I have inherited two mid 80's speakers that have an immense amount of potential. They are aplified floorstanding three-way passive speakers with a 1" tweeter, 3" mid and one 8" subwoofer. The problem lies with the subwoofers, they need replacement. If there is such a product made by B&O that could resolve this, preferably a conventional 8" subwoofer, I would most definitely like to incorporate it into these recent acquisitions of mine. As always, thank you everyone.

B&O don't make speaker drivers. What make/model speakers are they? You will need to find a subwoofer driver which matches the exact specifications!

- or, if the surrounds have rotted, get them repaired. In most cases this is the best solution rather than finding new drivers that "almost" match the specs.

I agree, we need to know the exact type or model number to advice you further.

Martin

They are Realistic brand. They are very good condition and all the other hardware is in near perfect condition. I am at school right now so I don't have the model number haha.

The problem with the subwoofer is that the rubber/foam suspension around the speaker cone has become brittle and deteriorated. As a result, the suspension has come off of the speaker.

I would like to make it plain that in one way or another these particular speakers will be added to my existing system. For purposes of lower end bass, I want these to be repaired in a cost efficient manner but with respect to quality and performance.

The speakers aren't B&o...

As alex highlighted, B&o don't make the drivers...   Whatcha gonna do?

We need a speaker buff to come along and explain to you i feel.

Right. But I would like to just beef them up with some B&O speakers and enhance them a little bit more.

B&O don't make their own speaker drivers.

Either way, putting in drivers from a better speaker in most cases will make the sound much worse. You've got to bear in mind the speaker design will be very closely tuned to the specifications of the driver, taking into account free-air resonance, sensitivity, coil travel (xmax) etc... It's not simply a case of 'putting in better drivers'. It is possible to enhance them, but to be honest, Realistic never made the greatest speakers of their time (although they were acceptable) and the amount of money required to buy good drivers to go in them is simply not worth it. Many of Realistic's flagship 70s and 80s models can be bought for around £30-40 nowadays.

Well if you do not advise installing B&O speakers, do you think that you could point me in the right direction?

for what you'd spend fixing them... buy a pair of beovox s45's with rubber surrounds.

i guarantee they will perform better than your realistics.

look on ebay -they come up.

evman140:

Well if you do not advise installing B&O speakers, do you think that you could point me in the right direction?

I could, but ideally I would need the specs of the driver. Would you be able to remove the drivers and find a make/model? It'll probably be written on the back of the cabinet.

Yea I can check it out when i get home and get back to you.

I found it, sorry for the delay everyone. They are Realistic Optimus T-120, Cat. No. 40-2047, 8 ohms and 80w (Max). The problem with my pair is that the subwoofers' foam suspension ring has deteriorated and fallen out. To all who have just come across this thread I am asking how to resolve this. Should I replace the entire driver or have the originals re-foamed to retain the richness? Thank you.

Here is a little information I found in an auction on the internet:

From early 80'swhen the best Realistic were produced in Japan.Sounds fantacticcan't compare to new speakers.Mint condition.Mids and bass drivers were recently professionaly refoamed.Some Spects:Woofer (label on back reads "2539 7 ohms / Japan / 6315AT")
Driver Size: 10"
Resonant Frequency: 34 Hz
Voice Coil Size: 1.5"
Voice Coil Impedance: 7 Ohms at 150 Hz
Magnet Weight: 13.3 oz
Cone Material: Paper

Midrange (label on back reads "1260 6 ohms / Japan / 6311AT")
Driver Size: 5"
Voice Coil Size: 1"
Voice Coil Impedance: 6 Ohms at 500 Hz
Magnet Weight: 6.7 oz
Cone Material: Paper

Tweeter (label on back reads "SO 55 6 Ohms / Japan / 6M014B")
domed black plastic of some kind.36Hx12Wx12D.50Lb each.

I would have them refoamed to be honest! There seems to be no useful information about the cones on the internet other than their free-air resonant frequency. Refoaming them should retain the same specifications of driver.

I ahve come to the very same conclusion as well. Do you have any idea how much it would cost (US) to have two 10" subwoofers such as these, refoamed?

Try http://stores.ebay.co.uk/good-hifi

for a link to a web site. A Dutch supplier of foam rings - very helpful.  I have no interest in this  - just had good service and used these for a pair of RL140s, CX50s and also a small pair for a Beovision LX2500.

The price for a 10" pair (you will need 3 measurements - see his web site) will be about $20-30 at a very rough guess. 

Brian

Ok. So for someone who hasn't done something like this before is it very difficult?

Yes, it is rather fiddly. You need to make sure the driver is perfectly aligned or else the coil will rub against the magnet which A) produces a horrible 'scraping' sound and B) wrecks the driver.

Without wanting to be rude or arrogant though, the Realistics would be good speakers to try it out on. The drivers are large which IMO makes things a little easier, and if it does go wrong, (IMO) you wouldn't have lost a huge deal anyway. Hope I haven't insulted you by effectively saying the Realistics aren't anything special, but in reality, they aren't.

No offense taken, completely understandable. I appreciate the advise.

I have now replaced 8 foam rings on small and large speakers - it takes care and time but is not difficult.  The instructions provided are good - the only thing I have altered is the number of clothes pegs to hold the foam in place while the glue sets - about 4 times as many worked well to prevent any movement off centre!

Brian 

Well, you can try this site www.madisound.com for your woofer needs. 

I would expect it not to be very frustrating as I tend to enjoy those kinds of things. Thanks.