My Monitor 12 sound awful
Tony M12
Posts: 8
Hi all,
I'm new to this forum and am writing for some help. Back in the days I purchased a pair of Monitor 12s and absolutely fell in love with them. Great all around speakers with incredible bass but excellent mid and high end too. Well, after 4-5 years my flipping Denon PMA1080 blew one of the tweeters and this is where the story begins. Took them to a so called expert who properly screwed them up. He said that the original tweeter was no longer available and put a very expensive Dynaudio on them, which in theory is ok. However, I think he also fiddled with the crossovers. Anyway, to make a long story short, due to various moves, I put them away for 10 years, have now restored them and they're looking great but sound like crap in every area you could possibly think of. Had another so called expert look at them and he said that I need the original crossover schematics for the mid and lower end but that the high end we'd have to make ourselves ad hoc due to the different tweeter. Now, what do I do? I'm tired of spending buckets of money on them with no results and was thinking of giving up and buying a pair of Focal Chorus 836v. Do you guys have any suggestions on how to make them sound decent again? BTW, am now running them on a brand new very neutral but excellent Rotel RA1520, so the amp shouldn't be a problem
thanks
I'm new to this forum and am writing for some help. Back in the days I purchased a pair of Monitor 12s and absolutely fell in love with them. Great all around speakers with incredible bass but excellent mid and high end too. Well, after 4-5 years my flipping Denon PMA1080 blew one of the tweeters and this is where the story begins. Took them to a so called expert who properly screwed them up. He said that the original tweeter was no longer available and put a very expensive Dynaudio on them, which in theory is ok. However, I think he also fiddled with the crossovers. Anyway, to make a long story short, due to various moves, I put them away for 10 years, have now restored them and they're looking great but sound like crap in every area you could possibly think of. Had another so called expert look at them and he said that I need the original crossover schematics for the mid and lower end but that the high end we'd have to make ourselves ad hoc due to the different tweeter. Now, what do I do? I'm tired of spending buckets of money on them with no results and was thinking of giving up and buying a pair of Focal Chorus 836v. Do you guys have any suggestions on how to make them sound decent again? BTW, am now running them on a brand new very neutral but excellent Rotel RA1520, so the amp shouldn't be a problem
thanks
Post edited by Tony M12 on
Comments
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You need to bring the crossovers back to original specs, and get the replacement tweeters that are available directly from Polk. Your Monitor 12's most likely had the SL-2500 tweeters originally, so the replacement tweeter would be the RD0-198. They're a vastly superior sounding tweeter compared to the originals...and should have them singing again. Be sure to mention that you're a Club Polk member for a discount that basically equates to free shipping.
It sounds like only one of the tweeters was replaced...and the other one is still original? Did the "expert" tinker with the crossovers in both speakers, or just the one? Both tweeters should be replaced, and not just the one faulty one.
Why did he mess with the low/mid section of the crossovers?
By the way, welcome to Club Polk!!:biggrin:The nirvana inducer-
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Curt is correct, the original tweeter would have been the SL2500, so the RD0198-1 is the proper replacement.
You will find the original schematics in this list, http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38755
Where are you located? We might have someone close by that would be willing to help you out.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."
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comfortablycurt wrote: »You need to bring the crossovers back to original specs, and get the replacement tweeters that are available directly from Polk. Your Monitor 12's most likely had the SL-2500 tweeters originally, so the replacement tweeter would be the RD0-198. They're a vastly superior sounding tweeter compared to the originals...and should have them singing again. Be sure to mention that you're a Club Polk member for a discount that basically equates to free shipping.
It sounds like only one of the tweeters was replaced...and the other one is still original? Did the "expert" tinker with the crossovers in both speakers, or just the one? Both tweeters should be replaced, and not just the one faulty one.
Why did he mess with the low/mid section of the crossovers?
By the way, welcome to Club Polk!!:biggrin:
Thanks for the reply. The "expert" changed both tweeters and tinkered with both crossovers. I think you're right in saying that I need the original crossover settings and tweeters. Just one thing though, are you saying that the sl-2500 is no longer available and that the most logical replacement would be the RDO-198? -
Curt is correct, the original tweeter would have been the SL2500, so the RD0198-1 is the proper replacement.
You will find the original schematics in this list, http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38755
Where are you located? We might have someone close by that would be willing to help you out.
Thanks, got the schematics from the forum and forwarded them to my new speaker "expert". He says that we can apply the crossover settings to the mid and low end no problem, but seeing that the tweeters are different, we'll have to create an ad hoc setting for the high end. Now, how easy and effective is it to create a high end crossover setting? This guy seems rather competent and makes some award winning speakers himself (audiozen, you can check out his website). About where I live, doubt you'll have anyone close seeing that I live in Italy and precisely in Sicily (I'm originally from the most exciting part of the States though, Dayton Ohio)!!! That's another problem cos Polk aren't well distributed here and don't really seem to sell directly over seas. -
Maybe I'm missing something,but if you return the crossovers to their original state,,then pop in the replacement tweeter,,you're good to go.Yes?JC approves....he told me so. (F-1 nut)
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Thanks for the reply. The "expert" changed both tweeters and tinkered with both crossovers. I think you're right in saying that I need the original crossover settings and tweeters. Just one thing though, are you saying that the sl-2500 is no longer available and that the most logical replacement would be the RDO-198?
Yes, the SL-2500's are no longer available. Polk engineered the RD0-194's and RD0-198's as a direct replacement for the SL-2000, SL-2500 and SL-3000. The RD0-194 is the replacement for the 2000, and the RD0-198 is the replacement for the 2500 and 3000. They're direct replacements that require no modifications, and are VASTLY superior sounding tweeters.
You're going to get MUCH better results by removing the tweeters that you have in there now, returning the XO's to stock specs and dropping in the RD0-198's.
If the (very expensive) Dynaudio tweeters are still in good shape, you should be able to sell them and recoup a lot of the expense of returning the XO's to stock and getting the RD0-198's.The nirvana inducer-
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george daniel wrote: »Maybe I'm missing something,but if you return the crossovers to their original state,,then pop in the replacement tweeter,,you're good to go.Yes?
Yup, it's actually kinda simple if you think about it, but till today I didn't even know about the Polk forum, that the original tweeters were available and that I could find the schematics so easily. So for me this is all new. Just one thing though, apart from the tweeter itself, I also need the tweeter cover. It's that dome shaped piece of plastic with the polk logo which is srewed over the tweeter. Does that exist as well? Do the RD-0198-1 fit without having to make any mods? Sorry for the silly Qs but I am no expert myself and really appreciate your help -
comfortablycurt wrote: »Yes, the SL-2500's are no longer available. Polk engineered the RD0-194's and RD0-198's as a direct replacement for the SL-2000, SL-2500 and SL-3000. The RD0-194 is the replacement for the 2000, and the RD0-198 is the replacement for the 2500 and 3000. They're direct replacements that require no modifications, and are VASTLY superior sounding tweeters.
You're going to get MUCH better results by removing the tweeters that you have in there now, returning the XO's to stock specs and dropping in the RD0-198's.
If the (very expensive) Dynaudio tweeters are still in good shape, you should be able to sell them and recoup a lot of the expense of returning the XO's to stock and getting the RD0-198's.
Fantastic! Now, just one last thing. Can I get the plastic tweeter cover from Polk as well cos the "expert" had to make some mods to make sure the Dynaudio tweeter fitted? -
Fantastic! Now, just one last thing. Can I get the plastic tweeter cover from Polk as well cos the "expert" had to make some mods to make sure the Dynaudio tweeter fitted?
What plastic tweeter cover? The tweeter comes all in one piece and is complete...no assembly required. It sounds like you're talking about the tweeters faceplate...which is essentially just part of the tweeter. It'll drop right into the original factory tweeter cutout. If the "expert" modified the cutout to make the Dyn's fit...it may have to be modified again. One thing to remember, is that the Monitor 12's need to be air tight, due to the passive radiator design. As long as you get a good seal between the tweeters faceplate and the baffle, you'll be fine.
You'll likely also spend much less by simply returning the XO's to stock specs, than you would paying someone to engineer a whole new high frequency crossover.The nirvana inducer-
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comfortablycurt wrote: »What plastic tweeter cover? The tweeter comes all in one piece and is complete...no assembly required. It sounds like you're talking about the tweeters faceplate...which is essentially just part of the tweeter. It'll drop right into the original factory tweeter cutout. If the "expert" modified the cutout to make the Dyn's fit...it may have to be modified again. One thing to remember, is that the Monitor 12's need to be air tight, due to the passive radiator design. As long as you get a good seal between the tweeters faceplate and the baffle, you'll be fine.
You'll likely also spend much less by simply returning the XO's to stock specs, than you would paying someone to engineer a whole new high frequency crossover.
Yes, I meant the faceplate. Here's a pic just to give you an idea of the mess that's been done. So, are you saying that the RDs come with the faceplate as well?
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Yes, I meant the faceplate. Here's a pic just to give you an idea of the mess that's been done. So, are you saying that the RDs come with the faceplate as well?
Yes, they come with the faceplate. They're a direct drop in replacement. Simply remove the old tweeters and drop the new ones in(in a normal scenario). The faceplate of that tweeter appears to be roughly the same size...but it's hard to tell from a picture. As long as the gasket on the back of the faceplate still gets a good seal with the baffle, it should be just fine. Were the mounting holes moved when the new tweeters were put in, or were the factory mounting holes retained?The nirvana inducer-
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Audioquest Speaker Cables and IC's -
Ok, thanks for your help. I've just sent an email to Polk's technical support to ask them about the replcement parts and if they can ship to Italy. Is that the best way to go about purchasing spares or are there any other channels? Thanks, Curt, for your kind and very patient replies
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You're quite welcome...I'm glad to help.
Calling them is usually your best bet. I'm guessing that there won't be anyone in the office until Monday though. Hopefully those Polk slave drivers are putting their whips down and giving everyone Christmas Eve off.
The customer service phone number is at the top right hand side of this page. However, I'm not sure if you'll run into any complications being overseas.The nirvana inducer-
APC H10 Power Conditioner
Marantz UD5005 universal player
Parasound Halo P5 preamp
Parasound HCA-1200II power amp
PolkAudio LSi9's/PolkAudio SDA 2A's/PolkAudio Monitor 7A's
Audioquest Speaker Cables and IC's -
comfortablycurt wrote: »You're quite welcome...I'm glad to help.
Calling them is usually your best bet. I'm guessing that there won't be anyone in the office until Monday though. Hopefully those Polk slave drivers are putting their whips down and giving everyone Christmas Eve off.
The customer service phone number is at the top right hand side of this page. However, I'm not sure if you'll run into any complications being overseas.
Shouldn't be a problem with him being in Italy. I received an interconnect cable from Polk while I was in Germany. The biggest problem with European phone calls is the time difference!
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Shouldn't be a problem with him being in Italy. I received an interconnect cable from Polk while I was in Germany. The biggest problem with European phone calls is the time difference!
stubby
Great! That's another piece of good news then. Will go ahead with the order and let you know how it all goes. Hopefully my M12s will be singing again in 2011 after nearly 12 years!
