speaker distortion

What equipment is he driving the speakers with?

What is the model number of the speakers? Just look on the back of the speakers and you'll find it. 

while maybe not the be-all and end all in high end, Mac employed talented engineers like Roger Russel - the XR series had some virtues

my guess is you will find some blown drifers and perhaps a fried protection network as i recall a few models employed those...

probably worth fixing..

keep them away from Lava....

 I owned a pair of McIntosh XR-16  speaker back in the 80's. But without a model number and I think a description of what "distortion" is being heard, it is not possible to even speculate what's wrong, speakers or electronics.

my son connected his reciever to 2 other speakers he has and they sounded ok. the problem must be with the speakers. thanks everyone!

hey tomic601, my son lives like 15 miles from the lava. but he's still not in danger. at least not now!

If they are 90’s vintage McIntosh, my guess would be that the woofers need to be refoamed or reconed. This is a common issue for many different speakers from the 90’s. Do they have removable front grills? If so, visually inspect to see if the foam surround is deteriorating. Also, gently push in on the center of the woofers to see if you hear a rubbing sound. This sound indicates they need a recone. If no sound, then they may just need a refoam. Not knowing the model, 2 way or 3 way, and if they are 3 way, the midrange may have the same problem. Just do a Google search for speaker repair in Hawaii.

thanks tls49. my son lives on the big island.  they don't have stereo stores, repair locations or even 'tv' repair locations. nearest location is on Honolulu on another island.