How to Tell If a Speaker Is Blown

A blown speaker usually sounds buzzy, rattly, fuzzy or distorted even at a normal volume, or it makes no sound at all. A partly blown speaker may play but lose its bass or treble. You can usually tell within a few minutes with a test tone, a quick look at the cone and, if you have one, a multimeter.

What does a blown speaker sound like?

• Buzzing or rattling, especially on bass notes – often a torn cone, loose surround or a voice coil rubbing.
• Distortion at low volume. Healthy speakers only distort when pushed very hard.
• Missing frequencies. No high notes means a blown tweeter; thin sound with no bass means a damaged woofer.
• Crackling or scratching that changes when you press gently on the cone.
• Silence from one speaker while the others play – a fully blown (open) voice coil or a disconnected wire.

Test 1: Listen with a test tone

1. Open our speaker test and set your device volume to about 30%.
2. Play the Left and Right tests. Both sides should sound the same. A side that sounds rough, quieter or duller is the suspect.
3. Run the Frequency Sweep. It glides from 20 Hz to 20 kHz. A good speaker gives a smooth tone; a blown one buzzes, rattles or cuts out at certain frequencies. Note where it happens.
4. For woofers and subwoofers use the slower sweeps on the bass test, which make rattles easier to hear.

Keep the volume moderate. Pushing a damaged speaker hard can finish it off.

Test 2: Rule out the source

Swap the left and right speaker cables (or swap the two speakers). If the problem moves to the other side, the speaker is faulty. If it stays on the same side, the cable, amplifier channel or settings are to blame. Also check that the balance is centred and nothing is loose near the speaker – a rattling shelf can sound just like a blown driver.

Test 3: Look at and gently feel the cone

Turn the system off. Remove the grille and look for tears in the cone or the rubber/foam surround around its edge. With your fingers spread evenly, press the woofer cone in very gently a few millimetres. It should move smoothly and silently. A scraping or grinding feeling means the voice coil is rubbing – a common sign of a blown speaker. Do not press tweeters or dome speakers; they dent easily.

Test 4: Measure with a multimeter

This works for passive speakers, car speakers and raw drivers.

1. Disconnect the speaker from the amplifier.
2. Set the multimeter to the lowest ohms (Ω) range.
3. Touch the probes to the speaker's two terminals.

A normal reading does not prove the speaker is perfect – a rubbing or torn speaker can still measure fine – so combine it with the listening test.

What blows a speaker?

• Clipping: a small amplifier turned up until it distorts sends harsh signals that overheat the voice coil. This kills more tweeters than too much clean power.
• Too much bass at high volume, which pushes the cone beyond its limits.
• Age: foam surrounds rot after 10–20 years.
• Physical damage and moisture, common in car doors and outdoor speakers.

Can a blown speaker be fixed?

• Torn foam surround: re-foam kits are cheap and easy for woofers.
• Small cone tear: can be sealed with a thin layer of flexible glue, but sound quality may change.
• Burnt or rubbing voice coil: needs a recone kit or a replacement driver. For most home and car speakers, replacing the driver is cheaper.
• Blown tweeter: replace the tweeter with the same size and impedance.
• Laptop, phone and Bluetooth speakers: usually need a repair shop or the maker's warranty.

How to avoid blowing speakers

Turn the volume down when the sound starts to distort, avoid maximum bass boost, use an amplifier with enough clean power for your speakers, and switch the amplifier on last and off first to avoid loud pops.

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