Do speakers need to be used?

[Wylie]

This didn't seem like a question for Amps & Cabs, felt more general. It may not be an award-winning question, either...

I have a Schroeder 2x10 that I hardly use anymore. The trio I play with plays (and practices) so seldom that all I've needed in the last six to twelve months is my 10-inch Carvin practice amp, both for practice and for small-room gigs. So the Schroeder just sits.

My question is, Does a speaker need to be exercised, used, played, in order to retain its elasticity? Will it deteriorate if not used?

Thanks.

Wylie

[skankdelvar]

[quote name='Wylie' timestamp='1481845830' post='3195739']
My question is, Does a speaker need to be exercised, used, played, in order to retain its elasticity?
[/quote]

Possibly. Or possibly not. That's [i]science[/i] and somebody much smarter than me will doubtless be along presently.

[quote name='Wylie' timestamp='1481845830' post='3195739']Will it deteriorate if not used?[/quote]

If left long enough - in the order of years or possibly decades - I suppose the rubber bits will eventually stiffen up. That said, I had a 2x12 cab for thirty-six years, didn't use it for the last ten. Fired it up before I advertised it for sale and it sounded fine. Awesome, in fact.

I doubt that leaving your Schroder for 6 months - year will cause problems in the medium term but if you're worried, it's no biggie to switch it on every three months or so and have a noodle for half an hour. Enjoy

[Phil Starr]

Everything decays eventually but speakers are fairly resilient. the biggest problem is likely to be damp. Small amounts of moisture will make the paper cone swell over time and eventually may cause it to distort. Larger amounts of damp may allow fungi to flourish. make sure you store it somewhere dry and if you have open ports in the cab block them, I've found mice in one cab I stored in a garage once I heard them moving when I set up and they ran out at a gig when we started playing

[radiophonic]

As Phil says above, but also (depending on construction method and materials) surrounds can rot, large cones (especially) can sag, glue can give way and crossover components can drift out of tolerance. That said, I have studio monitors built in the 1960s which work perfectly and sound tremendous. I wouldn't worry.

[Dan Dare]

It'll be fine as others say. Obviously, don't expose it to damp, temperature extremes, etc. or leave it in direct sunlight,

[ead]

Don't know whether it's urban legend or not, but I have heard suggestions that speakers should be stored & transported on the backs so the sagging effect is minimised.

[tauzero]

Years ago, the speaker in my Gallien Krueger 200MB (the little 1x12 combo) fell apart - the cone just parted company with the surround, having hardened and crumbled away.

[Phil Starr]

[quote name='ead' timestamp='1481894569' post='3196049']
Don't know whether it's urban legend or not, but I have heard suggestions that speakers should be stored & transported on the backs so the sagging effect is minimised.
[/quote]
I've heard the reverse, though modern materials are so much better that I wonder now whether that is right. We used to move speakers with a shorted jack plug in. The hope was that the back emf would dampen movement in the van.

[yorks5stringer]

I take my MarkBass NYC 121 speaker with me to Yoga and Pilates during the week and on the weekend I use it on a Park Run. It's never beaten me on a run yet....

Sensible answer is that when new they often sound better once used for a while. After that I don't know!

[Shaggy]

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1481848696' post='3195764']
Everything decays eventually but speakers are fairly resilient. the biggest problem is likely to be damp. Small amounts of moisture will make the paper cone swell over time and eventually may cause it to distort.
[/quote]

From the "Blue Peter" school of speaker maintenance: if I'm changing drivers or have the cab grille off for any reason, I usually give the cones a quick spray with Mrs Shaggy's hairspray - helps to seal the paper against damp / stains, and also gets them looking nice and black again (unless they were never black in the first place of course....). It's a tip artists use for sealing watercolour paintings and pictures done in pastel - too much I'm sure would over-stiffen the cone, but just a touch seems to help them last in good condition

[quote name='ead' timestamp='1481894569' post='3196049']
Don't know whether it's urban legend or not, but I have heard suggestions that speakers should be stored & transported on the backs so the sagging effect is minimised.
[/quote]

Haven't heard that one, but large drivers (eg: 15") are apparently prone to "cone sag" and you're supposed to rotate the cab through 180 degrees every now and again when stored to compensate for this. Never done it, mind.......

[quote name='tauzero' timestamp='1481897788' post='3196104']
Years ago, the speaker in my Gallien Krueger 200MB (the little 1x12 combo) fell apart - the cone just parted company with the surround, having hardened and crumbled away.
[/quote]

Never happened to me with a bass cab, and somewhere like Wembley loudspeakers could do a proper repair of course. But another "Blue Peter" bodge; my prized 1970's Dahlquist DQ-10 hi-fi speakers started farting a few years ago, and inevitably I found that the foam rubber mountings for the cones on the woofer drivers had disintegrated, as above. Stuck them back to the frame surround with adhesive woven acrylic tape (used for surgical dressings) smeared with silicone rubber sealant, with a bit of a fold to allow movement - still going strong.

[Twincam]

[quote name='Shaggy' timestamp='1481908194' post='3196234']


From the "Blue Peter" school of speaker maintenance: if I'm changing drivers or have the cab grille off for any reason, I usually give the cones a quick spray with Mrs Shaggy's hairspray - helps to seal the paper against damp / stains, and also gets them looking nice and black again (unless they were never black in the first place of course....). It's a tip artists use for sealing watercolour paintings and pictures done in pastel - too much I'm sure would over-stiffen the cone, but just a touch seems to help them last in good condition



Haven't heard that one, but large drivers (eg: 15") are apparently prone to "cone sag" and you're supposed to rotate the cab through 180 degrees every now and again when stored to compensate for this. Never done it, mind.......



Never happened to me with a bass cab, and somewhere like Wembley loudspeakers could do a proper repair of course. But another "Blue Peter" bodge; my prized 1970's Dahlquist DQ-10 hi-fi speakers started farting a few years ago, and inevitably I found that the foam rubber mountings for the cones on the woofer drivers had disintegrated, as above. Stuck them back to the frame surround with adhesive woven acrylic tape (used for surgical dressings) smeared with silicone rubber sealant, with a bit of a fold to allow movement - still going strong.
[/quote]

You spray paper cones and possibly rubber surrounds with hairspray! I see your logic of sealing things kinda! but knowing what chemicals etc that are in hairspray.
Then I can not understate how much I would say this is a bad thing! As it could break down elements of the cone material and weaken glue.
Looking at the first ingredient in hair spray is Alcohol! Which isn't a good thing for paper or glue or rubber! Etc etc. Then a whole host of other stuff that doubtfully would would protect a driver as a coating. But more likely break it down or weaken it.
Not to mention even a few light coatings will start to add mass as some elements will remain on the cone after every coating. Changing the drivers specs.

I hope that wasn't the cause of your hifi speakers disintegrating.

Please no one coat there drivers in hairspray.

[Wylie]

Thanks to all for very helpful suggestions (well... perhaps no hairspray). Much appreciated!

Wylie

[Beer of the Bass]

[quote name='tauzero' timestamp='1481897788' post='3196104']
Years ago, the speaker in my Gallien Krueger 200MB (the little 1x12 combo) fell apart - the cone just parted company with the surround, having hardened and crumbled away.
[/quote]

I think that may be common to foam surrounds. I once spent hours carefully replacing the foam on all four woofers of my old Wharfedale hifi speakers with replacement foam rings I'd found online. The operation was a success, then I had to get rid of them for a smaller pair of bookshelf speakers a few weeks later when I had to move flat. Fortunately not many speakers used in bass cabs have foam surrounds - the GK is quite unusual in that respect.

[Shaggy]

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1481912293' post='3196270']


You spray paper cones and possibly rubber surrounds with hairspray! I see your logic of sealing things kinda! but knowing what chemicals etc that are in hairspray.
Then I can not understate how much I would say this is a bad thing! As it could break down elements of the cone material and weaken glue.
Looking at the first ingredient in hair spray is Alcohol! Which isn't a good thing for paper or glue or rubber! Etc etc. Then a whole host of other stuff that doubtfully would would protect a driver as a coating. But more likely break it down or weaken it.
Not to mention even a few light coatings will start to add mass as some elements will remain on the cone after every coating. Changing the drivers specs.

I hope that wasn't the cause of your hifi speakers disintegrating.

Please no one coat there drivers in hairspray.
[/quote]

I'd be the first to admit there's no scientific basis for my tip - I think it was a tech who passed it onto me one time - and should also point out that my gear is almost invariably vintage (20 years old plus) so it probably helps revive rather tired cones; hairspray is essentially just a very light lacquer. Anyone with newer drivers you're probably right - don't mess with the cones, especially as they're blends of other materials such as Kevlar these days

No, didnt mess with the hi-if speakers before the repair, in fact they were a real pig to get at! Researching a bit after the event, perishing of the foam rubber cone mounting was a common cause of failure with the drivers on Dahlquist speakers

[stingrayPete1977]

I did a gig a few years ago stood next to some of those old Peavey PA speakers with (I think?) 6 5" speakers in each cab, they were old and unused for many years, everytime anyone dug in a bit I got showered in dust, the dust particles got bigger until I realised it was not dust but pieces of the foam rings from the speakers! By the end of the gig they were all killed and I needed a shower.