ESL Panel Slippage

MartinLogan Audio Owners Forum

Help Support MartinLogan Audio Owners Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Sambob2

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 20, 2006
Messages
246
Reaction score
0
Location
Lake Hopatcong, NJ
Also posted in the Main Discussion Forum under Sequel vs Requests, I thought this ML fix would be beter suited in this forum.

This bracket can be purchased through ML. It remedies a problem of panel slippage.

Here's a picture of the bracket installation location (on an SL3) ML offers for preventing the panel (woofer and electro-static) from slipping down to the level of the floor. Click HERE for a picture from an e-mail I received from ML.

Call ML and ask for the kit or visit a local Home Center and buy a pair and paint them flat black.

Sam
 
Last edited:
Slippage fix

Since the link in my previous posting works sometimes and not others, I thought putting a picture in plain sight would be most helpful.

NOTE: The picture shows me installing the brackets on my ReQuests. Also,it was mentioned in one of the posts here, be sure to mount the brackets in a location which will avoid interference with the larger diameter of the spike feet. The angle of this picture - parallax - seems to show there would be interference (even though I have the flat feet on here) but there really is not with either type of feet.

Sam
 

Attachments

  • SL3_Metal21.JPG
    SL3_Metal21.JPG
    80 KB · Views: 5,218
Last edited:
My former Sequel suffered from stator slippage too. What I did to stop it was to move the trims upwards a bit and carefully knock a small stainless steel pin or nail thru one of the stator holes onto the wood frame to anchor the stator. Since the diameter of the hole is much larger than the pin, you can still lift up the stator for any reason without disturbing the pin. Move the trims back into position, and nothing shows. Problem solved!
 
Since the link in my previous posting works sometimes and not others, I thought putting the picture in plain sight would be most helpful.
Sam

Sorry to resurrect this ancient thread, but I too am suffering from panel slippage and I'm not afraid to admit it :p

I haven't attempted a fix yet, but was wondering if the following would work well: Instead of putting new screw holes in the bottom of the speaker to hold a bracket for the panel, how about taking a small metal bracket and drilling a hole in it the size (or slightly larger) than the diameter of the threaded rod that secures the spiked feet to the speaker bottom. Then pass the threaded rod through the hole in the bracket and secure the foot against the bracket, rather than directly against the speaker bottom. The bracket can then be rotated into position against the bottom of the woofer grille, assuming it's long enough just to reach the front edge of the grille. The bracket might need to be bent a bit in order to both lay flat against the speaker bottom and touch the bottom of the grille, but this should be pretty easy to do. Again, I haven't tried this yet, but it seems like a viable alternative to poking holes in the speaker bottom, which I don't really want to do. Thoughts?
 
Sorry to resurrect this ancient thread, but I too am suffering from panel slippage and I'm not afraid to admit it :p

I haven't attempted a fix yet, but was wondering if the following would work well: Instead of putting new screw holes in the bottom of the speaker to hold a bracket for the panel, how about taking a small metal bracket and drilling a hole in it the size (or slightly larger) than the diameter of the threaded rod that secures the spiked feet to the speaker bottom. Then pass the threaded rod through the hole in the bracket and secure the foot against the bracket, rather than directly against the speaker bottom. The bracket can then be rotated into position against the bottom of the woofer grille, assuming it's long enough just to reach the front edge of the grille. The bracket might need to be bent a bit in order to both lay flat against the speaker bottom and touch the bottom of the grille, but this should be pretty easy to do. Again, I haven't tried this yet, but it seems like a viable alternative to poking holes in the speaker bottom, which I don't really want to do. Thoughts?


I think your solution would be fine as long as you bend the bracket properly so it sets flush with the bottom and still support the panel. :rocker:
 
Sorry to resurrect this ancient thread, but I too am suffering from panel slippage and I'm not afraid to admit it :p

I haven't attempted a fix yet, but was wondering if the following would work well: Instead of putting new screw holes in the bottom of the speaker to hold a bracket for the panel, how about taking a small metal bracket and drilling a hole in it the size (or slightly larger) than the diameter of the threaded rod that secures the spiked feet to the speaker bottom. Then pass the threaded rod through the hole in the bracket and secure the foot against the bracket, rather than directly against the speaker bottom. The bracket can then be rotated into position against the bottom of the woofer grille, assuming it's long enough just to reach the front edge of the grille. The bracket might need to be bent a bit in order to both lay flat against the speaker bottom and touch the bottom of the grille, but this should be pretty easy to do. Again, I haven't tried this yet, but it seems like a viable alternative to poking holes in the speaker bottom, which I don't really want to do. Thoughts?


That would work as well. The brackets in my picture were supplied to me as the fix. I think your method would work just as well and avoid the "extra" holes.

Please note, the holes DO NOT go through the bottom panel into the woofer cavity. They are only 1/2" long. When drilling merely mark your drill bit with a piece of masking tape by wrapping it around the bit 3/8" from the tip end. This will guide you from drilling to far into the cabinet. However, proceed with caution as you can force the tape to move up on the drill bit. Don't expect the tape to stop the drill from going further. It will not, it is only an indicator. For those of you into drilling, there are stop collars that use a set screw to avoid drilling too far. Although they are handy, most people do not have those inexpensive devices...

Sam
 
Ha!
I just joined the forum today for this very reason.
I thought it was Just Me having this issue. I see preventative measures in this thread, but how do i get my panels into the correct position before applying the fix?
 
Ha!
I just joined the forum today for this very reason.
I thought it was Just Me having this issue. I see preventative measures in this thread, but how do i get my panels into the correct position before applying the fix?

Tom,

You're not alone, this seems to be a fairly common issue with the older MLs. But fixing it is quite easy. I didn't use a bracket at all. First I removed the trim rails, woofer grille and ESL panel for each speaker. I then removed the old adhesive foam from the speaker and replaced with new double-sided tape that has foam padding between the two adhesive surfaces. You can get this at hardware stores, Home Depot, etc. I bought the "Super Heavy Duty' variety from Scotch. I think it is often referred to as 'mounting tape' since it is used to mount things to walls. Anyway, once I applied the new adhesive, I simply repositioned the ESL panel and woofer grille onto the adhesive tape and pressed around the perimeter until it bonded. Moderate pressure was all that was needed. It's been about a week and so far so good - no more slippage. If it doesn't hold up long term, then I'll install a bracket as well.
 
slippage

my experience with mounting the slippage tabs for the SL3's.

I found that when I put the panels at there correct position at top of the cabinet I had a 5/8" gap between the tab and the bottom of the panel,
I could not bend the tab up that far so i made a 5/8" space and put it in between the tab and the bottom of the panel. while I had the panels off I checked the bass driver's mounting screws and to my amazement they were not lose but i did find one that was stripped, I glued in a wooden tooth pick and waited till it dried then the screw tighten. i have checked them and so far they have not slipped down. If you use tiptoes be sure and put them in place before you drill your mounting holes. hope this helps anyone trying to do this procedure.
 
Sl3/slippage

I called Jim P. and he sent me the tabs to correct the slippage for my Sl3 panels. When I moved the panels up to where they belong even with the top of the cabinet I had a 5/8" gap between the tab and the bottom of the panels which did not make sense too me so I called Jim P. and he suggested putting a spacer between the tab and the panel to make up the difference I found a small nut that met the requirements and all is well. thanks for bringing the matter up I would have never known. OH! if you use tip toes be sure and install them before mounthing the tab to allow the correct spacing so you can use the tip toes with out hitting the tab.Thanks again.
 
ESL Slippage - Trim Rail Removal

Tom,

You're not alone, this seems to be a fairly common issue with the older MLs. But fixing it is quite easy. I didn't use a bracket at all. First I removed the trim rails, woofer grille and ESL panel for each speaker. I then removed the old adhesive foam from the speaker and replaced with new double-sided tape that has foam padding between the two adhesive surfaces. You can get this at hardware stores, Home Depot, etc. I bought the "Super Heavy Duty' variety from Scotch. I think it is often referred to as 'mounting tape' since it is used to mount things to walls. Anyway, once I applied the new adhesive, I simply repositioned the ESL panel and woofer grille onto the adhesive tape and pressed around the perimeter until it bonded. Moderate pressure was all that was needed. It's been about a week and so far so good - no more slippage. If it doesn't hold up long term, then I'll install a bracket as well.

Hi guys,

I'm now experiencing this problem on the SL3's and would like to rectify it myself. First question - what's the best way to remove the trim rails?

Thx
 
Possible alternative

I have had slippage before but am nor thrilled with the idea of screwing the bracket into the bottom on my Aerius I. Last time I repositioned them I noticed what appeared to be adhesive weather stripping on either side of the panel. It has occured to me that if I replace that maybe with something a bit thicker, the slippage would stop and may even reduce vibrations etc.

Anyone ever try that?

Cheers
 
I have had slippage before but am nor thrilled with the idea of screwing the bracket into the bottom on my Aerius I. Last time I repositioned them I noticed what appeared to be adhesive weather stripping on either side of the panel. It has occured to me that if I replace that maybe with something a bit thicker, the slippage would stop and may even reduce vibrations etc.

Anyone ever try that?

Cheers

I've done that a few times in the past with my Sequels and then reQuests. In both instances, it worked for awhile, but gravity finally won and the panels started slipping again. YMMV.

Good Luck.

Tom.
 
Thanks. Was there a particular type or size of stripping you used? I cant imagine in matters much but was just curious. I think I will give it a try next time they slip down.

Cheers
 
Thanks. Was there a particular type or size of stripping you used? I cant imagine in matters much but was just curious. I think I will give it a try next time they slip down.

Cheers

don't recall what size it was..3M double sided foam tape, I believe it was called
 
Well. It finally happened to me -- the dreaded panel slippage on my left speaker. So I made up a couple brackets and screwed them in as per this threads' instruction.

Works good.

I wonder how long until I see the right channel speaker do it to....:rolleyes:

~VDR
 
Why my panel slipped. Fixed it.

I replaced my panels last year and this morning found out why they slipped. I had not removed the white tape on the new panels that covers the adhesive. So removed the white paper tape and replaced the rails. Should be good now. This picture shows the white tape I had left on.

repair.jpg
 
Yes, it's super old thread, but it helped me a few years ago, and in the process I came up with something that might be of some help to someone, sometimes, somewhere ...

I have also slipped panel (little less than one inch), on Aerius i, and I tried to come up with a solution without drilling cabinet.

Slika-0005.jpg

Long story short, a small piece of the L-shaped steel glued inside of the rail has done the trick. If well placed, was not visible from the outside, and does its job.
The picture is very old and was created in the repair process. L shape steel is that little metal part down on the rail.

Slika-0017.jpg

Of course, this can be done only on the models on which the rails move downwards.
 
Back
Top