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Major Contradiction, Can you replace foam surrounds with Rubber Surrounds on Speakers ???

Hi Guys, I have a major conundrum to decide, and need the experts in the community to help. I have the Wilson Watt Puppy 6's and have 4 woofers that need re-foaming.

 Here's the issue, First, according to Wilson, I had called 2x(at different times) and asked to speak with a speaker engineer, Both times the knowledgeable staff member that answered the phone said that wasn't possible, but would relay any message to them on the spot and get back with me while I hold. My question was: Can you replace the foam surrounds on the Wilson speakers with Rubber Surrounds . After waiting on hold for about 5 minuets, he said "yes, you can",

I Then proceeded to call the well regarded Miller Sound in PA, who is recognized to one of the best in the Industry to do the replacing of speaker surrounds. I proceeded to ask the same question to him, and he said, "No, & that it would change the sound of the speaker and to only redo them using foam surrounds to preserve its original sound quality" . I see no other supporting evidence one way or the other on the net. What do you folks say and please elaborate one way or the other to help me justify my decision. Thank you, Rich
audiofan1
edgewound
259 posts
 
Keep in mind that just replacing the foam surround is only half the job. Best practice in most cases is to replace both the spider and surround. The spider is the more critical of the two suspension elements.

Keep in mind that many posting here...and even many repair shops don't really know what they're doing. The workmanship...or lack thereof..is evidence of that.
auxinput
2,920 posts
 
I believe, and this is foggy, that the answer is that the majority of the compliance in a driver is the spider on the inside, next to the magnet. The foam or rubber ring we see on the outside is normally the one that contributes the least amount.

I would agree with this.  The weight of the entire driver plus the weight and the "spring" strength of the spider will dictate the resonance frequency of the woofer.  This applies to port size tuning.  I don't think rubber/foam surround will affect the weight or spring/flex of the driver and have very little impact on resonance frequency.

Now the type of surround can definitely impact much higher frequencies (such as anything above 400-500 hz) because it affects the natural damping of the speaker vibration resonance.  This may have impact on frequency response or crossover design.  If it's a woofer on a 3-way speaker, then I wouldn't worry about replacing surround with rubber.
dletch2
455 posts
 
I was trying to find the crossover frequency. They are either a 3 or a 3.5 way. The mid-woof is quite large making me think the woofers are cutting over early. 
bigkidz
3,413 posts
 
"You got some GREAT advise from a professional rebuilder, why are you asking."

I have known Bill LeGall for a long time.

Bill has re-foamed thousands of drivers.  Thousands, Thousands!

Have seen his work many many times.  I have re-foamed speakers myself.  Will it change the sound - sure it will - can you hear it - maybe - but the stiffness and the reaction time will change.  Some may hear that, other maybe not.  From seeing what Bill does, I can see the reaction time and how the driver reacts to music and how the driver moves in and out.  It is a science IMO.  So if I was you, just let Bill do them and be done with it once and for all.  You will not be disappointed with his work.

Happy Listening. 
speakermaster
738 posts
 
I would stick to the original equipment as close as possible to make sure not to mess with or change the sound of the woofer the speaker refoam tech is right.
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