Subwoofer rattle (BIC F12)

[Kelly Rankin]

I have a BIC F12 Subwoofer and it is suffering from a bit of a rattling noise. This occurs at fairly low volumes as well as at high volumes.

I observed that if I lightly depress the bottom of the woofer that the rattle goes away and it sounds fairly clean and normal, but the moment I release the rattle comes back.

Does this mean that the woofer is damaged?

If it is damaged. I'm wondering if I can replace the woofer.

I saw someone post in a forum that I COULD replace it with: Infinity-Reference-1260w-1200-watt-High-Performance and they claimed it was better than what came w/ the F12 originally.

Is this true?

 

[crossedover]

How old is the sub? They have a 5 year warranty.

BIC America
925 N. Shepard St.
Anaheim, CA92806

Questions: Call Toll Free 877-558-4BIC (4242)

Email Technical Support: bicamericaservice@gmail.com

 

[KEW]

I have a BIC F12 Subwoofer and it is suffering from a bit of a rattling noise. This occurs at fairly low volumes as well as at high volumes.

I observed that if I lightly depress the bottom of the woofer that the rattle goes away and it sounds fairly clean and normal, but the moment I release the rattle comes back.

Does this mean that the woofer is damaged?

If it is damaged. I'm wondering if I can replace the woofer.

I saw someone post in a forum that I COULD replace it with: Infinity-Reference-1260w-1200-watt-High-Performance and they claimed it was better than what came w/ the F12 originally.

Is this true?

Your symptoms don't sound very serious.

When you say you lightly depress the woofer, are you referring to the aluminum cone of the woofer, the rubber/foam surround, or the trim ring.

I would check that the screws around the woofer are all tight before anything else.

 

[Kelly Rankin]

How old is the sub? They have a 5 year warranty.

The sub is just a few weeks old. I'm not sure how you can begin the warranty process with BIC. I searched around and it wasn't that clear to me.

I also didn't want to have to ship the thing back if it was something very simple to fix.

 

[crossedover]

The sub is just a few weeks old. I'm not sure how you can begin the warranty process with BIC. I searched around and it wasn't that clear to me.

I also didn't want to have to ship the thing back if it was something very simple to fix.

Just contact them

 

[Kelly Rankin]

Your symptoms don't sound very serious.

When you say you lightly depress the woofer, are you referring to the aluminum cone of the woofer, the rubber/foam surround, or the trim ring.

I would check that the screws around the woofer are all tight before anything else.

I believe it is the surround based on googling.

I'll check the screws when I get home, although at least on a quick inspection they seemed OK.

 

[KEW]

I believe it is the surround based on googling.

I'll check the screws when I get home, although at least on a quick inspection they seemed OK.

Apologies, but I don't know your level of experience and I would hate to see you mar your sub following my advice:
The important thing with Phillips screws is to make sure you are using the correct size screwdriver so it is much less likely to cam out as you tighten and start to strip the screw head. Right now our suspicion is that one of the lower screws in not correctly tightened, so start there. See how easily it turns. if it is very easy that is likely the culprit. If it is fairly tight, test some of the other screws (barely turning them) to get a feel for how tight they were set in the factory. Then go back to the first screw and get it close to the others.

 

[Kelly Rankin]

Apologies, but I don't know your level of experience and I would hate to see you mar your sub following my advice:
The important thing with Phillips screws is to make sure you are using the correct size screwdriver so it is much less likely to cam out as you tighten and start to strip the screw head. Right now our suspicion is that one of the lower screws in not correctly tightened, so start there. See how easily it turns. if it is very easy that is likely the culprit. If it is fairly tight, test some of the other screws (barely turning them) to get a feel for how tight they were set in the factory. Then go back to the first screw and get it close to the others.

OK, I'll make sure to be gentle. Thanks!

 

[Seth=L]

I would personally recommend NOT tampering with the screws. If that is not the problem and you do end up having to turn it in to BIC under warranty they may void your warranty if they think you've been inside the subwoofer. Tooling marks will more than likely be left on the painted black screws which they may notice and it wouldn't be much of a leap for them to say "sorry about your luck, we can't help you."

 

[markw]

to start with, call or email BIC and tell them what's up. Have your receipt info ready.

If they determine it's the speaker itself, they MAY simply ship you a new one. If they do, don't worry. Replacing it isn't difficult.

If not, let us know what they say.

 

[Kelly Rankin]

Is there anywhere that I can see the BIC warranty policy? I bought this subwoofer from a friend and do not have the receipt. He bought it and used it for a few days but his wife made him get rid of it. This is part of why I was willing to try replacing the speaker with the one I linked above if that will actually work. Again, it was called: Infinity-Reference-1260w-1200-watt-High-Performance.

I will attempt to talk to BIC, but if they won't replace it, then I would like to know what options I have so I can move quickly.

 

[KEW]

I agree about starting with BIC. The warranty may not be transferable, or proof of purchase date is often required, but it is smart to see how far you can get.
Other questions are is a repair center close? If not, who pays for shipping? what is estimated cost of shipping?

 

[markw]

In any case, NO aftermarket speaker will give you better performance than the original because the amp, speaker and box are designed specifically to work together.

IOW, if you do need a new driver, order it from BIC.

 

[crossedover]

Just contact them

Just contact them
i have a problem with "high im @@@@@@, i bought this sub , this is the issue, what is our next step

 

[TLS Guy]

Your symptoms don't sound very serious.

When you say you lightly depress the woofer, are you referring to the aluminum cone of the woofer, the rubber/foam surround, or the trim ring.

I would check that the screws around the woofer are all tight before anything else.

It is serious. Those are classic signs of cone voice coil separation.

When he presses on the bottom of the cone, he keeps the cone applied to the voice coil. When he takes his fingers away, then the cone and voice coil separate and he gets the rattle back even at low volume.

He needs a OEM replacement woofer, or return the whole sub.

The other option is to recone the driver, if a recone kit is available.

 

[tyhjaarpa]

As the sub is so new just call BIC and ask how they handle the warranty. Like said already, tampering in the sub might void the warranty. You should be able to do the warranty trough your friend you bought it from as long as he has the receipt for it. As long as you have warranty left always contact the manufacturer first!

Call the company and tell what unit you have bough, how old it is, what is your problem and what they can do about it.

 

[TLS Guy]

Is there anywhere that I can see the BIC warranty policy? I bought this subwoofer from a friend and do not have the receipt. He bought it and used it for a few days but his wife made him get rid of it. This is part of why I was willing to try replacing the speaker with the one I linked above if that will actually work. Again, it was called: Infinity-Reference-1260w-1200-watt-High-Performance.

I will attempt to talk to BIC, but if they won't replace it, then I would like to know what options I have so I can move quickly.

I'm curious to know if this sub worked after you bought it from your friend. If it had the rattle when you bought it, then your friend likely damaged it and voided the warranty.

This problem usually occurs due to a sudden thump. The cause is usually removing or connecting an RCA plug with everything powered on.

Cone voice coil separation is nearly always the result of this type of accidental miss use.

If that was the way the unit was when you bought it, then the high probability is that your friend was less then honest with you.

 

[Kelly Rankin]

I have contacted BIC and am awaiting a response.
After further investigation, I believe that what is happening is that the surround is not attached properly. If you even SLIGHTLY touch the surround on the bottom half the vibration/rattle ceases.

I'm not pressing on the surround, simply resting my finger on it without pushing at all.

 

[TLS Guy]

I have contacted BIC and am awaiting a response.
After further investigation, I believe that what is happening is that the surround is not attached properly. If you even SLIGHTLY touch the surround on the bottom half the vibration/rattle ceases.

I'm not pressing on the surround, simply resting my finger on it without pushing at all.

If this is a surround problem then the surround would come away from the chassis or the cone edge and you would see daylight.

You have a voice coil problem, either separation or gap rub. Gap rub usually results in a buzz to the reproduction and separation a rattle, as the VC knocks against the cone. Slight pressure on the cone can improve either as long as it is applied. Either way, the solution is reconing or replacement of the driver.

 

[Auditor55]

I agree about starting with BIC. The warranty may not be transferable, or proof of purchase date is often required, but it is smart to see how far you can get.
Other questions are is a repair center close? If not, who pays for shipping? what is estimated cost of shipping?

The warranty should be verified by the serial number.