Polks back in the house! RTA11tl question.

Braddles
Braddles Posts: 228
edited February 2012 in Vintage Speakers
G'Day guys,

It's been a while since I've posted although I still call in regularly.

After 20 years with monitor 10's, 12's, 5's and some sda2's i moved away from polks to some Lenehan ML1 speakers. They are very good.

But I picked up a pair of RTA 11tl's for next to nothing because the sl3000 tweeters are stuffed. I have some rdo198-1's on the way and wanted to confirm that they are just a drop in replacement or do I need to do anything to the xover?

Cheers
Brad
2 Channel
Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
Power Cord - Tunami GPX
CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
Post edited by Braddles on
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  • Toolfan66
    Toolfan66 Posts: 17,243
    edited August 2011
    Drop in..

    Congrats and enjoy!!!
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  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited August 2011
    Cheers mate!
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
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  • Joe08867
    Joe08867 Posts: 3,919
    edited August 2011
    Drop-in. Enjoy them. They are nice speakers.
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  • skrol
    skrol Posts: 3,375
    edited August 2011
    They are drop-ins but upgrading the caps in the xo will really bring them to life.
    Stan
    Stan

    Main 2ch:
    Polk LSi15 (DB840 upgrade), Parasound: P/LD-1100, HCA-1000A; Denon: DVD-2910, DRM-800A; Benchmark DAC1, Monster HTS3600-MKII, Grado SR-225i; Technics SL-J2, Parasound PPH-100.

    HT:
    Marantz SR7010, Polk: RTA11TL (RDO198-1, XO and Damping Upgrades), S4, CS250, PSW110 , Marantz UD5005, Pioneer PL-530, Panasonic TC-P42S60

    Other stuff:
    Denon: DRA-835R, AVR-888, DCD-660, DRM-700A, DRR-780; Polk: S8, Monitor 5A, 5B, TSi100, RM7, PSW10 (DXi104 upgrade); Pioneer: CT-6R; Onkyo CP-1046F; Ortofon OM5E, Marantz: PM5004, CD5004, CDR-615; Parasound C/PT-600, HCA-800ii, Sony CDP-650ESD, Technics SA 5070, B&W DM601
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  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited August 2011
    skrol wrote: »
    They are drop-ins but upgrading the caps in the xo will really bring them to life.
    Stan

    Thats the plan.....stan....:wink:

    Ive read your thread. looking forward to doing similar.


    Cheers
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
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  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited August 2011
    On closer inspection the tag on the back says RTA11t. But they have the sl3000's in and the deflection flap above the tweeter. Also noticed that the cabinet doesnt have a beveled edge on the front.
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
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  • Joe08867
    Joe08867 Posts: 3,919
    edited August 2011
    They are TL's. The TL stands for Tri-Laminate. And that is what the SL3000 is a Tri-Laminate tweeter.

    I have seen them with both beveled and non beveled edges.
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  • djperez81
    djperez81 Posts: 388
    edited August 2011
    Both pairs of my 11t's have beveled edges with the sl2000's. Getting ready to do the RDO swap soon.
    Music doesn't lie. If there is something to be changed in this world, then it can only happen through music.
    -Jimi Hendrix
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  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited August 2011
    Got the rdo's yesterday and poped them in. All good now. Running the tv through them for a couple of days to get some time on them.

    I know i could do a search but whats the best caps to get for the Xover upgrade?

    Is there a place over there that will ship to Australia?
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
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  • Toolfan66
    Toolfan66 Posts: 17,243
    edited August 2011
    I would say Sonic Caps are the bang for the buck and getting the values you need they make it easy as well.
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  • skrol
    skrol Posts: 3,375
    edited August 2011
    The early ones were labeled "T" vs "TL". I guess they had a bunch of stickers left to use up from the previous version.:confused:
    Stan
    Stan

    Main 2ch:
    Polk LSi15 (DB840 upgrade), Parasound: P/LD-1100, HCA-1000A; Denon: DVD-2910, DRM-800A; Benchmark DAC1, Monster HTS3600-MKII, Grado SR-225i; Technics SL-J2, Parasound PPH-100.

    HT:
    Marantz SR7010, Polk: RTA11TL (RDO198-1, XO and Damping Upgrades), S4, CS250, PSW110 , Marantz UD5005, Pioneer PL-530, Panasonic TC-P42S60

    Other stuff:
    Denon: DRA-835R, AVR-888, DCD-660, DRM-700A, DRR-780; Polk: S8, Monitor 5A, 5B, TSi100, RM7, PSW10 (DXi104 upgrade); Pioneer: CT-6R; Onkyo CP-1046F; Ortofon OM5E, Marantz: PM5004, CD5004, CDR-615; Parasound C/PT-600, HCA-800ii, Sony CDP-650ESD, Technics SA 5070, B&W DM601
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  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited January 2012
    Happy new year from your fellow polkies from down under everyone.

    I've done a fair bit of playing around with my RTA11tl's.

    I've done the accepted mods including sound dead product on the baskets, adding floor spikes, refreshing the gaskets, making sure the stuffing is in the correct spot and the RDO,s.

    I've also been experimenting adding some extra bracing inside the cabinets. I used 35mm dowel and have tried a few different amounts and positions. I have settled (for now) on a couple of "T" shaped braces just below both mw drivers with the bottom of T the attached to the back of the cabinet. I also added a dowel across the original flat brace near the tweeter to help strengthen it.

    All of the above has improved the speakers an I have just place an order for some Sonicap caps and mills resistors so I'm looking forward to getting them installed when they arrive.

    I will take some pics next time I have them apart to explain things better.

    Cheers
    Brad
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
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  • Conradicles
    Conradicles Posts: 6,081
    edited January 2012
    The new caps should make a great improvement. Congrats and enjoy.
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  • skrol
    skrol Posts: 3,375
    edited January 2012
    I thought about adding some bracing to mine but never got around to it.
    Stan
    Stan

    Main 2ch:
    Polk LSi15 (DB840 upgrade), Parasound: P/LD-1100, HCA-1000A; Denon: DVD-2910, DRM-800A; Benchmark DAC1, Monster HTS3600-MKII, Grado SR-225i; Technics SL-J2, Parasound PPH-100.

    HT:
    Marantz SR7010, Polk: RTA11TL (RDO198-1, XO and Damping Upgrades), S4, CS250, PSW110 , Marantz UD5005, Pioneer PL-530, Panasonic TC-P42S60

    Other stuff:
    Denon: DRA-835R, AVR-888, DCD-660, DRM-700A, DRR-780; Polk: S8, Monitor 5A, 5B, TSi100, RM7, PSW10 (DXi104 upgrade); Pioneer: CT-6R; Onkyo CP-1046F; Ortofon OM5E, Marantz: PM5004, CD5004, CDR-615; Parasound C/PT-600, HCA-800ii, Sony CDP-650ESD, Technics SA 5070, B&W DM601
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  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited January 2012
    Well their in and done. The sonicaps and mills arrived yesterday and I fumbled and farted my way through the soldering process.

    Mate those caps are huge!

    I had to get two 17uf caps as they had no 34uf. So two 17's and the 16uf all together made it a challenge but I got there in the end.
    I used Blu-tac inbetween the caps to secure them and help stop vibration instead of hot glue. I'm no solder expert and it's far from a work of art but I got it back in the cabinet and it makes noise so I'm happy.

    It was midnight when I finished so I left the TV playing through them today to start getting some time on them.
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
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  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited January 2012
    Some pics for all to see...
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
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  • skrol
    skrol Posts: 3,375
    edited January 2012
    What adhesive did you use to attach the bracing?
    Stan

    Main 2ch:
    Polk LSi15 (DB840 upgrade), Parasound: P/LD-1100, HCA-1000A; Denon: DVD-2910, DRM-800A; Benchmark DAC1, Monster HTS3600-MKII, Grado SR-225i; Technics SL-J2, Parasound PPH-100.

    HT:
    Marantz SR7010, Polk: RTA11TL (RDO198-1, XO and Damping Upgrades), S4, CS250, PSW110 , Marantz UD5005, Pioneer PL-530, Panasonic TC-P42S60

    Other stuff:
    Denon: DRA-835R, AVR-888, DCD-660, DRM-700A, DRR-780; Polk: S8, Monitor 5A, 5B, TSi100, RM7, PSW10 (DXi104 upgrade); Pioneer: CT-6R; Onkyo CP-1046F; Ortofon OM5E, Marantz: PM5004, CD5004, CDR-615; Parasound C/PT-600, HCA-800ii, Sony CDP-650ESD, Technics SA 5070, B&W DM601
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  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited January 2012
    It's called liquid nails. Dries nice and strong. Looks a bit messy now but once I've confirmed where I want them I wll paint the inside of the cabinet to neaten things up a bit.
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
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  • marcc78735
    marcc78735 Posts: 7
    edited January 2012
    These pictures are great. I've got the same speakers (11T or TL) and I'd like to do the same this. I'm new to this forum but is there a parts list to upgrade the crossovers like you have done?

    BTW, I'm assuming the sound quality is noticeably different (better) after the mods. Is this the case?
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  • agfrost
    agfrost Posts: 2,428
    edited January 2012
    Hi Marc,

    You can update either the RTA11T or the RTA11TL and make it sound considerably better. Schematics for both are here. If you've got the TLs (SL3000 tweeters, which have a foam ring around them, and a dome that may range in color from gold to silver to blackish; a "wing" attached to the tweeter) you can add an improved pair of tweeters (RDO-198) available from Polk customer service, and update your crossover capacitors and resistors. Skrol did a thread on his mods here.

    If you've got RTA11T (SL2000 tweeters which have a wire/lead visible on the left and right of the dome, no wing), you can upgrade your tweeters to RDO-194 models, and again update/upgrade your caps as you see fit. If you're feeling a bit more ambitious, you can turn T's into TL's without too much difficulty.

    If you search for "crossover sonicap mills" you'll pull up a bunch of threads that show how guys have done their speakers. I recommend you start a new thread with your project goals stated clearly, and some folks will stop by to give you some advice.

    Welcome to Club Polk--Those speakers are worth updating, so if you think you're up for it, start searching and reading so you can see how the project will likely unfold.

    Jay
    Jay
    SDA 2BTL * Musical Fidelity A5cr amp * Oppo BDP-93 * Modded Adcom GDA-600 DAC * Rythmik F8 (x2)
    Micro Seiki DQ-50 * Hagerman Cornet 2 Phono * A hodgepodge of cabling * Belkin PF60
    Preamp rotation: Krell KSL (SCompRacer recapped) * Manley Shrimp * PS Audio 5.0
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  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited January 2012
    marcc78735 wrote: »
    These pictures are great. I've got the same speakers (11T or TL) and I'd like to do the same this. I'm new to this forum but is there a parts list to upgrade the crossovers like you have done?

    BTW, I'm assuming the sound quality is noticeably different (better) after the mods. Is this the case?

    Thanks Marcc

    Agfrost has covered you question.

    The improvement has been steadily comming around. I have just received some hurricane nuts and better spikes from parts express so I will be busy installing them this weekend.

    As a matter of interest I had a pair of Tekton Lore speakers from the USA for a week. They did some things very well but overall I preferred the more laid back sound of the polks. But it was good to compare to a current day speaker and see how much the rta's had improved.
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • marcc78735
    marcc78735 Posts: 7
    edited January 2012
    Thanks Jay and Brad, and really everyone else on this forum. There is a ton of great info here... all it takes is time.

    I will digest all of this, wait for a replacement driver to arrive and drop in, then move on to this crossover and general 11TL improvement project.

    Marc
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  • MHAMBONE
    MHAMBONE Posts: 51
    edited February 2012
    Do you guys know if there is anyone out there that I can have perfom this crossover service? In California? I just bought some RDO198 for my RTA11TL and would like the crossover upgrade but I don't think I want to try it.
    Mike

    Pioneer SC-05 Receiver
    Polk SDA-2b
    Polk RTA 11TL w/RDO-198's
    Polk RT25i Satelite Speakers
    Polk CS 400 Center Speaker
    Polk PSW 350 Sub Woofer
    Samsung 46" 1080p LCD TV
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  • agfrost
    agfrost Posts: 2,428
    edited February 2012
    There are a couple of people that have done crossovers for others for a fee, member VR3 being one such person. Not sure if he's currently taking orders. Another possibility is that, if you post your location, you may find a member locally who will assist you for the price of a handshake and a 12-pack.

    The 11TL crossover is quite simple, and if you've got a few skills, is done without too much difficulty. 3 caps and one resistor on each crossover; not a bad job at all.

    If you want to have someone else do them, start a thread and/or send a PM to VR3. Good luck, it's worth the effort IMO.

    Jay
    Jay
    SDA 2BTL * Musical Fidelity A5cr amp * Oppo BDP-93 * Modded Adcom GDA-600 DAC * Rythmik F8 (x2)
    Micro Seiki DQ-50 * Hagerman Cornet 2 Phono * A hodgepodge of cabling * Belkin PF60
    Preamp rotation: Krell KSL (SCompRacer recapped) * Manley Shrimp * PS Audio 5.0
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited February 2012
    MHAMBONE wrote: »
    Do you guys know if there is anyone out there that I can have perfom this crossover service? In California? I just bought some RDO198 for my RTA11TL and would like the crossover upgrade but I don't think I want to try it.

    Like Agfrost said it not that hard. I have little experience but I googled "how to solder" and had a go. One thing to keep in mind is the new caps are a lot bigger so you need to plan the placement carefully so you can get the xover back in the speaker.
    Its very rewarding when you hook them back up and they work too!
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • MHAMBONE
    MHAMBONE Posts: 51
    edited February 2012
    Thanks guys.
    Mike

    Pioneer SC-05 Receiver
    Polk SDA-2b
    Polk RTA 11TL w/RDO-198's
    Polk RT25i Satelite Speakers
    Polk CS 400 Center Speaker
    Polk PSW 350 Sub Woofer
    Samsung 46" 1080p LCD TV
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  • MHAMBONE
    MHAMBONE Posts: 51
    edited February 2012
    Where do I find the upgrade info for the 11tl's? Parts list? Schematic?
    Mike

    Pioneer SC-05 Receiver
    Polk SDA-2b
    Polk RTA 11TL w/RDO-198's
    Polk RT25i Satelite Speakers
    Polk CS 400 Center Speaker
    Polk PSW 350 Sub Woofer
    Samsung 46" 1080p LCD TV
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  • Oldfatdogs
    Oldfatdogs Posts: 1,874
    edited February 2012
    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?38755-POLK-AUDIO-Speaker-Wiring-Schematics-amp-More-ALL-MODELS-except-SDA Here.
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  • MHAMBONE
    MHAMBONE Posts: 51
    edited February 2012
    Oldfatdogs wrote: »
    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?38755-POLK-AUDIO-Speaker-Wiring-Schematics-amp-More-ALL-MODELS-except-SDA Here.


    So is this the UPGRADED Specs?
    Mike

    Pioneer SC-05 Receiver
    Polk SDA-2b
    Polk RTA 11TL w/RDO-198's
    Polk RT25i Satelite Speakers
    Polk CS 400 Center Speaker
    Polk PSW 350 Sub Woofer
    Samsung 46" 1080p LCD TV
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Braddles
    Braddles Posts: 228
    edited February 2012
    This tells you what value caps an resistors you need to order and where they go.
    2 Channel
    Amp - Jas Audio Bravo 3.2 set
    Power Cord - Tunami GPX
    CDP - Marantz cd6002 - Audio gd Ref 5 Dac
    Speakers - Tekton Lore,Polk Audio RTA11tl completely refreshed.
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter