Speaker making weird noise - help!

[wakka]

Hi all

I use Dali Zensor Pico bookshelf speakers for my fronts and rears (a bit small for fronts, I know, but I live in a one bed flat so space is at a premium and I can't turn it up to earthshaking volumes).

One of them now makes a weird crackly noise at certain frequencies. It's reliable and reproducible. Two examples of where it happens are 2001: A Space Odyssey and Blade Runner 2049. If you know these films you'll know they employ lots of deep heavy bass, and that makes this speaker give a crackly noise.

Does anyone know if this is something that is probably easy to fix, or do I just need to buy a new speaker?

Thanks in advance for any thoughts

[gunrock]

Sounds like the cone has split, ruptured or maybe come slightly unglued from the chassis? This might be due to excessive low frequencies at volume?

I'm just guessing here. I don't know much about your speakers but I have blown quite a few over the years in hifi and soundsystems (and cars come to think of it) and damage to the cardboard cone due to aural abuse is a possible cause.

Take off any grill and watch both speakers together (wire them to the same channel if you can) and see how they move when the low frequencies hit.

[gunrock]

Of course swap the two fronts over to see if the amp or wire is damaged.

[wakka]

Thanks [MENTION=278]gunrock[/MENTION].

Definitely not the amp or wire as I have swapped the offending speaker to a different position (it was a front it’s now a rear).

I think what you’ve suggested is the issue. I’ve avoided getting a sub as don’t want to bother my neighbours with excessive bass, but I think that’s caused me amp to run these quite small speakers too hard.

I’ll try what you suggest about watching the movement. Taking the grill off they look fine, no visible damage. Not sure if it’s worth taking it apart to see if there’s something I can glue back in place.

[MartyG]

I've actually had this caused by a speaker nut working its way slightly loose and vibrating on my setup, only happening at certainly frequencies when it resonated with it. Certainly worth checking as it turned out to be a really cheap fix for me - tightening it back up

[wakka]

Thanks [MENTION=42]MartyG[/MENTION] - I’ll check that as well. That sounds very fixable if so!

[charlesr]

Or dry solder if they are old