Need some help

[bittabit]

My name is Michelle and I have a pair of SL3s'. The kids knocked one over and now I have only bass. An electronics guy tested the board and all the electronics are good. What else could be the problem? We are unsure as to how to get access to the front part where the speaker connects to the board without wrecking the speaker any advice on how to take the panels off would be appreciated and as to what may be the issue. The repair shop we phoned said minimum $2000. to repair that is just not in the budget right now so if we can do it ourselves it would be helpful. Thank you so much for your time and I do hope you can help.

Michelle

 

[Dreamer]

Well, it could be any number of things. If the wires connecting the panel to the crossover have just come loose, you should be able to reconnect them easily. The cover on the electronics box is easy to remove.

If the wires to the panel have broken off, it might be a little more costly, because if they broke off close to the panel, you'll need to replace the panel. You can order replacement panels from ML for a few hundred dollars, and they are easy to swap out. The repair shop that quoted you $2000 to repair one SL3, ESPECIALLY since the electronics are still OK, is a ripoff. I would never go back to them again...

I own original Sequels, and the top of the crossover box is held in place by just a few screws. I think the SL3 is similar, and once you get the top off, all the connections should be easy to see and work on. Maybe a member here with a LOT more experience with the SL3 can help you better though.

You should send a private message to JonFo. He's probably got more experience with hacking the Sequel line than anyone on this forum. He can probably get you up an running in no time at all...

Oh, yeah, one more thing--Welcome to the forum! We'll do our best to help you get your SL3's back to sounding their best, and we're glad to have you here, even if it is under such unfortunate circumstances.

On the other hand, maybe it's time to sell off those kids, and buy a new pair of Summits...

--Richard

 

[bittabit]

You are a godsend thank you! I was thinking that $2000 sounded really steep! My electronics friend was just worried about how to take the Stators off without damaging the speaker. We found out that the trim is on with two sided tape so the stator should come off once we remove the trim. Thank you so much for your reply you made my day a little brighter. I will keep you posted on how it goes. Thanks again!

Michelle

 

[Bernard]

I had a similar problem when I moved one of my SL3s. The wire to the panel broke of at the panel itself. I just scratched off some of the material at the solder joint and resoldered the wire. Everything worked fine after.

 

[Dreamer]

The trim on SL3's SHOULD be held in place by a series of pins that slide into "keyhole" slots in the frame. If it's held on only with double-sided tape, then someone has done something REALLY hinky with your speakers.

Are you the original owner, or did you buy them second hand?

As far as removing your trim rails on an SL3, read this thread:

http://www.martinloganowners.com/~tdacquis/forum/showthread.php?t=834&highlight=sl3+trim+removal

The SL3 is different from the original Sequels--you hit the top of the rails with a mallet to take them off on an SL3. (My Original Sequels, you hit the bottom of the rail to take them off...)

Here is a thread about getting the electronics panel cover off your SL3's:

http://www.martinloganowners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7469

And I KNOW that someone recently posted a VERY detailed series of pics showing a panel replacement for a Sequels-series speaker, but I can't find that thread for the life of me.

If all else fails, you can always call Jim Powers at Martin Logan service. Jim is VERY friendly and helpful, and will probably be able to help you troubleshoot your speakers...

Hope this helps...

--Richard

 

[bittabit]

We changed the stators out from the speaker that doesn't work to the one that does and they worked fine. So it is not the mylar or the Stators. What could it be on the circuit board...we are leaning to the transformer, our electronics guy had checked everything out but didn't have the other speaker for comparison. There are no burn marks or cracks in the board to show any apparent damage...suggestions?


Thanks
Michelle

 

[Dreamer]

Are you getting absolutely NO sound at all from the "broken" speaker's panel, or is it just REALLY REALLY soft? Perhaps it's not getting power--maybe the power socket got strained when the speaker got knocked over, and it broke the connections to the circuit board.

I had a little trouble following your diagnosis though. Let me get this right. You took the "bad" panel, and hooked it up to the "OK" speaker's circuit board, and it sounded OK, right? If that's the case, then it's DEFINITELY not your panel, or it's wires. It MUST be something on the circuit board then.


Even if you need to fully replace the circuit board with a new one from Martin Logan, it shouldn't cost more than a few hundred dollars, and it should be a fairly simple swap. Transformers don't "break" from getting knocked around. Tey ARE big and heavy though, and if you knock a device around, transformers can sometimes, due to their weight and bulk, become dislodged from the board, causing it to break the solder connections, and then NOTHING will work that needs power.

Sound really tricky. I'd probably just send the board back to ML and see if they can't fix/replace it...

And I'd see if they'd be willing to take a kid as part of the payment...

--Richard

 

[bittabit]

Believe me the thought of selling the kid did cross my mind!!!!!!!!!!! You followed correctly the bad panel sounded good on the good circuit board. The boys are going to go over the board one more time and see what they can see. I am so glad I found this place or we would have been totally ripped off! Nothing is torn off the board, everything that is supposed to give power, gives something. My husband is thinking that perhaps when he took the panel off that the wires may have been loose so he is going to try reconnecting...you never know...fingers crossed. After reconnecting and retesting if it still doesn't work we will send it in for them to look at. Mike is happy that at least if it is on the board, it is a cheaper fix than if in the panels.

You have been so helpful, thank you so much.

Michelle

 

[bittabit]

You should send a private message to JonFo. He's probably got more experience with hacking the Sequel line than anyone on this forum. He can probably get you up an running in no time at all...


--Richard

I tried to PM him 4 times I think the last one went through, I will feel like a total tool if he got the same message all four times though...oops.

 

[Dreamer]

JonFo is the "owner/moderator" of this forum, AND he has a very demanding job IRL, so sometimes he doesn't get back right away.

I work midnights, so that's why I'm online during the days, and relatively easy to get hold of on-line...

Good luck trying to trouble shoot your SL3. I hope you can get it up and running soon. When you do, you need to take some pics, and write up a complete "Member System" profile, so we all can see what the rest of your system looks like!

Again, welcome, and we are all glad to be of service.
--Richard

 

[bittabit]

JonFo is the "owner/moderator" of this forum, AND he has a very demanding job IRL, so sometimes he doesn't get back right away.

--Richard

Oh no I didn't PM him that many times ON PURPOSE! I thought they weren't going through because they were not in my "sent" folder...then I saw that little box that you have to click to save to the sent folder....oops, my bad.

Sometimes I really amuse me.

I will definately take some pics. We have two seperate systems, one upstairs with the MLs and an Adcom Amp, Carver pre-amp and Marantz CD player, Downstairs we have Bryston pre amp and amp, pioneer player and PSB Stratus Golds. Not near as fancy as what I have seen on here!

 

[TomDac]

JonFo is the "owner/moderator" of this forum

Was there a hostile takeover??

 

[Dreamer]

Oops.... Sorry about that. I got my contraction-names mixed up... I haven't been getting much sleep lately... Sorry about that...

 

[JonFo]

Yeah, move over Tom. All your 'boards are belong to us ... :devil:

Man, I go AWOL for a few days and I'm promoted to chief cook and bottle washer

 

[JonFo]

An SL3 has several terminal blocks (plastic elements with screws where the wires get clamped), please ensure that all those connections are good.
IIRC, the output of the crossover board has a set of terminal blocks, and then goes to a little terminal strip on the front of the speaker, where the panel itself is then wired in.

If you’ve checked (carefully I hope) that the diaphragm energizing voltage is in the vicinity of 3,000v, then the polarizing voltage is not the problem.

If all of the above passes, then it sounds like a possible issue with the audio transformer.
These rarely go, but amps can fry them.

Testing that might be complicated. I’d ask Jim Powers at the factory how to go about that.

Cheers,

 

[bittabit]

An SL3 has several terminal blocks (plastic elements with screws where the wires get clamped), please ensure that all those connections are good.
IIRC, the output of the crossover board has a set of terminal blocks, and then goes to a little terminal strip on the front of the speaker, where the panel itself is then wired in.

If you’ve checked (carefully I hope) that the diaphragm energizing voltage is in the vicinity of 3,000v, then the polarizing voltage is not the problem.

If all of the above passes, then it sounds like a possible issue with the audio transformer.
These rarely go, but amps can fry them.

Testing that might be complicated. I’d ask Jim Powers at the factory how to go about that.

Cheers,

Thank you so much JonFo, I printed this out and have given it to the electronics guy. Sorry about the accidental spamming!