Monitor 4's are real sleepers

johnda
johnda Posts: 13
edited June 2014 in Vintage Speakers
My Polk Monitor 30's and PSW 10 sub-woofer have been given to my son-in-law. I loved them but the room was converted to a full bedroom. My living room system had to say hidden when not in use, so the system resided inside my credenza,. The speakers were small AR215PS speakers. I happened to visit a local garage sale and came across a pair of Monitor 4's. 35 dollars later I had them and they replaced the ARs. They were just able to fit in my credenza along with my Yamaha R-S201 receiver and Grace Internet
Radio.

I think that they may have been in storage for a long time because I needed to break them in for a bit, but now they SING! I just
Cannot get over how good they sound, smooth, clear with full response. They look to be in showroom condition and I don't intend
To mess with them. I just wish I knew more about them like when they were made, their impedance and stats. Serial numbers are :

On a metal plate indicating they are model 4, serial 4 55xxxx. I think they are using the French made tweeter. They are among the nicest speakers I have heard in my over 50 years of dealing with stereo and that is saying a lot!
Polk Monitor 4
Post edited by johnda on
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Comments

  • xjghost
    xjghost Posts: 1,101
    edited May 2014
    Sweet find!
    HT/2Channel: Emotiva MMC-1, Adcom GFA-555II, Polk SDA 3.1's, Teac TN-300 TT, Polk Center and Sub.

    Bedroom system: Carver CT-24, Parasound HCA-800II, Monitor 10's

    Additional projects: RTA 12c's
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  • Nightfall
    Nightfall Posts: 10,086
    edited May 2014
    Do you mean Danish made tweeter, like this one?

    images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTm9k7rBrFNoGidAJ8kHh8v6W10IG4LAlDNDo5jJ6p5qKSoqhvamg

    ...or do you have one of these:

    Polk_Monitor_4_Stereo_Speakers_web.jpg

    429_2_big.jpg
    afterburnt wrote: »
    They didn't speak a word of English, they were from South Carolina.

    Village Idiot of Club Polk
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  • johnda
    johnda Posts: 13
    edited May 2014
    The middle one with the tweeter that has the three pronged cover.
    Polk Monitor 4
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  • drumiv
    drumiv Posts: 171
    edited May 2014
    johnda wrote: »
    The middle one with the tweeter that has the three pronged cover.
    I've got 2 sets of these speakers and had the same reaction; they're really nice-sounding speakers. They won't replace my SRS's,but....
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  • boston1450
    boston1450 Posts: 7,639
    edited May 2014
    Congrats. They are an amazing speaker
    ..
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  • xjghost
    xjghost Posts: 1,101
    edited May 2014
    So a good speaker to look out for to build a 2 channel system for my twin 16 year old boys? I want something that they can use in their bedroom and then in college and not be something that if it gets broken want make me cry!
    HT/2Channel: Emotiva MMC-1, Adcom GFA-555II, Polk SDA 3.1's, Teac TN-300 TT, Polk Center and Sub.

    Bedroom system: Carver CT-24, Parasound HCA-800II, Monitor 10's

    Additional projects: RTA 12c's
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  • johnda
    johnda Posts: 13
    edited May 2014
    What is really nice is the woofer does not have foam issues and the components of the crossover network are decent parts. Yep, they are worth looking into!
    Polk Monitor 4
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,554
    edited May 2014
    Don't kid yourself, the caps and resistors are as average as it gets.
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."

    President of Club Polk

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  • PolkieMan
    PolkieMan Posts: 2,446
    edited May 2014
    I have 2 sets also they are much better than expected!
    drumiv wrote: »
    I've got 2 sets of these speakers and had the same reaction; they're really nice-sounding speakers. They won't replace my SRS's,but....
    POLK SDA 2.3 TLS BOUGHT NEW IN 1990, Gimpod/Sonic Caps/Mills RDO-198
    POLK CSI-A6 POLK MONITOR 70'S ONKYO TX NR-808 SONY CDP-333ES
    PIONEER PL-510A SONY BDP S5100
    POLK SDA 1C BOUGHT USED 2011,Gimpod/Sonic Caps/Mills RDO-194
    ONKYO HT RC-360 SONY BDP S590 TECHNICS SL BD-1
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  • PolkieMan
    PolkieMan Posts: 2,446
    edited May 2014
    I think a redo on the crossover is something that would improve them a lot.
    F1nut wrote: »
    Don't kid yourself, the caps and resistors are as average as it gets.
    POLK SDA 2.3 TLS BOUGHT NEW IN 1990, Gimpod/Sonic Caps/Mills RDO-198
    POLK CSI-A6 POLK MONITOR 70'S ONKYO TX NR-808 SONY CDP-333ES
    PIONEER PL-510A SONY BDP S5100
    POLK SDA 1C BOUGHT USED 2011,Gimpod/Sonic Caps/Mills RDO-194
    ONKYO HT RC-360 SONY BDP S590 TECHNICS SL BD-1
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  • boston1450
    boston1450 Posts: 7,639
    edited May 2014
    probably why they can be had for 25-40.00 all over the place
    ..
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  • voltz
    voltz Posts: 5,384
    edited May 2014
    I have some series 2 M4's and there nothing like my PSB bookies, but there not to bad, been wondering if a cap upgrade would be worth it to make me want to use them more.
    2 ch- Polk CRS+ * Vincent SA-31MK Preamp * Vincent Sp-331 Amp * Marantz SA8005 SACD * Project Xperience Classic TT * Sumiko Blue Point #2 MC cartridge

    HT - Polk 703's * NAD T-758 * Adcom 5503 * Oppo 103 * Samsung 60" series 8 LCD
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  • drumiv
    drumiv Posts: 171
    edited May 2014
    xjghost wrote: »
    So a good speaker to look out for to build a 2 channel system for my twin 16 year old boys? I want something that they can use in their bedroom and then in college and not be something that if it gets broken want make me cry!
    Definitely. As stated above, they can be had for $50.00 or so. I have mine in the shop, and they always impress.
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  • westmassguy
    westmassguy Posts: 6,850
    edited May 2014
    Great little speakers. The best IMHO, are the originals with the Peerless Tweeters, and the last Polk built, which are the 4.6s, and have SL2500s. The crossovers are easy to rebuild on either, and the 4.6 can be further upgraded with RDO-198-1 Tweeters.
    Home Theater/2 Channel:
    Front: SDA-2ATL forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/143984/my-2as-finally-finished-almost/p1
    Center: Custom Built forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/150760/my-center-channel-project/p1
    Surrounds & Rears: Custom Built forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/151647/my-surround-project/p1
    Sonicaps, Mills, RDO-194s-198s, Dynamat, Hurricane Nuts, Blackhole5
    Pioneer Elite VSX-72TXV, Carver PM-600, SVS PB2-Plus Subwoofer

    dhsspeakerservice.com/
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  • StantonZ
    StantonZ Posts: 444
    edited May 2014
    xjghost wrote: »
    So a good speaker to look out for to build a 2 channel system for my twin 16 year old boys? I want something that they can use in their bedroom and then in college and not be something that if it gets broken want make me cry!

    That's EXACTLY what I did with my 4's that were purchased when I was a Senior in High School. They started out in my bedroom, went to college with me (dorm room and apartment), and I still have them today; they've basically been everywhere I've lived as an adult.
    Yamaha RX-A2050 AVR (5.0.2); LG OLED77C2 4K TV
    (4) Polk Monitor 10B's w/SoniCaps, Mills, and RDO-194 tweets (R/L F/R)
    (2) Polk RC80i (Top Middle)
    Polk CS300 center channel
    Analog: B&O TX2 Turntable, Nakamichi Cassette Deck 1
    Digital: Pioneer CLD-99 Elite LD, Panasonic DMP-UB900 UHD Blu-Ray
    Bedroom: Arylic Up2Stream AMPv3 driving Polk Monitor 4's w/peerless tweets
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  • PolkieMan
    PolkieMan Posts: 2,446
    edited May 2014
    So Mills and Sonicaps are woth it on these? Or maybe just something from Dayton?
    F1nut wrote: »
    Don't kid yourself, the caps and resistors are as average as it gets.
    POLK SDA 2.3 TLS BOUGHT NEW IN 1990, Gimpod/Sonic Caps/Mills RDO-198
    POLK CSI-A6 POLK MONITOR 70'S ONKYO TX NR-808 SONY CDP-333ES
    PIONEER PL-510A SONY BDP S5100
    POLK SDA 1C BOUGHT USED 2011,Gimpod/Sonic Caps/Mills RDO-194
    ONKYO HT RC-360 SONY BDP S590 TECHNICS SL BD-1
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  • westmassguy
    westmassguy Posts: 6,850
    edited June 2014
    PolkieMan wrote: »
    So Mills and Sonicaps are woth it on these? Or maybe just something from Dayton?
    Depends on what they're used for. Dayton, Solen, Clarity PX are inexpensive, and a lot better than what's in there. Mills or Mundorf MOX Resistors are cheap enough. I have 3 pairs of 4.6s that I use in my Home Theater. All were upgraded with Sonicaps and RDOs to match my fronts, so it was worth it to me.
    Home Theater/2 Channel:
    Front: SDA-2ATL forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/143984/my-2as-finally-finished-almost/p1
    Center: Custom Built forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/150760/my-center-channel-project/p1
    Surrounds & Rears: Custom Built forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/151647/my-surround-project/p1
    Sonicaps, Mills, RDO-194s-198s, Dynamat, Hurricane Nuts, Blackhole5
    Pioneer Elite VSX-72TXV, Carver PM-600, SVS PB2-Plus Subwoofer

    dhsspeakerservice.com/
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