Polk Audio Monitor 10 restoration

rviloria07

I just want to share the restoration I made. Backstory, an older gentleman gave me his most treasured Monitor 10s from when he was a teenager in the 70's. He asked me to promise not to sell them. I was dissappointed in the condition, I didn't even bother to listen to them. Needless to say, I thought it would be fun to restore them. Well lo and behold, its everything I hope it would be and more. Not only they look good but also sound amazing. I want to thank the people are Version 3 Audio for the very superb quality work they did on the crossover network. I'm the sound has a lot to do with the caps upgrade. I highly recommend them.

Nightfall

Are those the midwest Peerless clone tweeters?

rviloria07

Yes, those are midwest speaker Peerless replicas. It's a perfect drop in as I started with an older version of the Monitor 10. I am contemplating substituting in RDO-198. Just not sure how much further I would need to drill a hole. As it is, they look nice.

msg

I don't know much about these ones - are those cabs real wood?
the green's kinda fun. do you still have the grills too, and did you rework them?
are those the original drivers? everything seems to have cleaned up nicely, nice work.

rviloria07

Originally they were covered with vinyl laminate, plastic. I stripped those using a heating gun then after covered the cabs with real wood veneer. I highly recommend this. Now they look and feel like real wood. By the way, the wood veneer I used is a strip and stick type. The back of the veneer already has a 3M glue on it. Cut the veneer slightly larger than the substrate then cut along the edge with a sharp knife.

rviloria07

There's this Japanese guy upgrading JBL's, that's where I got the green inspiration. He uses mostly blues and purples. The grills are but gone, they literally crumbled as I touched them. I never listen with grills on anyway. All drivers are new, polk still supplies them. The crossover ugrade is by Version 3 Audio.

Conradicles

Very nice! Great job!

Nightfall

I'm not a fan of the green but you did a great job!

OldSchoolPolk

When I first saw the green w/ taped edges I thought WTF?? But the finished pair look great!

Reminds me of the Rega decks and the wonderful colors available.

msg

is the veneer easy to cut with a utility knife or something?
I read a tutorial of similar several months ago, but the guy who wrote it up wasn't using 3M backed veneer, just straight wood veneer, so he was using some glue and iron method. it was interesting, but looked seriously involved, so I just bookmarked it and moved on (http://bit.ly/1FASjrC). you got some really nice results here.

do you still have the grills? if the frames are still okay, you can get new cloth. wasn't sure whether you were meaning the cloth disintegrated or the frames themselves.

ah, are these the crossovers Trey details here? - http://bit.ly/1FAR7EL
very nice.

do you have them on stands?
I remember when I first got my M10's, I was only moderately impressed, but wasn't particularly in love with them. I got them as part of a package deal; in fact, tried to pass on them initially, since was really only after the amplifier in that package. and they smelled slightly of cat piss. haha.

once I set them up for 2ch in a better listening space, they really began to grow on me, and now I really enjoy them. I'd like to get some proper stands for them at some point.

rviloria07

@Msg, yes the veneer was easy to cut with a utility knife but make sure to have thicker, sturdier blades, available at your local Home Depot or Lowes. Parts Express also sells an edge cutter. I reckon those will be even better. I didn't bother, I couldn't wait to get started once I had the veneer.

As far as the grill, the previous owner must have had them stored in a damp area because the grill frame crumbled as I touched them. Again, Parts Express sells do it yourself frames and grill cloth. I could easily make one, but why cover? It is prettier to look at without covers on.

Yes, they came with the original stands. However, I prefer my speakers higher. i found a vendor on ebay that makes customs stands. He's making me one about a foot high. I think he's handle is sydfree.

@OldSchoolPolk, about the green, when I saw the japanese dude doing colors, I thought why not? Why go with boring black? The guy was doing blues and purples and I didn't want to outright copy the guy, so I went with green. The idea is to pick a color that would match the veneer and highlight the drivers. I think I've accomplished that. I walk into my room and my eyes just go straight at them. My friends haven't seen them yet, but I'm sure they'll have the same reaction

Nightfall

I spy Martin Logans?

rviloria07

@nightfall Yes, it's Martin Logan Aerius, which might be for sale soon

Faustin

Very nicely done. I have re-veneered 2 sets of Polks with the adhesive backed veneer and it is really rewarding to see the finished product. Have a set of Peerless M7's to do next......when I have time!

rviloria07

@Faustin Thanks. I agree, real wood veneer looks and feels more solid, way much better than vinyl. Hard work but worth it.

TCK

Nice. I have my 10s on some fruit crates exactly 12" & can confirm they sound great. Thanks for the info on the peel & stick veneer, sounds like a possible route for me also.

VR3

These turned out great!

Thank you again

rviloria07

@VR3, you're the best man. Quality product and service through and through. Couldn't be happier with the result. I listen to a lot of acoustic, singer songwriter type music and they just sound so alive and real in the room, like the band is playing in front of you, which is what many of us audiophiles strive for, the recreation or semblance of live music.

msg

I listen to similar stuff. curious to hear what else you're running in that rig.

bryantspaint

Yes proper stands help because the original stands angle the speaker a little up in the front.

rviloria07

@msg I'm running an upgraded Counterpoint 5.1 tube preamp with a 250 watts Musical Fidelity, A5 I believe. For source, I have a VPI Classic turntable and an Oppo Bluray player. I have never had an all tube system, so for my next purchase, I might get a tube amp.

msg

Excellent. That must sound fantastic. I'm growing more curious about the MF stuff. Another member just recently nabbed the M6si.

Which tube amps are you considering? Anything particular in mind yet?

Curious, which Oppo? I've had one of those on my list for about a year.

How about cables? Doing anything special there?

rviloria07

@msg I'm considering Quicksilver Mid Mono's or build my own with one of those DIY Dynacos. The Oppo I have is an old one, their first bluray I think, something 83. Sorry, I'm not at home right now. I plan on getting a DAC and use it as a transport but as is, the sonic is not bad. For cables, for interconnects all Tara Labs Reference and for the speaker cables, I'm using Monster Cable 2.4.

TCK

bryantspaint wrote: »

Yes proper stands help because the original stands angle the speaker a little up in the front.

Yes true, but then I can't put my lava lamp, cd cases & stuff on em

vinylsnoot

Beautiful. I'm a little confused by the crossover & new terminals. Does the new plate mount over the old terminal cup?

Braddles63

Great retro look. Couldn't help but notice that the screws on the drivers are distorting the rubber surrounds. You might want to trim the rubber so the screws don't grab hold of the rubber when you tighten them.

VR3

vinylsnoot wrote: »

Beautiful. I'm a little confused by the crossover & new terminals. Does the new plate mount over the old terminal cup?

The stock crossovers are mounted on the inside, threading the input wires through the terminal cut out. Machine bolts are inserted into the mounting holes, the terminal cup is then plugged up via the input wires, mounting holes aligned to the bolts then secured with acorn nuts. WA LA!

Simplyrandom

Hey the mid drivers all look new. Did you replace the originals with MW6503's ?

rviloria07

Simplyrandom wrote: »

Hey the mid drivers all look new. Did you replace the originals with MW6503's ?

Yes the mid drivers are all new and they are indeed the MW6503's.

rviloria07

Braddles63 wrote: »

Great retro look. Couldn't help but notice that the screws on the drivers are distorting the rubber surrounds. You might want to trim the rubber so the screws don't grab hold of the rubber when you tighten them.

Yes, I did go back and trim a little bit of rubber around the screws.

rviloria07

VR3 wrote: »

vinylsnoot wrote: »

Beautiful. I'm a little confused by the crossover & new terminals. Does the new plate mount over the old terminal cup?

The stock crossovers are mounted on the inside, threading the input wires through the terminal cut out. Machine bolts are inserted into the mounting holes, the terminal cup is then plugged up via the input wires, mounting holes aligned to the bolts then secured with acorn nuts. WA LA!

First must drill the original holes all the way through. Also had to use a slightly larger bit to fit the bolts.