back with my 10's

polklifer

Hello to all, I am new to this forum, but not new to Polk speakers. I acquired my first set of Polks in 1983......monitor 10's. I have literally had a couple of hundred pairs of speakers over the last 30 years..

Yesterday I bought a mint pair of monitor 10s in their original boxes and plastic for $150

They have the silver coil dome tweeters, pretty airy and crisp, maybe a bit too much. I have been listening to a set of DIY speakers I made a few years ago, they feature Aurim Cantis G2 ribbon tweeters, and a 5 1/2" Aruim Cantis woofer. These seem really laid back compared to the 10's...

Then I compare the 10 with my Klipsch Chorus II with modified xovers, tweeter and mid replacements, cabinet work...using an Adcom GFA 5500...man the Polk 10 just crucified the Klipsch in my room, I have got the Kilpsch ready to be sold this afternnoon..:) Horns just give me a headache..

I seem to have come full circle in my audio/speaker journey...back to what I like best! Model 10s.

That being said, could you all give me a little direction as to tweeter mods...and crossover rebuilds? I am certainly qualified to build/rebuild crossovers, and it would seem that the 10's xover is pretty basic....lends itself to excellent crossover components for sure...
I wish I had survived the last 25 years as well as these speakers, man the plastic bags are still folded up in the box with the manual, as perfect as you can find.

Thank you all

TNHNDYMAN

Welcome to Club Polk. 10's were my first good speaker and still have a pair. The upgrades are easy and numerous. Do some searches of multiple threads here.

Crossover- SonicCap's and Mills resistors

Drivers- Dynamat the baskets, glue the magnets, armacell or ToolFans rings around the flange for better seal.

Cabinet- check for airtightness- gently press on the passive radiator and wait for the drivers to slowly reseat in the cabs, if the move back rather quickly then you can reseal the corners of the inside of the cabinet.

Tweeters- replace with RDO194's from Polk directly and mention you are a CP member for discount. About 60 a pair I think.

Upgrade the binding posts to some nice Vampires or Cardas 5 way post.

Diet- feed them some nice clean power 150-200 watts of adcom, parasound, rotel, B &K, ect...

They can be transformed into a truly amazing speaker for well under $500.

westmassguy

Hi polklifer, and welcome to Club Polk. There's plenty of info here in the forums for mods to the Monitor 10s. I've done several my self. The schematics for your 10s are posted at the top of this forum. The crossovers should be re-capped, with your favorite brand, Sonicaps and Clarity ESAs are popular here. Replace the Sand-Cast Resistors with Mills MRA-12s, or Mundorf Mox, Eliminate the Polyswitch with a .5 ohm resistor. There's also a "TL" mod, so you can use the awesome Polk RDO-198-1 Tweeters, otherwise the RDO-194-1 Tweeters are drop-in replacement for the Silver Coil SL2000s. Replace the Polk binding posts with better quality posts. The drivers and PRs should be Dynamatted, and the magnet assemblies on the woofers re-glued. The sheet metal screws can be replaced with "Larry's Rings" AKA toolfan, and machine screws, or Hurricane Nuts and Machine or Cap screws. If the gaskets are in good shape, they can be re-used, or you can replace them with Armaflex tape. The internal batting should be repositioned and secured in place. Some also install Blackhole 5 behind the Dacron. New, Premium Grill Cloth might be in order as well.
Here's a pair of 10s I did a while back: http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?149215-Monitor-10-Rebuild-with-quot-TL-quot-Mod
Welcome to the Rabbit Hole

polklifer

-Thank you so very much for the info....man, what a read!! I came up with one question: it would seem that the preferred tweeter is the RDO-198-1, what are the differences between it and the RDO-194-1? The crossover mods are awesome!

westmassguy

Thanks. The 194 was designed as a drop-in replacement for the SL2000s. The 198 was designed as a drop-in replacement for the later SL2500s and SL3000s. They have different electrical characteristics, so they're not interchangeable. The 194 is a very fine tweeter and much better sounding than the SL2000. The 198 is similar, but has more detail, and a better sound than the 194s.

drumminman

Welcome to CP!

The guys gave very good advice. I would stress adding 4" wide strips of Black Hole 5 horizontally on the back wall directly behind the MW's. Really clarifies the mid range.

halo71

Got pics of the DIY's?

Love me some Monitor 10's! Listening to Sting right now on a pair. RDO tweet upgrades or next on the list though. Or maybe the Peerless.

westmassguy

drumminman wrote: »

Welcome to CP!

The guys gave very good advice. I would stress adding 4" wide strips of Black Hole 5 horizontally on the back wall directly behind the MW's. Really clarifies the mid range.

drumminman, there's a center divider on the 10s. The Blackhole would have to be vertical strips I believe.

drumminman

I wouldn't think that the BH has to be continuous strips. My RTA 12C's has a center divider in the cabinet and that's how I placed it - two 4" wide strips, onebehind each MW.

polklifer

Hi all, just want to thank you all for such wonderful advice on restoring the Polk 10's. I have been listening to them all week, and I like what I hear without mods...so far anyways, I am unsure of investing any cabbage into them though....jury is still out on that one..

today I go and listen to a set of SRS 3.1 TL, I am trying to get them for under $400, but doubt it because the seller has made improvements to the caps, xovers, but hasn't replaced the tweeters yet. I am only familiar with the 1st and 2nd gen SDA, so this will be a treat.

I am liking the Polks after years of hi-dollar boutique crap, real performance, real response...amazing how in stock form the Monitor 10 literally kicked the Klipsch out of the house as well..:)

You guys are the best! I have experienced other forums, and was pretty disgusted at the whole thing, but this is awesome in every way!!

Will post results as I obtain them...

westmassguy

Lots of good knowledgeable people here, with a passion for good sound. Keep in mind, this forum is owned and operated by Polk, so flaming, and excessively rude behavior is not tolerated. The moderators are fair, but swift with the knife when required.

TNHNDYMAN

^ I think $400 is a great price for 3.1TL's... you are in for a treat. Make sure they have the SDA cable connecting them, and if you get them you will need a common ground amp. ASK ?'s here 1st before causing problems with the SDA's. I'm not sure if your Adcom 5500 is common ground. Anyone able to confirm for OP?

polklifer

Well, after listening to the 10's on multiple sources and music formats, these rock like no others...I have ordered my caps, resistors, dynamat and a pair of RDO-198 tweets to complete the order. I want to peel the laminate off and veneer with some unusual wood..

I was convinced when I listened to Herbie Hancock "Future Shock"...I like the bass guitar/synth combos that really rip at volume

what fun, thanks!

I will start a new thread when I get the SDA SRA 3.1 TL home later today...what great times these are...:)

westmassguy

polklifer wrote: »

Well, after listening to the 10's on multiple sources and music formats, these rock like no others...I have ordered my caps, resistors, dynamat and a pair of RDO-198 tweets to complete the order. I want to peel the laminate off and veneer with some unusual wood..

I was convinced when I listened to Herbie Hancock "Future Shock"...I like the bass guitar/synth combos that really rip at volume

what fun, thanks!

I will start a new thread when I get the SDA SRA 3.1 TL home later today...what great times these are...:)

If the vinyl is intact, there's no need to remove it. The PSA Backed Veneers will adhere extremely well to it. You just need to clean it, and make sure any wax that's present is removed. Clean with Fantastic or 409 to remove dirt first, then wipe it down with denatured alcohol to strip any remaining wax off.

Msabot1

Bought my 10b's in 84 or so...still have them still...they have endured through the years..still put other more higher end ones to shame too...never had a reason to get rid of them.. Doubt if I ever will...

j1mmy

I'm a 10b owner too! Congrats!

cristo

Still use my 10a Polks daily. "Upgraded" the Peerless to the clear ones, then went back to the original Peerless tweeters,
then upgraded the caps and resistors in the crossover. They're still going strong.
Polk 6.5 " components in my MINI Cooper's front doors as well.