[zlib]

Hey guys,
I have a problem with the right speaker of my NX-Studio: sometimes I hear cracks with the sound. I tried to switch inputs and outputs of my amp, but still cracks happen in the right speaker only. I hear it from the tweeter side. Is the problem with the tweeter or could it be a problem with the capacitor in the crossover?

I have recorded 2 min track where the cracks are obvious (but they are not always present).
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Dei55cTdhN9eA62yTEmQNCzb6c_-nav0/view?usp=sharing

[Norman Tracy]

Hi zlib,
Listening to the file you uploaded I do not hear 'cracks'. After listening to it a few times via headphones I loaded it into Adobe Audition so I could listen and also look at the waveform displayed for noise transients or gaps. Again I am missing hearing or seeing the effect you are suffering.

Regarding "right speaker only. I hear it from the tweeter side. Is the problem with the tweeter or could it be a problem with the capacitor in the crossover?" In my experience the Neo tweeters in the NX designs are VERY rugged. I have only had one fail after it had been subjected to a very high level blast thanks to a software glitch in the HT processor. Capacitors of the quality GR uses are also very unlikely to fail. I suggest looking for an intermittent connection. First check the line level and speaker cables especially their connections. Next swap the left and right speakers. If the crack sounds stay on the right side continue to look at other aspects of the system upstream from the speakers. If the crack sounds move to the left with that speaker I would check the solderning of the crossover and the wires from crossover to tweeter's terminals. In soldering we can have what are known as 'cold' solder joints. They appear good but some of the parts did not get hot enough for good solder flow or were moved as solder cooled. These can be corrected by reheating the joint until the solder liquifies and then cools without being disturbed.

[nlitworld]

I have toasted one tweeter before, but that was a very big mistake that I knew about immediately. It went from 100g to 0% output and I knew I screwed up big. I had to shamefully call Danny and fess up to the mistake, and popped a new matched set in there. The likelihood the tweeter is damaged but still hanging on isn't very high.

Also crossover components are quite robust, so likely wouldn't be my first thought either.

Like previously stated, try swapping speakers, or speaker side of the wires and see if the cracking still continues. I've found swapping the amp side terminals can still hide problems in connection issues further up the cables. Also what are your cable connections? If they're something stretching out the inside of tube connectors or something pliable like KLE bananas it could simply make loose connections. Keep us posted what you come up with.

[zlib]

Hi zlib,
Listening to the file you uploaded I do not hear 'cracks'. After listening to it a few times via headphones I loaded it into Adobe Audition so I could listen and also look at the waveform displayed for noise transients or gaps. Again I am missing hearing or seeing the effect you are suffering.

Hi Norman,
You can hear it between 1 and 2 seconds at the beginning. Maybe it is not exactly 'crack', but some additional noise which goes at the same time with the chords and which is not present on my computer when I play original track (not this phone recording) via desktop speakers. It sounds like overloading when you do an audio recording session and your mic level is too high for the sound.

In my experience the Neo tweeters in the NX designs are VERY rugged. I have only had one fail after it had been subjected to a very high level blast thanks to a software glitch in the HT processor. Capacitors of the quality GR uses are also very unlikely to fail.

The thing is I got my NX-Studio delivered from one location to another and the package was heavily damaged with crossover components torn off inside. So I decided to use this opportunity to redo crossover with end-game components: Miflex cap on tweeter, Path Audio resistors, Duelund wire. I also replaced tube connectors with Furutech binding posts (which were proven previously to be at least not worse than tube connectors) in order to use speaker cables with spades. So, anything is possible, although I don't see any visible problems with Neo tweeter. And left speaker works totally fine.

Like previously stated, try swapping speakers, or speaker side of the wires and see if the cracking still continues. I've found swapping the amp side terminals can still hide problems in connection issues further up the cables. Also what are your cable connections? If they're something stretching out the inside of tube connectors or something pliable like KLE bananas it could simply make loose connections. Keep us posted what you come up with.

Hi nlitworld,
I think if it was a loose connection around binding posts I would hear the problems not only in high frequencies. And I tried 2 different speaker cables (with spades and bananas). And I also tried different amplifier.

So, general opinion right now is this is most likely cold solder joint somewhere between crossover and tweeter, right?

[nlitworld]

So, general opinion right now is this is most likely cold solder joint somewhere between crossover and tweeter, right?

Given that info of upgrades and multiple speaker cables tested, yes I would check for cold solder joints in tweeter circuit. If that doesn't pan out, literally swap the tweeters between the speakers and see if the distortion follows. That would be your last test if nothing else resolves it.

[zlib]

Swapping the tweeters helped. Looks like it was cold solder joint. Thank you, guys!