Vandersteen crossover repair

[Papajoe 221]

Well, I got tired of not being able to get at the components to test them, so I removed the crossover from one speaker. It was held  on by 4 screws and lots of silicon seal.  Carefully prying around the edge until it let go.  The silver tape like stuff is really a thin copper foil with an aluminum back. It looks like they assemble the crossover by pushing the component leads  through the board and then just bending them over in the back. Then using this thick foil they just lay it over the exposed leads in a pattern that represents the circuit and then spray a clear coat of some sort of sealer over the whole thing. Very clever. I may just layout the circuits and make a new one using wire this time.

Papajoe

[Papajoe 221]

This is the back of the board that I have removed from the case. The components are on the other side.

Notice that all they did was drill holes where the leads go through the board and then use a copper backed aluminum tape to make the circuits. Then sealed the whole thing. I will be using a small circular saw blade on my Dremel to cut the tape on either side of the leads and then pry the leads straight and remove the components. Then test everything and replace as needed. 

Front of board. Black spot is where the burnt resistors were. I have laid out a schematic of the circuit and am going to get a blank board, and using this one as template, drill the lead holes, reattach the components and solder wires on back to make the circuits. Notice that they have used that same foil on the front of the board also. There is plenty of room behind between the board and the face plate to allow for the wires. I will probably need some help in identifying some of the components .

Papajoe

 

[Papajoe 221]

From the photos above you can see how the circuits were made by soldering the leads on the large areas. I have to build new circuit boards and am laying out for the PCB board. I have a good idea of what the schematic looks like and was also thinking that it would be easier to solder onto individual pads. The width of the traces has to do with what amperage it will carry. How much amperage do you think a crossover trace needs to carry?

Thanks,

Papajoe

[Papajoe 221]

My speaker project has reached completion. A quick explanation- I purchased a pair of damaged Vandersteen 2Ci a few months ago. They had been fried by a dying amp. I found that some of the resistors in the xover had been burnt and the tweeters and one woofer were bad. Vandersteen was using VIFA drivers. So, I replaced the tweeters and woofers with comparable new models. I decided to replace some of the components in the xover with higher quality components. The original xover was mounted inside the back of the speakers and since the new components were a lot larger, I decided to move the xover into an external case. I carefully plotted out the Vandersteen xover schematic and made my own . I even etched my own PCB board. You can see the original xover in the above photos and the new one is below.

 

 

I temporarily attached the xover to the back of the speakers for testing and am listening to them right now. I will have to buy a new pair of socks for the speakers, next and I will be done. Truly turned out awesome.

Papajoe

 

[Gene C 1,748]

Good job!

[B-Man 4,780]

Very cool Joe.

 

Nice to see you revive some old guys for continued service !!! 

[zumbini 6,147]

Way to go Joe.  ENJOY THE MUSIC!

[Papajoe 221]

Thanks Guys,

I really enjoyed figuring out the schematic. What initially spurred me to upgrade the xover components was the article that one of our members posted about using better quality components can really improve the sound quality. The jumpers on the inputs are just for testing. Going to sit down and listen some more.

Papajoe

 

[C.A.P 2]

I would love to know what drivers you used . And If you have a schematic of your x over as I am doing a set of 2 c now and the x overs need work.. The 8 inch mid woofer is available at Madisound in a scan speak p21wo20  the 2ci used a 19 mm metal dome tweeter if I recall where ethe 2c uses a poly dax soft dome 25mm tweeter .  Some are FF and some not

[fill35U 1,846]

Nice work, Joe!  Thanks for the pics.

[danowood 2,167]

Haven't seen papa Joe around in awhile, Gene, you heard from him?

[CT-Seven 764]

Papa, what amp are you running the Vandersteen's with

[Papajoe 221]

Well, hi guys. I have been busy doing other things. I was disappointed by the TFM 24 that I bought to repair. It turned out to be a real wreck with the front panel in pieces. The photos that were with the unit did not show the extent of the front panel damage. Bent brackets and small pieces. Without a new panel, it is useless to fix. The electronics look in good shape. I wish that I could find someone who is willing to take it off my hands, just for the components.

As for the 2CE Vandersteens amplification, I am using the two TFM15s that I rebuilt, to bi amp the two speakers. They sound great and have lots of power. The system is in my rec room and I play only vinyl on it.

Papajoe