Speaker Storage (the Unknown?)

[meBob]

Hello All,

(I'm not sure this is in the correct section, but don't no where else to put it)

There's a pair of speakers I'm interested in, they're in very good cosmetic condition and the owner says they're playing well.

There is however a caveat (as ever!). They have been in very long term storage 20+ years (wow!).

Should I be taking a chance on these?

This is probably a very tough one to answer, I'd be grateful for any input.

Thanks,
Rob

[jollyfix]

More info would be good Rob. Stored where? A garden shed? A spare room? etc. Cost? Playing well, could you be the judge on that? Surely if owner has hooked them up recently, then he/she wouldn't mind you having a listen.

[meBob]

Hello jollyfix,

He said stored in his house, I didn't ask where, I won't pay more than £50 and so won't be losing an arm and a leg if things go pear shaped. I'm basically thinking along the lines that I might not get to demo them and knowing what I/we know is the punt worth it?

Sitting still for such a long time, would the woofers survive this? In dry conditions (I'm presuming his house is dry) will the capacitors still be fighting fit etc.

[Macca]

For just fifty quid you might just want to go for it. The capacitors might be out of spec, that can be fixed. Condition of the drivers will depend on what they are. if they have foam surrounds they might have perished or be on the way out. That can also be fixed but it's a bigger job. 20 years is not that old in speaker terms, but if they have been in storage 20 years they might be a lot older than that.

[Lawrence001]

It would help if you could say what they are!

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[meBob]

Hello Macca, Lawrence001 and All,

They were B&W DM10's and I let them float on down stream past me.

Being the budget end of the their range I was never going to recap (as Macca mentions above) or refoam them, they had to work and have no real problems for me to put the money down. I just couldn't be sure with such a long storage period.

Had they have been further up the pecking order and worth something I might have.

In any case they were going up against KEF reference speakers with every chance they would have lost.

I was just curious about the earlier B&W sound, I've read they have a smooth/gentle mids and treble, my KEFs sound superb but on certain recordings they can sound a bit edgy. The problem may well be somewhere else in my kit.

[Macca]

Ah! They are maybe worth £50 if in mint condition, on a good day, with a tail wind.


KEF reference are superb speakers, so I'd say the issue you are having is somewhere else in the chain (unless the KEFs are faulty).

[Lawrence001]

Or need a recap, ferrofluid replacing in T33s, or have the internal foam rot issue (as wrong bass can highlight treble issues otherwise unheard).

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[meBob]

Yep,

This was one where reason, logic and instinct all met in the middle and gave a thumbs down.

[hornucopia]

Leak Sandwiches had 'doped surrounds' that didn't rot (well, mine haven't since 1968-though they need bass units turning to realign the magnets!)