# Help!  One of my speakers are making strange scratchy noise



## darkclouds

Yesterday, I noticed a strange scratchy noise coming from my right speaker (Totem Mani-2). I have no idea what is causing it. I've narrowed it down to the woofer. There's no tear that I can see. So I just opened it up and it seems that the suspension is making this scratchy noise everytime I push the woofer cone. Sounds like something is scratching against each other. I just don't see what. Any ideas?


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## darkclouds

I'm such a fantastic diy! After fiddling around with it, the noise is even worse now. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 It was barely noticeable on certain tracks. I have to really listen for it. Now, it's much easier to discern.


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## ooheadsoo

Sounds like it's time for totem to send you a new woofer. Could be the spider is torn? Can you see any tears in it?


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## darkclouds

Can't find any tears. That was my first guess. Like I said, it makes this strange scratch sound that you can hear during low passages. On higher/louder passages, it gets drown out. Needless to say, it's very annoying. Would you suggest just getting a replacement woofer rather than sending them in for servicing?


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## gerG

Yikes! Your description sounds like the voice coil rubbing against the magnet structure. This can happen if the woofer frame is distorted by unequal force from the mounting screws. Does the woofer scrape when you press on the center cap? If so, remove it from the cabinet and repeat the experiment. If it still scrapes, call the manufacturer and ask for a replacement part. If not, reinstall, but be very careful to tighten the screws in a crosswise pattern. Flexible baskets are very susceptible to this symptom.


 gerG


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## ooheadsoo

Yeah, I was hesitant to mention the voice coil because that would be a worst case scenario. gerG, would you recommend that he keep the woofer even if reseating the screws eliminated the problem?


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## darkclouds

Ok, the spider you're talking about is the accordian looking thing right? there's no tears that I can see there. If there is a tear, shouldn't it sound worse as the volume get louder? 

 Or is the voice coil the accordian looking thing? That is what I believe to be doing the rubbing. I'm pretty sure I can feel it rub when I push against the cap. If that is the voice coil, then I think you may have diagnosed the problem. It would be so much easier if I can get them to simply send a replacement woofer then to have to ship everything to canada.

 Please clarify/describe the spider and voice coil.


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## ooheadsoo

I'm afraid gerG may be right. The spider is the suspension inside the speaker that you can see (the accordion thing.) The voice coil is inside, you can't see it under normal circumstances.


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## gerG

Oof, good question. Stamped steel frame woofers are notorious for this, and you can just tune them with the mounting screws. I would check the woofer out of the cabinet and see if there is a bias, i.e. pressing one side makes more of a difference than another. If so, then the woofer is faulty, and a new one is in order. If the VC seems centered, then I would look at the mounting surface and gasket. Something seems out of tolerance. If it is a cast frame woofer (thick aluminum) then this should not happen in the first place. Again, check the woofer out of the cabinet. The problem could lie in an improperly routed woofer mount, or a lump of crud under the seal. Make sure that the mounting surface is perfectly flat, and there is not a foreign object (like a Volkswagen) caught under the gasket.

 Another possibility is a voice coil misalignment in a woofer with an adjustable magnet. This is a very slim possibility, but I am not familiar with the woofer in this system, so I thought I would mention it.

 The fact that you did an R&R on the woofer and it made things worse makes me think that it is either a warped frame due to incorrect torque on the mounting screws (or something under the flange) or a piece of stuffing contacting the cone.

 gerG


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## KZEE

One of my Dynaudio 6" woofers did that once, and it turned out to be the braided speaker lead that goes to the voice coil. It had come loose and was rubbing on the cone.


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## darkclouds

Thanks for the help guys. It feels like it's the spider that is scrapping against the frame. In either case, it looks like this isn't going to be cheap.


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## ooheadsoo

Heh, actually most likely it's pretty cheap, it's just that totem's about to don a bandanna and gallop on up to your horse and carriage. Unless they do it under warranty, of course.

 (Unless you meant a couple dollars by cheap.)


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## darkclouds

They're no longer under warranty. I've shot them an email and they want me to send the speakers in for the estimate. I'm hoping it won't be much more than $500 since I really do love these speakers. Maybe I'll check in on their signature upgrade while I'm at it. This just sucks.


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## rickcr42

did you try the first step of loudspeaker troubleshooting ?

 Swap the left and right channels to either confirm or eliminate the speaker as the culprit.If the problem stays in the same channel it is the amp and not the speaker.But if the problem travels to the other channel with the speaker then your suspicains are on target and you have speaker problems.

 BTW-speakers are not easy to blow up up unless played at high volume over a very long time period.It is the heat buildup over time and not the instantaneous power peaks that do damage unless of course you are hitting that baby with 200 watts and it is only rated for twenty (as an example ).
 The other may cause is the opposite-underpwered speakers where driven continuously into clipping will also overheat the speakers but in this case usually the tweeters with the harmonics created by an amp clipping which are up in the ultrasonics but at high power-a really bad combination for loudspeaker health


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## ooheadsoo

$500? Man, I'm never buying an expensive commercial speaker if they want to rip you off like that. I hope it works out for you for a heck of a lot less than that.


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## sluggo

Try pressing straight inward half-way up the cone at the 12 o'clock, 3 o'clock, 6 o'clock, and 9 o'clock positions. If the voicecoil is misaligned, you will likely hear rubbing in some positions and (maybe) no rubbing in others. If such is the case, your voice coil is probably misaligned. The misalignment may be due to heat (warping the coil) or due to a separation at the coil or spider. It's pretty rare that a frame will bend without it's having been whacked pretty well, and I think you'd remember that 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





 If the coil is misaligned you CAN get it replaced, but you're probably best off with a new woofer. Replacing the damaged coil might actually be the more expensive way to go.

 BTW, that press test shoud be done slowly and not more than a few times. Also, if you're considering buying some used speakers, it's not a bad test to do - you want a driver that makes no noise at any position.


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## darkclouds

It's definitely the speaker. Originally I had thought it was something from my analog rig, eg cart or phonostage, since I couldn't really hear the noise with cds. So, yeah, I did all the left/right switching combination possibilities. Now that I've exacerbated the problem, I can get my cds to make the noise. 

 I've contacted Totem, who said they'll see if they can find the nearest dealer to do the work. I've also contacted Galen Carol audio who will do the work, but suggests that I should contact Totem again. He thought it would be better for Totem to do the work. My options are to get the signature upgrade (if that in fact include new drivers) or just have the problematic driver replaced. I'll get the signature upgrade if the price is reasonable and have Totem service the both speakers since they are a quite few years old. But if it's really expensive, I think I'll just try and get the woofer from them and do the work myself. It doesn't look too difficult with only two solder joints. 

 thanks again guys for the help.


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## KZEE

If Totem doesn't cut you a deal - and I mean a real good deal for good will purposes - on your woofer replacement, then to save some $ how about considering having them just send you the one woofer and then doing the work in your own home? I've never specifically worked on a Totem speaker, but in general replacing a woofer really isn't all that difficult of a job to do, and it would save you a bunch of money in shipping costs and what-not.


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## darkclouds

KZEE, that's exactly what I'm thinking. Although I'd rather have them service the both speakers, meaning do a complete overhaul for a reasonable price. That would be the best scenario. I plan on keeping these for many more years. My only concern about doing the single woofer is driver matching. I'm not certain on how that work (or maybe that's not a big concern with speakers). I guess I'll have to wait to Monday to speak to them about that as well.


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## cupples

Before you get that new drive unit, try rotating the current one 180 degrees, and putting it back in. Over time, things in speakers can sag, and sometimes rotating the unit will allow things to sag back into their proper place. I've tried this on a 30 year old B&W speaker which was scratchy, and it did the job. Worth a try, might save all the hassle. If you do need a new one, you could perhaps try sourcing the drive unit yourself, if it's an off-the-shelf one. 
 Andrew


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