Should I trade SDA1c for RTA15TL?

chrispyfur

Hi everyone!

I currently have a pair of SDA1c listed for sale on FB marketplace. I'd give them a solid 8-8.5 of 10 condition. No upgrades have been done.

I just got an offer to trade these (and a pair of old Mach ones I have in kinda poor shape) for (what looks like and are described as) a beautiful pair of upgraded RTA15TL. They were recapped, the baskets dampened, and the tweeters upgraded. I will be able to hear them before agreeing to a trade.

This model of speaker hasn't been on my radar. I am trying to sell mine to put it towards a pair of R700s.

I am currently using a new Onkyo RZ-50 receiver for power and will eventually be adding a 2 channel amp. My listening habit is a pretty even 50/50 split of music and movies. I will say I get some strange effects in surround with the SDA speakers.

So, I am asking for some advice from those with more experience. Is this a reasonable trade for me? Thanks in advance!

pitdogg2

The RTA 15tl will need to be far out into the room due to the rear passive. If you have plenty of room to accommodate them possibly being 4'-5' into the room then it may be a possibility. If you have 3' or less they will not perform well.

chrispyfur

That settles that then. I am limited on space off the front wall. 16-24 inches is as far out as I can really go.

Thank you very much!

bcwsrt

3’ works, but yeah, anything less and they don’t like it. But they are 15 1/2” deep, so even at 3’ off the wall, they are 4’+ out into the room at the front.

chrispyfur

This guy also has a pair of LS90s, would that be a decent trade?

audioluvr

Upgrade the 1C's. You can thank me later.

msg

Are you still planning to buy R700s after all of this? None of these trades nets you cash to get you closer to that goal, does it?

Also, think about what you want to accomplish, overall. You might find that you miss the SDA after switching to a conventional speaker. I read where you said "strange surround" - bad strange?

Personally, I'm not a fan of buying anything modded, unless I know the person amd/or it's clear that the person knows what they are doing.

chrispyfur

Thanks for the insight guys.

Yes, I'd say I get an occasional "bad strange" effect from the 1c speakers when using them for home theater. I'm not sure how to explain what it is exactly, but it feels like the SDA effect is trying to create a soundstage where one shouldn't be?

I guess my reason to want to do this is to experience a different flavor of speaker, without needing to shell out any cash to do it.

The LS90s he has don't have any mods done to them except for some damping on the speaker baskets, or so I'm told.

audioluvr

Ah. SDA should not be used for home theater IMHO. Tried it. Didn't like it.

msg

Is that more an issue if you're running room correction? And in those cases, disconnect the SDA cable during calibration?

F1nut

An SRT rig excells for HT.

chrispyfur

Thanks everybody for your input, I really do appreciate it.

I decided against the trade. Earlier today I did some A/B testing with the SDA1c vs my R200 bookshelf speakers. At the same volume level and same music played back to back the little 200s have more depth, more punch, and more clarity than the SDA speakers. It reassured me that a pair of 700s is my current end-game speaker. Something about these SDA's makes them seem somewhat veiled by comparison. Maybe it's old capacitor components, maybe it's the original tweeters. I don't know.

Even my wife who was listening in the other room felt that the 200s were just hands-down more impressive.

Anyways, enough rambling from me. Thanks again to all.

chrispyfur

msg wrote: »

Is that more an issue if you're running room correction? And in those cases, disconnect the SDA cable during calibration?

It's certainly possible, I do have DIRAC with my receiver and ran the correction. Even running it in pure/direct mode which disables all eq and correction I'm just not really blown away by these speakers as I hoped I'd be.

F1nut

First and foremost, you are trying to drive speakers with an AVR that were designed to be driven with quality 2 channel amplification. Of course, the R200 performs better as it is a helluva lot easier to drive.

Not to mention the crossovers and tweeters need upgrading.

chrispyfur

F1nut wrote: »

First and foremost, you are trying to drive speakers with an AVR that were designed to be driven with quality 2 channel amplification. Of course, the R200 performs better as it is a helluva lot easier to drive.

Not to mention the crossovers and tweeters need upgrading.

I've got the Emotiva BasX A2 on my short list of wanted upgrades. My receiver is 120 watts with 2 channels driven, seemed like that should be enough to power these to me?

I've also had them hooked to a Realistic STA-2000 which I know is less wattage but it does have a beefy power transformer.

F1nut

All watts are not created equal.

High current (amperes) amplification makes SDA speakers sing.

Emo's may be ok for HT, but that's it.

audioluvr

When I got my 1C's they were bone stock like yours and they sounded terrible. Do the mods. I've listened to the R200's side by side with my modded 1C's. The R200's are a great speaker for what they are but they just didn't come close to live reproduction like my 1C's (IMHO). But to each his own. Good luck with whatever path you decide to pursue and welcome to Club Polk.

chrispyfur

F1nut wrote: »

All watts are not created equal.

High current (amperes) amplification makes SDA speakers sing.

Emo's may be ok for HT, but that's it.

Thanks once again for the feedback. Where would you point me for an amplifier that won't be 5x the cost?

chrispyfur

audioluvr wrote: »

When I got my 1C's they were bone stock like yours and they sounded terrible. Do the mods. I've listened to the R200's side by side with my modded 1C's. The R200's are a great speaker for what they are but they just didn't come close to live reproduction like my 1C's (IMHO). But to each his own. Good luck with whatever path you decide to pursue and welcome to Club Polk.

I am still tempted to do the mods, I'm capable of doing the work on my own. Especially with others having done it all and with how well documented it is. Just a hard sell for the wife!

msg

There is also the "Wife Mod". It is not as openly documented, though usually completed during the early stages of the vintage SDA mods, and coincidentally, within days, weeks, and sometimes hours, of joining the forum.

Your first response to a raised eyebrow will likely be, "What? It's not like I'm blowing money at a gentleman's club."

For maximum effect, be sure to follow up with, "You should consider yourself lucky."

Also effective is, "I never noticed how attractive and easy going your younger sister is."

Report back with progress.

chrispyfur

msg wrote: »

There is also the "Wife Mod". It is not as openly documented, though usually completed during the early stages of the vintage SDA mods, and coincidentally, within days, weeks, and sometimes hours, of joining the forum.

Your first response to a raised eyebrow will likely be, "What? It's not like I'm blowing money at a gentleman's club."

For maximum effect, be sure to follow up with, "You should consider yourself lucky."

Also effective is, "I never noticed how attractive and easy going your younger sister is."

Report back with progress.

I have no issues with my wife, she just let me buy the new receiver!

Plus she doesn't have a sister... she does have a brother though. Do you think it'll still work if I try that route?

msg

Eh, probably not.

Your next best options are flattery and bribery, the latter typically in the form of money for shopping, shoes, and handbags.

chrispyfur

I know what she really wants is a new kitchen and home office... and she thinks MY hobbies are expensive!

msg

Clearly a quick study.

F1nut

chrispyfur wrote: »

F1nut wrote: »

All watts are not created equal.

High current (amperes) amplification makes SDA speakers sing.

Emo's may be ok for HT, but that's it.

Thanks once again for the feedback. Where would you point me for an amplifier that won't be 5x the cost?

Here is the Emo.


This the Parasound Halo 23+ at about 3 times the cost.


I'm not necessarily suggesting the Parasound, although it would be a good choice. Really just wanted to show you a comparison.

chrispyfur

F1nut I really appreciate you taking the time to find those images for me. I can obviously see the difference in the transformer size as well as more heat sinks and caps.

What am I specifically looking for in specs of an Amp to determine what makes it "high current" though? They all advertise by wattage at a given impedance, I understand those specs. What else should I be looking at?

invalid

Generally if the power supply is built really robust then you can bet it's high current.

F1nut

chrispyfur wrote: »

F1nut I really appreciate you taking the time to find those images for me. I can obviously see the difference in the transformer size as well as more heat sinks and caps.

What am I specifically looking for in specs of an Amp to determine what makes it "high current" though? They all advertise by wattage at a given impedance, I understand those specs. What else should I be looking at?

The Halo info states 45 amperes peak current per channel, so while not the highest current amp in the world it is still a high current amplifier. It also states it runs a high bias Class A/AB operation meaning it runs Class A for the first some watts, say 5 watts, maybe less, maybe more. That doesn't sound like much, but actually it is. Most of the time an amp isn't being asked to put out a lot of power, it's the transients that suck power. Class A has a sweeter sound, so what you hear sounds better.

I could not find an amperes (current) rating for the Emo. It does run Class AB.

Another point of interest, the Halo has 6 output devices per channel while Emo has 4 per channel. More output devices is better.

chrispyfur

Seems like most amp companies shy away from telling you how many amps they are. Kinda ironic.

chrispyfur

invalid wrote: »

Generally if the power supply is built really robust then you can bet it's high current.

Maybe I just don't know where to look but it seems like that kind of info is difficult to find? Maybe it's because the companies I've been looking into are marketing more towards the typical consumer?

F1nut

Maybe it's because the companies I've been looking into are marketing more towards the typical consumer?

Indeed