New SDA 1C's

fiero11

now I get to the questions; I called Polk and the guy there said that the SL 2000 and RDO-194 were the same tweeter? What if any is the difference between the two?

rromeo923

RDO-194 Replaces SL2000

RDO-194 Much Better is the general consensus

nspindel

They're the same spec tweeter. They aren't the same tweeter. RDO-194 is designed to replace SL-2000. SL-2000 dome is plastic. RDO-194 dome is silk. The 194 removes a nasty spike in high frequency response present in the SL-2000. I want to say the spike is at 7,000 hz. but don't hold me to that. Most on here who have done the swap agree that the highs were very fatiguing with the SL-2000, and that is fixed with the RDO-194.

fiero11

you recomment that swap with all the SL-2000 including my CRS+'s, then? and the upgrades on the CRS+ are about the same as the C1's.

nspindel

No, I actually do not recommend that. Depending on the version of your CRS+'s, they are likely capable of the "TL" mod, where you would add a 5.8uF capacitor in the circuit, which would allow you to use the RDO-198 tweeter instead of the RDO-194. The 198 is the replacement for the SL-3000 tweeter.

My first piece of advice, before you start anything - work on one pair of speakers at a time....

fiero11

Gee, there is a lot to learn and do on this forum...I'll get my amp first then I'll upgrade the tweets to 194's on the C1's like you recommend and see what they do for the imaging and highs.

nspindel

Yup. One step at a time.

I'd confer with the masses here on choice of amp, before spending any money. I don't know the Carver line, but there are many on here who are quite fond of Carver, and I'm sure have lots of advice on which models pair best with SDA's. Two things to remember straight away when researching amps. SDA's need a common ground amp, unless you plan on getting started with an AI-1 interconnect (and not all SDA's can use it), and SDA's love high current, the more the better.

I'm using a Krell amp with my 1C's and couldn't be happier.

fiero11

I have all Carver equipment except for my Denon turntable. I use a Carver M-1.5t amplifier to push both sets of polks right now and it doesn't even blink at it. I'd like to get another one to split the work or a pair of M-500t to bridge and run the C1's. The carvers moving coil transformers seem to handle high loads really well.

nspindel

Pairs of anything typically don't work well with SDA's. Whether monoblocks or bridged stereo amps acting as monoblocks, you don't have a common ground between left and right. This is an absolute must for SDA's, as in you can fry your speakers if you don't have a common ground.

nspindel

If you put up a new thread along the lines of "Help me pair my SDA 1C's with the right Carver amp" you will get puh-lenty of help.

fiero11

Thanks for your help and comments...I think your staements have already helped me pick my second amp, which was my first choice, which is another M-1.5t to run separately with my other M-1.5t. Then I will have a nice power balance front and rear and common ground amps.

nspindel

Sounds good, but I leave any further amp advice to folks who know Carver's stuff better than I do.

cayovelez

I use a Yamaha m-80 refurbished by Skip Lacey and my 1c's are perfectly driven and sounding. Whatever amp you go with 1.5 of whatever make sure that if same vintage as 1.5, gfa-555ii or Yammies of same era, most of them need to be very closely checked by a tech prior to using them on an upgraded 1c.

nspindel

Any high-current common ground amp should work, some with better sonic results than others. Not saying there's anything wrong with doing an amp refurb, I had my NAD re-capped and the results were great, but it's not a prerequisite for using with your 1C's.

heiney9

cayovelez wrote: »

most of them need to be very closely checked by a tech prior to using them on an upgraded 1c.

Why? What's so particular about an "upgraded 1c"? I do agree any piece of electronics pushing 20+ years should be checked, if for nothing more than to make sure there isn't a large amount of DC at the outputs.

H9

cayovelez

Before you get on me for my suggestion, perhaps you should ask the guy if he know how to check his amp's dc off set? Before I plug an amp to any of my speakers I always check the dc offset, for example my older gfa-555ii over time was off in one channel off within spec, but off from the other side. My m-80 dc offset was dead on, but had some other issues that I would have never picked up by just checking the dc offset.

ALL I WAS TRYING TO TELL THE GUY IS THAT HE SHOULD HAVE A TECH CHECK THE AMPS PRIOR TO HOOKING THEM UP. SPECIALLY OLDER AMPS, THAT IS ALL I SUGGESTED.

Most of the senior members here are very knowledgeable, but very sensitive.

heiney9

Settle down a bit, I'm not in anyway "getting on you", perhaps I read it wrong. Just wondered why you singled out upgraded 1C's, that all. I guess since hard earned money and a little sweat was used to upgrade them you want to take extra precautions.

H9

nspindel

Seriously... Why are you all worked up? Nobody is getting on you. I read your post the same way as h9. Your post read like there is something unique about an upgraded pair of 1c's that required an amp to be inspected before being used. What you're saying applies to any loudspeaker and is good advise.

FTGV

cayovelez wrote: »

, most of them need to be very closely checked by a tech prior to using them on your upgraded 1c.

Wow fingers off the triggers gents,intuitively one would think he meant^

cayovelez

Sorry guys english is my second language and lack tack in writing at times. I meant to warn him to be careful with older amps as they seem to be weird as they age. I have had about 6 or so amps in the last 5 years from the same era of amps, and when I check the dc offset on some are way out of wack, indicating perhaps of other problems. What I meant was in general I would not want to hook my beloved 1C nor my 3.1tl to a flacky amp. I have learned most of my tinkering from senior members here, and reading their different post.

audiocr381ve

cayovelez wrote: »

Before you get on me for my suggestion, perhaps you should ask the guy if he know how to check his amp's dc off set? Before I plug an amp to any of my speakers I always check the dc offset, for example my older gfa-555ii over time was off in one channel off within spec, but off from the other side. My m-80 dc offset was dead on, but had some other issues that I would have never picked up by just checking the dc offset.

ALL I WAS TRYING TO TELL THE GUY IS THAT HE SHOULD HAVE A TECH CHECK THE AMPS PRIOR TO HOOKING THEM UP. SPECIALLY OLDER AMPS, THAT IS ALL I SUGGESTED.

Most of the senior members here are very knowledgeable, but very sensitive.

+1. You aren't the first to notice

Listen, I wasn't in any way saying that I regret modifying my speakers (some jerk put those words in my mouth), I was simply saying that I sometimes miss the character of the speakers when I first brought them in the door. There is something special about the sound you're hearing now. Do I want that sound back? Yes and No. Do I prefer the sound of my modified speakers over them unmodified? I could have lived with them either way. Again, not trying to make a blanket statement that modifying them is bad. I fully endorse replacing the necessary caps to make sure the speakers are running strong for years to come!

I'm beginning to think the "TL Mod" may be the culprit. Maybe my personal tastes prefer the more laid back sound of the RD0-198? Who knows.

fiero11

cayovelez wrote: »

Sorry guys english is my second language and lack tack in writing at times. I meant to warn him to be careful with older amps as they seem to be weird as they age. I have had about 6 or so amps in the last 5 years from the same era of amps, and when I check the dc offset on some are way out of wack, indicating perhaps of other problems. What I meant was in general I would not want to hook my beloved 1C nor my 3.1tl to a flacky amp. I have learned most of my tinkering from senior members here, and reading their different post.

hey I get your advice and it seems very sound since most older amplifiers come off ebay and you don't know what life or condition they are in. I'll remember to check the outputs before hooking up the speakers to the amp and thanks, I would not have considered it before hand.

nspindel

audiocr381ve wrote: »

On second thought, I wouldn't think about modifying them.

Nuff said. I don't have to put words in your mouth.

You've probably never even laid eyes on a pair of 1C's, let alone heard a pair. So stop telling people what they should or shouldn't do with them. You're not the expert that you think you are.

Joe08867

Audio, for all intents and purposes you have no idea what you are talking about.
1. You never powered your speakers properly. Using a little Marantz and then jumping on the Emo with the Marantz as a pre is just ludicrous.

2. You had them setup poorly in a room that will never work for them.

3. We gave you every tool you could ask for and you still went and tried it your way. How much has that run you now. 3 or 4 thousand dollars.

If you don't like how they sound return them to a non TL version but get off it already. You don't have a clue how little you understand.

heiney9

cayovelez, it's all good and that is very good advice when dealing with older equipment you don't know the history of.

H9

audiocr381ve

nspindel wrote: »

Nuff said. I don't have to put words in your mouth.

You've probably never even laid eyes on a pair of 1C's, let alone heard a pair. So stop telling people what they should or shouldn't do with them. You're not the expert that you think you are.

Thanks for quoting me and reinforcing what I said...twice. Your attempt to be clever was an epic failure. I meant what I said. I wouldn't modify them (other than what I already mentioned, replacing the caps that are probably going bad). Big fat lol at you!

I auditioned two pairs of 1C's before I bought my 2B's because I got a better price.

audiocr381ve

Joe08867 wrote: »

Audio, for all intents and purposes you have no idea what you are talking about.
1. You never powered your speakers properly. Using a little Marantz and then jumping on the Emo with the Marantz as a pre is just ludicrous.

2. You had them setup poorly in a room that will never work for them.

3. We gave you every tool you could ask for and you still went and tried it your way. How much has that run you now. 3 or 4 thousand dollars.

If you don't like how they sound return them to a non TL version but get off it already. You don't have a clue how little you understand.

I tried the Marantz as a pre, the Carver CT-6 as a pre, and my Emotiva XDA-1 as a pre. I tried three amps, Emotiva XPA-2, Carver TFM-45, and the Marantz 2245. Just thought I'd clarify that.

My room was more than sufficient. The location they had to be in when not doing critical listening was admittedly, less than ideal. I've repeatedly said that I rearrange the room when I have a critical listening session. I've had a number of speakers that have come through this space that did fine and gave me a ton of joy to listen to.

The SDA's are fine now. Not saying I hate them! I never said I did! For crying out loud I mentioned 1 shortcoming I found along with others and now all of a sudden I hate SDA's!? :eek:

I admit I'm not an audio genius, this is merely a hobby for me. I believe many of you are much farther along than I am, I never wanted to imply that I'm more advanced. I am however a professional musician and know what I want in my systems. Now regarding my opinion and explanation on why I think what I think about certain modifications, refer to post #52. If you want to be judgmental and skim through my posts, it's not gonna get us anywhere.

I have an opinion about modifying them. Let it be.

nspindel

Ah, the beauty of the ignore list. Nice knowing you audio. You're now relegated to a highly select group of invisible (to me) idiots. Bye.....

Joe08867

audiocr381ve wrote: »

I tried the Marantz as a pre, the Carver CT-6 as a pre, and my Emotiva XDA-1 as a pre. I tried three amps, Emotiva XPA-2, Carver TFM-45, and the Marantz 2245. Just thought I'd clarify that.

My room was more than sufficient. The location they had to be in when not doing critical listening was admittedly, less than ideal. I've repeatedly said that I rearrange the room when I have a critical listening session. I've had a number of speakers that have come through this space that did fine and gave me a ton of joy to listen to.

The SDA's are fine now. Not saying I hate them! I never said I did! For crying out loud I mentioned 1 shortcoming I found along with others and now all of a sudden I hate SDA's!? :eek:

I admit I'm not an audio genius, this is merely a hobby for me. I believe many of you are much farther along than I am, I never wanted to imply that I'm more advanced. I am however a professional musician and know what I want in my systems. Now regarding my opinion and explanation on why I think what I think about certain modifications, refer to post #52. If you want to be judgmental and skim through my posts, it's not gonna get us anywhere.

I have an opinion about modifying them. Let it be.

1. You tried the Marantz as a receiver and a pre. We told you it would sound thin. Fail

2. So you tried a Carver CT6 that we said would sound bad. With the Emo amp. Fail

3. You tried a Carver amp that had just been fixed and sold it just as it was coming into it's own. Fail.

4. Your room is not ideal for these speakers but like you said you did move them into a more ideal position, all the while shaking the filling out of your neighbors teeth.

Did I miss anything?

You have failed way more times than most around here. So when you go around giving advice on speakers, can you now see why we defend it.

And I think you have those speakers wired wrong if you think the TL mod is more forward than the original crossover.

nspindel

Don't bother Joe, it won't get you anywhere but frustrated. Just put him on the ignore list and have a drink...