Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners Cleaning speaker cones?

So... my girlfriend lit a candle on top of one of my speakers one night (I didn't notice) - and the next day wax was all down the front of the cloth speaker grille. I was a little miffed, but not too upset - they are replaceable and she was sorry (the was also came off pretty well).

So now I was playing music and noticed some really odd bass distortion - so I took off the grill and noticed that it had dripped behind the grille and onto the woofer itself. I've carefully picked off as much as I could - but does anyone know if this would cause permanent damage?

Also - what's the best way to clean the residue off?

Thanks!

I'm just glad the house didn't burn down dude...you guys leave candles burning over night?

How does it sound now that you've picked some off? I'm guessing you won't notice any problems. Maybe the woofer moving in/out will make the stuff fall off over time.

I'd go with Randy's advice first - if you don't hear the impact of the wax residue, then I wouldn't mess with it.

If you do, then you can try a hairdryer on the dried wax to gently heat it. Keep it far enough away so that the heating process is very gradual, and then pat it away with a wash cloth (something that will not leave cloth/paper residue behind when it comes in contact with the warm wax).

My strong preference would be not to mess with it at all, but if it is causing problems, that's one method to consider for getting it off (just don't melt your cones!).

Jason

Since the cones are metal, they can likely stand some heat. Place a dry paper towel on the spot where the residue is — make sure it's touching the residue — and use a hair dryer to heat it up. Any remaining residue should wick into the paper towel.

I'm not 100% sure this won't damage anything, so it might not be a good idea....

Nuke it from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

If you use a paper towel just be careful that the paper towel doesn't get left behind on the cone... that was why I suggested a rag rather than a paper towel to hopefully avoid leaving behind any bits of paper towel.

Either way it's a bit of a crap shoot - if you're married, my best advice is to ask your wife. She probably has better ideas than all of us.

Jason

Have her buy a new driver, problem solved.

As I reread your original post, I need to edit my last piece of advice:

If you're married, don't ask your wife - you'd end up having to tell her about your girlfriend and melting wax onto a speaker... and there just doesn't sound like an innocent explanation there.

Ask your wife, we need the entertainment!

Good Luck.