BEL speaker failure--poll and thoughts

[billgerr]

Barring physical damage, diaphragm speakers fail due to being overdriven and subjected to sustained DC + or - voltages.

DCV offsets will drive a cone to X-max (one way for positive, one way for negative) and the voice coil will heat up. Quality speakers have shorting rings at X-max that prevent this heating. Small transducers probably don't as they have a << a mm of cone travel. I will be looking at the drive for the 900 series BELs to see if this is a problem. I also suspect that the audio drive may pass DC at high volume levels.

My poll question is have you had a speaker fail in a BEL?
Please add comments as you see fit.

[amoney]

Honestly I keep my Bel985 set on volume level #1

I dont have a problem hearing that over the radio or windows open, I think its loud enough even at this level. I do have a quite car, a new Accord V6, so the engine noise and other road noise is lower.

I also have my Bel985 set to automute, and I still can hear the "ticks" with the radio loud (note the radio is not set to deafening but set at a enjoiyable loud level).

[kpatz]

I had a Bel Vector STi years ago, and although the speaker never failed, it would sound really strange when it was cold in the winter.

It seems that Bel uses cheap speakers in their RDs...