Bose Speaker Problems in 99 Miata
Harry Sadler
appears that there is a problem when it rains (and it rains every day in
Tampa) with water getting into the Bose Speakers causing garbled sound. The
Miata.net site mentions this problem but does not have a fix. Has anyone
else experienced this and fixed it?
I can't help but think that "long term" this will screw up the radio and
amp. I also can't wait to take this problem to my friendly Mazda dealer...
I called them today and like Sgt. Schultz on Hogan's Heroes, "They Know
Nothing."
Thanks for the help!
Harry Sadler
Tampa, FL
hsad...@tampabay.rr.com
Patrick Palczewski
"buzzing" in the right speaker (yes, it is a Bose CD/cassette/radio
system) ... I really haven't noticed it, but I'll have to have someone
look at it. It looks like a more common problem, maybe?
--
Patrick Palczewski
Harry Sadler <hsad...@tampabay.rr.com> wrote in message
news:5WX93.2207$xJ.3...@newse3.tampabay.rr.com...
Rich Wilkman
The dealer is still waiting to get my replacement speaker, but I couldn't drive
without music so I chucked the crappy Bose system and installed new gear. I've
talked with several installers who simply chuckle when they hear about it. Just
about every speaker component made for the last five or six years are
weatherproofed.
An intersting note is that Bose (or Mazda Marketing) likes to call those 8"
speakers. Well, they are 8" if you count the bracket. Every other manufacture
that sells 8" speakers doesn't include the bracket size in the speaker
dimension. For me, this meant not being able to install nice 8" units without
doing some panel tweaking. Feh!
My speakers had mold growing on the back just from the foggy mornings. It's
also kind of sad to see paper speaker cones at the price they sell this system
for.
-Rich
Harry Sadler wrote:
> I just purchased a new 99 with the Bose Audio package to replace my 90. It
> appears that there is a problem when it rains (and it rains every day in
> Tampa) with water getting into the Bose Speakers causing garbled sound. The
> Miata.net site mentions this problem but does not have a fix. Has anyone
> else experienced this and fixed it?
>
Wayne
<http://www.miata.net/faq/99central.html>
"I have the Bose option and the doors are buzzing. What can I do?
We haven't found a solution to this yet, though we don't think it's due to the
Bose system itself. More likely it's due to the door construction, and the
higher power of the Bose option induces the buzzing. Complain to the dealer.
Hopefully they'll come up with a fix. This letter is from a BOSE OEM Service
engineer:
Some customers have recently indicated to us that they are experiencing a
variety of symptoms similiar to which you describe. Mazda has informed us that
they are aware of this symptom.
Let me explain what the potential problem is, why it occurs, and what we are
doing about it. Some of the 8" door mounted speakers, when half wet (I'll
define this in a minute), exhibit what we call a rub. In some cases this may
sound like a rasby buzz, or in other cases like wood file being used. This
happens, as I said when the speaker is "half wet". What this means, is when
some water has made it's way into the door and gotten a portion (but not all)
of the speaker parts wet. This partially wet state can cause the inner
structures of the speaker to rub against each other. Although this is not a
good sound, it will not damage your speaker, and as soon as the speaker dries
out again, the problem will go away. This is not a situation that will get
worse over time. This symptom will come and go with the speaker's exposure to
water. Simply, if you can relate the problem to water exposure, and the
symptom comes and goes, then your speaker would fit into this "Half Wet"
category. Bose is working with Mazda to evaluate a fix for this problem.
We should also mention that, over time the door trim pieces can loosen, as
most automotive trim pieces do. Due to the high acoustic energy in the door,
if these trim pieces do loosen they are susceptible to buzzing.
So, if your problem is not related to water exposure, and gets worse over
time, or is a constant state, I would suggest that the problem may be related
to the door trim.
Curt Stuart, after going a few rounds with his dealer, decided to spring for
nine bucks and bought a Waterproof Foam Baffle from Crutchfield. Curt reports
that the "sound, specifically the bass, seems to be tighter and less "wild"
without losing the any of the oomph of the system." Crutchfield part number
237XT80 for $9.00."
WayneR
10th AE (2083/7500)
Somewhere in N.Va.
In article <5WX93.2207$xJ.3...@newse3.tampabay.rr.com>, "Harry Sadler"
EricZieglr
>When I bought my '99M used, one of the sales reps mentioned a
>"buzzing" in the right speaker (yes, it is a Bose CD/cassette/radio
>system) ... I really haven't noticed it, but I'll have to have someone
>look at it. It looks like a more common problem, maybe?
I have your same stereo, purchased new. A lot has been written about buzzing.
I'll just say that I'm highly skeptical about a set-up that reportedly uses car
doors as resonators. For this and other reasons, try to keep passengers from
their instinctive tendency to slam your doors shut. Miata door-slamming
deserves a separate thread, and I intend to start one.
Eric Ziegler
'99 Pop/Tour/Bose