The SRS 1.2TL ..should I buy them?? :-O

hauxon

I've been loosing sleep over this...

I've been an owner of the SDA 2B Studio version since I bought them 19 years old in 1991. They have always sounded good and sound even better after I did the TL mod. They are paired with a good power amp (NAD C272) and my wife accepts the size and appreciates the sound (especially for TV/movies).

However recently a pair of SRS 1.2TL was listed for sale here in Iceland. The original owner had passed away and the descendants want to sell it. I might be able to buy it for about $1200.

The problem is that I might have a hard time convincing my wife that these monstrous size speakers will look good in our living room. I might also have a hard time convincing her that there is an actual need for this since the SDA 2B sound perfectly good. The living room is quite large ceiling is 14ft high and the floor about 20ft x 30ft.

Am I crazy/greedy? I know it is the only pair in Iceland and it won't probably ever come up for sale again. I also feel I'm the right person to own them (and care for them) and would probably slowly upgrade 'em (and probably more than double the cost). I'm might also feel like my current NAD C272 (2x150W@8 RMS) was not powerful or posh enough. It is probably fine though. I can sell some stuff to finance it (and the SDA 2B's).

I do feel my current setup is quite good. I do have a subwoofer though for below 40Hz that probably won't be needed with the SRS 1.2 TL. But I fear I will regret it greatly if I let the 1.2 TL pass by. I also cannot see myself convincing my wife...

SIGH!!!!

VR3

IMO, buy them... experience them... if they dont work out for you, simply resale them. At the price they are listed, selling them for the same or more shouldnt be a problem with patience.

tratliff

Sounds to me like you have already made a decision. I would say go get them.

westmassguy

Confucius say "It's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission".

daddyjt

You came to the wrong place if you are looking for someone to talk you out of it.

If you don’t buy them, you’ll always wonder “what if”...

FestYboy

For just the shear size of the room the 1.2s will do a significantly better job than the 2Bs in filling it. Do it and never look back.

nooshinjohn

Your room was what the 1.2TL was designed for. I agree with the others and say go get them.

txcoastal1

Just go get them....

hauxon

Well I went to take look and listen. They're not in a 100% condition. First thing I noticed was the cloth had been damaged by a cat on one speaker and the SDA connection cable had also been a victim of the cat and taped together. Listening was too a letdown. No source was connected so I ended up connecting a smartphone to the Marantz AV receiver. Speakers were angled inwards and too far from back wall making them sound thin. Putting my ear to the tweeters one by revealed at least on with no output or silent. ...so I'm digesting. Might be a good restoration project ...or a possible buttomless money pit. :-P

F1nut

The tweeter array is a progessive point source, so 3 of the 4 play restricted frequencies each at a lower volume level.

motorstereo

Those easily remedied problems sound like bargaining chips to me. They cannot be all that common in your part of the world and they should have a premium price on them instead of the bargain price you listed. Grab them quick before someone else gets wind of this good deal.

hauxon

I was just kind of shocked since my SDA 2B are almost like new.

verb

Go get em! Great price too!

hauxon

F1nut wrote: »

The tweeter array is a progessive point source, so 3 of the 4 play restricted frequencies each at a lower volume level.

Makes sense. I was listening to song with pronounced ride cymbal so it might have either fallen out side of the tweeter's crossover range or outside of my ear high frequency
ability (15kHz).

Is there any reading I can find on the tweeter setup of the SRS 1.2TL?

F1nut

The SDA Handbook on Vr3's site.

hauxon

...well, when I contacted the lady who was selling she told me her husband was going to buy them (from her and her brothers and sisters) and restore 'em him self. He would be buying the speakers for $2000 so I would need to offer more than that if I still wanted them. ..so there is no deal, I simply can't afford to spend $2000 on the speakers and another $1000 in restoration.

Kind of sad. They didn't have any interest in music when I came to take a look. The speakers were connected to a mediocre AV receiver and angled inwards. There wasn't even an audio source connected to the receiver.

So I fear they will destroy the speakers by trying to restore 'em without having any knowledge or knowhow of the Polk SDA line (or hifi electronics)... so I told them I was willing to help them if they felt needed. Kind of sad and probably an attempt to get more for the speakers and got a little greedy.

Still some mods left to do on my SDA 2B studios...

txcoastal1

Yeah 2K is to high. Keep in touch with them and maybe you'll hear from them with a better offer.

Keep in touch here, and at the least we can help with your SDA2B's if needed.

Tony M

They have a price...

You go and look at them in person and notice they need $$$ and time recovering the grills to make them normal again.

You go home to think about it.

You call her back and now the price is 800.00 more? CRAZY!

Call her back and offer her 500.00.

Maybe not, but tell her if things don't work out on their side, you'd seriously still be interested in buying them.

When she calls you back, then drop the 500 cash offer on her.

hauxon

The problem is the original owner (their passed away father) loved those speakers and according to the lady wanted to be buried in the boxes . So they know the speakers are special. When they start thinking of selling the speakers they see speakers like these for sale on Ebay for $4500. Now everyone is happy since they will get $1500 each when they sell the speakers. The problem is that they won't find anyone willing to pay such large amount for a 30 year old speakers in need of crossover recap and 8 new tweeters. They just don't realize that those expensive speakers at Ebay have been completely restored or are just overpriced in the hope that some millionaire will want to buy the speakers he dremt of as a young man. Here in Iceland we don't have that many millionaires let alone with Polk vintage fetish...

nooshinjohn

I would tell them that if they decide to keep them, good for them, but if they decide to sell them, their dad would likely have wanted them in the hands of someone that cared about them as passionately as he did, and you are they guy willing to do just that. Don’t be afraid to tell them about the 1500 to 2 grand cost of restoration, and that they can come and hear them in al their glory when the work is done.

BlueBirdMusic

Keep this thought in back of your mind:

“Sometimes a person just has to let an opportunity pass to remain happy”.

It’s not good that they raised the price.

hauxon

Well we settled for about $1500, actually slightly less because of the poor Icelandic krona. This extra $500 will probably delay the updates but what are few months or even years in vintage audio. I'm a happy camper with a slight buyers remorse that will probably wear off in a month or two. Now I just need to find a way to transport 'em safely. They are about 120 miles drive from where I live. Is it ok to lay them back down? Possibility of damages of the innards by transporting laying down?

BlueBirdMusic

CONGRATS!!

Caribou express?

pitdogg2

Back is the preferred method to transport. I would also short the binding post's with a short piece of wire. It helps keep the woofers from flopping around during the ride.

monepolk

Congrats on the purchase.

F1nut

On their backs is best. Be aware that the binding posts stick out a bit, so do not slide them on their backs.

BMF35

Haven't you owned your 2B's for 28 years?

hauxon

BMF35 wrote: »

Haven't you owned your 2B's for 28 years?

Yes, bought my SDA 2B Studio new in '91

codycatalist

Congrats on the 1.2s!

hauxon

Well I drove tonight to fetch the speakers. I moved the speaker cables and SDA cable from my SDA 2B to the SRS 1.2TL for a quick listen. ...and they sound really thin, actually awful compared to the 2B's. I will have to look into it during the weekend.

I did disconnect the biwire/biamp jumper and tested the woofers for polarity with a 9V battery. Didn't see anything wrong there all eight woofers moved in tandem in both speakers.

Very strange. Is there a thread in here with a good procedure for testing the speaker components? I did notice some of the woofers seem to have softer rubber surround than others, not sure if it matters. Cabinets seem airtight woofers move when I push the passive radiator and then slowly retreat.

Well, I need to get some sleep.

codycatalist

Open the passive and see where the dacron is placed. Outside of that you are correct in checking polarity.