New to the forum, not so new to the hobby!

jhaan92

Hello folks - been a member of Audiokarma for years now, but never joined the Polk site as I didn't own anything from Polk.

I happened on a great deal on a set of Polk 3.1tl loudspeakers almost a year ago. I previously owned a set of family owned Walsh 2s that somebody (who will remain nameless) did not appreciate and burned up the drivers on. They got completely restored and put back into use.

Got into this hobby from Dad, who was one of those people who understood quality sound and knew what sounded good. He happened to have a co-worker who had bought the Polk speakers brand new (as well as a hefty stack of NAD gear) and was powering these beasts with two NAD 2600 amps. Guy decided that he just didn't want the gear anymore (don't think he was really into this hobby - it was just cool looking), and met with my Dad and the deal was made to buy all of it for a whopping 300 bucks. Talk about a steal!

Well, Dad didn't have the room for these monster's, and the Walsh speakers didn't fit my listening room or music taste (mostly classic rock) very well, so we ended up doing a straight trade. I got the chance to audition them for a few months before making up my mind. They came with the transformer, the interconnect cable, and the original owners manual.

Currently they are powered by a re-capped Carver M-1.5t, which provides more than ample power. Eventually I plan on switching to Audio Research tube power (when pigs fly, but a mans gotta dream!). First up is replacing the tweeters with the RDO-198. Then a recap. Then...loud music!





Jason

hochpt21

Very nice looking system!

Welcome to the Club.

danz1906

Welcome!!!

jhaan92

Well, I like the amount of inputs the C-1 has. I was actually thinking about using a dbx 400x switcher and using an Audio Research LS-7 preamp (SS) and backing the upper frequencies with a good 50w RMS tube amp(most likely Audio Research), and the Carver powering the lower freqencies.

Thoughts?

Mike Reeter

You might want to watch how much juice you throw to the tweeter circuit, it's not protected (no poly switch).

The 3.1TL's are an excellent speaker, enjoy the upgrade process, and welcome to CP!

tophatjohnny

nice set up & welcome. A lot of us started in the hobby with vintage Polks, (I know I did) and if it weren't for that and this forum with its members I doubt I'd own the amazing sounding rig I now have. Stick around. Thanks for the great pics!

Mikey081057

Sweet rig.... welcome to CP!

mhardy6647

hiya ;-)

drumminman

Welcome to CP Jason! I agree with Dskip, a tube linestage or pre would improve things. You're definitely on the right track with your mods.

I also recommend building your own Dreadnought iso tranny. It's a beefed up, higher quality version of the one polk offered so the SDA's could be used with non common ground amps. The custom made version improves the sq even with common ground amps like your Carver. Do a search for Dreadnought (Darque Knight was the guy who posted the how to).

jhaan92

Except make my ears bleed....

EndersShadow

So here are a couple thoughts.

Firstly, that equipment rack is filled with some really nice gear. I am jealous.

Now I cant speak to SDA's cause well, I dont own any. So I will tell you that you own one of the more rare of the versions out there and one that lots of folk tend to really like. They are well worth modifying.

Secondly, one thing I do know fairly well, is Carver gear. Your Carver gear is good stuff, but its long in the tooth. That doesnt mean its not worth keeping, simply that like a 69 Vette thats never been touched, your overdue for some maintenance to help that gear really sound like it should.

Their are a BUNCH of modifications that can be done to the Carver C-1 and take it to a whole new level. The M1.5t if it hasnt been touched is PAST DUE for a recap. My M1.0t amp has a date of 1987 on the transformer, and your 1.5t is likely around that same age.

The C-1 Modifications are various and normally called BillD mods (named for the late great, forum member BillD who started doing them). They involve replacing aging capacitors with better ones, there is a modification to add a remote volume control, a mod to make the phono inputs MUCH better, etc.

All of the information (free of charge IIRC, or for a very small fee) is available on TheCarverSite's forum. If your handy with a solder iron, you can likely do it all yourself, and their are detailed parts listings for EVERYTHING you would need. If your not, you may find a person or two who will help you out but for some sort of small labor charge (or maybe not at all, but dont want to get your hopes up) + parts cost.

Doing those 2 things will SIGNIFICANTLY help your sound as the parts in those Carvers are due for a refresh to really sound their best.

jhaan92

Yes, the ears bleeding line was in good humor. Only pair of speakers I ever actively abused were a set of very beat up Bose 501s .

I am indeed familiar with the BillD mods (god rest his soul - he was a legend), just haven't gotten to them yet...got a kid due this Saturday, so been spending much time between the missus and work. Been a member of the Carver Site for 6 years or so now. Great wealth of information on anything Bob Carver ever dreamed into existence!

The M-1.5t has received it's updates, including the replacement board from Les at Circuits & Concepts, as well as a set of Cornell-Dublier high voltage power supply caps to replace the original Sprague ones.

All of the Pioneer equipment has been taken care of as well, with the notable exception of the calibration settings on the CT-F1250. I'm just waiting on a calibration tape to come in from New Zealand so I can wrap that up.

I don't usually get past 10-20w RMS, but there are days when you just gotta lean into "Come Sail Away", or some song like that, and I would be lying if I didn't say I wasn't using 50-75 watts RMS (best guess there, lol!), somewhere in that neighborhood. I was more or less looking to make sure I had ample dynamic headroom for musical transients.

This rig has been in the works for about 15 years, and is pretty close to being completed. This is the 4th set of speakers mated to this stereo. They were the only ones I thought offered the overall sound I was looking for, and are accepting of musical transients. The Walshs were good, but the bottom end was very thin. The Magnepans has the same issue, but better top end. The ADS L710s were the close second, still a little light in the bottom end though (albeit a cleaner/snappy bottom end response), but let's face it - the Polks simply look cooler, and I preferred using the passive SDA technology vs. a Lexicon CP-1 to achieve the same results with interaural crosstalk cancellation.

I tend to do most electronic repairs myself, but I have been known on occasion to get in over my head and call upon a couple guys I know who have been working on electronics way longer than I have to get things fixed.

Had no idea how rare these speakers really were (nor did Dad) until after he bought them. Thought about parting with them for a set of 2.3s, but I certainly appreciate being able to usually move them by myself, and other Polk enthusiasts have told me that it isn't a night and day difference to switch to the bigger model, so I decided to keep them.



-Jason

jhaan92

I actually picked off the Carver gear from the local Craigslist. Original owner, manuals, boxes, sales recipts, detailed map to locate Jimmy Hoffa's body...just kidding on that last one!

Got M-1.5t, the C-1, the DTL-200MK2, and the TX-11a for an extremely good deal. Gave Dad the tuner for his garage rig (where no cars get parked, it has A/C, and a fridge filled with good beer!) as I already had the Pioneer and didn't need it.

Still keeping an eye out for a nice set of Silver 7t mono blocks though - just don't want to pay through the nose for them though.

All of the Pioneer equipment has been family owned and cherished since new. Dad was in the Navy and bought when he was stationed over seas. Sat for many years though, so they all needed work by the time they came into my hands. Burned out bulbs, drifted capacitors, dried out belts. Stuff you'd expect from 40 year old equipment. Makes Dad jealous every time he comes over and sees his reel-to-reel being used - I think that was his favorite piece of equipment.

BlueFox

The reel to reel is still considered by many to be the best music source.

westmassguy

Welcome to CP, and welcome to the "Rabbit Hole". The SRSs are worth every penny you invest in them.

headrott

Love the reel-to-reel deck! Welcome to Club Polk! I first bought a pair of 2B's, then 3.1TL's, then 2.3TL's. There was an improvement in each upgrade. If you can get a pair of 2.3TL's, DO IT! You will not be dissapointed!

EndersShadow

Cool. I too am at Carversite. Unlike you, I have NO SOLDERING skills at all lol. So congrats on that, and also on getting your gear recapped.

More importantly congrats on the upcoming kid.

Whats your username over there outta curiosity?

jhaan92

Same as this site. Ditto for Audiokarma. Found a username that I didn't have to change every time a joined a site.

jhaan92

That reel-to-reel is the RT-909. Dad wanted the auto reverse option. The tuner is a TX-9800, and the turntable is a PL-L1000A. Would love to get my hands on a PL-L1, but the likelihood of ever owning one is less likely than winning the Powerball.

There are some various sound processors in there, like a dbx 3bx III , and an Audiocontrol C -101. Tried to keep sound enhancements light, but still producing a pleasing (IMO) change in sound clarity. The c-101 works great at taming the mid bass on these speakers, which can be a little too rich, depending on what you are listening to.

boston1450

Welcome Jason, Beautiful speakers. Now your father is really gonna wish he kept all that gear i also have the 909 & love it. Good luck with your amp choices