Broken “Diamond Tweeter”

Billco

New Member
Mar 2, 2018
1
0
0
Unfortunately, one of the “Diamond Tweeters” on my B&W 800D speakers got broken. It is quite expensive to replace so I’m trying to decide exactly how to proceed.
I’m a little reluctant to say that it had likely been broken for some time before I PHYSICALLY noticed the damage. I never did (and still can’t ) hear any difference sonically between the right and left channel. I am 68 years old but still have what I thought was pretty good hearing.
Is any one else surprised that I didn’t notice the broken Diamond Tweeter immediately by the sound?
Is this “Diamond Tweeter” thing just a marketing tool or is my hearing bad.
Any and all input is appreciated.
Thanks!
 

andromedaaudio

VIP/Donor
Jan 23, 2011
8,355
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Amsterdam holland
Diamond tweeters consist normally of a synthetic diamond membrane, highly overated tweeters , plus cant handle. Power
 

art vandelay

Well-Known Member
Nov 1, 2017
9
4
108
Unfortunately, one of the “Diamond Tweeters” on my B&W 800D speakers got broken. It is quite expensive to replace so I’m trying to decide exactly how to proceed.
I’m a little reluctant to say that it had likely been broken for some time before I PHYSICALLY noticed the damage. I never did (and still can’t ) hear any difference sonically between the right and left channel. I am 68 years old but still have what I thought was pretty good hearing.
Is any one else surprised that I didn’t notice the broken Diamond Tweeter immediately by the sound?
Is this “Diamond Tweeter” thing just a marketing tool or is my hearing bad.
Any and all input is appreciated.
Thanks!


The Diamond tweeters are sensitive to vibration, so it's possible that the speaker was subjected to a bump or was moved etc. When tweeters burn out from too much power there's usually no obvious damage to the dome itself. It's the voice coil that's usually detached or burnt through. Fwiw I own a pair of 800D2's and touch wood, so far so good.

Fwiw, you should be able to hear the missing tweeter quite easily. Try playing some jazz with percussion and high hat if it's not obvious with classical music. The tweeter starts working from about 4kHz, so even if your hearing has diminished from old age you should still be able to hear close to 10kHz. I'm 54 years old and can still hear close to 15kHz. To check your ears use a pair of headphones and find a hearing test site on the internet, or use a test CD if you have one. If the HF limit is low it could be due to wax buildup and not necessarily a permanent condition.

Diamond tweeters are expensive of course but regardless of whether you can readily hear it or not you should get the tweeter replaced. If you don't want to spend the big $$$ you can always opt to install the aluminium tweeter that was used in the 800 Signature model. The frequency response and sensitivity is pretty much exactly the same and the AFAIK the tweeters are physically interchangeable. There's a youtube video that provides you a step by step tutorial too, but best to discuss with a B&W tech before proceeding.

Best
AV
 

Sencha

Well-Known Member
Nov 11, 2013
110
13
323
U.K.
I have just replaced one of my diamond tweeters in my 802's. I don't have the bill yet but I believe they are in the £5-600 range. Not crazy expensive but you don't want to be popping then with any regularity. I first noticed that the balance was out and that the dynamics of the music was way off, on closer inspection and as Art says, you should be able to hear it clear as day on something with percussion playing. My dome had no visible damage but on inspection the voice coil was open circuit. What a relief it was to have it replaced and have proper stereo again.
 

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