Blown out speakers can be very frustrating, whether it is the speaker in your car, your guitar amplifier, studio speaker monitors, or your TV or computer sound system. This frustration can easily double once you realize that you could have saved it if you caught the problem soon enough.
If you want to know how to fix blown out speakers, this article aims to serve as your guide to help you address those issues before it’s too late.
What are Blown Out Speakers?
Blown out speakers are basically speakers that no longer work or act like problematic speakers. To put it simply, blown out speakers often produce an unpleasant sound, or sometimes, they don’t have any sounds at all.
Speakers can get blown out for different reasons and come with various signs. It might be a bit tricky to hear if you have a completely or partially blown speaker. However, if you suspect that your speakers are blown, here are some signs to help you pinpoint the problem:
- Audio clipping
- Improper vibration or movement
- Lack of treble and bass
- No sound at all
- Sound distortion
Steps to Fix Blown Out Speakers
Once you have confirmed that your speakers are indeed blown out, here are the steps you need to follow.
1. Identify the Blown Out Speaker
Before you can repair your speakers, you need to diagnose first which speaker is damaged in the first place.
If your speakers don’t have any physical damage, you need to check each speaker to listen to the sound that each of them produces to determine which speaker is most distorted.
If you have access to an equalizer or right and left balance controls, you can try shifting the audio balance and listen intently for any subtle changes in the sound indicating a blown out speaker.
2. Disassemble the Blown Out Speaker
Before you disassemble the blown out speaker, there are several materials you need to prepare for the job including:
- Glue
- Knife
- Needle
- Screwdriver
- Thread with the same color as your speaker cone
When the speaker comes with a metal cover or faceplate, use the appropriate size and type of screwdriver and remove every screw of the speaker cover. Make sure that all the screws are kept together in just one place.
Be careful when removing the screws and ensure that you don’t cause any additional damage. Remove any fabric that covers the speaker as gently as you can. If there is any glue, ease a knife to remove this from the fabric.
3. Check for Tears on the Diaphragm
If the diaphragm has any holes or tears, it is only a definite sign that the cone or diaphragm is the issue with your speaker.
The cone or diaphragm is the transducer converting the mechanical vibrations to sound. This is the speaker’s main active part. If the diaphragm has any tears, rips, or holes, make sure you close these up as fast as possible.
4. Inspect for Damages on the Voice Coil
Any damage to the voice coil doesn’t always mean that you have a blown out speaker. But this is still an indication that there is damage to some extent. The voice coil is the speaker’s piece of wire wrapped around the speaker’s center pole.
This voice coil is a thinly wrapped wire with incredible lightweight and can incur damages easily in two common ways:
- Physical movement may break the voice coil.
- The voice coil can overheat if a heavy current has passed through the electric field.
- You can try checking if it is possible to get a new voice coil for the speaker if the old one is already broken. If not, it is most likely that you need to replace the speaker itself.
5. Use Glue
It requires some patience, care, and time when you use glue on your speaker. Here are the steps to follow to repair your speaker using glue:
- Make sure you hold the speaker to ensure that you can use your fingers to close the gap or tear.
- Apply some amount of glue then spread this evenly over the tear using your fingers.
- Ensure that the gap stays closed to let the glue harden and turn tacky.
- After the glue has solidified, you need to leave your speaker for some time to make sure that the glue will be set.
6. Use Thread and Needle
If the speaker has larger and more severe tears, you might need to use a thread and needle to try closing the tears.
Gently pierce the diaphragm first with a needle and thread the needle little by little to help close the gap. Make sure that you don’t pull too hard on the thread and needle but still do it hard enough to close the gap.
After you are done threading the needle and closing the gap, get some silicone rubber or glue and run it over the newly repaired tear.
7. Apply Soft Silicone Rubber
You can use silicone rubber in place of glue as well. This is a better option than glue because it doesn’t dry rigidly.
Since speakers tend to vibrate back and forth with lots of movement, you can expect more longevity I you use soft silicone rubber for repairing a tear in the speaker. Since silicone moves and is flexible enough, it might help prevent additional breakages.
8. Order Replacement Parts
Look for the brand, model number, and name of the speaker as well as its parts. Replacement parts are available both online and in stores that sell parts or components and repair kits for speakers. When replacing speaker components, pay close attention to how these should be placed or how they were put together originally.
9. Test Your Fixed Speaker
When testing your newly fixed speaker, make sure you set the volume low first. See to it that no matter what song you play first, it should have gentle sounds. Also, play only those songs that your speaker will be able to handle. Test the speaker carefully to avoid breaking its parts or the speaker itself all over again.