Monitor 10
jimithng23
Posts: 48
Found a deal locally on a pair of Monitor 10's in decent shape.
Peerless tweeters (adv said one didn't work in the cabinet...more on that later) and a few nicks and scuffs on the cabinets but overall in good shape.
I brought 'em home and immediately disconnected my LSi15's from the Adcom GFA-555II and hooked up the M10's. First thing I hear is a rattle coming from the left speaker, as well as a non-functioning tweeter.
Hmmm...
I traced the rattle to the passive radiator. Pulled it out and discovered the spider had separated itself from the basket. No biggie, found a replacement on the bay and away we go. Now on to the tweeter...
I pulled the tweeter, connected the speaker leads directly to the tweeter and *BOOM* it worked just fine so there must be an issue at the x-over. I pulled the PR once again to inspect the x-over and found a few fractures on the plate but nothing that caused any loose connections. Odd... I recall the seller stating he put a new fuse in each speaker. So I inspected the fuse, gave it a spin in the mount, and *BOOM* tweeter started playing.
Can't be an easy fix like that!
So, fast forward to a few nights later and I took some time to set the speakers up properly in my room and give them a good listen with some vinyl. Surprisingly, these lovely speakers took everything that Adcom had, up to the point where I didn't feel comfortable pushing it much further -- the bass was punchy and tight, highs were super smooth, and they just kept rocking.
Very impressed.
I've since upgraded from using my Yamaha AVR as a preamp to a Parasound Halo P5 so I wanted to sit down and have a session with the Monitor 10's...wow. Extremely impressed with what I was hearing from a pair of speakers a few years older than I.
Comparing to the LSi15's I seemed to get a punchier bass from the Monitors but the LSi's would go deeper.
Long story short, due to space, I decided to move the Monitor's on out to the garage and use my Yamaha integrated to drive them. I spend more time in the garage than my listening room so this is a nice upgrade from the garbage RCA bookshelf system I was using out there before!
Last thing before I go...sort of a tangent here -- I recently picked up a Marantz 2270. All original caps (in great shape, believe it or not), LEDs, and case. It is pure mint. I put the 2270 in the bedroom driving some Monitor 40s, taking the place of the Yammy integrated. In all the years I've owned these 40's I've never really enjoyed the sound I got from them...seemed the high's were too hot and I've never been one to use tone controls as I prefer Pure Direct or tone bypass; I want the purest signal possible. That said, this Marantz makes these Monitor 40s sing. Highs are much more controlled and the bass is much stronger and deeper than what I was getting from the Yammy (AX-596). Makes me wonder how the Monitor 10's would perform when driven by the 2270.
Looks like I have some more listening to do! 3 pairs of Polks in the house now, and I'm having difficulty deciding which are my favorites to listen to. Sounds like a pretty good problem to have!
Peerless tweeters (adv said one didn't work in the cabinet...more on that later) and a few nicks and scuffs on the cabinets but overall in good shape.
I brought 'em home and immediately disconnected my LSi15's from the Adcom GFA-555II and hooked up the M10's. First thing I hear is a rattle coming from the left speaker, as well as a non-functioning tweeter.
Hmmm...
I traced the rattle to the passive radiator. Pulled it out and discovered the spider had separated itself from the basket. No biggie, found a replacement on the bay and away we go. Now on to the tweeter...
I pulled the tweeter, connected the speaker leads directly to the tweeter and *BOOM* it worked just fine so there must be an issue at the x-over. I pulled the PR once again to inspect the x-over and found a few fractures on the plate but nothing that caused any loose connections. Odd... I recall the seller stating he put a new fuse in each speaker. So I inspected the fuse, gave it a spin in the mount, and *BOOM* tweeter started playing.
Can't be an easy fix like that!
So, fast forward to a few nights later and I took some time to set the speakers up properly in my room and give them a good listen with some vinyl. Surprisingly, these lovely speakers took everything that Adcom had, up to the point where I didn't feel comfortable pushing it much further -- the bass was punchy and tight, highs were super smooth, and they just kept rocking.
Very impressed.
I've since upgraded from using my Yamaha AVR as a preamp to a Parasound Halo P5 so I wanted to sit down and have a session with the Monitor 10's...wow. Extremely impressed with what I was hearing from a pair of speakers a few years older than I.
Comparing to the LSi15's I seemed to get a punchier bass from the Monitors but the LSi's would go deeper.
Long story short, due to space, I decided to move the Monitor's on out to the garage and use my Yamaha integrated to drive them. I spend more time in the garage than my listening room so this is a nice upgrade from the garbage RCA bookshelf system I was using out there before!
Last thing before I go...sort of a tangent here -- I recently picked up a Marantz 2270. All original caps (in great shape, believe it or not), LEDs, and case. It is pure mint. I put the 2270 in the bedroom driving some Monitor 40s, taking the place of the Yammy integrated. In all the years I've owned these 40's I've never really enjoyed the sound I got from them...seemed the high's were too hot and I've never been one to use tone controls as I prefer Pure Direct or tone bypass; I want the purest signal possible. That said, this Marantz makes these Monitor 40s sing. Highs are much more controlled and the bass is much stronger and deeper than what I was getting from the Yammy (AX-596). Makes me wonder how the Monitor 10's would perform when driven by the 2270.
Looks like I have some more listening to do! 3 pairs of Polks in the house now, and I'm having difficulty deciding which are my favorites to listen to. Sounds like a pretty good problem to have!
Jeff Rowland CAPRI | Yamaha RX-V3800 | Jeff Rowland Model 6 Mono Blocs | Technics SL1200 MKII | Shure V15VxMR w/ JICO Stylus | Sony SCD-XA5400ES | Monster HTS 2600 | Polk Audio LSi 15 w/VR3 Fortress Mod | REL T/9 x2
Comments
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Congrats. Monitor 10s are great speakers, especially with the Peerless tweeters.
Monitor 10s are also a great match with vintage Marantz 22xx receivers (such as your 2270) as well as with vintage Yamaha CR series receivers. I have a pair of Monitor 10As matched to a Yamaha CR 2020 receiver and there is great synergy there!
You definitely should hook your Marantz 2270 to your Monitor 10s.
The sound will be fantastic! -
Have to agree!
When I run my 10As it's always on a Marantz 2265 and your 2270 is supposed to be even better. Fantastic synergy between those vintage Marantz and M-10s.
Enjoy!Currently orbiting Bowie's Blackstar.!
Polk Lsi-7s, Def Tech 8" sub, HK 3490, HK HD 990 (CDP/DAC), AKG Q701s
[sig. changed on a monthly basis as I rotate in and out of my stash] -
Only problem with running the 2270 on the M10's is the location -- my garage tends to gather dust rather quickly and I'm not sure I want to put this receiver in that environment.Jeff Rowland CAPRI | Yamaha RX-V3800 | Jeff Rowland Model 6 Mono Blocs | Technics SL1200 MKII | Shure V15VxMR w/ JICO Stylus | Sony SCD-XA5400ES | Monster HTS 2600 | Polk Audio LSi 15 w/VR3 Fortress Mod | REL T/9 x2
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jimithng23 wrote: »I pulled the tweeter, connected the speaker leads directly to the tweeter and *BOOM*
Damn, way to scare a guy. As soon as I read *BOOM* I thought "Oh no, he blew the tweeter, why didn't you turn the all the way down and check the volume knob first?!"
It's always nice when you get something for cheaper because the buyer thinks it needs serious work and ends up being easy fixes.afterburnt wrote: »They didn't speak a word of English, they were from South Carolina.
Village Idiot of Club Polk -
Damn, way to scare a guy. As soon as I read *BOOM* I thought "Oh no, he blew the tweeter, why didn't you turn the all the way down and check the volume knob first?!"
It's always nice when you get something for cheaper because the buyer thinks it needs serious work and ends up being easy fixes.
Ha! Sorry about that!
Funny thing is, the seller knew what he had and he was seriously bummed with the tweeter situation as he was led to believe the speakers were in perfect operating condition when he purchased them. He believed it was a crossover issue and didn't want to mess with it. The guy had piles of vintage gear in his garage so I know he knew the quality of what he had, just didn't want to put the time in and passed along a great deal to me.
Win-win for everyone.
I switched it up a bit last night and spent about 2 hours with Wes Montgomery on the M10s. They really enjoy jazz reproduction, and I enjoyed their presentation of said material.
Jeff Rowland CAPRI | Yamaha RX-V3800 | Jeff Rowland Model 6 Mono Blocs | Technics SL1200 MKII | Shure V15VxMR w/ JICO Stylus | Sony SCD-XA5400ES | Monster HTS 2600 | Polk Audio LSi 15 w/VR3 Fortress Mod | REL T/9 x2 -
Congrats on the 10's, I have a pair of 10's and so far they are still my favorite speakers! I love listening to vinyl thru them with my Vincent gear!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
