How to clean your speakers to keep them looking and sounding great

1 month ago

It's astir apt likely that your awesome hi-fi speakers are heard acold much than they are seen, and that's conscionable fine. But what isn't good is that you whitethorn not person noticed each nan dust, pet hair, and grime building up connected your speakers cabinets, grilles, cones, tweeters, woofers, and connections that tin perchance impact their sound.

Whether it's a group of tower speakers, bookshelves (like successful nan images below), aliases moreover definite Bluetooth speakers, giving your speakers a cleaning each erstwhile successful a while is simply a awesome measurement to guarantee they look and sound awesome for years to come. And it's comparatively easy pinch a fewer communal devices you whitethorn already person connected hand. Here's really to cleanable your speakers.

Clean your speaker cabinets

While each that audio magic happens wrong your speaker's cabinets, it's their exterior beauty that makes a awesome brace of speakers look awesome successful your setup.

With regular maintenance, you shouldn't request thing much than a damp microfiber cloth aliases moreover immoderate cleanable fabric rags to particulate disconnected your speaker's cabinets. Whether they're made of wood aliases an MDF composite, this is your safest bet. Here's really to safely get them looking their best

Step 1: First, you'll request 2 lint-free microfiber cloths. Take nan first 1 and moisten it pinch immoderate lukewarm water. Make judge to ringing it retired truthful it's conscionable somewhat damp, not soaking. For wood cabinets, if you person a safe wood cleaner aliases pre-dampened cleaning wipes, you tin adhd it to nan cloth (be judge to cheque pinch nan manufacturer's proposal connected what's safe first).

Step 2: Work your measurement astir nan speaker, wiping successful nan aforesaid guidance of nan wood grain, if it is wood.

Step 3: Now drawback nan second, barren microfiber cloth and spell complete nan speaker furniture again to prime up immoderate residual moisture. The microfiber cloth will besides pull immoderate loose lint, too.

Clean your speaker grilles

Some hi-fi nerds deliberation that keeping nan grilles — those soft cloth aliases hard-shell covers that equine connected nan beforehand of your speaker cabinets — covering up those sweet-looking drivers underneath is sacrilege. Sure, they tin look boring, but galore adhd an aerial of sophistication to a pair of speakers while besides protecting nan woofers and tweeters beneath. But speaker grilles tin besides pull dust, debris, and pet hair, truthful it's bully to support them clean. Here's really to do it without damaging them.

Step 1: If your speaker grilles are of nan cloth assortment and there's conscionable immoderate ray particulate aliases pet hairsbreadth connected them, you tin mildly rotation a sticky lint brushwood complete them erstwhile aliases twice. Be judge do this pinch a cleanable furniture connected nan roller (not aft you've conscionable rolled your sweater).

Step 2: For a spot much thorough of a cleaning, we urge removing nan grilles from nan cabinets first. Many grilles are attached successful different ways, truthful if you're unsure really to get them off, consult your speaker's manual. For nan astir part, though, they'll beryllium attached by rubber prongs into holes connected nan corners of nan furniture face. Lightly propulsion nan grilles from nan apical and bottommost of nan cabinet's fasteners. If location are screws fastening them, region them and get nan grilles off.

A speaker grill being removed from a speaker.

how to cleanable your speakers region grille

Step 3: With nan grilles off, laic them down level connected a cleanable surface. Using a vacuum pinch a soft, cleanable brushwood attachment, mildly tally nan vacuum complete nan aboveground of nan grill cover, being observant that nan suction isn't pulling excessively difficult connected nan fabric.

Step 4: You tin besides spell complete them pinch your damp microfiber cloth. But to region much stubborn grime aliases stains, drawback your cloth, and pinch immoderate lukewarm h2o and mild detergent, mildly activity complete nan grille successful a information motion. With different cleanable cloth somewhat bedewed pinch immoderate cleanable water, rinse nan treated area and fto it aerial dry.

Step 5: Metal aliases integrative grilles tin beryllium much easy washed pinch h2o and detergent and group to aerial barren aliases patted down pinch a cleanable cloth.

A speaker woofer connected a group of bookshelf speakers.

Clean your speaker woofers

Speaker woofers, aliases cones, are nan larger drivers successful a speaker cabinet, responsible for each that beautiful low-end and mid-frequency sound and volume. They tin beryllium made of a assortment of materials, including wood, silicone, polymer, kevlar, and paper. Some are much delicate than others and tin beryllium easy punctured if you're not careful, but galore are sturdier than you think.

Step 1: For much delicate woofers/cones, for illustration insubstantial ones, it's champion not to usage thing bedewed aliases damp; rather, effort utilizing a soft-bristled brushwood (like a paintbrush aliases constitution brush) to particulate disconnected immoderate particulate aliases debris. You tin besides usage a tin of compressed aerial for electronics to rustle retired immoderate debris.

A soft-bristled bruch for cleaning speakers.

Step 2: For cones made of much resilient materials, for illustration wood aliases polymers, you tin first brushwood them disconnected aliases springiness them immoderate air, too. But past consciousness free to drawback your trusty damp microfiber cloth and springiness them a gentle swipe arsenic well. However, beryllium observant not to touch nan dome halfway portion, arsenic this tin cave in.

Step 3: Give nan cone different wipe-down pinch nan barren microfiber cloth.

A speaker being wiped pinch a microfiber cloth.

Step 4: Lastly, you tin besides swipe down nan surrounding soft rubber aliases foam ringing astir nan woofer pinch a safe rubber attraction product.

A soft-bristled brushwood cleaning a tweeter.

Clean your tweeters

This is nan tricky part. Woofers and mid-drivers are usually beautiful rugged, but tweeters — nan mini driver usually astatine nan apical of nan furniture that handles each nan treble and precocious frequencies — are different story. Made of delicate cones and domes, membranes, coils, and different delicate parts, you mostly don't want to touch aliases swipe them astatine all. Instead, aerial is your champion friend.

Grab that tin of electronics compressed aerial again and, being judge to clasp it astatine slightest a fewer inches from nan tweeter, springiness it a fewer speedy blasts. If you're careful, you tin besides springiness them a ray swipe pinch a soft-bristled brush, possibly 1 of those photographers' blower brushes from a camera cleaning kit.

A tin of compressed aerial cleaning a speaker tweeter.

Keep successful mind that this station applies to beautiful basal cleaning of astir speakers. Of course, usage discretion if there's a peculiar grimy aliases stubborn stain aliases buildup, and you mightiness want to consult a professional. The past point you want to do is harm a brace of costly speakers. It whitethorn look daunting, but keeping your precious speakers cleanable and dust-free will guarantee they sound their best, and you only person to do it a mates of times a year.