Monitor 10 deal

Jimbo18

Just picked up a pair of Monitor 10's off CL for $100 with what I think are the original stands attached. They sound and look great. Unfortunately, I was hoping for Peerless tweeters and they have the SL2000 (the drivers were not in the photos available on CL) but I was hoping that they would be Peerless since they were 10's with no alpha attached.

I compared them to my 7C's and I like the 10's better. Seems like a wider soundstage and more pronounced bass. The highs seems pretty similar to me, and I have yet to hear Peerless, so I am not sure how they would compare, I just know how much everyone on here likes them.

Oldfatdogs

Hey Jim,congratulations on your new to you 10s.You got a deal compared to what they are selling for on ebay.
Enjoy Dan

bored184

Great find! I just recently found a pair my self. I tested them using a CarverTFM 25 and was quite impressed.

Jimbo18

bored184 wrote: »

Great find! I just recently found a pair my self. I tested them using a CarverTFM 25 and was quite impressed.

Thanks. My Pio probably doesn't do them justice, but I don't listen at very loud levels, and it drives them okay. But either they, or the Monitor 7s, are going back on CL and I will continue looking for some with Peerless.

PolkieMan

Excellent find! nothing in Texas but tumbleweed

canadianicon25

good deal. are you ditching those tweets? i don't need them just wondering if you are going to upgrade your new speakers.

PolkieMan

Yea when's that next Sonic Craft 20% off sale :razz:

canadianicon25 wrote: »

good deal. are you ditching those tweets? i don't need them just wondering if you are going to upgrade your new speakers.

smglbrth

Congrats on your 10's, killer price for the shape they're in, enjoy!

westmassguy

Congrats. 10s are awesome. Lot's of upgrades available for those too.

Jimbo18

I was disappointed in them not being Peerless and put them back on CL. They sold for $150 with no problem so I will be back on the hunt for another set. They seem to pop up fairly regularly.

westmassguy

Jimbo18 wrote: »

I was disappointed in them not being Peerless and put them back on CL. They sold for $150 with no problem so I will be back on the hunt for another set. They seem to pop up fairly regularly.

Wow that was fast. I would have upgraded them to RDO-198s, much better than the Peerless in my opinion.

PolkieMan

Yea tweeters and new x-overs then they would have been much better than anything you can find.

westmassguy wrote: »

Wow that was fast. I would have upgraded them to RDO-198s, much better than the Peerless in my opinion.

mantis

We got a pair on the floor right now selling for $249.00 with the stands. I don't now what tweeter they have in them, how can you tell?

Jimbo18

mantis wrote: »

We got a pair on the floor right now selling for $249.00 with the stands. I don't now what tweeter they have in them, how can you tell?

I looked at photos online and thought they looked like SL2000 but then pulled one and checked the sticker on the back to be sure.

And yeah, I probably shouldn't have sold them so quickly, but I have really been hoping to at least hear the Peerless tweets and it was a quick easy $50. They come up pretty often around here, it seems, so I am sure I will find another pair sometime. If not, I will put some money into the upgrades for the Monitor 7s. They have the SL2500 so the upgrade would be the RDO-198 right?

westmassguy

Jimbo18 wrote: »

I looked at photos online and thought they looked like SL2000 but then pulled one and checked the sticker on the back to be sure.

And yeah, I probably shouldn't have sold them so quickly, but I have really been hoping to at least hear the Peerless tweets and it was a quick easy $50. They come up pretty often around here, it seems, so I am sure I will find another pair sometime. If not, I will put some money into the upgrades for the Monitor 7s. They have the SL2500 so the upgrade would be the RDO-198 right?

If originally equipped with SL2500, or SL3000, the RDO-198 is the correct replacement.
The RDO-194 is the correct replacement for the SL1000, and SL2000.
There is no Polk replacement for the Peerles

DON73

The stands alone are worth more than the $50 profit. I've never seen 10s in that condition go for less than $300. I doubt that you would have heard significant difference in the sound that would make trading worth your time. The RDO tweeters are good and they can be installed in a few minutes. I have a pair of 10s playing vinyl right now hooked up to a 35 watt tube amp and they sound wonderful. The 7s are good.

Jimbo18

DON73 wrote: »

The stands alone are worth more than the $50 profit. I've never seen 10s in that condition go for less than $300. I doubt that you would have heard significant difference in the sound that would make trading worth your time. The RDO tweeters are good and they can be installed in a few minutes. I have a pair of 10s playing vinyl right now hooked up to a 35 watt tube amp and they sound wonderful. The 7s are good.

Now you tell me . The guy I sold them to said he would be using a 35 watt tube amp on them, btw.

Good to know about the lack of difference in the sound between them and Peerless. I won't be so picky next time because I did think they sounded good.

One thing that concerns me about upgrading to RDO, aren't they larger and require some enlargement of the opening? Not sure I want to mess with the cabinets since I really have no woodworking skills. Refinishing and painting yes, but woodworking tools and knowledge, absolutely not.

westmassguy

Jimbo18 wrote: »

Now you tell me . The guy I sold them to said he would be using a 35 watt tube amp on them, btw.

Good to know about the lack of difference in the sound between them and Peerless. I won't be so picky next time because I did think they sounded good.

One thing that concerns me about upgrading to RDO, aren't they larger and require some enlargement of the opening? Not sure I want to mess with the cabinets since I really have no woodworking skills. Refinishing and painting yes, but woodworking tools and knowledge, absolutely not.

The RDO-194 is a drop-in replacement for the Sl2000, Same for the RDO-198 and the Sl2500, and Sl3000. No modifications needed.
The SL1000 has a different cut-out, and requires modification

Jimbo18

westmassguy wrote: »

The RDO-194 is a drop-in replacement for the Sl2000, Same for the RDO-198 and the Sl2500, and Sl3000. No modifications needed.
The SL1000 has a different cut-out, and requires modification

Thanks for the info. That will make it a lot easier. I will have to start the upgrade on the Monitor 7s to the RDO 198 which I have read on here makes a big difference.

DON73

I think the Monitor 7s are excellent speakers. I have two pairs and one has had the crossovers rebuilt by a forum member and the tweeters have been replaced. I'm not sure the tweeter upgrade was worth the investment. I had to open the opening just a bit with a dremmel but it was easy overall. The other set is a pair of all wood light oak veneer with short grilles that I haven't done any restoring to and they sound very good. The bass doesn't seem quite as deep as the 10s but it's very tight. I also have 5s which sound nice and some 5jrs that are less open than the 5s to my ears. The little RT5s are very nice easy to listen to for classical music played at home listening levels.
For LOUD I have B$W 801s and a 250 watt amp but very loud to me is 95 decibles

Jimbo18

DON73 wrote: »

I think the Monitor 7s are excellent speakers. I have two pairs and one has had the crossovers rebuilt by a forum member and the tweeters have been replaced. I'm not sure the tweeter upgrade was worth the investment. I had to open the opening just a bit with a dremmel but it was easy overall. The other set is a pair of all wood light oak veneer with short grilles that I haven't done any restoring to and they sound very good. The bass doesn't seem quite as deep as the 10s but it's very tight. I also have 5s which sound nice and some 5jrs that are less open than the 5s to my ears. The little RT5s are very nice easy to listen to for classical music played at home listening levels.
For LOUD I have B$W 801s and a 250 watt amp but very loud to me is 95 decibles

So you would recommend spending the money on upgrading the caps before getting new tweeters? I wondered which would give the biggest return for the investment.

StantonZ

Jimbo18 wrote: »

So you would recommend spending the money on upgrading the caps before getting new tweeters? I wondered which would give the biggest return for the investment.

Considering the cost of replacing tweeters is about half the cost of rebuilding the crossovers (not to mention the labor--or risk--depending on your level of expertise), I would say do the tweeters first. That's what I did, and they sound so good I'm not even thinking about rebuilding the crossovers at this time.

DON73

I would listen to them as they are now and decide if there is something about the sound I didn't like before I did anything. If you already know that the sound of the tweeters is fatiguing or irritating then I'd replace them first. The crossovers appear to be an easy repair if you're handy with a soldering iron. I'm not a huge fan of recapping but it can open up the highs some and some here have noticed a big improvement in the bass. In either case the tweeters are almost a drop in job that should be very easy for you to do in just a few minutes.
There are a few members here that can do this for you at a reasonable cost. Good luck and let us know what you do and how you like the sound afterwards. Regards Don.

OldmanSRS

Congrats. That's a good price for 10's with the stands. I paid $75 for my 10A's with the Peerless tweets, great shape, without stands. I use them with a sub crossed at 30 Hz. Great for dance and jazz.

Blacksoldier

Good find, I just got some 10B's on CL a few weeks ago for $20. Pretty beat up with a few frozen drivers, but I am in the process of restoring them with new veneer, recapping, as well as attempting to fix the frozen drivers. I may try to make some stands as well after.