ML Aerius upper section does not play

[Jack Kessler]

I disconnected it overnight, then vacuumed the front of it again. Still no upper stage output. Is there something I can do to get it to work short of disassembling it?

I have seen videos of pounding the rails off with a rubber mallet. Is that the logical next step? I have a rubber mallet but I am reluctant to hit the bottom of the rail very hard. I have no interest in making a hobby of fooling with these things. I just want to listen to music.

 

[msimanyi]

A little more info might be helpful.

Did they suddenly stop working? Are you certain they produce absolutely no sound, or is their output just greatly reduced? Is it both speakers or just one?

When my Aerius panels started going bad, it was just the right side. I tried vacuuming, without luck. I tried the shower work, which may have improved them briefly. I gave up, put them aside, and returned to them last year. I ordered new panels from ML, and they’re back to their former glory.

I seem to recall the initial effort with the rubber mallet required a bit more than gentle force, but it wasn’t high intensity. If you have a spare piece of wood, you might hold that against the end of the rail and impact that with a hammer instead of the mallet. The wood will slightly soften the impact, and keep the rail from being marred.

 

[JonFo]

Double-Check the internal connections between the step-up transformer and the panel. There is at least one junction block in most models, and if a wire has pulled out, or is corroded, then re-seating it can restore the connection.

 

[slofut]

On my Aerius i you have to bump the rails from the top down. But then I do have a weird pair of Areius ...only two speaker binding posts, no bi-wire option.

 

[Jack Kessler]

Double-Check the internal connections between the step-up transformer and the panel. There is at least one junction block in most models, and if a wire has pulled out, or is corroded, then re-seating it can restore the connection.

How would I do that? I just see a black box with connection posts.

 

[Jack Kessler]

On my Aerius i you have to bump the rails from the top down. But then I do have a weird pair of Areius ...only two speaker binding posts, no bi-wire option.

That sounds worth trying. I will give it a shot.

 

[Jack Kessler]

A little more info might be helpful.

Did they suddenly stop working? Are you certain they produce absolutely no sound, or is their output just greatly reduced? Is it both speakers or just one?

When my Aerius panels started going bad, it was just the right side. I tried vacuuming, without luck. I tried the shower work, which may have improved them briefly. I gave up, put them aside, and returned to them last year. I ordered new panels from ML, and they’re back to their former glory.

I seem to recall the initial effort with the rubber mallet required a bit more than gentle force, but it wasn’t high intensity. If you have a spare piece of wood, you might hold that against the end of the rail and impact that with a hammer instead of the mallet. The wood will slightly soften the impact, and keep the rail from being marred.

The speakers have stood unused for a year or more so I don't know if they quit suddenly or not. The upper section on the right speaker doesn't work at all. No sound at all. The lower section works fine. Both upper and lower sections on the left speaker work fine.

I swapped the audio cables from the right speaker to the left cable and the result was the same. Still no sound from the upper stage of the right speaker.

How much does a new panel from Martin-Logan cost? What is involved in taking off the old panel and installing a new one. if it comes to that?

 

[Bernard]

Has the panel slipped down?

 

[msimanyi]

I have no idea what they cost now, but a bit over a year ago it was something like $1200 or $1400 for the pair, delivered. If you call ML you can get the current price… though perhaps Shawn at DaVinci can procure them for you too.

The work was quite simple. Hardest part was probably removing the rails, and that’s not exactly difficult after you do it the first time.

 

[Jack Kessler]

no. It is firmly fixed in place.

 

[Technomad]

no. It is firmly fixed in place.

There’s effectively a taper on the holding slots, so they can be held very firmly. To get mine off, I laid the speakers down on their backs and it took a few good whacks with a rubber mallet to get them to move.

 

[JonFo]

How would I do that? I just see a black box with connection posts.

You have to open up the speaker by removing the panel on which the speaker posts and the AC input live, then you will see the crossover and the circuit boards with the panel energizer and the step-up transformer.
Output of the step-up as well as coming from the energizer board typically feed a wiring block from which three wired go to the panel, one is the Diaphragm energizing voltage (~3K volts), the other two are the + / - audio drive to the front and rear stators.
In some models, those wires go to yet another wiring block close to the panel, to make installing/swapping panels easier.
You need to check that you have continuity of wiring between the block inside and the panel itself.

 

[slofut]

Jack did you get anywhere with this yet? First logical step is to bump the rails off, check position of the panel and the connector block under the bottom edge of the upper panel. When you get the rails off you'll see the upper panel and bottom woofer grill are two separate pieces. Lift the woofer grill out of the way first and you'll see the terminal block with red blue black wires. The panel and grill are notorious for sliding down a bit as the glue on the rubber bump strips ages and liquifies. This pulls the aforementioned wires and will cause a bad connection. Simple to move the panel (velcro, just pulls apart from the cabinet) and grill back up properly and reattach a wire. Panel sliding down is not necessarily obvious just looking at the speaker unless you've seen the problem before. This sounds a lot more involved than it actually is.

 

[slofut]

Pics for reference...

 

[Jack Kessler]

Has the panel slipped down?

There’s effectively a taper on the holding slots, so they can be held very firmly. To get mine off, I laid the speakers down on their backs and it took a few good whacks with a rubber mallet to get them to move.

I have whacked both the top and bottom end of the rail quit smartly with a rubber mallet. Nothing happens. The picture of the. slide makes it appear that I should be hammering the tops to drive it down through the slot. Is that correct? Will one rail move without the other moving? Or do both rails have to move at the same time? Do the key slots in your photo hold the wooden rail onto the speaker frame? Or do they just hold the black grill in place?

 

[slofut]

Jack, get one of those orange plastic dead blow hammers from harbour freight, abt 10 bucks. They have a harder face than a rubber mallet but still soft enough plastic to hopefully not damage the wood. Each side comes off separately. I used the dead blow hammer as it's more effective and it was a little scary but I just kept tapping carefully till they moved. Each is a long stick with metal pins that mate with the bracket on the speaker frame. I think most remove from bottom up but mine and others have been top down removal. Remember lots of smaller blows is the same as a big whack, but you'll have to hit it harder than you want. Also do hit each end back and forth til one moves a little, then you'll know.

 

[Robert D]

Sounds a little easier than taking off my Prodigy panels. Those things are fastened in with a bunch of screws, and when you get a new panel its really really hard to match up the holes in the plastic rails with the holes in the wooden frame.

 

[slofut]

Also Jack, to answer your other question, the metal brackets only hold the wood side rails, the metal grill at the bottom and the ESL panel pretty much just lay on the cabinet and the rails press them down tight as they are bumped into place. There is some velcro under the ESL panel but no brackets to hold either, just the slight pressure from the side rails.

Btw... The side rail brackets... it doesn't seem to matter if they go on upside down really, they hold tight and in place, it's the esl panel and grill that slides down independent of the rails after the glue on the rubber bump strips (weatherstripping) gets old and gooey, ref pics here... Odd Areius i

 

[headdead]

I have whacked both the top and bottom end of the rail quit smartly with a rubber mallet. Nothing happens. The picture of the. slide makes it appear that I should be hammering the tops to drive it down through the slot. Is that correct? Will one rail move without the other moving? Or do both rails have to move at the same time? Do the key slots in your photo hold the wooden rail onto the speaker frame? Or do they just hold the black grill in place?

Did you ever figure out the Issue of partial dead panels? I have the same problem.