Volvo 480 Club Europe

do the front component speakers have a crossover box? If so where is it, in the door or the dashboard?

Thanks

Tim

volvo don't mount a crossover.

The original woofers mounted on the front doors had an extra pair of pins (+ and -) used to add tweaters, located near the door handles. I believe it was a small capacitor inside the tweaters that worked as a passive-crossover making it possible the two speakers connection without changing the overall impedance and preventing the built-in amplifier of the radios from blowing up in smoke.

Those standard tweeters are rubbish though... I've got a box full at home and found out that only 2 of them work...

Have you tried replacing the capacitor on (some of) the ones that don't work?

There is a catch however, the capacitors are "special" (i.e. non-polarized electrolytic capacitors) and unless the same type is used the regular ones won't last much.

I was told this was a common mistake (yet a flagrant error) made by the supplier of the tweaters to volvo during early years leading to batches and batches of tweaters being installed in cars and failing prematurely.

Perhaps that is why the idea they are good quality never caught on.

But of course it is possible that some of them are already in a condition beyond any help.

Right, so if you wanted to upgrade the speakers you would have to go for a full component set, as any replacement for the woofer would lack the extra +/- pins to link up the tweeter & any attempt to replace the tweeter with a more modern one which uses a crossover would probably work badly at best?

T

...or if I put a crossover in the line before the woofer, I could split the wiring like normal & link directly to the standard tweeter & a replacement woofer? (OK I admit I'm a bit scared about getting at the tweeter!)

timrosser wrote:Right, so if you wanted to upgrade the speakers you would have to go for a full component set, as any replacement for the woofer would lack the extra +/- pins to link up the tweeter & any attempt to replace the tweeter with a more modern one which uses a crossover would probably work badly at best?

T

I agree.

timrosser wrote:...or if I put a crossover in the line before the woofer, I could split the wiring like normal & link directly to the standard tweeter & a replacement woofer? (OK I admit I'm a bit scared about getting at the tweeter!)

In that case I wouldn't recommend the use of the standard tweater!

The original installation was configured the way it was because the components were made in way that keeps impedance balanced and acceptable by the radios units of the time. Changing them individually without taking into account the properties of the other elements can disrupt the balance and cause damage, unless calculation and testing is made before.

OK, thats a big help! Thanks again