What reputation do the SDA 3.1's have?
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pavlograd
Posts: 25
I'm asking for a friend who has found a pair fairly close to him, and he would also like to know price range on a pair of these in nice unmodified condition? I don't see the 3.1's often it seems, so I was wondering about them.
Thanks, Steve
Thanks, Steve
Comments
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I think the 3.1TL's are on of the best SDA models Polk offered. They provide 80-90% of the sound of the larger SDA's in a much smaller cabinet, with less drivers.
They are rare because the 3.1's were the last model of SDA that Polk produced, and not that many were built/sold before Polk dropped the SDA line all together.
If you find a pair in decent condition at a fair price, buy em. You won't be sorry. -
I got mine on eBay for $450 local pickup two years ago (*which meant renting a minivan and driving two hundred miles each way to pick them up*) Boy am I glad I did!
I have since seen them on eBay from multiple sellers for over a grand and they stay on there for a long time and never get sold. -
honestaquarian wrote: »I got mine on eBay for $450 local pickup two years ago (*which meant renting a minivan and driving two hundred miles each way to pick them up*) Boy am I glad I did!
I have since seen them on eBay from multiple sellers for over a grand and they stay on there for a long time and never get sold.
When they're priced right they sell, and often rather quickly. When the seller thinks he's selling fine wine then they sit indefinitely. Simple as that.
You hit the nail right on the head! Some of the ones selling for over a grand I have seen up for auction since I bought mine and they have yet to sell. -
I paid around 700 for mine with RDO tweeters. I owned the 2.3TL's before these and these speakers give their bigger Brothers a good run for their money. In my current , smaller living room, they actually perform a little better.The difference between genius and stupidity is; genius has its limits. -Albert Einstein
Sony Playstation 3 for CD and Streaming
Thorens TD320
Modified Carver C-1
Carver TFM 42 and 45 Amplifiers
Polk RTA15TL Speakers w/Decato mods
White Lightning Moonshine DIY Speaker Cables and Interconnects -
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pair-of-Audiophile-Polk-Audio-SRS-3-1TL-Speakers-Made-in-USA-Matching-Pair-/222223597464?hash=item33bd8eff98
This pair and another pair I have seen on and off since I bought mine two years ago and they still haven't sold. -
http://www.ebay.com/itm/POLK-AUDIO-SRS-3-1TL-SPEAKERS-/252755658846?hash=item3ad969485e:g:sokAAOSwcUBYRuAh
Here is the other pair and I see the price has come down a bit. -
Mike Reeter wrote: »the 3.1's were the last model of SDA that Polk produced, and not that many were built/sold before Polk dropped the SDA line all together
The 2nd to the last model of SDA that Polk produced.
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What was the last @Gatecrasher?
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That ^^^^ I'd also like to know. To my recollection they were the last.
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http://polksda.com/list.shtml
Even though the 1.2TLs, 2.3TLs and 3.1TLs were all released in 91, the 3.1TLs were indeed the last of the line to be released as the 1.2s and 2.3s had a preceding model while the 3.1s were "all new".
Also,
http://gimpod.com/sda-id.html"Some people find it easier to be conceited rather than correct."
"Unwad those panties and have a good time man. We're all here to help each other, no matter how it might appear." DSkip -
I recently picked up a fairly pristine pair of 3.1TLs and pretty happy with the purchase. Been looking a long time for the smaller SRS version. They don't come around that often. The prices you've shared a quit a bit higher than what I paid although I was not able to 'steal' them.Music: Oppo103 - Parasound JC2 - Parasound A21- SDA 3.1
Theater: Denon 3808 - B&K 7500/Emotiva XPA-3- RTi12, CSi5, RTiA7x4, PSW505
Sleeping: Marantz 70005 - Harman Kardon 2400 - SDA 2
2 Channel: Cary 306 SACD - Canary Audio 906 - Pass Labs x250 - PS Audio Perfectwave DAC, Polk LSiM705, SVS SB13 Ultra
Office: Dell Optiplex, Emotiva XDA-2, Adcom 5500, LSiM 703
Spares: Yamaha CA-810; LSi 15; Kenwood Basic M2a, Yamaha M60/M80, Polk Monitor 7, SVS SB13 Ultra -
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See it says on the second link that they stopped making the 3.1's in 1991.I have seen that before,but if you look at the pics in my sda upgrade thread you will clearly see that ain't the case.
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Stock, I'd say $400-500, completely updated, $400-500.
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Gatecrasher wrote: »
Ah yes
DUH!!!
The SRT's gave me some of THE BEST Dimensional sound I have ever heard driven by some Proceed electronics. They showed me that Height information really is encoded on a stereo CD (*there was debate about that for years*) The next time I heard it on a pair of SDA's was two decades later on my 3.1's driven by my Sunfire. -
Gatecrasher wrote: »
Different animal, active not passive and really designed for HT not 2 channel.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Gatecrasher wrote: »
Different animal, active not passive and really designed for HT not 2 channel.
My thoughts exactly.... but i guess they are in a round about way SDA. -
If that were the case then the last SDA is the current sound bar.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
If that were the case then the last SDA is the current sound bar.
Hey now....that'll be enough if thstt -
Gatecrasher wrote: »
Different animal, active not passive and really designed for HT not 2 channel.
Matthew Polk's description of the SRT system......
"I told the Polk Audio design team: "I want a system capable of such effortless power and clarity that, as you turn up the volume, it literally scares you. It must have state of the art sound quality for music and movies. And it must be easy to use and flexible enough so that every system owner will get exactly the same jaw-dropping performance I want for myself.
Simply stated, not so simple to achieve. Oftentimes during the development of the SRT System, we reached the limits of conventional engineering and technology. We had to take a step beyond those conventions to get what we wanted, what I believed should be possible. As such, the SRT System contains five proprietary technologies researched and developed at Polk Audio. Three of these were developed specifically for the SRT system.
But the system is also the sum of its details, each no less important in achieving the system's revolutionary performance and ease-of-use. Everyone who has worked on the project has his or her favorite detail, from the Music/Video capability of the SRT Control Center to the purposeful form and function of the supporting feet. Everything works toward the bottom line, which, with the SRT, is the incredible amount of fun and satisfaction you can get from it. Whatever type of music or movies you like, you will get more out of them when you hear them through the SRT System, you will hear things you have never heard before."
When I listen to music I almost always listen to it in 2-channel stereo unless it is a concert video or maybe a live album. The SRT SDA functions just fine in stereo mode.
My receiver delivers more power per channel in stereo mode vs 10.2 theater mode so I can really crank up the front pair of SRT satellites. My receiver is programmed so when I play a CD it switches to stereo. The SRT SDA control center can then be switched from "Video" mode to "Music".
It's a very flexible system and was definitely ahead of it's time. The SDA soundstage is awesome. -
Here, Here!
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The SRT control center is 2-channel. Even though there is a provision for the center channel to be wired through it, it is just a through connection and the control center has no functionality on the center.
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I've heard the SRT setup many times on a much more powerful amp than your receiver. However, the SDA is the active, not the passive type and I prefer my 2.3TL's driven by a man's amp to what I heard. For HT, I seriously doubt the full SRT rig could be beat as it is impressive. It isn't called the Signature Reference Theater for nothing.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
I think you just like to argue for argument's sake there F1. I believe you though.
lol
See that knob on the front of the SRT 2-channel control center?
It says "SDA Soundstage".
"Stereo Dimensional Array"
That was my entire point. Polk did produce SDA after the 3.1TL.
I believe the SRT came out in 1996? -
3.1TLs seem to have a great reputation, I've assumed they are not well known but have been surprised by how many people who come by my place know both what they are and also how good they are.
my 3.1TLs
I will fix your shifted magnets for free. -
Going into the waaaay back machine. I just happened to walk into a Myer-Emco in Fairfax,VA back around the turn of the century (*give or take two years*) and they had picked up Polk audio again. So there was a big invite only event featuring Mathew Polk himself. Of course I HAD TO finagle my way into this event. They were featuring the SRT system. This was when it only had the small bipole/dipole surrounds. I was sitting at the back of the room,but I could still hear quite clearly. They were using Proceed electronics (*remember Mark Levinson's "budget brand"?*) They did the usual home theater demos as well as stereo music. The home theater demos were on Laserdisc,so this must have been before the turn of the century.
ANYWAY they did a stereo versus sda comparo and when they switched from straight stereo to sda wide mode my jaw dropped and head tilted up!
They were using an organ recording that was naturally mic'd according to Mr Polk. I was hearing the entire hall front to back-floor to ceiling. The ONLY other time I had heard height information played back was almost a decade prior with some B&W 801's driven by Krell.
The next time I heard height information was over a decade later with my 3.1TL's. -
I don't have as much experience with all the different SDA models as some of the old-timers like F1 on here do but I did have a few friends with them back in the 80's and was always impressed with them. One of my old buddies still has his SDA SRS 1.2s and they still sound great. I never knew anyone who had the 3.1 TLs though so I can't personally vouch for them but I imagine they sound pretty-good.
As far as I can tell all of the SDAs have good reputations. I never heard of any that sucked, except maybe from some people on other audio forums who hate Polks altogether for some reason.
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Gatecrasher wrote: »I don't have as much experience with all the different SDA models as some of the old-timers like F1 on here do but I did have a few friends with them back in the 80's and was always impressed with them. One of my old buddies still has his SDA SRS 1.2s and they still sound great. I never knew anyone who had the 3.1 TLs though so I can't personally vouch for them but I imagine they sound pretty-good.
As far as I can tell all of the SDAs have good reputations. I never heard of any that sucked, except maybe from some people on other audio forums who hate Polks altogether for some reason.
They are pretty decent sounding.
I mean none are radically different sounding from each other.
None suck for sure, but never ran into anyone that hated polk..lol
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@K_M
I actually have run into Polk haters myself. Never stopped me from my thirty plus year love affair with them though............ -
honestaquarian wrote: »@K_M
I actually have run into Polk haters myself. Never stopped me from my thirty plus year love affair with them though............
I have learned, that "Haters" tends to mean, anyone that does not share one's view.
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