So a rather old Paradigm PDR10 sub woofer I bought over ten years ago from Richer Sounds Sevenoaks had developed some faults and needed servicing. It would have been too easy to just throw it out but after a few hours effort it\u2019s working again sounding even better that before.<\/p>\n
Warning: Never<\/strong> operate you sub-woofer with the amplifier removed – there are exposed mains voltage connectors inside and the amplifier has a heavy transformer that can topple over!<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
You may too have one of these subs that needs similar treatment so here\u2019s what to expect and what may need doing.<\/p>\n
First the rattle, most obvious on movies such as Star Wars Revenge of the Sith on the opening sequence. The whole front baffle vibrates and rattles as if it\u2019s going to fall off. There\u2019s no obvious fixings from the front grille. A quick Google finds several questions asking how to remove the front grille followed by pictures of broken baffle and the answers – it\u2019s not designed to be removed!<\/p>\n
Disconnect all cables, place the sub on its front and remove the black chipboard screws holding the power amplifier in place. Lift the black metal plate holding the transformer and power amplifier carefully out removing the red and black speaker cables and the plug connecting the front power indicator. Remove the white wadding that surrounds the speaker – it simply lifts out as it\u2019s not glued in place – more on that later.<\/p>\n
Next remote the speaker held in place with longer black chipboard screws. My speaker showed no signs of foam rot on the cone surround that could have caused the rattle – see my other post if your sub has a damaged surround Paradigm PDR10 Foam Rot Replacement Sub Woofer Fix<\/a>. So I put the speaker out of the way of metal tools and feet and looked more closely at the cabinet.<\/p>\n
Inside my PDR10 there was no glue seams along the front baffle board or two of the cabinet sides – see photos. There was however glue on the other two cabinet sides. It looked a Friday afternoon botched assembly where they forgot to apply all the glue but PDR10s may all be like this. I made up three bracing blocks from some pieces of hardwood I had in the workshop. I made a cardboard disk to put in place of the speaker to avoid getting glue on the grille material. Then I found the PVA wood glue – a fairly runny consistency – and applied liberally all around the inside edges in the hope it would seep between the front baffle and sides. You can see the result.<\/p>\n\n\t\t