Genesis II.5 base replacement

Nounours18200

Well-Known Member
Jun 24, 2012
31
3
913
Grasse (France)
Hi,

I have had a flood in my listening room, and the basement of my Genesis II.5 have been seriously damaged - see the attached photo: they need to be replaced.
base 3_s2.jpg
I would like to know what is the material of this base: it seems to be a kind of wood but I am not sure... it becomes like a sponge as soon as a few water touches it !
-Is it possible to get a replacement base ? (where ?)
-Is it possible to build a replacement base, simply by using regular wood ?
-Any recommandation ?

Thank you very much for your reply,
Michel
 

powermatic

Member
Oct 10, 2020
2
0
6
69
It looks from here like MDF painted satin(?) black. If so, any decent cabinet shop, or even a woodworker with a bit of experience and a router, could produce an exact copy, assuming the base can be removed. Even if only one was damaged I would replace both so the paint would match. Or you could have a base made in solid wood, perhaps to match the veneer of the speaker.

Also, you're right, MDF aand water do not mix.
 

Nounours18200

Well-Known Member
Jun 24, 2012
31
3
913
Grasse (France)
It looks from here like MDF painted satin(?) black
It looks like but I am not sure: tomorrow (it is the night in France) I take a closeup photo of the wood in order to identify what kind of wood it is.
With the water it looks strange, but you will surely be able to identify the material.

If so, any decent cabinet shop, or even a woodworker with a bit of experience and a router, could produce an exact copy,

I would prefer this option, because buying 2 replacement bases from Genesis would probably cost me a fortune ...

assuming the base can be removed.
If it is glued, I am in a big big mess...

If it is screwed it can be removed: I need to move the loudspeaker horizontally, and I need some help for this because of the weight (!).

But let's solve the question 1: tomorrow with a closeup of the wood to identifiy the material. It looks like FOAM after having in contact with water...

I post the closeups tomorrow,
Thank you
 

Nounours18200

Well-Known Member
Jun 24, 2012
31
3
913
Grasse (France)
Hi, Here is a closeup of the basement:
closeup base_s.jpg
Do you know what kind of wood is it ? (assuming it is not something else than wood)

Thank you very much for your reply,
 

garylkoh

WBF Technical Expert (Speakers & Audio Equipment)
Sep 6, 2010
5,599
225
1,190
Seattle, WA
www.genesisloudspeakers.com
The old Genesis cabinets used to be made of particleboard. So, water damage would have caused the particleboard to expand, and that looks like what happened.

You should get a local cabinetmaker to just cut you two pieces of good, high quality mdf to replace the "foot". When the old company went bankrupt, all the drawings were lost by the bank, so we can't replicate this even if we wanted to. Cutting two pieces on a CNC machine would be prohibitively expensive, and you do not need the precision for the foot.

A good woodworker with a router should be able to do this for you in France. As far as I know, this is attached with screws, and not glued. However, age might have caused the pieces to bind. Take the foot off, and a good woodworker could probably use it as a template to make you new ones.

Cheers
Gary

ps. I don't monitor all forums closely. Thanks to HiFi Guy for letting me know about this thread. Not all solutions from Genesis cost a fortune. We do try to support our customers as much as possible, and we even support customers from the old Genesis.
 
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garylkoh

WBF Technical Expert (Speakers & Audio Equipment)
Sep 6, 2010
5,599
225
1,190
Seattle, WA
www.genesisloudspeakers.com
ps. Since your speakers would be over 25 years old by now, if you have not re-capped your bass amplifier, you should do that ASAP. Due to heat and age, the power supply capacitors would have deteriorated and if they short and take out the amp, you are looking at spending a fortune to get a replacement. So far, for the earlier first generation servo-bass amplifiers from Genesis Technologies, the only things that fail are the power supply caps and the transistor thermal insulation (even worse if these fail). The second generation tall amplifiers were more prone to failure than the first generation flat amplifiers.
 
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Nounours18200

Well-Known Member
Jun 24, 2012
31
3
913
Grasse (France)
Hi Gary,

Thank you very much for your detailed answer !

I will do exactly what you say: take the feet off and make copies. I have already found a good woodworker so the main challenge will be to take the feet off (happy to ear that the feet are screwed , not glued !).

Regarding the bass amplifier, I know that the capacitors have already been changed a few years ago, as well as a voltage regulator last year (prevented to power on the amp) by a good engineer that I know.
The transistors insulation have not been changed (as far as I know) but I don't know if the bass amp is from the 1st or from 2nd generation: how to identify if it is 1st or 2nd generation ??

Thank you very much for your reply and for the support you provide to your customers ! (this is highly appreciated and must be continued and pushed to every country out of the USA).

P.S.: my loudspeakers were upgraded with the new Medium ribbon and new crossovers from Genesis before I bought them. Maybe I will upgrade the tweeters as well, but I love them as they currently are ! wonderful speakers...:)
P.S.2: and of course thanks to the guys who informed you !
 

garylkoh

WBF Technical Expert (Speakers & Audio Equipment)
Sep 6, 2010
5,599
225
1,190
Seattle, WA
www.genesisloudspeakers.com
If you bought the speakers with the new midrange and new crossovers, enjoy them. The new tweeters are better, but if you've haven't heard the new ones, you won't miss having them.

The first generation servo-amps are in a flat, rectangular chassis that is wider than it is tall. The second generation servo-amps are taller than they are wide, and has a curved part of the chassis on the front.

The transistor thermal insulation does not suddenly fail. If you find that the amp unexpectedly shut itself off, then it is time to change. But otherwise, now that you have re-capped and even changed the voltage regulators, it should be fine for the time being.
 
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