Polk Monitor 5 tweeter

audiocr381ve

Just wanted to confirm that these are SL-2500's with the replacement being the RD0-198

Is this a necessary upgrade? I know the general consensus on the SL2000 is that the replacement, RD0-194, sound better. Is this true for the SL-2500 and the RD0-198?

audiocr381ve

audiocr381ve wrote: »

Just wanted to confirm that these are SL-2500's with the replacement being the RD0-198

Is this a necessary upgrade? I know the general consensus on the SL2000 is that the replacement, RD0-194, sound better. Is this true for the SL-2500 and the RD0-198?

Also, are these 5jr's? That doesn't look like an 8" passive.

heiney9

They are Monitor 5 series II with the sl-2500 tweeter. The RD0198-1 is the replacement tweeter and yes, it is better than the sl-2500.

The MW is smaller than the passive in the photo so they are NOT 5JR+.

Very nice speakers that once modded are phenominal in a smaller setting with tubes.

H9

P.s. You can always tell an sl-2500 or sl-3000 tweeter because of the foam ring around the dome. Look closely you can see it very clearly.

audiocr381ve

heiney9 wrote: »

They are Monitor 5 series II with the sl-2500 tweeter. The RD0198-1 is the replacement tweeter and yes, it is better than the sl-2500.

The MW is smaller than the passive in the photo so they are NOT 5JR+.

Very nice speakers that once modded are phenominal in a smaller setting with tubes.

H9

Thanks Brock. On my way to pick em' up. Decided to stay with vintage polk

heiney9

audiocr381ve wrote: »

Thanks Brock. On my way to pick em' up. Decided to stay with vintage polk

I have a modded pair of 5B's from 1983 in my office rig and they sound wonderful. Just some RD0's, Clarity caps and in my instance a fuse delete, Larry's rings and Mortite.

H9

cnh

I'm listening to my 5As at the moment. They never cease to surprise me, even in their stock form. Of course, that's with the Peerless. Everyone says the RDs are better but I really love the original Peerless, so smooth and musical (maybe not all the "detail" of the RDs but not something I worry about as I run them on a vintage receiver-so you're going to get some roll-off on the top end anyway--but these old ears "like" that sound).

Would like to hear them with some RD-0198s--not mine of course, but other models that can take that upgrade.

Enjoy!

cnh

audiocr381ve

cnh wrote: »

I'm listening to my 5As at the moment. They never cease to surprise me, even in their stock form. Of course, that's with the Peerless. Everyone says the RDs are better but I really love the original Peerless, so smooth and musical (maybe not all the "detail" of the RDs but not something I worry about as I run them on a vintage receiver-so you're going to get some roll-off on the top end anyway--but these old ears "like" that sound).

Would like to hear them with some RD-0198s--not mine of course, but other models that can take that upgrade.

Enjoy!

cnh

Just picked em' up and they're running in the office rig which is iMac > Keces DAC > Parasound HCA-750 > Monitor 5's

Right off the bat, is there anything I can do to the xovers that will improve them? Haven't smelled solder in awhile

I feel like after enjoying the 2B's fully modded for so long, that I'm ready to just jump right in and get these up to speed. I like what I hear on the top end so far, but I really want that bass slam that I know these things are capable of. I can hear the deep bass but there isn't much of a "kick" yet. The gentlemen I bought them from played some Large Advent A4's next to these 5's, and they had that kick that I like. I'm sure some rings would help.

Do these have polyswitches that need to be removed?

heiney9

They need proper stands, in a proper smaller room, just off the back wall and toed in slightly, and a power tube like a 6L6 and they will rattle the rafters. And not with that "boom, boom" type bass. Deep and well extended.

New caps will help, Clarity on the highs and Solen on the lows.

In a larger room they won't pressurize enough to get a lot of slam.

H9

heiney9

I'd like those cabinets when you part these out in a few months :eek::razz:

audiocr381ve

heiney9 wrote: »

I'd like those cabinets when you part these out in a few months :eek::razz:

They're yours

I checked out the schematic so I can order some new caps/resistors. Am I looking at the right one?

I pulled the passive and these xover's look really easy to work on Parts won't cost me an arm and a leg

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=18767&d=1155784608

audiocr381ve

Okay, pulled the crossovers and I have a question about 1 cap.

I see:
- (1) 12uf cap
- (1) 34uf cap
- (1) And a third cap that reads 8mfd and under that says 50vNP. What is the value of this one?
- (1) 2.7ohm resistor.

Gonna order parts tomorrow!

20hz

looks like 8 microferad 20 volts non polorized

audiocr381ve

20hz wrote: »

looks like 8 microferad 20 volts non polorized

Would a Sonicap Gen I 8uf cap work?

heiney9

audiocr381ve wrote: »

Would a Sonicap Gen I 8uf cap work?

It should. Always be aware of space concerns.

H9

gwg_97

Have any of you guys tried sonic barrier in the monitor 5s? I have some extra laying around and I may give it a try.

audiocr381ve

Alright guys, I decided to go with Sonicaps for capacitors & Mills for resistors and not Clarity Cap's and Mundorf. I've tried both and I really like the added warmth of the Sonicaps & Mills. The Clarity Caps and Mundorf is a more neutral combo.

I'm really hoping to get more oomph out of these. I thought for bookshelf's this big that they'd be able to crank out more bass in my relatively small & acoustically treated office. They're in such good condition and small enough that I figured I'd pimp em' out and keep them in a secondary rig if I can't get the bass I want in this room. I don't think I've ever been a big fan of the bass on SDA's or these old monitors (I spent time with a pair of Monitor 10's, which did have better bass but not a lot of "kick"). Anyway, I don't want to sound like I'm complaining, I'd just like to open up the floor for discussion

cnh

gwg_97 wrote: »

Have any of you guys tried sonic barrier in the monitor 5s? I have some extra laying around and I may give it a try.

audiocr381ve wrote: »

Alright guys, I decided to go with Sonicaps for capacitors & Mills for resistors and not Clarity Cap's and Mundorf. I've tried both and I really like the added warmth of the Sonicaps & Mills. The Clarity Caps and Mundorf is a more neutral combo.

I'm really hoping to get more oomph out of these. I thought for bookshelf's this big that they'd be able to crank out more bass in my relatively small & acoustically treated office. They're in such good condition and small enough that I figured I'd pimp em' out and keep them in a secondary rig if I can't get the bass I want in this room. I don't think I've ever been a big fan of the bass on SDA's or these old monitors (I spent time with a pair of Monitor 10's, which did have better bass but not a lot of "kick"). Anyway, I don't want to sound like I'm complaining, I'd just like to open up the floor for discussion

I remember there being a discussion about how much polyfill is in a 5A as opposed to later models. From my inspection of 5As they have fill up and down to the PR and behind the PR. Someone else was saying that maybe 5Bs or later did NOT have fill behind the PR and whether that affected the bass or not as he own both 5As and Bs or Cs and the As had less bass in his opinion. I can't comment because I've only heard mine!

So I'd say be careful with how much you stuff that cabinet with and where you put it.

cnh

audiocr381ve

cnh wrote: »

I remember there being a discussion about how much polyfill is in a 5A as opposed to later models. From my inspection of 5As they have fill up and down to the PR and behind the PR. Someone else was saying that maybe 5Bs or later did NOT have fill behind the PR and whether that affected the bass or not as he own both 5As and Bs or Cs and the As had less bass in his opinion. I can't comment because I've only heard mine!

So I'd say be careful with how much you stuff that cabinet with and where you put it.

cnh

According to Brock, I have the Series II version 5's, I wonder if this is an issue? I can't find a lot of info through the search function but maybe I'm not using it properly.

audiocr381ve

Went from this:



To This:



And it equals this: :cheesygrin:

PolkieMan

So did that, the crossover modification, really make a difference in the way they sound?

audiocr381ve

It was like going from generic Coke to the real thing. It has always been a subtle thing for me. Bass articulation has improved, depth has improved, more dynamic, better clarity, more articulate and accurate all-around. They aren't nearly as "flat" anymore. They're becoming quite enjoyable now I think they're perfect for my room.

PolkieMan

So how did you get the parts to do this so fast are they local for you?

audiocr381ve wrote: »

It was like going from generic Coke to the real thing. It has always been a subtle thing for me. Bass articulation has improved, depth has improved, more dynamic, better clarity, more articulate and accurate all-around. They aren't nearly as "flat" anymore. They're becoming quite enjoyable now I think they're perfect for my room.

audiocr381ve

It took a week for parts to arrive, so it wasn't that fast. I ordered from Parts Express and Soniccraft.