Pulled one of the Peerless Tweeters in my 7Bs and no model # !

Gardenstater

So I'm wondering what I have here......one of the ones made in Denmark or USA? I purchased a spare tweeter on eBay which is made in USA, so that I'd have something on deck should one of mine have an accident. Does anyone have any opinion / experience on this and whether there is a noticeable sound difference between the Danish and the USA ones and whether it's ok to mix them? My speakers were purchased in 1979.

Another thing I noticed is that the wire lengths don't seem to be the same for the tweeters (~24in.) and midbass drivers (~19in.). With the speed of an electron's propagation maybe I'm splitting hairs and this does not even take into account the different circuit path lengths in the crossovers, which may be quite significant, considering the big inductor in the midbass circuit path.

It also seems *odd* that the white wire on the tweeter is soldered to the contact that has the red slash mark next to it, in light of the fact that with the midbass drivers the convention was followed of connecting the black wire to the terminal with the red dot next to it. Hmmm......

pitdogg2

If it came from a RTA12 it may be correct. RTA 12 XO reverse the polarity 180° so hooking them up like that would correct the phase reversal.

Gardenstater

@pitdogg2 I'm the original owner of these speakers. Do you mean that at the Polk assembly factory, they might have taken the tweeter in my speaker from one that had been intended to go in a RTA12?

This is what the one I bought as a spare looks like and it clearly looks different. No pictures show the wire connection side. I'm wondering if the last 2 digits of "83" in the model # might indicate a mfg. date of 1983:

Gardenstater

@pitdogg2 I just noticed that where the black wire is connected, there is a red circle around the solder point, whereas at the white wire junction, there is a black circle. So I'm thinking perhaps the red (kind of pink actually) sharpie mark may have been for some other internal indication of something that only they know.

pitdogg2

Yep it is correct that black has the red ring.

F1nut

Me thinks someone over thinks a bit too much.

Gardenstater

@F1nut guilty as charged....I have been known to do that from time to time. I'll quit thinkin' when I'm dead.

But if anyone has any input on the different versions of the Peerless Tweeters that Polk used I'd be quite interested.

CH46E

When I got my 12B, both tweeters were bad. I ended up ( I cant remember where I got them) with both being 5514s. I think I got lucky they matched.

I did not read the entire thread but are you in need of a peerless? I have 3 on the shelf and I'm pretty sure one of them is good. As in working. I don't remember if it is a 5514 or 7514.

As much of a help as you were with my RSII thread, I'd send it to you no charge. Let me take a look at what I have tomorrow.

CH46E

As far as I know there was only the 5514 and 7514. But keep in mind I've only have experience with the RTA12B that I refurbed.

BTW, they might be for sale soon! Yes... I now... a shameless plug.

Gardenstater

@CH46E Wow what generosity! I actually contacted Harmon for you regarding a manual for the RSII and at first they sent me a manual for the RS2 Bookshelf speaker lol and I explained....nope....here's the one I'm talking about, after which I got a reply (sheepish) explaining that Infinity had been sold a few times and Harmon no longer has the manual for that.....can ya believe it?

I think I made a mistake getting the made in USA 5514 one, which I had hoped would be a match for the ones I have, just in case I needed a spare. Now it looks like, since it doesn't match, I might either need one that matches (if they are better which I suspect they are the Danish ones and probably are) or at the very least another 5514 so that I could at least make sure I had 2 matching ones until I could get another Danish one.

I guess either a 5514 or 7714 (Danish?) would be useful, to cut to the chase lol.

CH46E

I know what ya mean with Infinity. I have 2 12 inch CMMD Infinity IL300GWS woofers to add to my subwoofer set up and Infinity could not find the Small Thiel parameters for me. The IL series was a Harmon product and I was very disappointed they could not help. I would not count on Harmon for ****. This ain't the only time Harmon has let me down.

Thanks for trying though bud.

CH46E

PM sent

Faustin

@Gardenstater

In your pics at the beginning of your thread, it looks like there is writing under the gasket. If so, perhaps that is the model/serial number? 7514 were made in Denmark. The rest of the numbers indicate month and year manufactured. I really don't think there is going to be any discernible difference in sound between the 7514 and the 5514. I like you prefer to have them "match". My original M10's from 1979 came with the 7514 Peerless. When 1 died, I searched for some time to find another. Seems like the 5514 are more readily available.

Gardenstater

@Faustin Thanks man, you're right! What a silly place to put it....under the gasket area. If I can find a suitably thin gasket material I'll razor blade it off and get the number. I'm betting 7514xxxx. I want to adapt fastons to these so I can do swap outs. Looks like the soldering / desoldering may be treacherous with regard to internal connections?

PS: I would LOVE for @DarqueKnight to compare the Peerless 5514 to the 7714, like he did with the 5 tweeter models used in the SDAs here:

https://forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/182943/the-tale-of-5-tweeters-sda-tweeter-replacement-guide/p1

michaeljhsda2

Gardenstater wrote: »

Looks like the soldering / desoldering may be treacherous with regard to internal connections?

Correct indeed. I tried to desolder/solder a Peerless tweeter from a monitor 10 and the tab came off, tweeter ruined. Instead cut the wires about 8 or so inches from the tweeter.

Gardenstater

@michaeljhsda2 Thanks for the cautionary tale. I will see if I can put a heatsink clip on it and cut the wire as short as humanly possible and put a male faston on the wire. I'm planning on re-wiring with Neotech OCC or Cardas Litz so I want the original copper stranded wire to be minimized.

Faustin

Gardenstater wrote: »

@michaeljhsda2 Thanks for the cautionary tale. I will see if I can put a heatsink clip on it and cut the wire as short as humanly possible and put a male faston on the wire. I'm planning on re-wiring with Neotech OCC or Cardas Litz so I want the original copper stranded wire to be minimized.

michaeijhsda2 is correct, in that caution is in order. The first driver I desoldered years ago I messed up. I had no soldering experience at all. Since then I have had success desoldering the wires on the Polk drivers. I use a heat sink on the tab and a solder station with the temperature turned way up. I have found that a dab of solder on the tip of the hot iron right before I attack the subject driver, really helps to immediately melt the solder on the tab and wire so I can pull the wire off. I then use a solder sucker or the copper braid designed to remove solder, to get as much left over solder off the tab.

As for the gasket, I would think that you can remove it by carefully working a single edge razor under it.

Gardenstater

@Faustin Thanks, I concur, those have been my own findings as well, regarding de-soldering/ soldering. I first use a tiny pair of hemostats to try to yank the wire strands off the tab after I get the solder to melt......not easy though. Prior to using the gold plated copper 0.187" fastons that I got from Autozone (thanks @pitdogg2 ), I have also been using a brand new razor blade to carefully cut any remaining solder residues from the tabs and then I have to spring the fastons open a little with a putty knife and also hone down the sides of the tabs on the MW with a diamond hone a little bit. I'm using the Silclear also from Mapleshade, which is a silver platelet conductivity enhancing grease.

I will try to remove the gasket on the tweeter carefully with a razor blade, but only when I have to, because right now my original Danish Peerless tweeters are working 100% still (afaik).

Gardenstater

So I just got (1) USA Peerless Tweeter from an eBay seller. He had (2) for sale but I really didn't want the USA one that badly (wanted Danish) so I decided to just buy one and asked him to send me whichever one looked the best of the two. Well he sent me one with a wrinkle in the dome!! I know it's not terrible looking but still. None of the pictures showed one with a wrinkle.

Gardenstater

It's actually a crease, not a wrinkle, like you see on a car fender when something impacts at a grazing angle.....aargh. The other thing is that there is no gasket! I know the gasket material is very thin that Polk used on these and I'm not really sure what I should use. I have some .020" thick cardboard from a cracker box that I suppose might work for seeing how this tweeter sounds and whether I should ask for a return or refund.

Opinions needed on whether I should return this or would the consensus be that a little crease in the dome would be inconsequential SQ wise?

CH46E

What resistance values are you getting on your 5514s? I grabbed the 3 I had, I knew 2 were no good and they are a dead short. My third 5514 shows 9 ohms. The back is marked as 8. Should this be a concern? I did check on that is in the 12b and it's also 9 ohms.

Looks like you have yours all up and running?

Mine has a little crease I've seen in a few others.

CH46E

As far as your crease goes, I dont think the effect would be noticeable by the human ear. As far as a return I'd ask you, what condition did he say it was in. If he was selling it as being mint condition and you paid a premium for a mint condition tweeter then yes id ask for a refund and send it back.

Gardenstater

He was a very reasonable person to deal with. I'm listening to the USA one he sent me that has a very slight crease and I'd have to say that I don't notice any glaring deficiency SQ wise compared to the Danish one in the other speaker......However, I more often than not prefer the sound I'm hearing in the Danish one, and have not once said wow that USA one sounds better at any moment.

Not having a gasket is a problem but I was able to carefully, with a razor blade, remove the one from the Danish one I swapped out for this one and the gasket fit on the USA one. It is a very special *extremely* thin foam material. I attempted to use some 0.020" cardboard and when I was tightening the screws I did not like one bit the way the mounting plate on the tweeter arched and bailed on that idea.

If anyone knows what super thin foam gasket material is suitable and where to obtain it would be greatly appreciated.

We worked out a deal and I bought the 2nd one from him for $15 incl. shipping, so I got the two for $45 total.

I didn't check the DCR yet but his measurements were 7.0 Ohms and 7.1 Ohms. I have to verify.

I think I should be good Chris. I have two backups now that match (assuming the one he sends me is OK lol). Thanks so much!

CH46E

Ok, I removed my lead and reset them into the meter and tested again and got 8.6 ohms. No I feel a little better.

I think $45.00 for a nice clean working pair is pretty reasonable and border a great deal.

Gardenstater

Yep. I almost have enough spare parts to make another pair of 7Bs! I also got a pair of crossovers for $38 and a pair of midbass drivers for $70. I envision a trapezoidal shape for the cabinet with a 1-1/4" thick MDF speaker baffle and with diffraction inhibiting and image enhancing curvature of the baffle, especially at the tweeter location and less so at the midbass location. Perhaps it would be a Franken Polk for sure

Gardenstater

@CH46E Just checked the Danish Peerless I swapped out temporarily for the USA one being tested and it measured 8.5 Ohms.

pitdogg2

Armacell from Home Depot works great as gasket material. You will have way more than you need, and the need to make your own by trimming to suit your needs.

Gardenstater

The stuff Polk used on the tweeters is paper thin. Probably only .010 compressed or so. I think that's because you do not want the tweeter mounting plate to get curved at all, like you would get perhaps with the armacell, which is a bit too thick I think at 1/8" uncompressed. The screws are way out at the corners and the mounting plate has flex to it.

Having said all that I will be trying it I suppose but I think it may well be more suitable for the midbass and passives and the crossover.

Gardenstater

@CH46E I guess I wasn't too observant last night but I just noticed that your tweeter 55140380, which would make it a made in USA one if it really is true that all the made in Denmark ones started with 7714, HOWEVER, it looks just like the back of mine which I am *assuming* are Danish from 1979, in fact it looks exactly like the back of mine in every way including the two flats ground into the pole piece and no indentations in the center........the plot thickens. At some point around 1980ish an American company in Boston bought up the last bit of Peerless stock and became the Mother Company. Maybe at first they were following the exact same design in every way and then shortly after yours were made they made some changes........

Gardenstater

What's wrong with these pictures of a Peerless for sale on eBay ($44 incl. ship)??

CH46E

Well I guess they are flat domes now. LOL!