Girl diagnoses & solves mechanical problem


This may not be news for most of you, but it is a major news flash for me and I just had to brag at my "prowess." I EVEN USED A TORX SCREWDRIVER! I just received my Coincident Triumph Signatures yesterday and was setting them up in my small HT system. I was playing FM radio through them and they sounded OK. I went to work. Last night, I put on a couple of CDs and there was no sparkle or splash, no snap of the electric guitar notes, etc. I put my ear right up next to the tweeters and could swear there was no sound coming out of them. But this was the case w/both speakers! So I couldn't believe I was hearing right, because how could both tweeters have been blown before delivery (I bought from a reputable dealer whom I have dealt with before) or damaged during shipping? I decided to sleep on it (the problem, not the speakers). This morning, before work, I brought my ProAc Response 1SC's up from downstairs, and the guitar notes etc. all sounded right. Something was definitely wrong! I noticed some foam in the port holes in the back of the Coincidents. I tried to pull it out but it was more than just a plug and wouldn't come free. So I went downstairs to my toolbox, got out the torx wrench set my handyman brother had bought me years ago, and got the tweeter fittings unscrewed. I removed them gently (the magnets fell out into my hand) and saw immediately that the tweeters weren't even plugged in!! I reattached the lead wires to the tweeters, in both speakers, and rescrewed in the tweeter housings, and the speakers came to life (DUH!) I am sure this is not newsworthy for most of you, but if there are any other females reading this, you know how impressed I am w/myself. I can well imagine my very nonaudiophile friends and relatives, male and female, happily using these speakers for years w/no tweeters and not even noticing. Or me, several years ago, returning the speakers as damaged. i am so puffed up w/pride in myself that I am even thinking of attempting one of the DIY SET amp kits that are available. I have been eager to try out an SET and maybe I am up to soldering? Of course, I don't want to go overboard. . .
sc53
Good for you Sarah !!! I'm sure that you deserve a hearty pat on the back and a "THANK YOU" from Mr Bloom for not sending them back. Now swing some of that pride over to anger and call up Mr Bloom. Ask him how long he burned these in for while making his "critical adjustments". He supposedly tweaks by ear after listening to them for an extended period of time. If that is the case, you have FAR better hearing than he does. Either way, i hope you enjoy them. Sean
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Sarah, way to go!!! You live pretty near me. Something is loose and rattles under my car. Can you come over and take a look?? Bring to Torx. Thanks!
A hearty atta-girl! One of the cheapest tweaks I've found is tightening the screws in my speakers every few months. I was doing just that with a pair of B&W 303 and the tweeter fell out in my hand! I was tempted to take them back to my dealer but used a little deductive reasoning and half a bottle of Merlot. Turns out the tweeter locks in place in the cabinet with a simple twist. Surprised me all the same. As for soldering, I am by far the world's worst at soldering. It started way back when in an introductory electronics class, I built a simple power supply that ended up weighing the equivalent of a well-fed teenager. I could build a DIY amp but would need the help of several friends or a winch to lift it onto the rack when I was done. Pathetic
Sc,

I think you should try that SET amp kit. My wife had a similar experience when we built a fence a couple of years ago. She was apprehensive about using my circular saw. After I showed her how to use it properly, she set to work. Ten minutes later she came over to my end of the fence and whispered in my ear, "Your saw is fun!" I had to fight her for it for the next two weekends.

Happy soldering.