Problems with internal speakers and body flex on A21p

[Mashu]

I have a fairly old A21p, with a PIII 850. It's been a great system, and has lasted through a lot. On its 3rd hard drive and soon its second battery, but otherwise has had no major issues. Despite being a somewhat old system, I love it, and being limited on funds, I can't see myself purchasing a new laptop any time soon (starting college next fall, yay for lots of debt!). Before I invest the money in buying a new battery for this system though, I need to find out about a problem it seems to have recently developed. In the last month or so, the speakers have begun to cut out if you flex the body even slightly. Despite this, I still love the system, even typing this on it after not having used the system in a while i just remember now nice it feels.

If the issue with the flexing of the body causing the speakers to cut out is something not easily fixed, or something that may even progress with time and cause other things to not function, I might want to just save up for a replacement thinkpad, but with the impending debt, I would prefer to avoid that.

So any ideas on what is causing the issue with the speakers? And do you think it would be easy/cheap to fix? I love the system, but don't want to spend money on a battery just to have the rest of the system crap out on me.

~Mashu