How can I take apart my Boston Acoustice MCS 130 speaker. It was dropped and now does not work. I want to look in it and see if I can repair it.

Most often this unit goes dead because of zener diode ZD3 shorting. It is a 18v zener. replace this and you should be back in business.

It would be NICE if explained WHAT a mcs 130 is!!
I would guess it's a Sub of speaker type! AND MORE INFORMATION would be nice as the saying goes $hit in $hit out!
Does it humm all the time or just when the car is running?

Use A =DMM check the speakers omhs.if the ohms are not correct or very close to it speaker is bad is there any rubbing sound when you push down on the cone ..also indication of blown coil.

Is that the right part number, MCS 10, and not MCS100?

The MCS systems use a basic sub which is matched to the satellites. There's very few controls other than level on the MCS100. So as long as the power light is illuminated the there's very little other than the volume control that could be set wrong on the sub. So what it comes down to is either

1. a blown fuse (no power at all at the sub);
2. a broken input (#1 cable, #2 sub input socket, #3 blown sub plate amp);
3. incorrect connection at the receiver end or the wrong settings

As a quick test, unplug the sub cab from the amplifier/receiver end. Switch on the sub and turn the volume down all the way. Briefly put your finger across to short the RCA/phono tip and ring. The sub should make a buzzing sound. You now know that the sub is working and the cable appears to be okay

Switch off the sub and reconnect the phono/RCA to the sub out socket on the receiver. You now know it is connected correctly.

Go in to the receiver's menu and check the speaker settings. Is subwoofer present? Yes/No

Are the satellites all set to Small? (they should be with this system)

Are you playing a 5.1 source in DD or DTS to ensure that the sub gets a signal? Play a BD or DVD.

On the speaker balances, is the sub channel set to 0dB?

As long as all the above is set as listed, then the only things stopping the sub working would then be insufficient volume at the sub's Vol control (so increase it), or an intermittent cable connection (wiggle the cable), or a broken subwoofer out signal at the receiver.

There may be an internal fuse that's blown. I'd take it to a repair facility and have them check it. Could also have a bad connection inside. Good luck!

ZD3 is a 18v zener. Also check the surface mount resistor on the back of the board that is attached to ZD3, I think it is R9. Should be 10 ohms. This resistor sometimes opens when the diode goes short.

Check its speaker connections. Check the speaker using a dry cell. If it is found OK, check the sound settings. If you wish to get more details, check this link.

I had the same problem with my subwoofer unit. I found the zener diode ZD3 was fried. The pic below shows the diode and its clearly tagged ZD3. You need a multimeter to check this before you order anything. This diode should only transmit power in one direction. Its size and spec is 18v .5w zener diode. (that's 1/2 w) It's very inexpensive and the whole repair took about an hour. This is from a Boston Acoustics subwoofer MCS 160
Ok..the procedure is easy.
1) unplug the unit and bring it to a well lit work area.
2) remove the panel from the back and locate the board that is held to the panel by 4 screws and has the ZD3 diode. The pic below shows the diode at the end of my test lead. Note the direction of this part and reinstall the new one in the same direction. Its a simple de-solder and re-solder project. I elevated the new diode about 1/8 " from the board with a small strip of copper. This acted as a heat sink during the soldering and elevated the part above the board to help it dissipate heat later when in use.
3) re-install the board and plug in all the connections.
4) this worked for me and I'm enjoying my sound system again!..good luck

There is rubber like sticky gasket between the two half. Its to prevent the box vibrating at some frequency. Use a knife or a flat blade screwdriver - insert into the groove and part it. Should come off except if you are not care full there will be scratch marks on the side of the box.

mine had the same problem until it completely quit. unplug the sub and turn it over, press gently on the speaker cone, does it move freely, or do you hear a sort of scrapping noise? if it moves freely with no noise, its a dif problem than mine. if you do hear the scrapping noise, then theres a short in the voice coil, from what ive read you have to replace the driver (actual speaker part), its basically blown