The original Vandersteen 1 speakers sold for $600.00 a pair. Unless you are getting them for under $50.00, I wouldn't waste the money. I would call Vandersteen and see if parts are still available. You will need to give them tthe serial# so they can determine the version.
Anyone's tried repairing/upgrading original Vandersteen 1 speakers?
I have a chance at an original Vandersteen 1 with what's claimed to be a bad woofer. Well, maybe it's the woofer, maybe it's the feed to it through the crossover. Won't know unless I buy it (it's pretty cheap) and open it up. Curious to hear from anyone who's worked on this unit, especially done anything to bring it more up to date. Wondering if this one is worth the effort. Thanks.
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To replace a woofer can be a cheap fix. In 1981 I bought a pair of ESS TranStatics I’s, introduced in 1970 and discontinued a few years later (with the success of the ESS/Heil AMT 1). One of the two speakers had had it’s KEF B-139 woofer replaced with a generic copy, so I called ESS to see if they had one to sell. I got the last remaining B-139 they had in stock---for 39 bucks! Did you know Nelson Pass worked at ESS in the early-70's? Not designing electronics (ESS didn't yet offer any), but working on their loudspeakers (specifically their crossovers, I believe). |
bdp24, Nelson designed the "Ion Cloud" loudspeaker while at Threshold that put out a huge amount of ozone due to the ionized gas it used and took several kilowatts to get it to work. I've read it actually drove people from the room due to the ozone and caused power dips in the electrical grid due to the power draw but he said it was one of the best speakers he has heard! He also designed a device called "The Shadow" which was an active bass trap. It had a microphone built into it that sampled the acoustics of the room and put out an inverse signal to a woofer that cancelled/mitigated the high pressure acoustic bass waves. Brilliant design that for the life of me didn't catch on. I real interesting article about his early days can be found here for those interested - https://www.stereophile.com/interviews/1191pass/index.html |
@OP, Either contact Vandersteen directly or John Rutan(audioconnection). You can also post at the Vandersteen forum-on the Vandy website. We'd love to hear from you. Vandersteen offers great customer service. You'll probably need to buy 2 drivers, as they are matched. There are videos on Youtube that show how to replace the drivers. Models 1-3 were designed to be easily repaired. Just peel back the fabric and do what is needed. Crossovers usually aren't the problem, but, who knows? Unless you are getting them for $100 bucks or less, I would look elsewhere. You can find plenty of working model 1's at reasonable prices. PM me if you need additional info. Bob |
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