# trouble with some tower speakers



## nikana4400 (Jan 2, 2012)

about 3 years ago I got a set of Yamaha tower speakers from a guy I worked with. I had an old onkyo received that wasn't too powerful. From day 1 I noticed that some audio was being dropped. I play a lot of video games and it was most noticeable when some dialogue was simply missing. 

I figured it was due to the crappy receiver not being able to push enough power to the speakers.

I just got a new pioneer 1021k and I'm still noticing the issue.

I have ran a few of those 5.1 tests and it always works correct, so I am kinda stumped. I'm mot disclosure what information is needed for help besides the receiver.

the only things I can think of is either the speaker wire is old, or the wire is not the right gauge, but I honestly am an idiot when it comes to this.


----------



## v-six (Sep 12, 2004)

It would be good to know more specifically what's being dropped. Are your audio peaks/spikes distorting or not loud enough? Are you missing certain frequencies? Is the problem intermittent or always present?

A few things to start with:

If you're worried about your cable:
As long as you're not running your speaker cable for long distances, any reasonable gauge cable should be okay even if it's not ideal. if you've got up near 24 gauge (really thin) you might be in tough territory. If you've got a multimeter you could check resistance from end-to-end to see if something doesn't look right, also look for infinite resistance between hot & cold.

Some other things to check: What's the resistance of your tower speakers, and what's the nominal operating resistance of your amp? Both will likely be 8 ohm.

Do the speakers have two different connections for highs & lows? If yes, make sure the conductive bridge is present









This is just a start, if you can be more specific I'm sure there will be better answers.


----------



## yustr (Sep 27, 2004)

Do they sound OK when playing music? 
Do you have other speakers set up for surround sound?

I ask because most games and movies are recorded in DD5.1 which your receiver will decode and try to send most of the dialog to the center speaker. If you don't have one you will hear only a part of the total sound track.

Play some music with the Pioneer set to stereo. How does it sound now?


----------



## nikana4400 (Jan 2, 2012)

my speakers are 6 ohms and I am running a full 5.1 set. I am not sure how to tell how many ohms the receiver is...sorry. The speakers also say that they are 100 watts to 240 watts...not sure if that helps

the issue seems to be that the sounds are not playing loud enough. Like lets say there was an explosion its very faint.

there are bridging connectors....but 1 of them was chewed up by dog I guess by the last owner. So I just stripped the wire and ran in all the way through.

I did switch the system to stereo and there seemed to be a little more sound coming through the tower speakers, but nothing crazy different.

the problem seems to be random, and only occurs one in awhile.


----------



## nikana4400 (Jan 2, 2012)

did some research and I found out the receiver pushes 130 watts at 6 ohms

also I have the cross over at 100 watts

not sure if that helps


----------



## v-six (Sep 12, 2004)

Hmm, since your bridged connector is all chewed up, you could remove the bridges and bi-amp using your 2nd zone (6th/7th channel output). There's instructions on page 14 of the manual on how to wire it: http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/S...me/VSX-1021-k_OperatingInstructions020711.pdf At least then you can rule out that the missing bridge isn't the issue. If one of your crossovers is having a bad life, maybe that'll help.

If you don't have anything to test your speaker wire, maybe pick up some. Good 16 Gauge stuff should be fine for your towers, especially if you're bi-amping. Thicker than 14 Gauge would probably be overkill unless you've got a long run to your towers. Radioshack and Lowes usually have the stuff pretty cheap. Since you've got a new receiver and see the same problems, it's likely the problem is with your wiring or the towers. 

If the rest of your speakers are running at 8 ohms, it may add a little stress to the receiver from working at multiple impedances, but if you've tried just the towers and still seen the problem, I wouldn't worry about this part. Intermittent stuff like this is sometimes just a loose connection somewhere.. internal or external. I hope you're able to resolve it.

Also, if your towers are as big as they sound, try your crossover at 80hz and see how it sounds. I imagine those can handle 80-100hz, and it'll let your sub focus on the good stuff


----------



## nikana4400 (Jan 2, 2012)

Well im stumped. 

Ive tried everything and I just cant get this issue to stop.

I recently watched Star War Episode 3 and when obi wan an danikan are having a lightsaber fight sometimes they sound was so faint when their sabers clashed, and I know its suposed to be louder.

Would it hurt the system if I plugged in some smaller speakers as well as the tower speakers at the same time to see if the issue would be resolved that way?


----------



## v-six (Sep 12, 2004)

Can you describe the 'everything' in tried everything?

If you mean plugging in smaller speakers to the same terminal as the towers, I wouldn't recommend it.


----------

