Beveridge Model 3 Repairs

[David Lautner]

Hello folks,

How many vertical panels and what length are in the Beveridge Model 3's?
I noticed " no output" in one of the speakers about 1/4 of the way up from the bottom.
I need to t-shoot either no signal into the panel or the panel itself is not working.
I'm located 25 miles north of Cincinnati OH.
Please advise.

Thanks,

[Rich Morin]

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[av]

Hi, the 3s have 2 panels in each speaker (+ 2 woofers). Each panel is 3ft tall, however they are each built out of a 2ft+1ft (or half panel) parts, soldered together. !Extreme care! when removing the panels to avoid breaking the seam line.

Seems in your case that a lower panel doesn't play. Try switching the amp cables between the speakers and note if the same panel doesn't work (probaly won't).

I hope you know how to remove the panels in these 3s - first disconnect the speakers from the mains for a good several hours before dismantling.  There are quite a few more precautions how to go about it, if you don't know how to - don't.

If you do open up the speakers, switch bases between speakers and note if the same panel doesn't work. If so, most likely that panel needs repair (or if you're lucky a wire disconnected - but it's unlikely).

As you dismantle, take photos at every step, especially wire connections, etc. Again, if you're not sure how to do it - don't. Or ask.

AV.

[David Lautner]

Thanks for the insightful response. I will heed your advice and not touch them.  My closest SME on electrostatics is up around the Cleveland area.

Last week, after 12 years I fired up my Quad ESL-63's. After the 7th day, 1 speaker started that dreaded leaking/poping issue. That's how & why i started listening very closely to the Bev's . I'm thinking it's a small panel that's out.

I'm definitely not in the boonies, but no one around here (northern Cincinnati) knows about these speakers. I'll ping Russ Knotts - eslrepairs.com about them.
I've attached a photo of my speaker-fest from last week. Notice the Sequerra T-1 ribbon tweeters there. They work!

Thanks again,

dave Lautner

West Chester, OH

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[av]

Seems like the left Quad's dust cover/bag is shot....

Seems like the site eslrepairs.com doesn't exist, I was trying to visit it. If they never dealt with a Bev, I doubt they'll know what to do. If your panel needs repair, best to send it to Rick.

AV.

On Friday, 10 January 2020 16:13:32 UTC, David Lautner wrote:

Thanks for the insightful response. I will heed your advice and not touch them.  My closest SME on electrostatics is up around the Cleveland area.

Last week, after 12 years I fired up my Quad ESL-63's. After the 7th day, 1 speaker started that dreaded leaking/poping issue. That's how & why i started listening very closely to the Bev's . I'm thinking it's a small panel that's out.

I'm definitely not in the boonies, but no one around here (northern Cincinnati) knows about these speakers. I'll ping Russ Knotts - eslrepairs.com about them.
I've attached a photo of my speaker-fest from last week. Notice the Sequerra T-1 ribbon tweeters there. They work!

Thanks again,

dave Lautner

West Chester, OH

On Thu, Jan 9, 2020 at 5:11 PM av <jimh...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi, the 3s have 2 panels in each speaker (+ 2 woofers). Each panel is 3ft tall, however they are each built out of a 2ft+1ft (or half panel) parts, soldered together. !Extreme care! when removing the panels to avoid breaking the seam line.

Seems in your case that a lower panel doesn't play. Try switching the amp cables between the speakers and note if the same panel doesn't work (probaly won't).

I hope you know how to remove the panels in these 3s - first disconnect the speakers from the mains for a good several hours before dismantling.  There are quite a few more precautions how to go about it, if you don't know how to - don't.

If you do open up the speakers, switch bases between speakers and note if the same panel doesn't work. If so, most likely that panel needs repair (or if you're lucky a wire disconnected - but it's unlikely).

As you dismantle, take photos at every step, especially wire connections, etc. Again, if you're not sure how to do it - don't. Or ask.

AV.

On Thursday, 9 January 2020 16:23:41 UTC, David Lautner wrote:

Hello folks,

How many vertical panels and what length are in the Beveridge Model 3's?
I noticed " no output" in one of the speakers about 1/4 of the way up from the bottom.
I need to t-shoot either no signal into the panel or the panel itself is not working.
I'm located 25 miles north of Cincinnati OH.
Please advise.

Thanks,

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[David Lautner]

Sorry, i added an s. Should now resolve.

http://eslrepair.com/

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From: beverid...@googlegroups.com on behalf of av <jimho...@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, January 10, 2020 4:30 PM
To: beveridge-audio
Subject: Re: Beveridge Model 3 Repairs

 

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[av]

Yes, website works. I hope his repairs are better than his English.

If you need a new mylar on your panel, you should take into account that the tension on those Bevs is manifold higher than the usual ESL (Quad, ML, etc.) - in fact as high or higher than the tensile properties of the mylar. You also need aluminised mylar of specific thickness and specific width spacers. Further, once assembled, the transducer needs to be electrically tested for capacitance and flopover breakup. Hopefuly your repairs guy knows all that.

Then there are also some mechanical considerations, such as the 3 wooden legs glued inside the base which support the column. The likelihood is that when you open the base one or more of them become unglued. Not a problem, but if you reglue them in place and there is the smallest variation (even down to 1/25th of an inch) in their height, the entire upright column will visibly tilt vertically. Never overtighten back the bolts, if the concealed inner nuts become loose the speaker is doomed (there's nothing you can do to repair it, save sowing the column... :-).

The reason Rick used to advice rebuilding the entire panel set instead of just one is that if one of them is faulty, the likelihood that the others will follow suit is considerable. Also, it's pretty much impossible to make sure that one repaired panel will have exactly the same acoustic output as the older ones inside. In fact, it's pretty certain that it will have a higher, more efficient output which will destabilize the balance between L-R speakers.

The upshot is that once all the panels are rebuilt, you're likely to have another 20-30 years peace of mind.  BTW, there's a guy in Chicago who works with Rick who can supply upgraded electronics for the 3s, including crossover, step-up traffo, etc., with all modern components. He did the electronics for the new G-3 model showcased in the Denver audio fest.

AV.

On Friday, 10 January 2020 22:59:21 UTC, David Lautner wrote:

Sorry, i added an s. Should now resolve.

http://eslrepair.com/

Get Outlook for iOS

 

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From: beverid...@googlegroups.com on behalf of av <jimh...@gmail.com>

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/beveridge-audio/9f66bbef-0576-426f-b5fb-855df5616742%40googlegroups.com.

[David Lautner]

You have obvious repair experience with these speakers. Where are you located?

Thanks,

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[av]

Hi, my location won't help you much - I'm in the UK.

AV.

On Saturday, 11 January 2020 19:02:06 UTC, David Lautner wrote:

You have obvious repair experience with these speakers. Where are you located?

Thanks,

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/beveridge-audio/fcb65e86-c3c7-4a0a-876d-9b43ab873673%40googlegroups.com.

[av]

PS. I do have two pairs of 3s and I did service them, upgraded caps, changed some resistors, replaced foam, etc. Most anyone with some electronics knowledge can do it. The first time I opened them up I did get some guidance from Rick how to go about it.

AV.

On Saturday, 11 January 2020 19:02:06 UTC, David Lautner wrote:

You have obvious repair experience with these speakers. Where are you located?

Thanks,

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/beveridge-audio/fcb65e86-c3c7-4a0a-876d-9b43ab873673%40googlegroups.com.

[Carl Van Camp]

AV:

BTW, there's a guy in Chicago who works with Rick who can supply upgraded electronics for the 3s, including crossover, step-up traffo, etc., with all modern components. He did the electronics for the new G-3 model showcased in the Denver audio fest.

AV, can you share who this person is?  Thank you.

[av]

I'll have to check with him first, I'll come back when I have an answer.

AV.

[David Lautner]

Any suggestions for a "cost-effective" top pair of replacement (2) woofers? I threw a HSU 10" (VTF-2) woofer in 1 of the Bev's that had multiple rips. It sounds way louder than the other channel. Not acceptable.

TIA,

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[av]

You don't specify what's the impedance of the woofer you threw in. On the 3s, each woofer is 16ohm. If you happened to throw in an 8ohm one - it will sound louder. Woofers in the 3s are connected in parallel, so 2x16ohm will result in an 8ohm impedance. A lower impedance will sound louder. If you want to use 2x4ohm woofers, connect them in series (possible but not advisable; if one "fries", both stop working). Be careful with the T/S data of the replacement woofer - although, alas, we don't have it from the originals. Also worth noting that the originals were heavily damped paper cones, which increased their mass and further reduced output. Lastly and unfortunately, the woofer chambers of the 3s are also not well damped - just to thin layers of foam - so some work is still needed by the owner to achieve best results.

A cost effective way would be to re-cone the woofers, or at least the surround foam (make it rubber this time), if at all possible. Else, I found (and we bought) an aluminium coned woofer from Madisound for Rick's G-3 subwoofer. Expensive though (almost $300 each).  Another option is to bi-amp the speaker and use an external 2-way xover where you can adjust the high-low output to your heart content. The smartest way though, would be to bi-amp the speakers using digital eq, such as a miniDSP, as I did, and program those through your laptop. They are line level, so easy to manipulate. A lot of eq otherwise not initially included in the 3s can be accomplished with those little (and cheap-ish) units.

Worth noting that the original 3s were not flatly eq-ed, and H.B. had subsequently released a little eq box which is supposed to have brought the 3s frequency response to be identical to that of the 2SW. I have those boxes, but I don't like how they alter the sound. As is, out of the box, the 3s have a mild lobe of c.2-3db in the 2-4KHz range (I did measure them, but remember that a frequency response of +/-3db was acceptable at the time, although a max. swing of 6db is excessive. Still, they sold well).

AV.

On Wednesday, 15 January 2020 20:41:16 UTC, David Lautner wrote:

Any suggestions for a "cost-effective" top pair of replacement (2) woofers? I threw a HSU 10" (VTF-2) woofer in 1 of the Bev's that had multiple rips. It sounds way louder than the other channel. Not acceptable.

TIA,

On Sun, Jan 12, 2020 at 7:33 AM av <jimh...@gmail.com> wrote:

I'll have to check with him first, I'll come back when I have an answer.

AV.

On Sunday, 12 January 2020 12:00:18 UTC, Carl Van Camp wrote:

AV:

BTW, there's a guy in Chicago who works with Rick who can supply upgraded electronics for the 3s, including crossover, step-up traffo, etc., with all modern components. He did the electronics for the new G-3 model showcased in the Denver audio fest.

AV, can you share who this person is?  Thank you.

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