Hi everyone, been a very long time since I've posted here and I hope someone can help with information.
I have a set of 4x FE164 in DIY cabinets that have been stored unused in my living room for several years. Long story short, I moved here to a new job and before I could move fully in the job became very unstable. That insecurity kept me from fully moving in and setting things up so I set them - and a lot of other things - in what I thought was a good place while I waited to see what would develop. My job situation just improved - dramatically - after a lot of hard work, and to celebrate this weekend I'm starting to unpack and really get moved in.
What I found was pictured below. It looks like the cones are molding from the outside in. Probably because I faced the drivers towards the wall to keep my wife's dog from clawing them every time she wanted attention. I didn't store them in the basement that was supposed to be my den because I was afraid of humidity and anyway the "den" has been storage, I thought the living room would be safe.
Am I right that this is mold/mildew and if so is there any way to get rid of it without destroying my FE164's? I feel a little sick right now, should have checked on the things earlier but the last few years have been a heck of a roller coaster ride.
Thanks in advance for any help,
Morse
PS If those drivers are shot, any ideas on current replacements that are similar to the old '164's?
I have a set of 4x FE164 in DIY cabinets that have been stored unused in my living room for several years. Long story short, I moved here to a new job and before I could move fully in the job became very unstable. That insecurity kept me from fully moving in and setting things up so I set them - and a lot of other things - in what I thought was a good place while I waited to see what would develop. My job situation just improved - dramatically - after a lot of hard work, and to celebrate this weekend I'm starting to unpack and really get moved in.
What I found was pictured below. It looks like the cones are molding from the outside in. Probably because I faced the drivers towards the wall to keep my wife's dog from clawing them every time she wanted attention. I didn't store them in the basement that was supposed to be my den because I was afraid of humidity and anyway the "den" has been storage, I thought the living room would be safe.
Am I right that this is mold/mildew and if so is there any way to get rid of it without destroying my FE164's? I feel a little sick right now, should have checked on the things earlier but the last few years have been a heck of a roller coaster ride.
Thanks in advance for any help,
Morse
PS If those drivers are shot, any ideas on current replacements that are similar to the old '164's?
I have an FE164 that is doing the same thing, and the surround on the other has become sticky to the touch. I think what you are seeing is the coating on the surround or the glue degrading over time and seeping into the paper. Also, maybe my imagination, but I don’t recall the surround being see through when they were new.
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Hi Dave,
Yep still have the 6BM8. Never got around to revising the power supply, need a beefier transformer on it which is a shame because its a sweet sounding little amp, just runs too hot. Maybe add a second identical transformer and use one per channel to beef it up.
ModPodge? Just looked it up. Sorry if I'm a little slow on the uptake but the last few years I've not given a thought to DIY audio with everything else going on. So should I coat the cones to fix their appearance and maybe improve them sonically? Or is a reglue of the surround to cone needed? They seem dry, which is why I was so surprised. I reckoned that the dark environment near a window would be the problem.
Hi Rory,
Thanks for the info. Dang, I hadn't even thought of that, but I have had these drivers since some time in the late '90's or early naughts. Do you think its just cosmetic or do I need to implement some kind of fix to make it "right"? Right now I'm in "do no harm" mode while I try to figure out what the heck is going on.
Best,
Morse
Yep still have the 6BM8. Never got around to revising the power supply, need a beefier transformer on it which is a shame because its a sweet sounding little amp, just runs too hot. Maybe add a second identical transformer and use one per channel to beef it up.
ModPodge? Just looked it up. Sorry if I'm a little slow on the uptake but the last few years I've not given a thought to DIY audio with everything else going on. So should I coat the cones to fix their appearance and maybe improve them sonically? Or is a reglue of the surround to cone needed? They seem dry, which is why I was so surprised. I reckoned that the dark environment near a window would be the problem.
Hi Rory,
Thanks for the info. Dang, I hadn't even thought of that, but I have had these drivers since some time in the late '90's or early naughts. Do you think its just cosmetic or do I need to implement some kind of fix to make it "right"? Right now I'm in "do no harm" mode while I try to figure out what the heck is going on.
Best,
Morse
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/threads/opinions-on-mods-to-ff85wk.365756/#post-6480912
You can add a bit of black arylic paint to the midpodge to make the whole cone black.
The FE164 also offers the” opportunity" for/to (all related to the whizzer issues):
1/phase plugs http://www.planet10-hifi.com/downloads/FE16x-PhasePlugs.pdf
2/98¢ tweak, lots of ways to do it, basically putting something between whizzer and cone
3/ massag ethe phas plug… in the case of the FOstex with the folded edge, just the edge
4/ 2ncoats of ZIG glue under that lip and at the top ofthe whizzer on the back
dave
You can add a bit of black arylic paint to the midpodge to make the whole cone black.
The FE164 also offers the” opportunity" for/to (all related to the whizzer issues):
1/phase plugs http://www.planet10-hifi.com/downloads/FE16x-PhasePlugs.pdf
2/98¢ tweak, lots of ways to do it, basically putting something between whizzer and cone
3/ massag ethe phas plug… in the case of the FOstex with the folded edge, just the edge
4/ 2ncoats of ZIG glue under that lip and at the top ofthe whizzer on the back
dave
Or white if you want to retain more of the original look.
Black would certainly cover the stains better thou.
jeff
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Thanks again guys, lots to think about here - including the fact that I need to check over my driver stash which has also been in what I regarded as safe storage (RS 40-1197's, RS 40-1354's, FE87's, FE103's, etc) for the last 7 years. They're in sealed boxes with silica-gel but this glue migration thing is a new one to me. For over 20 years I've kept a pair of RS40-1197's and a gainclone I built back in the '90's as my office stereo. They're all going strong, no problems even though their storage has been less-than-ideal. At this gig they turn off the environmental controls over the semester breaks and it can get very hot and humid here.
While I'm checking out the FE164's with another gainclone and researching modpodge modifications, do some experimentation before I make any changes to the 164's, will take the 2A3 SET off-line to save tube lifespans and pull my old Jolida EL34 amp with Infinity IL-10's out of storage as a stopgap for music while I'm getting moved in properly. That 2A3 requires higher efficiency speakers than anything else I have on hand.
Am also looking at swapping out to something like FE166's which would drop in the holes in my cabinets - need to model the system and see what changes to expect if I do that. Looks like they're a bit more efficient which with a 2A3 is a good thing but the top end looks a little hotter.
Best,
Morse
While I'm checking out the FE164's with another gainclone and researching modpodge modifications, do some experimentation before I make any changes to the 164's, will take the 2A3 SET off-line to save tube lifespans and pull my old Jolida EL34 amp with Infinity IL-10's out of storage as a stopgap for music while I'm getting moved in properly. That 2A3 requires higher efficiency speakers than anything else I have on hand.
Am also looking at swapping out to something like FE166's which would drop in the holes in my cabinets - need to model the system and see what changes to expect if I do that. Looks like they're a bit more efficient which with a 2A3 is a good thing but the top end looks a little hotter.
Best,
Morse
