JBL 2445J clean-up / disassembly question

[mouchon]

Hi guys,

I recently did a "blind" purchase on CL and ended up with a pair of 2445J's with matching 2380A horns. My intention is to clean them, test them and sell them. These were in storage for a while (2 years at least), with the horn opening facing upwards, so a lot of crap got into the horns. Other than that, amazing condition. All indicates they are have never been opened of messed with. Tested with the 3115 x-over, they sound fine.

I removed the horns, cleaned them out. Covering the throat is a "funnel" with a mesh at the bottom, protecting the diaphragm. Vacuumed that out. I want to have a look under there, but the top part of the "funnel" appears to be made of cardboard and is either glued with glue or glued by the decades of being compressed by the horn. I doubt I can remove it without seriously damaging it.

Is this part something I can easily replace replace ? I've found tons of info on diaphragms but nothing on the "funnel" or whatever this thing is called.

I've tried opening the back, but all i see is the diaphragm. I don't trust myself to go any further, as I've absolutely no experience in dismantling this kind of speaker.


Sooo - any kind of advice is appreciated. Should I leave them as-is or can I replace the "funnel and mesh assembly". Also, what the hell is this piece called?


Also, I see adds for 350$ the pair - are these really worth that much?

Thanks

[Lee in Montreal]

Curious. Why would you replace the mesh?

Lee

[frank23]

I've tried opening the back, but all i see is the diaphragm. I don't trust myself to go any further, as I've absolutely no experience in dismantling this kind of speaker.

In your case, I would close them up, and leave everything as is. You cannot get to the mesh by just removing the diaphragm. For that you need to demagnetize the driver, something that only experienced professionals have the tools for.

[mouchon]

Curious. Why would you replace the mesh?

Lee

Just to see what's behind and make sure it is not damaged. There was a lot of muck (dust, cigarette ash) on the mesh so I'm not 100% that some smaller particles did not get inside.

[mouchon]

Here's a better pic of the "mesh" side

[Lee in Montreal]

There's not much you can do, except remove the diaphragm (if you know how not to damage it with the screwdriver - easily done) and maybe blow some air.

I bought my set in Montreal for $250.00cad a pair w/o horn. They had the original titanium diaphragm. Otherwise, I would have had to be paid to get them. The value is basically into the diaphragm. JBL and quality aftermarket diaphragms are very expensive. Lots of cheap Chinese diaphragms out there. Sound bad and 6db under. I have a set of 2440, 2441 and this set of 2445 that I currently use just because they were designed to work with the big 2360 horns.

[mouchon]

Is there any way I can confirm the diaphragm without removing it? (other than the pic I posted)

As far as I can tell, these are 100% original: my seller got them straight from the museum they were used in (Royal Ontario in Toronto) - he never used them. But a buyer might want more proof than that...

[more10]

If you are careful you can remove the diaphragm and clean the gap and the interior of the driver. But you can ruin the diaphragm. Just sell them as they are and let the new owner do the cleaning. Diaphragm looks original.