To repair/replace Utopia Be


I have a pair of Diva Utopia Be. Last weekend, I noticed some weird sound from the speakers then I found the Be tweeter was broken (a hole on the dome...not sure how it gets there)

I have ordered a new tweeter from a local dealer, as the speaker is pretty heavy and the dealer told me the technics involved in replacing the unit is pretty straight forward (unscrew the screws and then connect the wires to the unit) I decided to replace the unit by myself. Anybody has similar experience on this please let me if there is anything I shall pay special attention to when replacing it.

Many many thanks.

Eric
jeq
Even with soldered ends it's easy. If you have not soldered prior, just spend a few minutes with a soldering gun and practice. You need to be cautious as the melted solder runs rapidly, like water. It goes from solid to liquid - like THAT!

Be sure to protect everything nearby. Try to turn the speaker on it's side, etc. to have no chance of solder dropping onto the driver, etc. Put wood or something hard under the work area.

Are there tension clips used on these tweeters? or soldered? Just curious.
If the speaker is too heavy to turn on it's side, solicit help in holding the tweeter and then solder it. You may want to mask the speaker near the tweeter as well. Every precaution may seem extreme, but it's well worth it when the job is done correctly. One slip and regret is forever. :)
I replaced a tweeter in my Divas Be's in 2006. Accidentally cracked a tweeter replacing the tiny metal tweeter covers.

The connection between the tweeter and speaker will need to be resoldered, so you should probably practice a bit so you don't get a cold solder joint which could cause future problems. Leads to the tweeter are very small. Would be worth getting a second person to help hold the wires in place while you solder. Also, use hi-quality preferably high-silver content solder.

Also, be careful of the broken tweeter. Flaking Beryllium is toxic. Enough of it in your lungs can lead to permanent breathing problems. Focal will send you a cellophane type material to put over the broken one to contain any flaking beryllium.

Otherwise, two allen bolts and two wingnuts to get to the tweeter. Magnets are strong, so be careful of tools and metal parts laying around. Did mine sitting in place in the theater. Had some help holding the tweeter and leads during soldering. Pretty simple process.

Good Luck. Can e-mail me if you need more information.
I have built several speakers over the years and i would like to point out a few things:
The coil associated with a tweeter is extremely sensitive and can be damaged if you apply to much heat to the driver terminals.
There is a right way and a wrong way to do the soldering:
1. Do not use a soldering gun unless you want to order another tweeter. A soldering gun as opposed to an iron can but outs hundreds of watts of heat in a very short period of time.
2. Rather buy a cheap iron from radio shack $20. Tine i.e. pre solder the wire leads that connect eventually to the terminal.
Place a crocodile clip behind the drive terminal to absorb heat upstream of the joint. Use another clip to hold the tined wire in place against the terminal. Apply heat to the terminal 3-4 seconds, touch the joint with solder for a second, remove the solder then remove the iron. Blow on the new joint.
And ensure you mark the polarity of the wires before you move them. Nothing will kill the sound of a pair of great monitors and a driver connected out of phase.

Enjoy and good luck
All good advice. Extra Action has you all set. I recently repalced a tweeter dome for a friend on a pair of B&W's and had to solder the leads.

Note the position of the wires. If you can, take a digital photo of the old one.

When I unsoldered the old diaphragm I just heated it up a little and removed the wire. The leads had enough solder left to just heat it up and quickly add the new wire and blow on it without addign any solder. Esentially the same as Extra Action's advice.