Breakdown of computer speakers is a very common occurrence. Some users simply solve this problem by replacing with obviously working columns, but this method is not always the only correct one. Fortunately, there are many effective methods for repairing speakers that every home master can reproduce.
The main purpose of the speakers is to amplify the weak audio signal coming from the computer's sound card. By design, any computer speakers are a stereo audio amplifier. By design, the entire electronic filling can be divided into 3 main blocks: a power supply, a stereo UMZCH (audio frequency power amplifier) and a passive speaker system in the form of 2 speakers. The speakers are powered, as a rule, either from a 220V network or from a USB port via a 5 volt line. The audio input of the speakers is connected to the computer sound card via a stereo cable with a 3.5 mm stereo plug at the end.
First, you need to make an initial diagnosis. Try to turn on the speakers to the mains 220V. If we are talking about additional speakers from a laptop, then you need to connect the power via USB. The illuminated operation indication LED may indirectly indicate the operability of the UMZCH power supply circuits.
Second, try touching the end of the 3.5mm stereo plug with the most common diagnostic tool, your finger. For serviceable speakers, such a touch should cause a serious background of 50 Hz pickup. The buzz should be pronounced. If there is no such background, then this indicates either a violation of the integrity of the audio wire, or a breakdown of the 3.5 mm plug, or a failure of the UMZCH. Moreover, UMZCH - an audio frequency power amplifier fails extremely rarely, first of all, check the wires and the plug.
It happens that one of the speakers works quite well, while the second one completely refuses to reproduce any sounds. Basically, this breakdown is a violation of the contact in the plug and socket of the sound card. The problem is solved very simply: we wipe the plug with industrial alcohol. You can radically solve the problem by replacing the plug.
The most rare breakdown in computer speakers is the failure of the speakers. Practice shows that the cable is more likely to fray or the contact in the plug is broken than the speaker will break. If your suspicions still fell on the speaker, then checking its performance is not difficult. The simplest method is to measure the winding resistance under direct current. It is most reasonable to use either a digital multimeter or an analog tester for such diagnostics. We expose the device to the measurement limit of 200 ohms. When connecting a multimeter to a working speaker, a reading should be displayed that does not exceed 16 ohms. As a rule, the resistance value is written on the speaker itself. Standard values: 4,8,16 ohms. Any significant deviation from the nominal resistance indicates a breakdown of the speaker. This "sore" is treated by the replacement method. Fortunately, the cost of a speaker in a computer column rarely exceeds 100 rubles. If you don't have a multimeter, you can check the suspicious speaker by connecting a 1.5V battery. In a working speaker, when such a battery is connected, the diaphragm should move forward with a characteristic click and rustle.
Let's make a reservation right away that you need to buy a plug and wire for stereo audio systems, that is, the sound must be divided into 2 channels. In order for us to fully enjoy the surround sound, the sound is fed to the input of the amplifier not through 2 wires, but through four. The plug is also made using stereo technology. When choosing a plug, ask the seller for one where there are 3 outputs: 1 - common wire, 2 - first phase (right channel), 3 - second phase (left channel). A 3.5 mm mono plug is not suitable for our purposes, since there are only 2 contacts: 1 - common wire, 2 - phase (mono signal). The wire must be either three or four wire. In a 4-wire arrangement we have 2 separate common lines and 2 separate phases, while in a 3-wire arrangement we have 1 common ground and 2 separate phases. The two-wire circuit is unsuitable for our purposes. All wires are connected to the plug by soldering. No twists work reliably here.
The stages of sealing and soldering the cable to the plug are shown in the photographs.
In budget models of speakers for computers and laptops, adjustable type potentiometers are used. In fact, these are resistors in which there is a resistance adjustment. A special slider, moving along the conductive part of such a potentiometer, physically changes the value of its electrical resistance. In new speakers, of course, this change occurs very smoothly and quietly, but over time the lubricant dries out, therefore, rustling and microscopic sparking occurs, which is transmitted in an enhanced form through the UMZCH to the speakers. The problem is solved either by lubricating the potentiometer, or by replacing it.
First you need to disassemble the column where the potentiometer is installed - the volume control. Then we solder the potentiometer and disassemble it. The complexity of soldering and the non-triviality of disassembly and assembly directly depend on the manufacturer and brand of speakers. After disassembling the column, do the following:
1. We remove the old grease from the track.
2. We clean the entire working surface of the potentiometer from various dirt and dust. It is most preferable to use a school eraser for these purposes, but only from the side designed to remove inscriptions and marks not from pencils, but from ballpoint pens.
3. Lubricate all places where friction occurs with CIATIM lubricant (technical petroleum jelly).
We collect the potentiometer and solder it into place.
After cleaning, lubrication and a good installation, the potentiometer will work like new, and your speakers will not make the slightest rattle and noise when changing the volume level.
Speaker systems can be active or passive. Inside they have different chips used for sound processing.
In order for the sound to be of high quality, many devices are used to play it. But all these devices cannot be seen with the naked eye, since they are located inside.
But everyone who owns them should know how loudspeakers are repaired. Repair of acoustic buttons and other elements can be done with your own hands, if you know the speaker device.
In our case, we will consider the situation when the speaker speakers stopped working. You need to purchase special glue in advance, which may be needed during the repair process.
In general, any quick-drying glue that you can find will do. It just may happen that when dismantling, you will have to disassemble the glued joints. After that, they will need to be somehow collected back.
Note: They are ideal for high frequency speakers.
Speakers work like this:
Speaker repair is a fairly simple process. The cap and membrane break rarely.
Most often, the coil fails. You should also check the soldering points of the wires, as one of them may have come loose.
Coil repair is as follows:
Note: It is precisely because of the high mobility that the turns can break. Therefore, everything possible must be done to ensure that they are fixed in the best possible way.
Note: The wire must be varnished.
Firstly, it will improve its quality, so it will not break as quickly. And secondly, there will be less likelihood that a short circuit will occur in the system.Acoustic column in the car
Quite often, in the process of repairing acoustic speakers, you have to disassemble the speakers. Therefore, before starting repairs, stock up on solvent.
All glued joints must be moistened with glue and wait a little time. Particular attention is paid to the cleaning of joints.
Thus, you can repair acoustic speakers with your own hands without leaving your home. Initially, you need to purchase glue, the price of which is scanty.
Before you start repairing yourself, you also need to review photos and videos with this topic, of which there are a lot on the Internet. Instructions for this will also come in handy.
Computer speakers can always fail, especially if the user preferred an unknown manufacturer. Many people simply buy new equipment to replace the old one, but this is not the best way out of the situation. There are dozens of different methods for restoring the performance of columns. How to fix the column in your case? You will most likely find the answer below.
The main purpose of audio output devices is to amplify the weak signal that the equipment receives from the sound card of a personal computer. The speakers are a stereo audio amplifier. You can classify the entire filling into three blocks:
Important! Such devices are powered by a 220 volt network. But there are cases when the equipment is powered by a USB port with a voltage of 5 volts. And devices are connected to a computer, as a rule, using the well-known 3.5 mm jack.
To fix the column, you first need to do diagnostics:
Important! If there is no noise, then the problem may be: a 3.5 mm plug or UMZCH. The latter, as a rule, breaks very rarely, so take care of the plug first.
How to fix a music speaker? Different cases require different actions. Let's talk about some of them.
It often happens that only one column fails.
Important! The breakdown can be caused by a broken contact in the plug and socket of the computer's audio card.
In order to get rid of the problem, you must do the following:
It happens that the work of the speakers in the speakers themselves is disrupted. You need to be able to define it.
Do-it-yourself computer speaker repair is not the trickiest thing, but you need to know what we are facing. Let's talk about the rarest breakdown in speakers for computers - this is the breakdown of the speakers themselves.
Important! According to statistics, most often the cable is erased or the contact in the plug is broken, which breaks the speaker.
If you suspect that the problem is in the speakers, then it is very easy to check its performance. To do this, follow the following instructions:
Important! You can look at the speaker itself, it should indicate the value of its resistance: 4, 8 or 16 ohms.
Important! If you do not have a multimeter or any other tester and are not expected to, connect a battery of one and a half volts. A working speaker will delight you with signs of life when touched with a battery.
The speaker plug is broken, how to fix it? There is nothing complicated here either. You just need to know how to replace.
Important! Purchase the plug and wires for stereo speakers only. In other words, the sound must necessarily be divided into two channels.
The plug is also made using stereo technology. The seller will be able to tell you where and how many outputs are available in each plug from the range. But the wire must be necessarily three or four-core.
Important! The easiest way to install new components is soldering, and in fact it is the only one. No twisting will help to achieve a good effect.
The most budget models of audio systems are equipped with adjustable potentiometers. These are the most common resistors in which there is a resistance adjustment. With the help of a special slider, the physical value of the electrical resistance is changed. New and high-quality speakers provide silence during such actions, but the lubricant dries in them over time, which leads to the appearance of foreign sounds and sparks transmitted through the UMZCH.
In order to solve this problem, it is necessary to acquire a special tool and lubricate the “track” in the potentiometer with it. If you do not want to poke around in the insides, you can take the equipment to the service and replace the annoying part for a small amount.
But if you have read up to this point, then most likely you will fix all the problems yourself. Do-it-yourself computer speaker repair will not only save money, but will also provide a unique and useful experience for future equipment repair.
First you need to take apart the column in which the potentiometer is mounted. Using a soldering iron, it must be soldered and disassembled. Difficulties at work depend not only on you. The manufacturer very often hacks in production.
After all the disassembly, you need to do the following:
Speakers break quite often. This happens in most cases from listening to music for a long time at high volume, since ordinary household speakers cannot function for a long time at maximum power. They also break from applying too much voltage to them, otherwise, from connecting to an overly strong amplifier. But this is unlikely to tell you in the store. They describe what power they are, but no one will tell you that, working at the limit for a long time, they can break. But most likely they will serve their warranty period. Therefore, the average layman has a question, how to fix the speakers with his own hands, what, in general, breaks there and is it not easier to simply throw them away?
Speakers are a simple type of radio engineering. They are a case and built into it or, in a simple way, a loudspeaker, maybe one. But in a more advanced model, there may be several. If the speakers are the same, then they perfectly reproduce a wide range of frequencies. But often there are several different ones. If the column has three different sizes of speakers, then the largest one reproduces low frequencies, the middle one - medium and the smallest, as it is commonly called "tweeter" - high frequencies.
How to fix speakers of the usual type, that is, inactive ones that do not have an amplifier built in? It depends on what kind of breakdown happened. Since it is easy to repair a cracked case, we will not dwell on such nuances. Let's go through the breakdowns associated with the failure of the speakers, since apart from them there is nothing more to break in ordinary (inactive) speakers.
Very often it's the plugs. In this case, you will need to ring with a multimeter. Here's how to fix the column in this case:
Plugs are not provided in the current speakers. Therefore, you need to ring the wire itself by pressing the contacts (clothespins) on the speaker and on the amplifier. If at least one core does not ring, change the wire, and everything is in order.
To the question of whether it is possible to repair the column if one of the speakers burned out in it, we will answer - it is possible. But in the case of a “tweeter”, that is, with a tweeter, this is treated only by replacement, since the diffuser basket of such speakers is closed and you should not even try to disassemble it. This item is disposable.
Hearing damage is determined. If the column has stopped poking, that is, giving out high frequencies, or the top speaker gives out a rattle, then the problem is in the tweeter. What we do:
This speaker can be repaired if the membrane holding the diffuser in the center has come off or debris has fallen into the circular slot of the magnet in which the diffuser coil walks. In this case, the speaker wheezes. And if only one of the three speakers wheezes, then the problem is only in it. How to fix a column for music in these cases, we will describe below. If you do not want to bother with repairing the speaker, but want to replace it with another one of the same or its analogue, proceed in the same way as in the case of the “tweeter”.
If the upper small speaker clicks as expected, the middle one sings, and only the big lower speaker wheezes, problems with it are solved in the same way as with the midrange speaker. Breakdowns may be the same. To replace with a new one, simply buy it and follow the instructions above.
How to fix a speaker on a column if the membrane of the centering washer is torn off? We act according to the following instructions:
This is also treated, but here you will have to tinker longer and it’s not a fact that you will be able to remove the diffuser with high quality and clean the slot from dirt, and then put it back on the glue. How can I fix the column in this case:
And how to fix speakers for a computer, you ask. We will answer. Computer speakers are all active, that is, with built-in amplifiers. In them, most often, sound chips burn out. If the power light is on, then the power supply is OK. Most likely, the dynamics themselves are in order. And you have to solder and solder the chip. It can burn out and not alone, the resistance, capacitor, etc. can burn out.
Since our article is written for those who are not knowledgeable in radio engineering, we will not describe how to fix this breakdown. Here it is best to turn to the masters. Where can I get my computer speakers fixed? At any service center. Everything is done quickly and cheaply. But, often, some speaker models cost so much that it is better to buy new ones, because, no matter how cheap it is, sometimes half the cost of the speakers themselves will be charged for repairs (if it is not under warranty).
Almost any malfunction of the speakers for a computer can be eliminated by a semi-skilled electrician who knows how to use a tester (multimeter).
Computer speaker repair
The lack of sound in the speakers can be caused by such simple malfunctions as a wire break in the 3-pin amplifier plug, a break in the mains wire, a blown fuse, a break in the wires from the amplifier to the speakers, and the failure of the speakers themselves.
The performance of the speakers can be checked by picking up a 3-pin input plug, then with a working sound system, a 50 Hz background will be clearly heard from both speakers. To check the left and right channels of the audio system separately, you need to pick up a thin screwdriver by the metal, and in turn touch the contacts of the left and right channels on the input three-pin plug.
Thus, it is possible to determine the performance of each system amplifier separately. The amplifier can be powered directly from a computer via a USB connector or via a 220 V network. The 5 V voltage at the end of the USB cable can be checked with a tester. If the power is supplied through 220 V, then the voltage of 220 V on the primary winding of the transformer and the output voltage on the secondary winding are checked.
The appearance of a computer speaker amplifier. Amplifier chip under the heatsink
If there is no voltage on the secondary winding, then the resistance of the primary winding on the transformer is checked, having previously disconnected the speakers from the network. If there is no resistance, then the transformer needs to be replaced. The resistance of the primary winding can vary from hundreds of ohms to kOhm, depending on the power of the transformer.
Checking the speakers for performance can be done with a tester. In this case, with good speakers, a slight click should be heard and the tester will show a resistance of 4 or 8 ohms. Without a tester, the speakers are checked with a 1.5 V battery. Its outputs are applied to the speaker contacts, as a result, we hear a noticeable click and see the movement of the speaker cone.
The procedure for identifying column failures may be different. I use the following audio troubleshooting sequence. First of all, I check the input from the amplifier plug, that is, by touching the plug contacts with my hands. If there is no background, I check the power supply of the amplifier, starting from its output. Usually a 12 V voltage regulator is installed in the power supply.
View of a standard amplifier chip and other elements
By its marking, you can find the pinout of the stabilizer pins and check the output voltage. If the input voltage is about 18 V, and there is an output voltage of 12 V, then we check the operation of the amplifier next. When there is an input voltage of 18 V, and there is no output of 12 V, then we definitely change the stabilizer to the same or its analogue. When everything is in order with the power supply, we proceed to check the amplifier.
In audio systems, various types of amplifiers are used on chips installed on cooling radiators. The size of the radiator depends on the power of the amplifiers. We also find the marking of the amplifier microcircuit, enter the type of microcircuit in the search engine and find its characteristics and pinout. We determine the input contacts of the microcircuit according to the pinout and its circuit, then touch them with a thin metal probe and hands.
So we check the left and right channel. There should be a strong background. In this case, the volume control is at the maximum level. One of the channels does not work - we check its speaker and if it works, we change the microcircuit. We also check the supply voltage on the amplifier chip with a tester, it should be 12 V if the voltage regulator is 12 V.
The microcircuit can burn out completely, then there will be no left and right channels. The best ones to check with a tester with thin sharp probes and touch them not with the contacts of the microcircuit (so as not to short them) but with their tracks. As usual, the tracks are under the paint, so you need sharp feelers to pierce the paint.
Over time, a strong background of 50 Hz appears from the power supply. This is due to the fact that the electrolytic capacitors on the power supply have dried up. They need to be replaced. Also, a rustle appears from the prescription of the speakers, when the volume potentiometer is turned. The rustle can be eliminated if:
1. Replace the volume control.
2. Disassemble the potentiometer and lubricate with petroleum jelly.
3. If there are scuffs on the track of the potentiometer, then they can be painted over with conductive glue.
As you can see, do-it-yourself computer speaker repair is not difficult, even pleasant.
Advice. To choose a high-quality speaker system, you need to turn it on, set the maximum volume and move 1 meter away from the speakers. With the open input of the amplifier of a high-quality sound system, you will not hear noise and background. Naturally, a low-quality amplifier will make noise and phony even at a greater distance. If this parameter corresponds, then there is no doubt about the quality of other parameters.
If during the repair of computer speakers you encounter difficulties, write in the comments. Let's analyze the malfunctions of the columns together.
