Revel f208 (6mos old) blew up? - see attached

[xandrellas]

6 month old set of f208s. Did a dirac sweep after getting a umik1, noticed something severely off.

Please see attached images. I don't claim to be in the knowledge on crossovers, etc but this seems alarming. Probably need to ship it off for diag/repair, no?

Troubleshooting steps taken:
1. Shifted sound on same song from 1 speaker to a other. High end noticeably gone/lacking.
2. Switched cabling from L to R, making sure my amp wasn't the one that blew up. Nope def the speaker.
3. The frequency sweep differences between L and R are night and day noticeable.

Noteworthy, my room is fairly large (20x25ft) and I do not crank my amp ( nad m33 ) past 65 or so. I just purchased a rel s812 that i had been starting to integrate. I had been on a break from listening due to work demands and demands of having young children. Guess its better found while still under warranty, ja?


Do you feel it's a driver that is degraded or xover? Kind of a bummer I have to ship a heavy unit off considering cost, but part of being cool I guess.

 

[Blumlein 88]

Looks like total absence of the tweeter. Bad connection would be my guess. Could be crossover or driver, but I'd bet some solder or other connection issues.

 

[AudiOhm]

Did you purchase these new from a dealer or used?

If new, did you contact the dealer?

Ohms

 

[fineMen]

These little guys look like having a so called 'biwiring' option. Please assure that all four connectors on each are served with the amp's output. If so, the tweeter might be blown.

 

[Lsc]

I had a blown midrange on my F208 less than a year of ownership. My local dealer that I bought it from was dragging his feet so I contacted Revel.

They sent me a replacement midrange promptly and I installed it myself.

 

[Beave]

This looks like the tweeter range is completely gone.

I'm fairly sure that the upper binding straps connect to the midrange and tweeter, and the lower binding straps connect to the two woofers.

So it can't be a simple connection issue. Most likely, either the tweeter is blown or a series component in the tweeter crossover is blown.

Contact your dealer or Revel directly. If the speakers are under warranty, don't do anything without permssion from dealer and/or Revel. They'll either guide you on how to replace parts or they'll want to do it themself.

 

[Blumlein 88]

These little guys look like having a so called 'biwiring' option. Please assure that all four connectors on each are served with the amp's output. If so, the tweeter might be blown.

I think the one pair go to the midrange and tweeter, with the other to the woofer. I've never tested that out.

 

[xandrellas]

Did you purchase these new from a dealer or used?

If new, did you contact the dealer?

Ohms

Purchased from an online dealer. Even viable to contact them 6mos post sale?

 

[xandrellas]

These little guys look like having a so called 'biwiring' option. Please assure that all four connectors on each are served with the amp's output. If so, the tweeter might be blown.

I'll give it a peek. Physically have done nothing more than shove banana plugs into the terminals.

 

[Blumlein 88]

Purchased from an online dealer. Even viable to contact them 6mos post sale?

Sure, the speakers have a 5 year warranty. Dealer may or may not handle it for you or may put you in touch with Revel. I replaced tweeters in an older Revel, and once I knew who to contact Harman told me how to remove them and sent new ones. Maybe that hasn't changed since being acquired by Samsung.

 

[Beave]

Purchased from an online dealer. Even viable to contact them 6mos post sale?

Absolutely.

 

[Benedium]

I would just contact Revel first. Let them tell u what to do.

 

[restorer-john]

If the speakers are under warranty, don't do anything without permssion from dealer and/or Revel.

Permission? LOL. They are his speakers. He can whatever he likes to determine what the issue is and Revel and or the dealer have no say in it.

 

[Beave]

Permission? LOL. They are his speakers. He can whatever he likes to determine what the issue is and Revel and or the dealer have no say in it.

Sure, he can do whatever he likes. And then they can say that the warranty is no longer valid.

Maybe it's different in Australia?

 

[Blumlein 88]

Permission? LOL. They are his speakers. He can whatever he likes to determine what the issue is and Revel and or the dealer have no say in it.

Yeah, here in the USA if he does much without their approval it could void the warranty. And in my only interaction Revel was pretty easy to work with in this regard. Plenty of warranties if you disassemble anything your warranty is voided.

So they are his, he can do anything he wants, and he may no longer have a warranty as a result.

Now a lot of good companies will work with you, but some will not. I had a microphone go bad, and wasn't the original owner. Had no warranty rights. I contacted the maker just wanting to know if they could repair it and at what cost. They told me send it in, and if not working they'd send me a new one. Which they did. They cared about their rep in the business.

 

[restorer-john]

Sure, he can do whatever he likes. And then they can say that the warranty is no longer valid.

Maybe it's different in Australia?

They have no leg to stand on here or in most countries.

Even in the US, they cannot refuse warranty for removing covers, partially dismantling or obtaining an expert opinion on the failure reasons. Your FTC has made that perfectly clear.

It's all a big bluff and people still fall for it.

These are a simple pair of speakers. About as technically basic as it gets and very, very easy to determine what the problem is. Not only that, if the owner was to ship them, there is a significant cost and oversized risk of damage and loss. So it makes a whole lot of sense to investigate and deal direct with the dealer/revel.

 

[Beave]

They have no leg to stand on here or in most countries.

Even in the US, they cannot refuse warranty for removing covers, partially dismantling or obtaining an expert opinion on the failure reasons. Your FTC has made that perfectly clear.

It's all a big bluff and people still fall for it.

Link?

 

[xandrellas]

I would just contact Revel first. Let them tell u what to do.

I did that based upon advice in this thread.

Revel has begun their initial response inquiry with me.

I am appreciative of them as well as this forum for prompt response.

I shall act accordingly with their recommendations and am looking forward to this loop being closed

 

[Blumlein 88]

Apparently the Magnuson Moss warranty improvement act in 2015 did change some of this.

There are however two cases of exemptions. One is filing for a waiver indicating a product will not function with parts from other sources. Or if the seller/maker agrees to provide parts and service for free. The 2nd exemption is still a bit of a gray area. Because the FTC indicates the maker cannot use the offer of free parts or service to void work done by others.

 

[JSmith]

Link?

Warranty-Voiding Stickers Are Illegal. These Companies Still Use Them | iFixit News

Remember that scene in The Big Bang Theory where the gang wants to upgrade the hard drive in their DVR, but Sheldon is hesitant because it’ll void the warranty?

www.ifixit.com

We’re Afraid of Warranty Stickers, but Really, Manufacturers Should Be | iFixit News

According to a survey published today by consumer group U.S. PIRG, 45 out of 50 appliance manufacturers automatically void the warranty of a device if it has…

www.ifixit.com

JSmith