[oliverbubbles]

Hello, I am new here. I've tried to reply to a couple of posts but that didn't seem to work and they never showed up, so Let me try starting a new thread and see what happens.

I recently picked up a pair of vintage VMPS; Tower II, SE. Overall they are in great shape with the only visible signs of needing anything being the foam from the passives has deteriorated and the grille clothe that is still in great shape has simply come loose from the frames.

Although I am sure the newer VMPS is fantastic, my budget simply does not allow me to own anything in their relative price range. So I searched and found this vintage pair. I must say that it is not just my budget that made me choose these but I am also a vintage enthusiast.

I have e-mailed VMPS and and was very surprised when I  got quick responses.

I realize that new replacement drivers as well as upgraded ones are available for these speakers, but again my budget is fairly limited currently and I would also like to hear these as close to their original state as possible before making changes. I have read somewhere that Brian recommended if the surrounds appear ok to leave them alone. that being said all surrounds look good except for the passives. I realize that once I start using these the woofer surrounds are likely to follow suit shortly. But again, with my limited budget, proceeding in steps will be beneficial for me.

My main question is on repairing/ replacing the Passives. Which method of repair is going to sound more original; surround replacement or component replacement. naturally cost is a good bit lower on surround replacement but I think i could possibly afford the new passives if it is a much better way to go. I haven't pulled the old passives yet; are they tunable like the newer pieces? If so would there be any benefits from going with the new pieces even if the surround were not a perfect match to the original, since the passive could then be re-tuned with the new surround?

looking forward to the woofers etc. I have much the same questions for their repair/ replacement by either using new surrounds or replacing the drivers. i simply can not afford to replace all driver with foam surrounds in these cabinets but may be able to replace some drivers and some surrounds. I am trying to determine my best route long term.

I realize that once the surrounds go on the tweets i have no options except replacement but they currently appear ok. i have not touched them and have no plans of poking at them. Does their aging effect their sound in any way if the surrounds are still intact? 

I am very capable of surround replacement, capacitor/ resistor replacement or upgrades however I am no engineer and do not want to mess these up. I have been wanting a pair of VMPS for some time and have finally found a pair I could get. I can and am willing to repair/ replace what's needed given that my budget allows. I can replace foam surrounds or use modern rubber replacements or a combination of both if that is a good way to go. I can remove dust caps and install phase plugs, if that is beneficial. I would, as mentioned previously, like to hear these as close to original as possible, first, but don't want to do that if it is going to incur me a much greater expense in the long run.

One more thing; what type of capacitors were used in the original crossovers? Since these are definitely aging, should I be considering replacing the capacitors and or resistors in the near future?

[John Casler]

I would suggest "replacing" the PR's with new ones.  Eventually, you'll want to replace the active drivers and the New PR's will perform better with the newer Woofs.

[Early B.]

I would suggest "replacing" the PR's with new ones.

I have the Tower II SE speakers, as well, and replacing the passives is the best option because they are very inexpensive.

I have the original bass drivers and they show virtually no signs of wear. I upgraded the midwoofers, per Brian's suggestion, and it improved the sound quality. Again, it was an inexpensive upgrade. There's no need to replace caps and resistors.

[mjosef]

I replaced the foam surround on an original VMPS sub 12" driver which had crumbled after some 5 years('96-'01) sitting in storage. I had purchased the sub in 1987. THe passive appeared ok, so left that alone.
But after a few months use the passive surround gave out, I then decided to go all in and upgraded to the mega woofer and a new passive(2002).
So yes you can buy the foam surround kits from parts express and replace whatever foam surrounds that are deteriorated...whether the replacement surrounds are identical to what VMPS uses is anybody's guess. But at least you will have a pair of working speakers, and can upgrade to factory spec drivers later on as your budget allows.

And my sub is still going strong in my HT set up...25+ years on. 

[warnerwh]

It's possible Brian could have the foam surrounds you need. If not the PE surrounds should work fine. The passives are tunable on your speakers. I had a pair Tower II  SE speakers which my brother still uses. It seems like he replaced surrounds on them a few years ago.

You may not be able to afford the newer speakers but the quality of bass those speakers are capable of is mind boggling considering their price class. It's as good or better than many/most current speakers costing many multiples of what you paid.

Be careful because you can no longer get the Focal tweeters you have and Brian doesn't have them either. An example would be switching to a different source with the amp turned way up or driving an amp into clipping as both can take out tweeters. If they sound fine they are fine. 

Back to the ability to tune your speakers. I couldn't wait to hear my new VMPS speakers and took the day off from work only to hear the most gawd awful speakers I've ever heard. I was in shock as I spent so much money. My point being that it can take a bit of tweaking to get them to where you want the sound. Then again you could get lucky. The ability to be tunable is a double edged sword.

Be sure to read the set up sticky. There's also info on vitrifying your passives has been done on newer speakers for some time now. I have a review of the Tower II and Supertower/R that Anthony Cordesman did for Audio magazine if you'd like a copy. Very friendly and helpful bunch here so don't be afraid to ask questions. You'll be very pleased with how good of sound you have.

[John Casler]

Hey Warner,

Glad to see you're still VMPS'ing and hope all is well.

[warnerwh]

Thanks John. We're doing well.

[ST86]

I own a pair of Supertower/R and Tower ii that I use for my home theater.  Both are from the mid 80's.  Have replaced some drivers and refoamed others.  I can say refoaming will get you the "back to original" sound you are looking for, but there is no question the modern upgrades improve the sound. Sources I have used for refoaming are Simply Speakers and Orange County Speaker.