Practice with some crap components. Once you are proficient the tweeters will be no problem.
Soldering requires clean surfaces and heat.
Make sure that all the surfaces you are joining together are shiny, use fine abrasive paper to get rid of any tarnishing.
The larger the surface, the more heat that you require.
A 50W iron will be more than sufficient to heat up the joint quickly enough to cause no other damage.
If you are not adept at soldering, just PRACTICE with crap components, its not a difficult skill to aquire.
Soldering requires clean surfaces and heat.
Make sure that all the surfaces you are joining together are shiny, use fine abrasive paper to get rid of any tarnishing.
The larger the surface, the more heat that you require.
A 50W iron will be more than sufficient to heat up the joint quickly enough to cause no other damage.
If you are not adept at soldering, just PRACTICE with crap components, its not a difficult skill to aquire.
There are a few possibilities for damage. First possibility is the connection between the wire leads coming out of the tweeter coil (extremely small gauge) where it attaches to the terminal. I've seen it done a few ways, but it's possible to melt the solder point at that end of the terminal and lose the wire.
It's also possible that the joint between the metal terminal and the (usually plastic) tweeter diaphram plate can actually melt and shift around, or worse, break off completely.
Thanks... figured that would be the case. But, have learned not to presume in such cases. I bet the first listed is the tin. 63/37 I presume means 63% tin?
Its going to be an interesting review of these speakers after I rewire. They are very good as stock. NHT, Absolute Zeros. How they will be transformed after I re-wire with litz is yet to be seen.
Litz always had a definite effect with speakers I have used in the past. But these new speakers right now are subjectively the most neutral sounding speakers I have heard out of the box. Some have told me they think litz only affects possibly the high end. What I found is that it enhances detail and focus, and clarifies even the bass in a way that the usual stock wiring simply can not provide. Any takers as to why that might be?
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I was told by the speaker manufacturer to "make it fast and hot." The details as to how to achieve that I am learning here. Thanks.
Put a little solder on the iron tip, apply iron to joint, then apply solder and hold iron on until solder flows right around the joint.
BudP has a thread about "ground control" devices that use litz wire sooooo there might be a clue with that. Of course BudP is a big believer in putting war paint on speaker drivers so YMMV.
B&G Neo series tweeters are known to be sensitive to soldering and excessive heat will cause a problem with the solder tab separating from the internal connection to the driver element.
This is one place where using a heat sink - or thermal block - such as the hemostats can come in handy.
A little to hot is much better than a little to cold. To low a solder temp on the iron - or an iron that does not have enough wattage for the job - will cause you to keep the heat applied for a longer amount of time and everything will be heating up. Thus - even if the temperature is not high enough to achieve a proper solder joint you are still cooking the component being soldered. Some components other than speakers do not like being exposed to high temperatures so now you will have a bad solder joint and perhaps a damaged component as well.
Plus - you get to go back and try to do it correctly. When in doubt - practice on something similar and see how the "test" turns out.
BTW - I have been soldering for around 40 years now - about 30 of those years doing things the right way after I was trained to solder to NASA standards.
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I should let you know that I have had a good amount of experience with regular soldering. In my earlier days I used to work a line at BSR turntables correcting units that did not pass QC checks. Just how to soldier potentially fragile tweeters is the part that scares me a wee bit. Just a little.
Just how to soldier potentially fragile tweeters is the part that scares me a wee bit. Just a little.
Use da heat sinks!!!! Use da heat sinks!!! Use da heat sinks!!!
Ok - enough subtle clues. Annnnnnnnd good luck with your project!!
A word to the wise
, I became paranoid once I'd read of the potential destruction to tweeters and I seemed to get worse at soldering them, until I took stock of my attitude. The fact was that I'd been soldering tweeters for a time before then, and I've never ruined one.me too, still after doing it many times
my simple rules
1. place the tweeter to make it easier, usually on top of speaker
2. use only thin speaker wire, thick wire iss a nono
3. if stranded wire is used, make sure the end is carefully twisted, and straight
4. apply solder to wire end, and enough to fill it properly, but only the end
let it cool a bit, and apply a little more solder, as cold as possible, and should not flow too much
5. do the same with tweeter terminal, fast and not too hot
6. place the solder roll close by the tweeter, solder sticking out
7. clean the solder tip
8. and now the difficult part
hold the wire end firmly and steady on to the terminal
9. quickly apply solder to the tip
and solder
10. very important to hold the wire steady for a few seconds, until cool enough
to me the most difficult part
and done
I prefer to hold the wire with pair of tweezers
and a good spotlight helps too
Thanks for a few tips, and the others verifications.
I just may invest in one of these. Used to own one.
Amazon.com: Extra Hands Table Top Solder Aid w/Dual Alligator Clips: Home Improvement
I just may invest in one of these. Used to own one.
Amazon.com: Extra Hands Table Top Solder Aid w/Dual Alligator Clips: Home Improvement
Use da heat sinks!!!! Use da heat sinks!!! Use da heat sinks!!!
Ok - enough subtle clues. Annnnnnnnd good luck with your project!!
Heat sink, flux, heat sink, flux, heat sink, flux... and what c2cthomas said. Hold it still a few seconds after taking the tip off the solder joint, it will cool and life is good. Red Bull and soldering don't go well together.
Use da heat sinks!!!! Use da heat sinks!!! Use da heat sinks!!!
Ok - enough subtle clues. Annnnnnnnd good luck with your project!!
Uhhhhhh? These?
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