Hi All - I've got a pair of Kef 104/2's with foam rot on the the inner
woofers in both speakers. Can anyone suggest a good repair shop in the
area that could fix this? Any ideas about what something like this
would cost?

Also, I lost the grilles during my last move? Not a big deal, but if
anyone has suggestions on replacement, I'd like to hear them...

Thanks.

I've got the same problem, but, so far, it has not been audible. I think the
foam just acts as a dust cover; the surrounds are rubber. Do you hear a
deleterious effect?

My contractors got paint on my grills; I've been meaning to contact the
importer (somewhere in North Jersey I believe) to ask about repair or
replacement.

Steve Rochlin (sp?) of Enjoy the Music used to have a nice page on
maitaining and modding 104s; you might check his site.



"Nug186" wrote in message
...
Hi All - I've got a pair of Kef 104/2's with foam rot on the the inner
woofers in both speakers. Can anyone suggest a good repair shop in the
area that could fix this? Any ideas about what something like this
would cost?

Also, I lost the grilles during my last move? Not a big deal, but if
anyone has suggestions on replacement, I'd like to hear them...

Thanks.

Nug186 wrote:
Hi All - I've got a pair of Kef 104/2's with foam rot on the the inner
woofers in both speakers. Can anyone suggest a good repair shop in the
area that could fix this? Any ideas about what something like this
would cost?

You shouldn't necessarily have to go to a repair shop. Pulling the
drivers and putting them back in is something you should be able
to do yourself, assuming you can either get them reconed or replaced.
This is an old loudspeaker and it may well be that there is no
replacement for it. Reconing is problematic as well unless it's
done by KEF.

The problem with reconing is that speaker drivers are electromechanical
devices. Their performance is based upon cone weight, density, stiffness,
as well as the electromechanical properties of the surround. You can
buy reconing kits, but unless it's the exact kit for the particular
driver you have, then the result will not be the same driver and the
resulting sound will be different.

It may be that KEF America will be able to recone or replace your
drivers for you. You'll have to talk to them.

You can contact KEF America at:

KEF AMERICA, Inc.
10 Timber Lane,
Marlboro, NJ 07746
Tel: (732) 683 2356
Fax732) 683 2358
www.kefamerica.com

If they can't help you, then your next best bet is to call:

Madisound Speaker Components
P.O. Box 44283
Madison, WI 53744-4283
USA

(608)831-3433


They can't sell you a direct replacement, but they can sell you
something that will fit in the enclosures. It'll be a different
loudspeaker though. Some things just don't last forever.

Also, I lost the grilles during my last move? Not a big deal, but if
anyone has suggestions on replacement, I'd like to hear them...

Fabricate your own. Make a simple wooden frame to fit the area you
want. Paint them black. Stretch an open weave material over them
and staple it to the back side of the frame. You can attach the
covered frames to the front of your loudspeakers with velcro.

If you can get your drivers reconed or replaced, then it is easy for
you to pull them from your cabinets and replace them. Just be sure
to mark the wires, taking note of polarity. The back of the drivers
will have one terminal marked with red - either a spot of red, or a
red stain on the terminal. That's your hot lead. Take some tape
and label the hot lead wire. When you go to put the driver back
in the speaker, you'll need to make sure you wire it correctly.

Good luck!

Russ

Thanks guys for the detailed responses. Regarding pulling the speakers
myself, the Kef 104's have a very strange configuration whereby the
woofers are both located inside in a band pass type of alignment with a
metal rod passing through both opposed speakers, and I don't see any
way to crack open the case (no screws visible, etc.). Thoughts?

No, nothing obvious (certainly no flapping or anything), but then again
then only 104's I ever heard are my own. I have noticed that the
bottom end significantly tails off what seems to be in the 70-80Hz
range (guessing by ear). I thought maybe the leaks from the rot is
causing a loss of compression, thereby adversly affecting output.

Nug186 wrote:
Thanks guys for the detailed responses. Regarding pulling the speakers
myself, the Kef 104's have a very strange configuration whereby the
woofers are both located inside in a band pass type of alignment with a
metal rod passing through both opposed speakers, and I don't see any
way to crack open the case (no screws visible, etc.). Thoughts?

It's been a long time since I've seen one up close. The drivers aren't
mounted from the front of the enclosure? That's very odd.

If there aren't any screws, the drivers may just be caulked down to the
face and could be pryed off with a flat-head screwdriver.

If you can't pull the drivers yourself, then I doubt very much anyone
else could. I suppose it's possible the manufacturer built the drivers
onto the baffle from the inside and then just glued everything up, but
that would make 'em impossible to service. Somehow I doubt KEF is that
kind of company.

If you can't figure out how to pull the drivers, it may be time to buy
another pair of loudspeakers. Why not go to Madisound and buy one of
their better kits and build your own?

Russ

On 28 Jan 2005 00:56:30 GMT, "Nug186" wrote:

Thanks guys for the detailed responses. Regarding pulling the speakers
myself, the Kef 104's have a very strange configuration whereby the
woofers are both located inside in a band pass type of alignment with a
metal rod passing through both opposed speakers, and I don't see any
way to crack open the case (no screws visible, etc.). Thoughts?

Don't mess about prying things loose. Contact KEF in Maidenhead. They
were extremely helpful to me with a pair of 101s, even had original
replacement seals.

Regarding removing the woofers:

I never went any further than ascertaining that the module with the tweet
and mids could be removed. Perhaps after removing them you could reach in
and release the woofers.

I contemplated taking the things apart about ten years ago but never got any
further than tightening all the loose screws and bolts. I don't remember
specifics, but I do recall a general feeling that if I was inclined I
"could" take them apart, but having no desire at all to undertake the actual
task of doing so ;^)


"Russ Button" wrote in message
...
Nug186 wrote:
Thanks guys for the detailed responses. Regarding pulling the speakers
myself, the Kef 104's have a very strange configuration whereby the
woofers are both located inside in a band pass type of alignment with a
metal rod passing through both opposed speakers, and I don't see any
way to crack open the case (no screws visible, etc.). Thoughts?

It's been a long time since I've seen one up close. The drivers aren't
mounted from the front of the enclosure? That's very odd.

If there aren't any screws, the drivers may just be caulked down to the
face and could be pryed off with a flat-head screwdriver.

If you can't pull the drivers yourself, then I doubt very much anyone
else could. I suppose it's possible the manufacturer built the drivers
onto the baffle from the inside and then just glued everything up, but
that would make 'em impossible to service. Somehow I doubt KEF is that
kind of company.

If you can't figure out how to pull the drivers, it may be time to buy
another pair of loudspeakers. Why not go to Madisound and buy one of
their better kits and build your own?

Russ

I use to sell them. Mine sound as good as any pair I remember (better,
actually. the demo room did not sound as good as any room I've had). I
noticed someone posted the contact info for the importer. If I can
remember, I will contact them to see if it makes sense to haul them out
there (if they'll fix them). If it happens, I'll certainly report on any
sound quality change.

"Nug186" wrote in message
...
No, nothing obvious (certainly no flapping or anything), but then again
then only 104's I ever heard are my own. I have noticed that the
bottom end significantly tails off what seems to be in the 70-80Hz
range (guessing by ear). I thought maybe the leaks from the rot is
causing a loss of compression, thereby adversly affecting output.