How do I remove a woofer from a cabinet that seems to be stuck?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by james, Dec 7, 2019.

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  1. james

    james Summon The Queen Thread Starter

    Location:
    Annapolis
    I’m trying to a woofer from my Snell J’s. The screws come out easy enough but I can’t seem to separate the driver from the cabinet. I’ve turned it over to let it fall out, not luck. I’ve tried a small hook in the screw hole to try to pull it out...no luck.

    Any tricks to this?
     
  2. rcsrich

    rcsrich Forum Resident

    Location:
    Virginia
    Yeesh! Maybe some careful prying with a sturdy knife is in order? My guess is that there is either some kind of gasket that was used between the speaker and cabinet that has now adhered to the surface or the cabinet finish was not completely cured before the speaker was attached. I don't believe they would have used adhesive,but I guess that's possible too. Just be gentle!
     
  3. james

    james Summon The Queen Thread Starter

    Location:
    Annapolis
    thanks! Managed to put a little tear in the foam surround. Awesome

    maybe a super strong magnet?
     
  4. Lenny

    Lenny Forum Resident

    Location:
    New York
    When I had this problem I took a large very course wood screw and screwed it into one of the screw holes of the speaker. It gripped the speaker but not the cabinet behind it. Then I used a vice grip on that screw and pulled hard to get the speaker out.
     
    turbo2288, Tim S, timind and 3 others like this.
  5. rcsrich

    rcsrich Forum Resident

    Location:
    Virginia
    Wow- I've never had that kind of trouble removing a driver from a cabinet. Is it recessed, or flush with the cabinet face? I can see how prying could be difficult if it is recessed, but if flush, not sure why it's not coming loose...
     
  6. rcsrich

    rcsrich Forum Resident

    Location:
    Virginia
    Worth a shot!
     
  7. james

    james Summon The Queen Thread Starter

    Location:
    Annapolis
    it’s slightly recessed but the edge of the driver isn’t touching the edge of the speaker hole. It’s not squeezed in there or anything.
     
  8. regore beltomes

    regore beltomes Forum Resident

    Location:
    Helenville, WI
    If you can gain access by removing the speaker terminal cup or the port you can use a dowel to hit the speaker on the back of the magnet. Should pop right out. I hate destructive removal techniques but sometimes there is no choice.
     
    arisinwind, The FRiNgE and F1nut like this.
  9. BrentB

    BrentB Urban Angler

    Location:
    Midwestern US
    A Putty knife and a lot of patience.
     
  10. Mike from NYC

    Mike from NYC Senior Member

    Location:
    Surprise, AZ
    if you posted a pic it would help
     
    Shawn likes this.
  11. thekingpin

    thekingpin Forum Resident

    Location:
    in the heartland
    I had this same problem when I wanted to tweak my Snell Js (and Ks). Old Audio Note speakers were also the same. Use a wine corkscrew. Insert enough in the screw hole to get a grapplehook effect and carefully pull away.
     
    james likes this.
  12. rcsrich

    rcsrich Forum Resident

    Location:
    Virginia
    Hmm... hadn't thought of going in from behind- nice!
     
  13. james

    james Summon The Queen Thread Starter

    Location:
    Annapolis
    not really possible in this speaker, unfortunately. The port in the back is too low to push the woofer out, and the terminal cup is mounted from the inside. Good thought but it won’t work here. I’ll try the wine cork idea that @thekingpin suggested. If that doesn’t work, I’ll try @Lenny ’s wood screw trick
     
  14. james

    james Summon The Queen Thread Starter

    Location:
    Annapolis
    Once you got them out were you able to figure out why they’re so stuck in there?
     
  15. rcsrich

    rcsrich Forum Resident

    Location:
    Virginia
    Are you replacing the driver? If it's just going to be junked, you can be a little more aggressive...
     
  16. james

    james Summon The Queen Thread Starter

    Location:
    Annapolis
    No, I’m just trying to get some deoxit into the tweeter attenuator as it’s a little scratchy. Of course, now I’ve torn the surround on the woofer a little, which was refoamed not all that long ago. I’m going to see if I can just glue it back together somehow.
     
  17. timind

    timind phorum rezident

    @Lenny has the right idea. I've used this method successfully.
     
  18. rcsrich

    rcsrich Forum Resident

    Location:
    Virginia
    Yikes! The corkscrew idea seems most promising to me...if you can just be careful enough getting it started so it really goes in between the speaker and the cabinet, it may not take much to pop it loose.
     
    MGW likes this.
  19. avanti1960

    avanti1960 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago metro, USA
    you'll probably get it off by then but I have used these tools linked below- work great for prying parts without damaging them. I used them to remove knobs and door / dashboard trim when installing my car stereo.

    Nylon Pry Bar Installer Kit, 4 Pc.
     
  20. james

    james Summon The Queen Thread Starter

    Location:
    Annapolis
    I think I actually have something like this from my car stereo days. Good idea
     
  21. avanti1960

    avanti1960 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago metro, USA
    good. you'll probably want to work it gradually around the circumference rather than all at once- I did this with some old polk monitors where the gasket had bonded the woofer to the enclosure.
     
    james likes this.
  22. james

    james Summon The Queen Thread Starter

    Location:
    Annapolis
    Corkscrew trick worked great!

    if you ever wanted to know what a Snell JIII crossover looks like:

    [​IMG]
     
    rcsrich likes this.
  23. james

    james Summon The Queen Thread Starter

    Location:
    Annapolis
    I also found two plastic Easter eggs in there.
     
    MGW, Helom and timind like this.
  24. Glmoneydawg

    Glmoneydawg Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario Canada
    You mean acoustic easter eggs right?
     
  25. Glmoneydawg

    Glmoneydawg Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario Canada
    Looks like the pot is vented....easy access for your contact cleaner:)
     
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