[spitfun]

Anybody know the replacement for the 10's in the Supertower III,s? I know VMPS made a carbon fiber upgrade,that is the woofers I would like to use if I can source them. Thanks Rich

[spitfun]

Nobody have any ideas? I came across these and am wondering if anybody has tried them in the Super Tower III's-I have the SE's like the one in the picture above (although those are not mine). I know the smaller version are a replacement for the RM40 woofers. Thanks Rich
http://www.mcmelectronics.com/product/55-1556

[Stimpy]

As far as I've read here, Brian's carbon fiber woofers were custom made for him.  Brian even custom ordered his carbon fiber stock, and supplied it to his driver manufacturer (probably Misco), for final assembly.  As such, new VMPS woofers are most likely impossible to find.  Other than getting lucky, and finding used 10" woofers.  So, like you, I'd consider the the MCM woofers.  Not too many choices for carbon fiber woofers, unfortunately. 

Brian also used various Goldwood woofers too.  Usually, the heavy duty models.  That might be a possibility as well.  I think Goldwood has 4 and 8 ohm versions of their 10" woofer, depending on need.

http://www.parts-express.com/goldwood-gw-10pc-8-10-heavy-duty-woofer-8-ohm--290-324

Good luck!

[DFaulds]

If you need any of the original 10s from these I have 3 from a pair that was damaged in shipment.  Unfortately the 4th had the magnet and pole piece knocked out of alignment and it damaged the VC former.  I also have the 12s for these that I bought from Brian.

[spitfun]

Thanks for the offer. The drivers that are in there are working fine,but the surrounds will eventually have to be replaced. I just thought I could replace them with a rubber surrounded driver and not have to worry about it. I have two pairs of these and the only drivers that are original are the 10" mid woofers-actuallly one set of the 10" drivers in one pair have been replaced with the phase plug upgraded version-that's the ones I would really like to find-I added a picture of one of each of the pairs I have,the pair with the original 10" are up for sale here on the forum... Rich

[7x57]

I replaced the rotted foam surrounds in my RM1 speakers with rubber surrounds. The hard part was finding an adhesive that would stick to rubber AND polypropylene.

Since you have graphite cones, the adhesive problem should be easy to solve. MANY things stick well to graphite cloth. If I were you and you can afford it, I would hand off to a speaker repair specialist. I had issues of toxicity with the glue I had to use. Windows open, fans running, and I still got a bit sick.

If you refoam with original type foam, then mild adhesives can be used as it is porous and the graphite is porous. Many people leave the old adhesive on the cone so they can get a good grip with a similar type adhesive.

The trick is keeping things centered so you don't have rubbing voice coils when you are through. But a simple refoam is easy for any qualified speaker repair shop.

[DFaulds]

Replacing foam surrounds with rubber surrounds is not necessarily a good idea since the two materials have different properties.  Rubber surrounds can introduce response anomalies because they can cause diffraction due to the less absorptive nature of the rubber.  There are a number of studies from manufacturers on this topic explaining why foam surrounds are still preferred when designing mid-woofers intended to be used above 500-800Hz or so.  This can be corrected in the design of a driver, but in general if a woofer, or mid-woofer was designed with a foam surround, it’s probably better to stay with foam if it needs repaired.

Another thing to consider is that rubber surrounds will also need replacing after a while due to the fact that almost all of them lose compliance over the years, and they can also crack.  As rubber surrounds age they usually become stiffer, while foam surrounds usually become more compliant.  Almost all modern foam surrounds are now treated so that they will not rot for a very long time, and may even last longer than the other components of the suspension.

Unfortunately, it seems that VMPS woofers seem to suffer foam rot quicker than just about any other speaker that I’ve owned.

[spitfun]

So, what do you guys thinking about these replacements? Any reason I shouldn't try them?

[Stimpy]

The woofer has a nice 38Hz ~ 4KHz  frequency response, good sensitivity, and a Qts of 0.39.  So, it'd work well sealed or ported.  The impedance is 8 ohm nominal, with a 5.6 ohm low reading.  So, if the stock 10" woofer has a similar impedance, you should be OK.  Also, Brian used the MCM 8" carbon fiber woofer, as an upgrade, for the RM-1's; and many of the other MCM woofer designs, have a large following with the DIY crowd.  So, I don't see why you shouldn't try their 10" woofer.  I look forward to your impressions, if you do!   

[mjosef]

Compared to the MIsco, very different indeed.
http://www.miscospeakers.com/speakers/OOC10W-8C

But since Brian used mostly first order slopes on the bass drivers, it may work...how well, who knows...the MCM ones are pretty cheap, give them a shot and let us know. 

[Stimpy]

Compared to the MIsco, very different indeed.
http://www.miscospeakers.com/speakers/OOC10W-8C

I'm not sure if that's the exact woofer that Brian used?  I guess only Brian knew for sure.    I'd be nice if it was!  But, I don't know if I'd say they were very different.  Very similar in magnet size, impedance, sensitivity, and Q!  Mainly a difference in frequency extension.  And, since the 10 is used as a mid-bass, the frequency differences may not be (all that) audible!  Like you though, I'm very curious too!   

It's a shame that Misco doesn't sell to the general public, at least as far as I can tell?  I've emailed them about pricing, and they never responded!    Bummer too, as Misco has some very interesting drivers!  Especially this one.  I'd be great for a line array!   

http://www.miscospeakers.com/speakers/LC62W-8A

[spitfun]

The driver above does not fit in my cabinets...

[spitfun]

Still need a pair. Rich