new owner sda 2 early model sl100 tweeters 3 pin interconnect HELP! ser.# 1944

hi, first off i'm wheelchair bound so i can't do much myself. i picked up a pristine pair of sda 2 speakers in original boxes and look like they have never been touched they are mint. so i hooked them up to my pioneer sx 1080 which functions great and has been recently cleaned as well. so they seemed to sound ok at first of course i didnt know what to expect but upon further listening the vocals seem recessed and mids up front?? i disconnected the so called 3 prong cable but it only has 2 prongs/pins and just a third empty hole? the whole cable is grey color with black ends and looks legit. so per polk support i disconnected cable and he said 1 tweeter on each speaker will cease to play and one mid driver and basically sound similar to a monitor 10. well with cable removed, non of the 4 tweeters played and the 1 outer mid driver which i expected but not all 4 tweeters? when cable connected all 4 tweeters play and seems normal except the vocals are distant and mids seem pronounced?? anybody want to take a stab at this? i contacted mid west speaker repair and he thinks someone got inside but maybe its the cable? but them why did all 4 tweeters go out with cable disconnected and not just 1 on each cabinet?

Comments

  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 24,481
    edited April 2018
    First off you will need a high current amp to get the best from them. These are 4 ohm and can dip lower than 4ohm in certain frequencies, most recievers do poorly with 4ohm gear that dips to 3 ohm. you will burn up some receivers or at the very least cause protection circuits to kick in from time to time.
    Take a picture of the interconnect and connection point on the speaker. I'm not aware of any SDA2's having the RTA type connector. Every one I have seen are the Blade/blade type. With the first and second generation Blade/blade speakers the signal travels on both blades to and from the speaker to the other speaker. When disconnected the dimensional tweeter and the dimensional woofer now will not play, you have removed them from the SDA circuit. Most will disconnect the dimensional tweeter inside the cabinet because it can make strange sound artifacts that Polk decided with the 3rd generation to no longer use any SDA technology in the high pass(tweeter) section while still using the Blade/blade interconnect the SDA woofer is now active below 120-150Hz for the sub bass drive to deliver better bass all the time and to act more like plain stereo speakers if the cable was not used.

    Trust me it is not unusual for people to get in there not knowing what they are doing and try and create a normal set of speakers. it could be what happened to yours.
    I have seen some strange re-wiring of SDA's to try and make them normal speakers.

    Here is the links to try and help you.

    https://us.v-cdn.net/5021930/uploads/attachments/1/8/5/1/1/72427.pdf


    https://us.v-cdn.net/5021930/uploads/attachments/4/6/7/2/8/47379.pdf

    down load this

    http://vr3mods.com/uploads/SDA_Handbook_2011_Rev2.pdf
  • FestYboy
    FestYboy Posts: 3,861
    Ivan, my 2s have the RTA connector for the IC. They are early 2s with the SL1k tweets.
  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 24,481
    edited April 2018
    Very interesting my sda1 had sl1000 but blade/blade

    Good to know
  • thanks guys. the guy at polk thinks maybe they need new caps and resisters etc. idk. i guys if the tweeter play when interconnect connected means tweeters should be fine. guess i have to get them repaired. who knows how long they were stored in the boxes in this storage unit they came from. im sure it gets pretty hot in there here in colorado
  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,710
    Resistor
    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

  • oh i hope so. would it be best to have the tech replace all? thanks, tommy
  • i guess if the tweeters are playing and not sounding blown they should be ok? just resisters etc?
  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,710
    It's spelled RESISTOR
    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

  • Viking64
    Viking64 Posts: 6,646
    Grammar police alert!!! LOLOLOLOLOLOL
  • FestYboy
    FestYboy Posts: 3,861
    Huked on p-honiks wor-k-ed fo me!
  • Viking64
    Viking64 Posts: 6,646
    I had a teacher in grammar school who was so hot that I couldn't resistor.
  • txcoastal1
    txcoastal1 Posts: 13,124
    Viking64 wrote: »
    I had a teacher in grammar school who was so hot that I couldn't resisther.


    Sorry, you should have used spell check ;)
    2-channel: Modwright KWI-200 Integrated, Dynaudio C1-II Signatures
    Desktop rig: LSi7, Polk 110sub, Dayens Ampino amp, W4S DAC/pre, Sonos, JRiver
    Gear on standby: Melody 101 tube pre, Unison Research Simply Italy Integrated
    Gone to new homes: (Matt Polk's)Threshold Stasis SA12e monoblocks, Pass XA30.5 amp, Usher MD2 speakers, Dynaudio C4 platinum speakers, Modwright LS100 (voltz), Simaudio 780D DAC

    erat interfectorem cesar et **** dictatorem dicere a
  • Viking64
    Viking64 Posts: 6,646
    txcoastal1 wrote: »

    Sorry, you should have used spell check ;)

    Don't you mean "should of"? :p
  • mlistens03
    mlistens03 Posts: 2,767
    I’m no expert on SDAs, but I imagine that the most likely scenario is that the tweeters were rewired to run on the same output as the SDA drivers. You would just have to switch the wires back. This is of course, a guess, and a relatively uneducated one at that, so don’t take me as the final word.
    Hay guyz, we ca’nt make fon uf him fer doang sumthen we al du ounce end u while. It’s mean. Sorry I couldnt resist, but don’t worry man the grammar police have caught all of us... one time or another. :wink: