90 lb monster LS-15's

Well so now i own a pair of cerwin vega LS-15's...lets get this right from the start. These speakers are not audiophile!

They are just HUGE monster speakers, which my back will attest to.
Right off the bat i have a problem, the mid range is distorted, but i i don't think they are blown, reading various posts on these it occurs from amp to amp some it happens some it doesn't. (I am running them currently on a sansui AU- 717)

However i would like to test if they are blown, how can i?

Also i would like upgrade suggestions (mids & tweeters) for the future if i keep them
 

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However i would like to test if they are blown, how can i?
Unscrew the mid and connect the speaker wires directly to it. If the mid still sounds bad, it is.

Also i would like upgrade suggestions (mids & tweeters) for the future if i keep them
Not worth the effort in my opinion since a new crossover will most likely be required.

But you could call the guys at Madisound, and they'll help you out.
 
pulled them out and yes they still sound distorted when hooking them directly to the speaker wires.

have looked on ebay for a new set there is none available. Do any fellow ak'ers possibly have a pair of the 6.5 mid ranges from the LS-15's that i could purchase from them?
 
Even with new speakers and repaired xovers those speakers are going to sound like a bucket of turds imo. I have heard many big woofer C-V speakers and have yet to hear something decent.
 
What model are the mids? I have some from a set of AT-15s listed as AT-M5s.
 
Even with new speakers and repaired xovers those speakers are going to sound like a bucket of turds imo. I have heard many big woofer C-V speakers and have yet to hear something decent.

No need to sling turds all over his thread! I am not a CV fan either but he's got what he's got. And wants to get them running right.

I think I have a pair of these mids as well. Not sure they are the same model though. I think they came from a pair of D series speakers.
 
No need to sling turds all over his thread! I am not a CV fan either but he's got what he's got. And wants to get them running right.

I think I have a pair of these mids as well. Not sure they are the same model though. I think they came from a pair of D series speakers.

do you have the model numbers for those so i could compare the specs? thanks
 
I wouldn't mess with anything but original, unless you want to have someone measure the 15" woofer and tweeter, and then make a custom crossover. Just keep your eye on ebay, they'll pop up eventually. Set up a search alert that'll email you when anything LS-15 related pops up.
 
can someone explain why i would need to change the crossover if i dropped in a pair of replacements? is it going to change the resistance of the speakers?
 
can someone explain why i would need to change the crossover if i dropped in a pair of replacements? is it going to change the resistance of the speakers?


Simply:
Because every single speaker is different in every parameter. The crossover is made specifically for that one driver that was originally there. Very rarely, if ever, can you find a "drop-in" driver that will work even close to the original driver.
 
I had a pair of CVs that sounded good. They were, however, two way. 98and very old) I know this much, there are alot of crappy midranges out there from those days.

Anyway, to keep the same crossover you would need drivers with essentially the same frequency response and impedance curves.

If these are cheap speakers, and there were alot of them rgardless of the nameplate, they might not even have real crossovers in them. If all you see is a couple of capacitors, that's them. Good mids and tweeters do not respond well to those "crossovers" and you really don't gain much. If the responses don't match it could be worse.

Pop the woofer out and see if there is a real crossover in there. If not, that might be a good place to start. If it does have real crossovers, the mids might just be partially blown. It does happen. Some people like bass, and some treble, others not so much. I know a guiy who always turned down the bass and treble, put the low and higfh filters on all the time because that's how he liked the sound, and he CRANKED them. Sounded like shit but the cops would come. If they came from someone like that, there may be some crispies in the voice coil.
 
I had a pair of CVs that sounded good. They were, however, two way. 98and very old) I know this much, there are alot of crappy midranges out there from those days.

Anyway, to keep the same crossover you would need drivers with essentially the same frequency response and impedance curves.

If these are cheap speakers, and there were alot of them rgardless of the nameplate, they might not even have real crossovers in them. If all you see is a couple of capacitors, that's them. Good mids and tweeters do not respond well to those "crossovers" and you really don't gain much. If the responses don't match it could be worse.

Pop the woofer out and see if there is a real crossover in there. If not, that might be a good place to start. If it does have real crossovers, the mids might just be partially blown. It does happen. Some people like bass, and some treble, others not so much. I know a guiy who always turned down the bass and treble, put the low and higfh filters on all the time because that's how he liked the sound, and he CRANKED them. Sounded like shit but the cops would come. If they came from someone like that, there may be some crispies in the voice coil.

hi. thanks for the reply i did have the woofers out they do have crossovers, much hate for cerwin vega on here, the ls 15's may not be audiophile but they were certainly not cheap at MSRP : $900.00
i dont want to pull out the woofers again but here is a photo of the ls-12 crossover which is the model below mine.

how would i find out the frequency response and impedance curves?
there is no info on the net for these midranges
 

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I don't want you to think I'm an elitist Cerwin Vega hater who hasn't even given Cerwin Vega a chance. I've owned quite a few Cerwin Vega speakers. Admittedly I haven't heard the LS-15, but from what I understand they were not enigmas. However, going with custom drivers in those LS-15s would likely not be worth the effort/cost. Those LS-15s are not now, and never were worth anywhere close to $900 in the US. Not trying to be rude, but I don't even believe they ever sold for that. I think Cerwin Vega was one of those companies that had inflated MSRPs but had a street value much less. If you want to repair these with custom drivers and new crossovers for sentimental reasons, or just because it'd be "fun" I can't argue with that. Just don't try to convince yourself it's practical.

The specs are likely not out there, and what's left of corporate Cerwin Vega sure won't give it to you. It's doubtful they even still have it or are capable of understanding what you'd be talking about.

You would need to find someone who repairs speakers in your area that has a woofer tester/analyzer. Parts express has such devices for between $100 and $300, Even after the tests are complete, you still need to design a crossover, buy the parts(and buy new mids), assemble the parts, then find out the design still needs some tweaking. Some people think there are fewer more fun things in the world, and there's nothing wrong with that.

The last thing to consider is that maybe you're not that picky about frequency response. Maybe the LS-15s weren't that flat to begin with, and maybe whatever new peaks and valleys are introduced will not be worse than what was already there, or be within your tolerances. They do sell pre-made crossovers that weren't designed for any particular drivers, and some people claim to like the sound. I've bought some and didn't like the sound, but YMMV.
 
This is a CV LS-15s we are talking about here. Just buy two Vifa midrange drivers and plop them in place of the old drivers. Will probably be an improvement over OEM drivers. You might want to pull some of the old electrolytic caps in the crossovers and replace with new, same value caps if you want to protect those drivers.
 
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