound when pressed down. I will hook it up to the amp, and see what happens.

Those speakers are rated at 75RMS, 150W max. and I am using Phoenix Gold Titanium Ti400 which delivers 100W per chan.

Thanks for all the tips.

well then... aligning the voice coil isn't going to do anything about the corrosion in the gap that's causing the problem in the first place.
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Old 08-18-2005, 02:19 PM   #15
GOT_WRX
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 0db
well then... aligning the voice coil isn't going to do anything about the corrosion in the gap that's causing the problem in the first place.
I checked the gaps inside, but couldn't find anything blocking the VC passage area. It's possible that it was already defective (misaligned magnet), and I somehow found it out later by accident. There was some rust inside the vent hole, but not anywhere else.

I did take out some chunks of metal / rust out of the magnet though, even tho it took me like 30 min.

Since it looks like it's good now (even tho the speaker looks like beat up and missing dustcap), I will hook it up tonight and post the results.

Last edited by GOT_WRX; 08-19-2005 at 09:07 AM.
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