Polk Collection Story and Dilemma

the_burmese
the_burmese Posts: 6
in Vintage Speakers
Hi

I am new here but have been an occasional reader and a lifelong Polk fan ever since I saw those SDA-2Bs at my friend's house when they came out.
Life and work kept me away from getting my own set of Polks until recent WFH gave me some time to focus back on my hobby.
I went a little overboard, unfortunately, in part because so many people were moving out of the city and dumping loads of good stuff as fire sale.

In a span of 3 - 4 months, I collected -

Monitor 10 for $100
RTA-12C with RD0194 tweets for $270
SDA-1C in great conditions for $450 (with original pin/blade cable but with SL2000s)
RTA-15t with some issue with the SL2000 tweets but in great cosmetic shape - for FREE!

Now, they are all amazing but I found myself in a pickle to keep them all around - I just don't have enough room. They all sound great to me in different ways (my friend also picked another great RTA-15t for $220 so I am very familiar with the sound of them).

I feel like if I have to let one of the go to make peace with my other half, and I am torn about which one I would not miss.

Please shed some light for me.

Some background data -
I listen to everything from Beethoven to Bon Jovi, Linkin Park to Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson to Michael Bublé, so my music taste is very broad, except some hardcore Country.
I am driving them with a fully restored Pioneer SA-9500 which is rated for 80wpc @ 8ohms. I stream from Apple Music AAC through a DAC to AUX.
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Comments

  • Nightfall
    Nightfall Posts: 10,086
    I would get rid of the RTA-15s or the Monitor 10s first. You've listened to them all though, which do you like the most?
    afterburnt wrote: »
    They didn't speak a word of English, they were from South Carolina.

    Village Idiot of Club Polk
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  • tonyp063
    tonyp063 Posts: 1,083
    And what size is the room?
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  • Tony M
    Tony M Posts: 11,151
    what tweeters do the Monitor 10's have?
    Most people just listen to music and watch movies. I EXPERIENCE them.
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  • brgman
    brgman Posts: 2,859
    Keep the 12C’s and 1C’s (upgrade the 1C’s) and get rid of Bon Jovi and Lady Gaga.
    Main Rig-Realistic AM/FM Record player 8 track boasting 4 WPC

    Backup Rig-2 CH-Rogue Audio Zeus w/Factory Special Dark Mods,Joule-Electra 300ME Platinum Preamp,OPPO-105 w/Modwright Tube Mod, Auralic Aries G2.1,Polk 2.3TL,3.1TL's,Dreadnought,RTA-15TL's,1C's All Fully Modded,2xRTA-12c's ,Benchmark DAC3 HGC,Synology NAS,VPI Scout w/Dynavector DV-20XH and Rogue Audio Ares Phono Preamp,Sony PCM-R500 DAT,HHB-850 Pro CDR,Tascam CC-222SLMKII Cassette/CDR,MIT S3.3 Shotgun Cables,Shunyata Hyra-8,Shunyata and Triode Labs Power Cords

    I’M OFFENDED!!!!
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  • Emlyn
    Emlyn Posts: 4,489
    Only letting one pair go? The Monitor 10 would be out the door. Easy decision.

    Easy enough to swap the RD0 tweeters into the RTA 15T to see how they sound. If the problem is not the tweeters but something else internal those could be parted out. If you don’t have room to properly set up SDA speakers and the RTA 15s are in working order those may be the best of the bunch.

    The only pair definite keepers with room would be the SDA1C but they need to be upgraded to get the best out of them. Four RD0 tweeters would be the first step.
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  • Nightfall
    Nightfall Posts: 10,086
    edited November 2020
    That's pretty funny. Lady Gaga can sing though.

    Lady Gaga & Tony Bennett

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPAmDULCVrU
    afterburnt wrote: »
    They didn't speak a word of English, they were from South Carolina.

    Village Idiot of Club Polk
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  • the_burmese
    the_burmese Posts: 6
    Nightfall wrote: »
    I would get rid of the RTA-15s or the Monitor 10s first. You've listened to them all though, which do you like the most?

    They are good in each own way. But my fav so far is the SDA 1Cs
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  • the_burmese
    the_burmese Posts: 6
    tonyp063 wrote: »
    And what size is the room?

    Good point! It is about 9 feet x 12 feet. The speakers are on the long side of the room.
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  • the_burmese
    the_burmese Posts: 6
    Tony M wrote: »
    what tweeters do the Monitor 10's have?

    SL2000s :s
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  • westmassguy
    westmassguy Posts: 6,850
    The RTA-15t should not have SL2000 tweeters. Unlike the RTA-8t/8tl and 11t/tl, the 15s were always the "tl"/SL3000 version.
    Home Theater/2 Channel:
    Front: SDA-2ATL forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/143984/my-2as-finally-finished-almost/p1
    Center: Custom Built forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/150760/my-center-channel-project/p1
    Surrounds & Rears: Custom Built forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/151647/my-surround-project/p1
    Sonicaps, Mills, RDO-194s-198s, Dynamat, Hurricane Nuts, Blackhole5
    Pioneer Elite VSX-72TXV, Carver PM-600, SVS PB2-Plus Subwoofer

    dhsspeakerservice.com/
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  • Tony M
    Tony M Posts: 11,151
    the_burmese wrote: »
    tonyp063 wrote: »
    And what size is the room?

    Good point! It is about 9 feet x 12 feet. The speakers are on the long side of the room.

    I see why your other half thinks you have too many speakers now.

    I'd sell the RTA15TLs. Don't they protrude further into your space more than the others?

    You do know the RTA 12c's are a L and R designated positioning pr. right?

    Sell the Monitor 10's too.

    You've got some GREAT Polk Speakers right now for sure. :p

    Good luck. :)

    Most people just listen to music and watch movies. I EXPERIENCE them.
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  • Emlyn
    Emlyn Posts: 4,489
    I'd forgotten the RTA15T used the SL3000 tweeter. If there are SL2000s in them, that could explain the poor sound coming out of them! The RD0198 would be the tweeter to use on those. Or find a used pair of SL3000s. Could be a forum member has some of those around. Those were really not bad tweeters.

    I would give that a shot. You may find you like the RTA15Ts better than the SDA1Cs, but they'll need some work to get them up to more "modern" standards.
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  • skrol
    skrol Posts: 3,375
    edited November 2020
    The RTA-15TL should have the SL-3000. Some may have been labeled RTA-15T but they all had the SL-3000 from the factory (word from the designer). My RTA-11TL's also had the SL-3000, while the RTA-11T had the SL-2000. I thought my RTA-11TL's occasionally sounded harsh on the top end. Several years ago, I replaced the SL-3000 with the RD0-198 tweeters but also upgraded the crossover components. To my surprise, I found and assembly error where the bypass capacitors were not soldered in place. Their leads were just wrapped around the capacitor that was soldered (cold soldered) to the board.

    You might want to inspect the crossovers for similar issues as the RTA-11TL was from the same era as the 15.

    By the way, the crossover upgrades and RD0-198 made a great improvement in SQ.
    Stan

    Main 2ch:
    Polk LSi15 (DB840 upgrade), Parasound: P/LD-1100, HCA-1000A; Denon: DVD-2910, DRM-800A; Benchmark DAC1, Monster HTS3600-MKII, Grado SR-225i; Technics SL-J2, Parasound PPH-100.

    HT:
    Marantz SR7010, Polk: RTA11TL (RDO198-1, XO and Damping Upgrades), S4, CS250, PSW110 , Marantz UD5005, Pioneer PL-530, Panasonic TC-P42S60

    Other stuff:
    Denon: DRA-835R, AVR-888, DCD-660, DRM-700A, DRR-780; Polk: S8, Monitor 5A, 5B, TSi100, RM7, PSW10 (DXi104 upgrade); Pioneer: CT-6R; Onkyo CP-1046F; Ortofon OM5E, Marantz: PM5004, CD5004, CDR-615; Parasound C/PT-600, HCA-800ii, Sony CDP-650ESD, Technics SA 5070, B&W DM601
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  • dpowell
    dpowell Posts: 3,067
    I had a fully modded pair of 1C's before moving up to the 2.3TLs. The 1C's by far would be my first choice to keep and do all the mods. They will blow you away with their soundstage and sweet musical sound.
    ____________________________________________________________

    polkaudio Fully Modded SDA SRS 1.2TLs + Dreadnaught, LSiM706c, 4 X Polk Surrounds + 4 X ATMOS, SVS PB13 Ultra X 2, Pass Labs X1, Marantz 7704, Bob Carver Crimson Beauty 350 Tube Mono Blocks, Carver Sunfire Signature Cinema Grande 400x5, ADCOM GFA 7807, Panasonic UB420, Moon 380D DAC, EPSON Pro Cinema 6050
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  • the_burmese
    the_burmese Posts: 6
    skrol wrote: »
    The RTA-15TL should have the SL-3000. Some may have been labeled RTA-15T but they all had the SL-3000 from the factory (word from the designer). My RTA-11TL's also had the SL-3000, while the RTA-11T had the SL-2000. I thought my RTA-11TL's occasionally sounded harsh on the top end. Several years ago, I replaced the SL-3000 with the RD0-198 tweeters but also upgraded the crossover components. To my surprise, I found and assembly error where the bypass capacitors were not soldered in place. Their leads were just wrapped around the capacitor that was soldered (cold soldered) to the board.

    You might want to inspect the crossovers for similar issues as the RTA-11TL was from the same era as the 15.

    By the way, the crossover upgrades and RD0-198 made a great improvement in SQ.

    You are correct. it was my mistake. The 15tl didnt have the SL2000s. They were with SL3000s.

    Is there any guide on how to pop these tweets out? I removed the screws on them but i am afraid they dont come out. Do I need to pry them out? Not sure there is any trick here and dont want to damage the cabinets or the tweeter brackets.
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  • the_burmese
    the_burmese Posts: 6
    Looks like Monitor 10s have to go. Thanks a lot for the great insights and feedback. Now, I have to figure out how to fix the issue with 15tl and upgrade the 1Cs.

    Here is the current plan -
    1. figure out issue in 15tl ( either replace the tweets or fix up the crossover ) so that I could at least enjoy them
    2. upgrade crossover in 1C's
    3. upgrade to RD0194 in 1C's

    2 and 3 could be interchangeable. I am not sure where to begin since I could only do one of these steps every 3 or 4 month ( purely based on budget constraints ).

    :D
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  • Gardenstater
    Gardenstater Posts: 4,459
    the_burmese wrote: »
    Is there any guide on how to pop these tweets out? I removed the screws on them but i am afraid they dont come out. Do I need to pry them out? Not sure there is any trick here and dont want to damage the cabinets or the tweeter brackets.

    I use a sharp 5 in 1 painter's tool to get underneath and pry my Peerless tweeters out, without damaging the gaskets. Probably will work just as well on your tweeters.


    cse3ao8ot1hr.png
    George / NJ

    Polk 7B main speakers, std. mods+ (1979, orig owner)
    Martin Logan Dynamo sub w/6ft 14awg Power Cord
    Onkyo A-8017 integrated
    Logitech Squeezebox Touch Streamer w/EDO applet
    iFi nano iDSD DAC
    iPurifier3
    iDefender w/ iPower PS
    Custom Steve Wilson 1m UPOCC Interconnect
    iFi Mercury 0.5m OFHC continuous cast copper USB cable
    Custom Ribbon Speaker Cables, 5ft long, 4N Copper, 14awg, ultra low inductance
    Custom Vibration Isolation Speaker Stands and Sub Platform
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  • Emlyn
    Emlyn Posts: 4,489
    Can also remove a mid woofer, reach in and push the tweeter out once its screws are removed. It’s just the old gasket holding the tweeter in. The plastic face on those can be damaged but not likely to happen.
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  • invalid
    invalid Posts: 1,365
    the_burmese wrote: »
    Looks like Monitor 10s have to go. Thanks a lot for the great insights and feedback. Now, I have to figure out how to fix the issue with 15tl and upgrade the 1Cs.

    Here is the current plan -
    1. figure out issue in 15tl ( either replace the tweets or fix up the crossover ) so that I could at least enjoy them
    2. upgrade crossover in 1C's
    3. upgrade to RD0194 in 1C's

    2 and 3 could be interchangeable. I am not sure where to begin since I could only do one of these steps every 3 or 4 month ( purely based on budget constraints ).

    :D

    I would do the tweeter upgrade first, seeing how Polk isn't selling them anymore.
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