30 yr old speakers- time to replace drivers?


I have a pair of NHT VT1 speakers. The drivers seem to be in good shape. They have paper cones and rubber surrounds. After 30 yrs, should I upgrade crossovers and replace drivers?

pureclarity

I don’t know about your specific speakers.  There are some where the rubber surrounds on woofers go bad over time and crumble, but, others do not suffer this fate.  I recently listened to a terrific system using 75 year old drivers.  If you had a speaker with the kind of surround that was most vulnerable to aging, it would have gone a long time ago.  Even if the surround goes bad, the driver can be repaired by someone replacing the surround (often called re-foaming for the foam rubber employed in the surround).

As for the caps, they can go bad over time, particularly if they are electrolytic, but, they can often last a very long time too, so it is not necessarily the case that they need replacement.

gdaddy1

121 posts

 

If they sound good leave it for now. If it ain't broke don't fix it.

 

What he said.

After you calculate the cost to replace the cross-over and driver, and time, I suggest you also listen around for new speakers or newish but used, in the same price range.  You may be able to enjoy an upgrade for a similar price, or not, but worth shopping a bit.