I've just been given a pair of Wharfedale Dovedale IIIs and both drivers and one tweeter are shot. The woofers seem OK.
Are these speakers worth repairing or should I just scrap them off and find a home for the woofers? If they are worth repairing, what drivers and tweeters would you recommend?
Thanks.
Are these speakers worth repairing or should I just scrap them off and find a home for the woofers? If they are worth repairing, what drivers and tweeters would you recommend?
Thanks.
Hi John,
Recently won a pair of Dovedale IIIs from a local auction, got them for 5 euro because no one else was bidding...
From the 70s I had excellent memories of this speaker, couldn't afford them as a student. But now in 2006, this pair appeared to have harsh tweeters and one mid-range driver was silent. Sound quality was not really impressive apart from the bass: deep yet not boomy.
This midrange driver was open-circuit. I replaced it with a Celestion Ditton 44 mid-range (6 Ohms, as the Wharfedale one), adapting the hole in the cabinet front. The speaker now sounded much better than the other. So, I replaced the mid-range driver in the other speaker as well. Finally replaced the cross-over filter capacitors for the tweeter (one seemed to have leaked) and that made quite a difference as well. The speakers have a three-position switch for attenuating or emphasising mid-range and tweeter, I attenuate the tweeter and set the mid-range to neutral to have the best result (in my room and with my ears).
The other speakers I have from the 70s, Bowers and Wilkins DM6, still sound a lot more neutral and less tiring. In 1977, hesitated between the DM6 and the Quad ESL, for about the same price. Wish I had bought the Quads.
So, yes, repairing these Dovedales can be fun, but I wouldn't spend too much on it. Have a look at the cross-over filters as well, but replacing the capacitors can be tricky. Modern polyester Cs have a lower ESR than old bipolar ones, which could influence the loudness level of one or another driver. But yes, repairing can be fun.
Cheers,
Jacques
Recently won a pair of Dovedale IIIs from a local auction, got them for 5 euro because no one else was bidding...
From the 70s I had excellent memories of this speaker, couldn't afford them as a student. But now in 2006, this pair appeared to have harsh tweeters and one mid-range driver was silent. Sound quality was not really impressive apart from the bass: deep yet not boomy.
This midrange driver was open-circuit. I replaced it with a Celestion Ditton 44 mid-range (6 Ohms, as the Wharfedale one), adapting the hole in the cabinet front. The speaker now sounded much better than the other. So, I replaced the mid-range driver in the other speaker as well. Finally replaced the cross-over filter capacitors for the tweeter (one seemed to have leaked) and that made quite a difference as well. The speakers have a three-position switch for attenuating or emphasising mid-range and tweeter, I attenuate the tweeter and set the mid-range to neutral to have the best result (in my room and with my ears).
The other speakers I have from the 70s, Bowers and Wilkins DM6, still sound a lot more neutral and less tiring. In 1977, hesitated between the DM6 and the Quad ESL, for about the same price. Wish I had bought the Quads.
So, yes, repairing these Dovedales can be fun, but I wouldn't spend too much on it. Have a look at the cross-over filters as well, but replacing the capacitors can be tricky. Modern polyester Cs have a lower ESR than old bipolar ones, which could influence the loudness level of one or another driver. But yes, repairing can be fun.
Cheers,
Jacques
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