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I recently got a new pair of Klipsch Promedia 2.1's for my laptop.

I unplug my laptop a lot to take it around but today the audio plug touched my plug for my monitor and a bit of static came out of the speakers.

I've heard some rumors that static can damage speakers but I've never investigated this problem myself since I previously used a desktop and never unplugged them.

The volume was at a normal volume- am I just being paranoid? Or could having the speaker port touching other bits of metal damage my speakers?

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2 Answers 2

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The damage to the speaker depends on how loud the volume was set to and for how long the static occurred. To my knowledge, the primary part of the speaker that could be damaged would be the cone itself.

Clipping is a form of waveform distortion that occurs when an amplifier is over driven and attempts to deliver an output voltage or current beyond its maximum capability, which is a common reason behind damaged speakers. Refer to the link to read about it more.

Generally speaking, if you let the static produce noise at maximum volume for some time (like more than couple of seconds) then there's a good chance you could blow out the speakers!

Since you don't mention anything about your speakers getting damaged, I hope they are fine and advise you to take care of them.

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Yeah, it just happened for a second and it was at a normal listening volume. I'll keep the plugs away from each other in the future, but in this case damage would be from a volume issue right? So everything should be fine? –  incarna Dec 20 '12 at 5:20

Certain types of sounds, distortions, static, and other bad sounds can cause damage over time if on continually. If it is not very often, and for not a long period of time, your speakers will be fine.

Keep your speakers at a reasonable sound level, and you shouldnt have to worry.

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