Time to Upgrade My 2.3s

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  • verb
    verb Posts: 10,176
    Rrusse11 wrote: »
    verb,
    Nice! Just the kind of helpful detail i need. The hurricane nuts look like the go!
    Better mounts and dynamat have got to help the speakers deliver better sound.
    Nice zebrawood! Thankfully the fabric on my 2.3s is in great shape.

    F1,
    I'm leaning towards keeping the 2.3 "stock", so I'll take your advice and get a set of the RD0194s, should be no problem selling my 198s. Straightforward swap out.
    I'll do the basic upgrades before I worry about getting the crossovers reworked.
    And keep on ugrading the audio sources, the vintage shop where I just got the Carver preamp has some nice gear at fair prices. I need a better CD player next.



    Cheers gents! Any and all input much appreciated!

    You’re very welcome. Everyone on CP has helped me every step of the way!
    Basement: Polk SDA SRS 1.2tl's, Cary SLP-05 Pre with ultimate upgrade,McIntosh MCD301 CD/SACD player, Northstar Designs Excelsio DAC, Cambridge 851N streamer, McIntosh MC300 Amp, Silnote Morpheus Ref2, Series2 Digital Cables, Silnote Morpheus Ref2 Series2 XLR's, Furman 15PFi Power Conditioner, Pangea Power Cables, MIT Shotgun S3 IC's, MIT Shotgun S1 Bi-Wire speaker cables
    Office: PC, EAR Acute CD Player, EAR 834L Pre, Northstar Designs Intenso DAC, Antique Sound Labs AV8 Monoblocks, Denon UDR-F10 Cassette, Acoustic Technologies Classic FR Speakers, SVS SB12 Plus sub, MIT AVt2 speaker cables, IFI Purifier2, AQ Cinnamon USB cable, Groneberg Quatro Reference IC's
    Spare Room: Dayens Ampino Integrated Amp, Tjoeb 99 tube CD player (modified Marantz CD-38), Analysis Plus Oval 9's, Zu Jumpers, AudioEngine B1 Streamer, Klipsch RB-61 v2, SVS PB1000 sub, Blue Jeans RCA IC's, Shunyata Hydra 8 Power Conditioner
    Living Room: Peachtree Nova Integrated, Cambridge CXN v2 Streamer, Rotel RCD-1072 CD player, Furman 15PFi Power Conditioner, Polk RT265 In Wall Speakers, Polk DSW Pro 660wi sub
    Garage #1: Cambridge Audio 640A Integrated Amp, Project Box-E BT Streamer, Polk Tsi200 Bookies, Douglas Speaker Cables, Shunyata Power Conditioner
    Garage #2: Cambridge Audio EVO150 Integrated Amplifier, Polk L200's, Analysis Plus Silver Oval 2 Speaker Cables, IC's TBD.
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  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 25,441
    https://m.ebay.com/itm/Polk-Audio-OEM-RD0194-1-SL2000-1-Dome-Tweeter-for-SDA-RTA-Monitor-Series-Pair/263462816835?_mwBanner=1&ul_ref=https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/e11010.m1951.l7534/7?euid=4d30b174d6b24576a6c41ef6540d8fa5&bu=43087948551&loc=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F263462816835&sojTags=bu=bu&srcrot=e11010.m1951.l7534&rvr_id=0&ul_noapp=true&epid=524010369


    One hour left great deal so far auction is for a pair.

    Get your bid on
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,546
    edited February 2018
    pitdogg2 wrote: »
    F1nut wrote: »
    Those are original 2.3 crossovers, but someone has used the tweeter wiring harness from the 1.2 or 1.2TL.

    I was wondering

    Thinking about this......the wiring harness is more than likely from the 1.2TL, so they could use the SL3000/RD0198. I wonder if these are Strong Bad's 2.3's as I know he installed SL3000's at one point and believe he put RD0198's in later on.

    Rrusse11, who did you buy these from?
    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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  • Rrusse11
    Rrusse11 Posts: 116
    So someone swapped the tweeters, and wires, into mine.
    I'll have to track down where the extra set of wires go.
    .
    I'll talk to Customer Svc about a set of 6 RD0194s.
    SDA SRS 2.3s
    Pair of Carver TFM 35s
    Carver C-1 Preamp
    CAL Icon MkII CD
    RTA 12s, need major work
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  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 25,441
    F1nut wrote: »
    pitdogg2 wrote: »
    F1nut wrote: »
    Those are original 2.3 crossovers, but someone has used the tweeter wiring harness from the 1.2 or 1.2TL.

    I was wondering

    Thinking about this......the wiring harness is more than likely from the 1.2TL, so they could use the SL3000/RD0198. I wonder if these are Strong Bad's 2.3's as I know he installed SL3000's at one point and believe he put RD0198's in later on.

    Rrusse11, who did you buy these from?

    That would make sense on the connectors.
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,546
    Strong Bad confirmed they are not his old ones.
    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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  • Rrusse11
    Rrusse11 Posts: 116
    F1,
    Bought 'em mebbe 4/5 yrs ago on Craigslist near Oxford, PA, SE corner of the state.
    Didn't know much about 'em at the time. I still have the RTA 12s that got me started looking around for Polks. Stumbled on the 2.3s, and after a listen, had to have them.
    I think I paid $700, young chap who sold them to me had a non common ground amp
    that he wanted to use on his main system in his new house.
    Once I got them home, the RTA12s, which need some work, ended up sidelined.
    I'll get the 2.3s done, and dust the 12s off and get them going. From all reports
    they're a good speaker, just not in the same league as the 2.3s.

    pitdogg,
    Yeah, watching that auction, there's a bidding war going on, close to me, so shipping
    is reasonable. But they're fast approaching a retail price level. I might give 'em a snipe at the end.
    SDA SRS 2.3s
    Pair of Carver TFM 35s
    Carver C-1 Preamp
    CAL Icon MkII CD
    RTA 12s, need major work
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  • Rrusse11
    Rrusse11 Posts: 116
    Update:

    Hurricane nuts installed. I found that clipping the nut's backing plate was unnecessary for most of them. I did have a few in the tweeter array where bracing blocks interfered, so I was glad to have found my tin snips. Easier
    than chiselling the block to get clearance. I went with 3/4" & 1" stainless
    pan head machine screws, PE didn't offer much in the way of variety of fastener options. Found some Ebay for a good price. On the PRs, I did resort to some
    additional small washers. To do again I'd be tempted to get the 10-24 size
    to get a larger head, the #8 is a touch small for the PR mounting hole.
    These make a much improved speaker attachment. Several of the original screws
    I had were stripped. With the front of the cabinet sandwiched between the
    speaker mounting flange and the Hnut, it is clearly solidly coupled. Results
    were immediate, and louder.

    I used the Parts-Express Streetwires "Noise Killer Mat" on the speaker baskets.
    Reading the specs vs Dynamat, it appears that they are very similar, if not
    identical products. Well pressed on to the metal surrounds, it works to reduce
    extraneous vibration. A bit time consuming cutting the sheets, but clearly very
    effective. I used 3 of the four 12"x12" doing my 2.3s. I'll get some more, I've got
    my RTA 12s to do yet, and there are my car's wheel wells that would benefit from
    lining. The Passive Radiator basket is probably the worst offender for "ringing",
    after covering, the bass response and definition are much improved.

    I laid a bead of the Loctite "Heavy Duty" adhesive around the magnets, top and bottom, to reinforce the joints. It may not be the greatest metal glue, but as a backup to the factory installation, I'm sure it will make the joint much less likely to come adrift. Tools easily with a wet finger, hardens nicely after 24hrs. Can't hurt, and may save some grief in the long run.

    With Black Hole 5 being unobtanium, I went with the "Sonic Barrier". Clearly,
    from reading the forums here, you can overdo this. I went for 3.5"x24" strips
    behind the 4 driver array, and 3.5"x12" behind the inside pair. Subtle but significant improvement to speaker detail, response, and clarity.

    The last thing I did was to take the Sonic Barrier BDS-15 "door sealer" and bed
    the speakers. I rolled it out to ~ 3/16" diameter, think boot lace, and laid it into
    the junction between the mounting flange and the basket of the speaker. I did remove the old foam tape and scrape the remanants of glue off the flange, which
    was so flattened that I felt it wasn't doing much by this stage. Theory here being to catch the corner of the cabinet hole. Sealing that 90* corner on both edges.
    Less is more, and careful torquing of the speaker fasteners keeps the metal flange solidly in contact with the "wood" of the front baffle. Again, without the Hnuts, you'd never be able to fully pull the bezel down. Prior to this final step,
    the PR "press test" was a fail. Now with all speakers, and tweeters, bedded, I have
    a clear 3-4 second delay on the drivers return to a static condition. Much better
    sealed! It will undoubtedly make servicing/removing the speakers a bit more problematic, but careful working the edge of the flange I'm sure will "pop" the seal.

    I did each speaker in stages, so that I could isolate the difference each tweak
    made. With the machine screw mounts, taking the speakers in and out was
    a breeze. Some 12ga wire and banana plugs make the connections easier to deal with as I disconnected each speaker and laid it flat on the floor for most of the work. I also found that some of the internal press on speaker connectors were not
    very positive. A gentle squeeze on the disconnector firmed them up.

    The devil is in the details, thoroughness and consistency pays with audible results. Well worth the time and effort to tune/tweak 'em up! Crossovers are next, but with the pair sounding as good as they do now, it's not a pressing concern.
    I'm just getting used to the way they sound now with the addition of the much
    improved preamp and CD player, and all of the above improvements, which, while time consuming, are not expensive to do.

    Cheers all!
    R*2

    SDA SRS 2.3s
    Pair of Carver TFM 35s
    Carver C-1 Preamp
    CAL Icon MkII CD
    RTA 12s, need major work
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,546
    The crossovers should be a pressing concern.
    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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  • Rrusse11
    Rrusse11 Posts: 116
    Oh I will press on. Gotta' give the wallet some time to catch its breath. {:o)
    SDA SRS 2.3s
    Pair of Carver TFM 35s
    Carver C-1 Preamp
    CAL Icon MkII CD
    RTA 12s, need major work
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,546
    Completely understand that.
    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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