SDA SRS2 '86 blade-blade. Budget upgrade. Looking for an advice.
Comments
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Just do the mids. The best foam is open-cell at least 3/16" thick. It's even easier (for me) to use bare foam and a thin layer of Power-Grab. Allows for easy placement and longer adjustment time.
I would go with an adhesive layer, but we'll see what I'll find.
Which one is better: low or high-density open-cell foam? -
High density would be best. I've only done it with Armacell 1/8", which is actually closed cell. Worked well, but doesn't mean that it is the ultimate. Open Cell is favored for sound absorption which is the desired goal here. Closed Cell may be better for vibration and sound transmission. For the Armacell, the best measurement I could do revealed 4.7 lb/cu. ft. density.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 -
I see. Thank you for the advice. So looks like this is the one I'm looking for, but 1" wide.
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alexanikin wrote: »I see. Thank you for the advice. So looks like this is the one I'm looking for, but 1" wide.
I don't have any personal experience with that product, only the Armacell TAP18230, which is marketed for thermal insulation of pipes. In the US, the lowest price for it I have found is at Home Depot. I would "think" that for closed cell we want low density but for open cell (which I have not tried yet) a more high density.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 -
Yeah, I have a 3/4 of a roll of the same Armacell. Will look for open cell
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alexanikin wrote: »
Do NOT put that foam crap inside your driver baskets.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 -
^^^ Mod Envy ^^^Don't take experimental gene therapies from known eugenicists.
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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 -
Basket foam = There are other ways to accomplish this mod (xschop's and Gardenstater's).
The Armacel was difficult for me. It's super sticky and I don't have steady hands.
The mod is reversible, but I don't think anyone who tried it thought it was a mistake
And tell us more of the speaker wire diy. I'm impressed by the look of them.
Good work on everything!The Thrifty Setups in Mah House Big thrifty stereo in the basement w/ my custom SDA-1C (built with help from kind forum members) * Beautiful 1966 MCM GE console upgraded w/ Bluetooth, Dual turntable, and Paradigm speakers in family room * Swanky 1980 Realistic system and great TEAC eq with dancing colored lights in the living room * custom 5B on a system for my Dad * Ye Olde college stereo in the garage -
I don't think anyone who tried it thought it was a mistake
You are mistaken.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 -
Secret Closet Modder? keep it on the DL.
Again, someone here already has a full-blown modded set of SRS-2's and reported back great results with the foam frames...and phase-plugs.
Don't take experimental gene therapies from known eugenicists. -
Do NOT put that foam crap inside your driver baskets.
Yeah, I will not go this route for sure.
Had to go back to my car audio past when I built a full analog music system based on Eton components. And I recall some of my memories on how we’ve been fighting different types of resonance from car’s body parts. Never touched the insides of any drivers.
Honestly, this foam upgrade feels a bit unnecessary and too much for my project.
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plastic_avatar wrote: »I don't have steady hands.
Same here
That is why I decided not to do crossovers myself and don't want to poke my cucumber fingers into mid drivers.plastic_avatar wrote: »And tell us more of the speaker wire diy. I'm impressed by the look of them.
Thank you, man. I need to gather photos and my scattered notes on speaker cables cuz I made quite a few in the last couple of years. But I actually use only two pairs. The second one is my office: 11AWG based on a copy of Kimber Kable 8TC from Aliexpress.
OD of these is over 5/8".
Comparing to a few other speaker cables, these make a difference in my setup, which is relatively simple:
1. Streamer: Wiim Mini and AirPlay2, connected over Toslink to the dac
2. DAC: Schiit Modi 3E
3. Interconnects: Audioquest Evergreen
4. Amplifier: Maverick Audio TubeMagic A1
5. Speakers: Polk Audio S15
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A story about my speaker cables.I respect the opinion of those who think that speaker cables are snake oil, but I do not engage in conversations on the matter.
It is here for those who want to have fun like I had. The sound has been different for my ears than the other dozen cables I have tried.
Main system: 12TC 8.2ft 9awg - $120 for all materials
Office system: 8TC 7.5ft 11awg - $90 for all materials
Both cables follow the same approach, except for a different number of strands in the bare wire.
I made 8TC in a few days, so they look pretty. But life happened and it took me over a year to finish 12TC and I skipped noiseless sleeving for the body of the cable.
A while ago, I started reading about cables just for fun and found a lot of good words about Kimber, most probably first from Hans Beekhuyzen. I love how they look, but $945 for the pair is out of my price range.
At some point, youtube pushed this video to my feed. Fascinating video, but my first thought was: "I can do better. It will be fun". Turned out, a copy of Kimber is available on Aliexpress and you can buy the bare cable for a reasonable price (much cheaper than Danny offers).
Researching and looking for the right parameters for all the parts took me about two-three months actually. Only tubes took me to buy over ten variants in different materials and sizes. I can't not appreciate Amazon's return feature.
The list of things that I picked as must-haves:
1. Cable in bulk: 12TC and 8TC
2. Internal insulation. PTFE Teflon Tube used for 3D printer: 3mm x 5mm for 8TC and 4mm x 6mm for 12TC
3. The best touch-and-feel black noiseless sleeving: Techflex Flexo Noise Reduction
4. No-soldering banana plugs that fit 9AWG, resulting in an inner diameter of over 4mm. These are 5mm: aliexpress and amazon.
There are more, less important parts. Happy to share the entire list if somebody is interested. Let me know.
The process. Danny in that video uses cotton rope, which IMO looks ugly and is not ideal for the job. Some form of Teflon tube will be better, but it has to work well with a speaker cable. Luckily, PTFE tubes are widely used in 3D printers. They are not expensive, pretty flexible and have a low coefficient of friction.
A few more photos of finished cables.
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Utilizing the same approach, but inside-out, I made interconnect, too, for my SDA 2b. $40 for 10ft.
This 1-conductor OFC wire fits perfectly into 4mm x 6mm PFTE tube and these Deadbolt RCA Plugs are the perfect fit for the SDA pin connector, just cut off the skirt (or how to call it). Finished with noiseless sleeving in 1/4".
Can't find photos( -
I think the reason Danny uses cotton is because of it's dielectric constant.
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Black Hole 5 - (18"x 24"). Way too big of a piece, but it is the only one I could find.
I made 8 pcs 3.5"x4.5" for an overall simplified cutting. 18"x16" is left. Happy to share with somebody.
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alexanikin wrote: »…
I made 8 pcs 3.5"x4.5" for an overall simplified cutting. 18"x16" is left. Happy to share with somebody.
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Sent you a PM.
Brian
One-owner Polk Audio RTA 15TL speakers refreshed w/ Sonicap, Vishay/Mills and Cardas components by "pitdogg2," "xschop" billet tweeter plates and BH5 | Stereo REL Acoustics T/5x subwoofers w/ Bassline Blue cables | Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum III integrated tube amp | Technics SL-1210G turntable w/ Ortofon 2M Black LVB 250 MM cart | Sony CDP-508ESD CD player (as a transport) | LampizatOr Baltic 4 tube DAC | Nordost & DH Labs cables/interconnects | APC H15 Power Conditioner | GIK Acoustics room treatments | Degritter RCM -
This time steel spikes and corresponding threaded insert nuts.
My first idea was simply to find spikes to swap with the original feet, I couldn't figure out the thread pattern, and internetting didn't help. And it is for good, cuz I like how the original slide on the floor in the house.
So now there are holes 1" apart for two sets of feet so that the spikes can be easily installed onsite or removed.
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All you had to do is ask. The thread is 1/4-20.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 -
All you had to do is ask. The thread is 1/4-20.
Yeah, I understand. But thinking about the thread patterns made me question how I will use the speakers on spikes, for example, moving back and forth if needed. And instead of asking, I decided to have two pairs for convenience. -
alexanikin wrote: »
Most of us just put the glides back in, it's very little inconvenience.
Or just take spikes out rearrange and put back it, once again very little inconvenience. -
Most of us just put the glides back in, it's very little inconvenience.
Or just take spikes out rearrange and put back it, once again very little inconvenience.
Yeah, the general approach is pretty obvious. Don't see any downsides with the one I picked, even visually. By the end end of this week, crossovers should arrive, so this will be a moment take on the final result including how my spikes look. -
Nothing fancy here. Got crossovers back from Loudspeaker Chef. Standard upgrade of internals + rd0198 support + new binding posts. I assembled everything right away, but close to midnight, so no photos yet.
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After playing my favorite music for 5-6 hours in the last couple of days, I love the result. Sounds amazing, looks great, match with other components in the setup.
For now it’s finished. -
The story of these SDS2 is finished for me. They are on a few marketplaces.
The new story is about SRS 2.3TL '90, which I picked up from the first owner a couple of weeks ago. I mean, he passed away, and his wife sold the speakers to me. They are in pristine condition except for a sidewall that is already put in place with Loctite Power Grab Ultimate, which has been advised many times on this forum. Only interconnect was absent, but I had one that I'd made for my old SDA 2b.
Even before rebuilding, I like them much better than SRS2: both visually and sonically.
Also, I got lucky and acquired for pretty cheap Parasound HCA-2205AT, specs in everything are 2x better than the Parasound A23 which is sold already.
Right now speakers are disassembled and waiting for some work. I plan to do pretty much the same set of things as for SRS2.
Don't want to create a separate thread and will keep using this one.
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HCA-2205AT is great, cuz I can bi-amp SRS 2.3TL. That's why another pair of the same 12TC cables is in the process. I don't care if the sound is better with these cables or the same, I just like the process of making them. This time will be a cleaner execution for new one and a clean-up for the old ones.
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Looks like an SL3K in the lower slots?Don't take experimental gene therapies from known eugenicists.
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alexanikin wrote: »
1. Streamer: Wiim Mini and AirPlay2, connected over Toslink to the dac
2. DAC: Schiit Modi 3E
3. Interconnects: Audioquest Evergreen
4. Amplifier: Maverick Audio TubeMagic A1
5. Speakers: Polk Audio S15
This set is pretty much entirely gone. I rescued and rebuilt a set of RTA12, which became my desktop speakers. DAC and amp are Parasound Z-series, Zdac v2 and Zamp v3. I didn't know before about these units, cuz I consider them desktop too, and they sound just awesome.
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Looks like an SL3K in the lower slots?
You right. I swapped RD0198 from SRS2 and ordered two more, which arrived today.
