Hi , I have picked up a pair of leak sandwich speakers from late 60s ,the woofers are sound tweeters are dead and as usual caps need replacing,I like the sound of the woofs and would like to replace the tweeters , I understand I would need to alter crossover and also turn 8ohm tweeters into 16 ohms to match the woofs,is there anyone out there who has come across this dilemma and found an answer .
Are you sure the tweeters are dead. If the caps are no good ? These tweeters are built well. Are they a dead short? If so they can be replaced with a full range driver of the same size. you will need to get an enclose sized to fit in the place ware the tweeters were. The tweeter crossed over vary low so if you are just replacing the caps the full range will handle the lower cross over point. Look for 3, 3.5 or 4in drivers witch are clones of the fe-103 old aiwa drivers some can be found in old RTR's at 16 ohms.
Hi trev57,
If you could give a more detailed description of the model Leak Sandwich that you have it could help to find an original replacement.The first model MK 1, used a paper coned 3'' tweeter fitted to the grille board.In the MK 2, a change was made to a polystyrene foam cone. If the tweeter is open circuit the most likely cause is the flexible lead out wires fatiguing and/or a dry jointed connection to the aluminium voice coil wire.These faults are repairable.
If you could give a more detailed description of the model Leak Sandwich that you have it could help to find an original replacement.The first model MK 1, used a paper coned 3'' tweeter fitted to the grille board.In the MK 2, a change was made to a polystyrene foam cone. If the tweeter is open circuit the most likely cause is the flexible lead out wires fatiguing and/or a dry jointed connection to the aluminium voice coil wire.These faults are repairable.
Hi both the tweeters are paper coned fitted to the grill board they show nothing when tested with a meter,I have dismantled them and can see no visible damage to either but they both show up dead which is supprising as they look as though they are built to last forever and were made to be fitted in a tank.both the crossovers are original and as woofers sound fine connected directly and distort badly when connected to crossovers I assume it must be the capacitors.
By all means replace the non-polarised electrolytic capacitors as they could be suspect after all these years.The magnet of the 13'' bass unit should be unbolted from the frame and the voice coil inspected.Check that the paper former has not creased and that the 'fixing' to the expanded polystyrene foam is intact.The magnet gap may require cleaning.For both the tweeter and the bass speaker,check to see if the braided voice coil leadout wires are still flexible as these can stiffen with age.The roll surround on the bass speaker uses a PVA copolymer sealant and this material can dry out.
The bass speakers are fine, I had found a lot of info on the net re-magnets but nothing regarding tweeter replacement , I have contacted a couple of companies regarding reconing and equivalent tweeters but as yet have had no luck
I would say recone, or scour eBay for another pair of 15--ohm to 16-ohm tweeters. In that range you could look at units like the Wharfdale, other Leak or even Sansui units.
Deon
Deon
OK thanks, tried reconing option but unable to find someone to do it,its resistor or keep eye on eBay or keep a check on junk shops .
Chinese tweeter and 8 ohm resistor works fine and resistor does not get hot or affect sound ,am waiting for better quality tweeters then will compare quality between two two series linked tweeters and one tweeter with resistor,these speakers knock spots off modern speakers.
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