Justin Collins Posted July 19, 2016 Share Posted July 19, 2016 I have own a number of Martin Logan ESL products which I have found reasonably reliable. My current Martin Logan Summit ESL speakers work wonderfully provided that a certain mid range frequency is not present within the music. I have identified that in the top left hand corner of one of the ESL panels the Mylar is slightly warped. This is what is causing the problem as the other ESL panel has no issues. Replacement panels come in pairs and cost north of $2,500. I feel that if the Mylar in the corner of the ESL panel was re-stretched that the panel would work perfectly across all frequencies above the cross over frequency. Do you think I should just replace the panels or is there someone you know that can fix ESL panels in Australia? Any thoughts on the matter would be appreciated. I am required to wait until Christmas before new ESL panels will arrive if ordered immediately. I am based in Brisbane. Thanks in advance. JSC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Triode Posted July 19, 2016 Share Posted July 19, 2016 You might want to give this guy a call. http://www.eraudio.com.au/ESL_Repair_Kits/esl_repair_kits.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doncentric Posted July 19, 2016 Share Posted July 19, 2016 I can vouch for Rob (ER Audio) as a fantastic help with this stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Collins Posted July 19, 2016 Author Share Posted July 19, 2016 Thanks, appreciate your recommendations. I spoke with Rob 9 months ago about purchasing a repair kit from him but it requires diy knowledge and tools that I don't have (i.e. a jig). I may contact him again though to get some further advice. I had heard from another stereonet member in QLD a couple of months ago that there is an individual based on the Sunshine Coast who can fix ESL panels but he didn't have any further details, which led to a dead end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Equaliser Posted July 19, 2016 Share Posted July 19, 2016 Restretching already warped or stretched mylar is a bad idea because you will be changing the frequency response though slightly of that panel as the mylar tension are very specific. A quick fix using a heat gun to expand the warped out area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Listener Posted July 20, 2016 Share Posted July 20, 2016 Justin. You might try Graz at Apogee:- http://www.apogeeacoustics.com/company.html He is not far from you on the Sunshine Coast and I can attest he is good at the ESL stuff. He 'repaired' a supertweeter for a friend and actually made it sound twice as good! All the best. Steven. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Collins Posted July 20, 2016 Author Share Posted July 20, 2016 Thanks Steven. I appreciate you providing me with the above information. I will definitely check out the website and contact Graz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nada Posted July 20, 2016 Share Posted July 20, 2016 I have own a number of Martin Logan ESL products which I have found reasonably reliable. My current Martin Logan Summit ESL speakers work wonderfully provided that a certain mid range frequency is not present within the music. I have identified that in the top left hand corner of one of the ESL panels the Mylar is slightly warped. This is what is causing the problem as the other ESL panel has no issues. Replacement panels come in pairs and cost north of $2,500. I feel that if the Mylar in the corner of the ESL panel was re-stretched that the panel would work perfectly across all frequencies above the cross over frequency. Do you think I should just replace the panels or is there someone you know that can fix ESL panels in Australia? Any thoughts on the matter would be appreciated. I am required to wait until Christmas before new ESL panels will arrive if ordered immediately. I am based in Brisbane. Thanks in advance. JSC The Martin Logans have a known issue of mylar sag with time on the larger panels. Have you considered using the hair dryer method to re-tension the mylar? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djb Posted July 20, 2016 Share Posted July 20, 2016 Suspect you already have been given enough options You could ring Mc Leans Audio at Gosford where the tech works with Mylar constantly repairing Magnapan panels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted July 20, 2016 Share Posted July 20, 2016 Try the hair dryer method, although I wonder if your diaphragm has torn ?? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Collins Posted July 20, 2016 Author Share Posted July 20, 2016 Thanks. I'll read up on the hair dryer method. The diaphragm is definitely intact. The speaker works completely fine as long as a certain frequency/frequency range is not hit. Most music I listen to comes through nicely. Thanks for all the suggestions. I probably have enough to work with now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Collins Posted July 20, 2016 Author Share Posted July 20, 2016 I've come across the following information. There are a couple of possibilities that may be occurring. One would be that the panel is simply resonating because it has perhaps lost a bit of tension. The other possibility is that the clear 'damping strips' have come loose from the backside of the panel. There is a difference in performance between the two. A resonating panel will only buzz on certain notes and at somewhat higher volumes. A loose damping strip will buzz at almost any frequency and at any volume. From your description, I believe that you are hearing a resonance. We fondly refer to the phenomena as "Kazooing" because it sounds like a kazoo. This can usually be improved by heat treatment. All CLS panels are heat treated initially before they leave the factory. Some times with age, they will stretch themselves slightly loose. They need heat to re-tension them. There is a very specific technique to heat treatment. If you wish to try it, Here are the instructions. CAUTION!!!! There certainly is the risk of damaging the panels by melting a hole through the membrane. Bad thing. If you are careful however, I think you will do just fine. The heat can be applied with a strong hair dryer. A heat gun may be too extreme. I recommend starting with the heat source about 12 inches away from the speaker. Complete the entire procedure and if it has no affect, move the heat source about 2 inches closer and repeat the entire process. Patience is required. The heat must be applied ONLY to the side portions of the panel, never in the center zone indicated by the horizontal spars or ribs. The side sections are the 'bass' sections that are about 6 inches or so wide and run from top to bottom on each side of the panel. The heat must be applied from a constantly moving heat source but at a very slow steady rate of movement. Specifically, start applying heat from the dryer at the top of the panel along the edge of the wood frame moving toward the bottom. Keep the heat source moving at the rate of 1 foot per 3 seconds. Next start at the top again but this time, move inboard just slightly, about 2 inches and make another slow downward pass. Repeat until you are near the vertical spar defining the beginning of the center section. If you first treated the left bass zone, now do the right bass zone. If you have a good light source on the membrane, you may be able to determine if it is receiving enough heat to have a good effect. You should be able to see a slight shimmer of the membrane directly under the heat if light is so that you can see the reflection of the light. As you move the heat past, the area that was shimmering will draw tight. I hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Collins Posted July 20, 2016 Author Share Posted July 20, 2016 The hair dryer treatment appears to have worked. I can't be 100% certain just yet but I am playing a variety of music loud with no issues. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted July 20, 2016 Share Posted July 20, 2016 excellent, you may want to do all the panels every year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterbean Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 as you are in Bris, you could try Garry jacobsen who runs a quad esl webpage. Otherwise there is guy in Sydney- Christian Felaiffe who is excellent, mainly a quad man too. by the way were you able to track down Graz? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Collins Posted March 12, 2017 Author Share Posted March 12, 2017 Thanks for the information. I ended up purchasing new ESL panels from ML last year. The speakers sound like new now. Good to know for the future though. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JordiNin Posted September 28, 2019 Share Posted September 28, 2019 Plus one for the hairdryer method.... I know it might only be a temp fix. But it worked whilst I source some new panels. Rob from ER Audio has been very helpful. He has some excellent instructions and supplies the parts to fix panels. He has been very prompt via email as well. jsc, where did you order the panels from? I am in Brisbane. thanks all for sharing your knowledge! cheers 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts