How long should speaker surrounds last?

ejman

ejman

Super Member
I replaced the woofer foam on a Paradigm Atom V2 a little less than 4 years ago and it's already cracked. I don't really run it that loud (its on my office desk so I sit maybe 3 ft from the speaker). The refoam should last longer shouldn't it? I followed the instructions in the kit and used the glue that came with the kit (Simplyspeakers).
 
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One huge unknown issue is how long the foam sat on the shelf in storage before it was sold. It could have been part of a bulk order that was bought a decade or more ago. Unless you are buying it directly from the manufacturing plant that made it, you just don't know. Most places wouldn't junk existing inventory just because it had been sitting there for a while.

Beyond that, there are different types of foam, etc. It makes it difficult to answer your question as a generalization absent context wouldn't really be helpful.

It's been over 20 years now since I last re-foamed the woofers and passive radiators in my JBL L150 speakers, and I run them hard enough that if the foam was getting weak, it would likely fail. That's actually a longer amount of time than the original foam (that came new with the speakers) lasted.

I keep my speakers out of direct sunlight. If your foam is being exposed to direct sunlight from a window then that will destroy your foam in a very short amount of time.
 
Chris Brown said:
One huge unknown issue is how long the foam sat on the shelf in storage before it was sold. It could have been part of a bulk order that was bought a decade or more ago. Unless you are buying it directly from the manufacturing plant that made it, you just don't know. Most places wouldn't junk existing inventory just because it had been sitting there for a while.

Beyond that, there are different types of foam, etc. It makes it difficult to answer your question as a generalization absent context wouldn't really be helpful.

It's been over 20 years now since I last re-foamed the woofers and passive radiators in my JBL L150 speakers, and I run them hard enough that if the foam was getting weak, it would likely fail. That's actually a longer amount of time than the original foam (that came new with the speakers) lasted.

I keep my speakers out of direct sunlight. If your foam is being exposed to direct sunlight from a window then that will destroy your foam in a very short amount of time.
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No direct sunlight on the speakers. Happy to provide context. What would be helpful?
 
My oldest refoam was my Mach Ones that I sold last year. They were holding strong at about 15-17 years, around there.

I was told (and take it with a grain of salt) that newer foam is a different formula (?) and it's supposed to last longer than the originals. But who knows. I try to only buy quality foam from known sources though.
 
the surrounds on the brand new woofers i got from Huw at Human speakers for the epi 3.0s seen in my avitar only lasted 8 years..not real happy about that
 
allsmith said:
the surrounds on the brand new woofers i got from Huw at Human speakers for the epi 3.0s seen in my avitar only lasted 8 years..not real happy about that
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I would take 8 years over 4 but yeah, even the old foam on my OLA's lasted about 15-20 years. I thought the modern surrounds were supposed to have this great new tech. I guess I'll just buy new surrounds and hope for the best. Rick Cobb seems to be mentioned frequently as a good source. I'll check and see if he has surrounds for my Atoms.
 
There are different types of foam and some come coated and some don't so the time period can vary from below 10 years with some working well after 20. Coatings can reduce the efficiency of the drivers and if not used originally would not be used after re-foaming the speaker. Make sure the foam roll is the same size as original as a change could change the resonance or the dynamic range in addition. Make sure the voice coil is centered in the gap before cementing the new foam in place and the cone is parallel and even with the edge of the speaker frame
 
I refoamed an extra pair of Large Advent woofers with the correct Cobb foam. Never used, sat on a shelve, no sun and discovered some cracks.
Guessing about 7 years old.
 
I always figured 10-12 years was good - but its an estimate.
I gather location plays into it to some extent.
There are subtle differences in the air between New Mexico vs New Hampshire, for instance.
And like they say, foam quality may vary as well.
 
My Sony SSU-3000's are still on their original surrounds ('78),.....same with some MCS speakers ('80's), ...and the Nova and optimus 7's, 21's and 1's, that I had,.....and my Novas 8b's ('70's closed cell foam)....

.....so surrounds can be manufactured to last.......but.........
 
Ohm Acoustics says their foam on replacement woofers lasts "up to 30 years". It's thicker than typical ebay type stuff and has a longer break in time.
 
drumbum said:
My Sony SSU-3000's are still on their original surrounds ('78),.....same with some MCS speakers ('80's), ...and the Nova and optimus 7's, 21's and 1's, that I had,.....and my Novas 8b's ('70's closed cell foam)....

.....so surrounds can be manufactured to last.......but.........
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Optimus 1 has cloth surrounds. I redoped mine last year. A great sounding speaker, if I may add.
 
Rubber surrounds usually outlast foam ones, no?
Which brings up another question: can foam surrounds be replaced by rubber surrounds? How might they affect the sound?
 
hnash53 said:
Rubber surrounds usually outlast foam ones, no?
Which brings up another question: can foam surrounds be replaced by rubber surrounds? How might they affect the sound?
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Good questions. I've never seen any listings of rubber surrounds for speakers that originally had foam but that doesn't mean they don't exist. If anyone is aware of such please let us know.
 
odcics2 said:
I refoamed an extra pair of Large Advent woofers with the correct Cobb foam. Never used, sat on a shelve, no sun and discovered some cracks.
Guessing about 7 years old.
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Hope I get longer than 7 years I just ordered the surrounds from Cobb. I hope they perform better than the ones iI got from Simplyspeakers.
 
IMG_2871.jpeg My HT speakers used the cloth surrounds that are permeated with a sticky coating front and back that lasts for ever. The stereo line arrays use a rubber type substance for the woofers and the speakers are 16 years old and look like new.
 
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this isn't the first thread about problems with replacement foam surrounds failing after a relatively short time. I actually emailed a few sources, including an American manufacturer of surrounds. At one time they all used polyester in the formulation with a switch to polyeither sometime in the '80s, though both varieties are still made. Thing is that quite possibly process control in the manufacturing, both in making the foam and molding it, could have a large effect on the durability of the final product, not to mention how close their other properties are to the original. None of the vendors I contacted would tell me who their supplier was, though I didn't try asking Rick Cobb.
For the record it is sometimes possible to find replacement rubber surrounds for some speakers. I found rubber surrounds for EPI 8" woofers. Thing is it was easier to find them through Google than the vendors own website.
 
All things considered, the environment (temperature, humidity, and air quality) that the foam surround based speakers are used in, can have a effect on their longevity, along with accelerated breakdown damage from being exposed to sustained periods of strong direct sunlight..
 
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