polk rta-12 woofer rattle

[chessmaster]

Hello all I fix this small problem in the photo with some super glue on my left speaker. "Due to rattling with high bass",
well I seem to have the same problem. Now I'm at lost what else could cause this annoying rattle when the bass is up. My right side plays crystal clear but the other side sound like some cheap fisher speakers lol...... I read it could be loose screws well I took them out and put them back in...still same. Other than that they sound like I'm at a live concert :)

[falconcry72]

Where is the rattle coming from? Can you listen and really pinpoint its location?

btw I LOVE those RTA-12's!

[Mr. Bubbles]

Welcome to the forum. Nice speakers. I have a pair as well and they are great. The best advice I could give will sound overly simplistic. Listen (in deatil) to where the rattle is. Play music to make the rattle prominent and get down close to the speaker and narrow down its source. A empty paper-towel roll may help by listening through it as you move it around. Once narrowed down to a driver, gasket, screw, cabinet panel, etc it should be much easier to visually locate the reason and make the necessary repairs. Good luck.

[naturallight]

Well first welcome to club polk.



OK, now your Pics are far to dark, can you take some with some light on the speakers. The first question would be, what did you try and super glue??

The next issue would be, even with those dark pics, that woofer dose not look in good shape at all.

[chessmaster]

thanks for the welcome :)..... These speakers are definably the best polk speakers I ever had.....sorry for the pics... yeah it's definally the woofer. Though it rattles only on low bass.

[pitdogg2]

I'm guessing that the spider has come loose from the foam....try and super glue the spider back to the foam.

Spider is the fabric that attaches to the styrofoam looks like an accordion.

[chessmaster]

I fixed the surround with some glue that fixed the problem 70% as it was extremely noticeable. I tighten some screws and it seem to go away. I assume that may be the culprit these screws were never token out since they were originally purchase :) Will buy some new screws so I can get a better seal

[pitdogg2]

I tighten some screws and it seem to go away. I assume that may be the culprit these screws were never token out since they were originally purchase :) Will buy some new screws so I can get a better seal

you shouldn't need new screws if those holes are not stripped. Too big of screw head may rip rubber surround then you in a whole new world of hurt...

do you have a gasket between passive and cabinet? Are they good and sealed? press and hold passive to make MW come out count until they go back to natural if you can count to 5 good if not then you have air leak.

[F1nut]

You can't repair a rubber surround with super glue.

[chessmaster]

I think that is where the remaining "rattle" sound because it's really noticeable when the volume is turned up alittle. But my right speaker still remains quite.

[naturallight]

I hate to say it, but that woofer looks really bad. I would go on ebay or whatever and try and find another woofer for it. I can see where you tried to glue stuff. It's just not going to work real well.

[chessmaster]

I hate to say it, but that woofer looks really bad. I would go on ebay or whatever and try and find another woofer for it. I can see where you tried to glue stuff. It's just not going to work real well.

I assume that as well just though there was a way to fix this problem. But unfortunately this problem hasn't went away. Anyone knows how I can find the correct replacement for this speaker? "woofer", that is.

[pitdogg2]

I hate to say it, but that woofer looks really bad. I would go on ebay or whatever and try and find another woofer for it. I can see where you tried to glue stuff. It's just not going to work real well.

he may have to go that route but bubbles on the passives are common for that era and from what i know never affected anything but unpleasantness to the eye.

[Mr. Bubbles]

From the first set of pics I can easily see a loose cardboard gasket. Not sure if that was the problem you were pointing out. If that is it and any of it is loose it will vibrate and get worse the louder the volume is. That must be a very early pair of speakers you have. I didn't initially notice the silver baskets and cardboard gaskets. All of my Polks and most others I have seen have had black baskets and no cardboard gaskets. The foam front with bubbles under it on the passive shouldn't cause any audible issues unless it is a very large area or loose around the edges. It just looks bad. Just for testing purposes take the passive out and mount it backwards to see if the vibration goes away. If it does then it is either the cardboard gasket or surround loose. If not check the spider like Pittdog suggested.

[naturallight]

No..he's tried to repair this with superglue..not going to happen. If you take a close look you can see it. So at this point....you need a new woofer.

[pitdogg2]

OH I SEE....
1st and 2nd look didn't see 3rd look oh yes i see. If just the Cardboard surround gasket is loose just re glue with contact cement or elmers, aleens glue. Can't hurt at this point.

yes super glue is not good for that. If the rubber surround is loose from the frame I'd still go with the above cause at this point it can't hurt.

passive number would be sw120 or later model SW121 both are 12"

[Mr. Bubbles]

I can't see any repair but I can see the loose gasket in the first set of photo's. Super glue as said by others is not going to work for that or the rubber surround. A good contact cement may fix it if that's what it is. Like pittdog said it cant hurt to try it. still may need a new passive but he will prob never be able to find a visually matching passive for what he has and may then want to replace both passives so they match.

[chessmaster]

wasn't that bad when I turned it around. actually was no loud rattling. other than the two at the top. Maybe a bad seal? time to replace maybe?

[Mr. Bubbles]

from your description it sounds as if just the cardboard gasket and/ or surround has come loose from the frame. If that is the case you should be able to glue it back with proper adhesive, something other than super glue. Contact cement works well. Elmers and some others can work well too but take much longer to adhere.

[pitdogg2]

Did you try the pressure test ? that will be a good way to tell if you have a leak.

[westmassguy]

It looks to me like the gasket and a portion of the rubber surround have lifted from the basket frame. If this is the case, and the remainder of the surround is still intact, it can be repaired, but you will need a solvent based cement specifically made for rubber: http://www.parts-express.com/pe/show...m_campaign=pla
You'll need a small 1/4" artist's brush to get the glue spread out evenly, and make sure you get in the nooks and crannies. Also, make sure you apply enough glue to complete the entire area that's separated, pay particular attention to where the separation starts and ends. You want an air tight seal.
This is based on the first set of photos.

[Mr. Bubbles]

The spider looks fine from what i can tell from your last set of pics. I would definitely try to repair the passive if possible as it is different from any of the Polk passives I have seen in the past and the likelihood of you finding to match are extremely slim to none.

[pitdogg2]

from your description it sounds as if just the cardboard gasket and/ or surround has come loose from the frame. If that is the case you should be able to glue it back with proper adhesive, something other than super glue. Contact cement works well. Elmers and some others can work well too but take much longer to adhere.

At this point I'd stick with contact cement. put on both parts let sit for couple of minutes then press together. Make sure the butyl rubber surround is good to go before you glue anything or else you are wasting time.

[chessmaster]

what should I use to bring up the surround? So I can use some contact cement to re-position it? I'm sure if I'm not care then the surround will be ripp off. Should I go to the store to peel this part off in the pic?

[chessmaster]

yeah sure did and it's the little surround gray seal around the outside of the woofer.

[chessmaster]

Did you try the pressure test ? that will be a good way to tell if you have a leak.

yeah and it's the sealer that you messed up on with the walmart super glue that is causing the vibration. At least from my observation.

[Mr. Bubbles]

The grey cardboard gasket is not of any importance. It can be removed all together but will then look bad. When removing you don't have to worry if it peels some on the back side. Once removed you can then glue the gasket back on easily. These were not used on later models.

[Mr. Bubbles]

From that last pic I tend to be more like naturallight; that passive looks pretty bad. The foam actually looks to be starting to peel around the edge somewhat. I would still try to fix it but don't expect it to last too many more years. Once fixed you may start looking for a/some replacements. Good luck.

[chessmaster]

From that last pic I tend to be more like naturallight; that passive looks pretty bad. The foam actually looks to be starting to peel around the edge somewhat. I would still try to fix it but don't expect it to last too many more years. Once fixed you may start looking for a/some replacements. Good luck.

thanks from the looks of it will be a hard find to replace. Maybe I could ge the seal replace. I will call polk for some luck. Other than that though the rest of the parts are find for its age. Bought it from the original owner I was told "by ower" were purchase in 1979. I hope to get this fix so I can enjoy this. :)

[chessmaster]

from your description it sounds as if just the cardboard gasket and/ or surround has come loose from the frame. If that is the case you should be able to glue it back with proper adhesive, something other than super glue. Contact cement works well. Elmers and some others can work well too but take much longer to adhere.

whats the cardboard gasket?