RH532 - how do they sound? (2024)

Welcome to best forum on MFB.

If you have a set 22RH532 who haven’t been used for over 30 years then they will probably not work anymore.
The capacitors need to be reformatted. This is done by switching on the speaker.
They probably won’t switch on right away. Leave them on power with audio on the input.
After a while they will begin to crack and will begin to play again.
If they play right away you are very lucky.
The best option you have to replace all electrolytic capacitors with new once and adjust them to factory defaults. After they have been overhauled they sound like new right out of the box.
The service manual to do this is found here.
It’s in English with exception of the “Service mededelingen” these are in Dutch. These are revisions and updates.
If you need help, don’t hesitate to ask here. You will find all the help you need to get your set working again.

A 22RH532 sounds great with any kind of music.
You can’t play them passive it is an active Motional Feedback speaker.
You should definitely use them again.

Groeten,
JohnP
U = I x R, P = U x I of zoiets.

Philips 2x 22RH832, 4x 22RH544, N4506, N4520, N4522, 2x N6330, VR2340
2x AXYS Repro2, Panasonic AG7750, JVC GY-DV5000, JVC BR-DV3000

JohnP schreef:Welcome to best forum on MFB.

If you have a set 22RH532 who haven’t been used for over 30 years then they will probably not work anymore.
The capacitors need to be reformatted. This is done by switching on the speaker.
They probably won’t switch on right away. Leave them on power with audio on the input.
After a while they will begin to crack and will begin to play again.
If they play right away you are very lucky.
The best option you have to replace all electrolytic capacitors with new once and adjust them to factory defaults. After have overhauled them they sound like new right out of the box.
The service manual to do this is found here.
It’s in English with exception of the “Service mededelingen” these are in Dutch. These are revisions and updates.
If you need help, don’t hesitate to ask here. You will find all the help you need to get your set working again.

A 22RH532 sounds great with any kind of music.
You can’t play them passive it is an active Motional Feedback speaker.
You should definitely use them again.

Thanks! I'll power them up and see if they work. I am used to replacing caps in other amps so I guess I can manage to overhaul it. Good to know they sound good for all types of music

When connecting the speakers to a receiver's speaker out, I just put the input sensitivity switch to 7.5 V?

And the mains switch, is it a good idea to change from 220 V to the 240 V position? (In Sweden there's nominally 230 V in the mains net.)

Hello and welcome, international MFB lover!

The 22RH532 were the first MFB speakers Philips developed. They used their 5" midrange driver which has a very present midrange sound. So in my opinion very VERY nice for acoustic and jazz music. Try a piece of piano, for example. Or the Eagles' Hotel California LIVE from the Hell Freezes Over DVD. Or Dave Brubeck's Take Five from the legendary album Time Out. Those two are my standard MFB test songs. Or Buena Vista Social Club - Chan Chan. So nice!

As for female voices... Give Sadé a chance and if you like her, play this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ib3lVRYH3oc

Thomas Baur
20 jaar MFBfreaks: 2003 - 2023

Home: http://www.mfbfreaks.com
Shop: http://shop.mfbfreaks.com

4-4-2024: Over de Philips Big Sound Drive In Show!

The 230V is not really a problem. Internal the voltage over the end amp is going up a few volts so the amplifier will produce approx. 10% more watts which the heat sinks can easily absorp. If your regular voltage is often 240V or even more (in areas with a lot of solar panels) it is better to re-solder the transformer to 240V setting.
Good luck with your 532, great MFB speakers!

You can connect to a receiver output however the best specs you will get by connecting to a real pre-amplifier connection 1V-2V.

Fotohuis schreef:The 230V is not really a problem. Internal the voltage over the end amp is going up a few volts so the amplifier will produce approx. 10% more watts which the heat sinks can easily absorp. If your regular voltage is often 240V or even more (in areas with a lot of solar panels) it is better to re-solder the transformer to 240V setting.
Good luck with your 532, great MFB speakers!

You can connect to a receiver output however the best specs you will get by connecting to a real pre-amplifier connection 1V-2V.

Thanks! I will keep it in 220 V setting then. Voltage here is often between 229-232 V.

Groeten,
JohnP
U = I x R, P = U x I of zoiets.

Philips 2x 22RH832, 4x 22RH544, N4506, N4520, N4522, 2x N6330, VR2340
2x AXYS Repro2, Panasonic AG7750, JVC GY-DV5000, JVC BR-DV3000