Passive Radiator, Repairs, Grilles, Modifications/Upgrades
If you need service not listed here or have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Please be aware that our service policy is fairly informal. We do not require RMA#'s or anything like that as we are a small company, and there is no need for an official service department. We do recommend that you contact us before shipping anything so that we can be on the lookout for it, as well as give you a turnaround time estimate.
Also, please realize that there are NO authorized repair shops in the U.S., including the dealer where you originally purchased the loudspeakers. They or anyone else would have to substitute inferior parts or ship the speakers to us anyway (at greater cost to you, of course.) In addition, the only "repair kits" we ship out are for passive radiators or replacement grilles; EVERYTHING else must be done in house.
In the event due to time or external elements, the annulus of the passive radiator (that 10" circle in the back) deteriorates and needs to be replaced, you have 2 options:
- We can send you a kit and you do the work. We only recommend this if you are handy and can tell the difference between a screwdriver and a chisel. Send us a check for TBA per pair along with your name, address and daytime telephone number, and we will ship you replacement passives, glue and replacement instructions.
- We do the work. For those of you who aren't handy, don't worry. We only charge an additional $100 per pair for the labor, plus shipping. Ship us the speakers with a note containing your name, address and daytime telephone number, and we will contact you after we receive them.
The first step is always to get the speakers back to us with a note containing your name, address and daytime telephone number. We have no "bench fee" or "evaluation fee" and will evaluate the speakers at no charge and with no obligation on your part. After evaluation, we will contact you with your options and prices.
In many instances, this is a good time to consider an upgrade, as the price for a modification usually isn't much more than a direct replacement, due to availability (or lack thereof) of discontinued parts, etc.
The grille on top of the Obelisk can be replaced for TBA plus shipping, and the woofer rings can be recovered for TBA plus shipping. These can be done individually or as a set for TBA plus shipping. Available colors are black, brown, light brown, almond, bone, driftwood and white. Please note that the old black/brown combination color is no longer available for the woofer ring and there are very few tops left. Also note that the top grille comes as a molded piece and cannot be recovered. In order to recover the old woofer rings, we ask that you send the old ones to us as they are custom fit to each individual loudspeaker.
Arc grilles can be recovered for TBA plus shipping, or replaced entirely for TBA plus shipping. For recovering, simply send the old grille to us. Available colors are black, brown, light brown, almond, bone, driftwood and white.
First, please realize that we are not in the "mod" business. We usually try to discourage discarding working components just for the sake of an upgrade without a very dramatic improvement in sound. Even with the upgrades we offer, we are not trying to "sell" them to anyone. We don't charge enough to make them worth our while, and they tend to deplete our stock situation and take up valuable bench space. That said...
As we've been making this speaker the longest, it has the highest number of options; in addition, this speaker has seen various changes over the years, making it difficult to give an exact, comprehensive price list here. We usually need you to ship us the speaker to determine the exact price.
The most common, most highly recommended update is a woofer replacement. This involves replacing the older American spec woofer with a new Norwegian spec one. The upgrade includes all the necessary woodwork including a Finland birch "harmonic brace" to make the front baffle more rigid, as well as a modification to the woofer leg of the crossover. (Note: this woofer mod and the crossover mod are the only situations where it would be worth updating a working speaker...especially since trade in has already been configured into the price.)
Crossover Mod : TBA per pair (depending on the specific model configuration)
Next, there is available an optional (also highly recommended) crossover update which uses new 100% polypropylene capacitors and rolls in the tweeters and mids (if applicable) at 18 dB per octave allowing them to mesh wonderfully with the new woofer. While we leave this (and all) options fully up to the customer, we feel very strongly that the crossover mod should definitely be done concurrently with the woofer mod.
Tweeters / Mids
Provided that your current tweeters and mids are working properly, there is no value in replacing them. They do not wear out with age, like tubes, and either work...or don't. After a woofer and crossover mod, the old Obelisk is 95% of the current Obelisk, and it isn't financially worth changing any more working parts.
Other
If anyone is interested in more extensive (and expensive) modifications, call us so we can talk you out of it.
The only update available for the Arc is a woofer replacement. This involves replacing the older American spec woofer with a new Norwegian spec one. The upgrade includes all the necessary woodwork including enlarging the hole on the top baffle to fit the slightly larger basket of the new woofer, as well as a modification to the woofer leg of the crossover. Since the crossover, mid and tweeter are very similar to current technology, there is no real value in any further modification.