SL-1000 Opinion

jakelm

Where does the sl-1000 dome tweeter rank in the polk tweeter line up? And, keeping the same crossover in my 1982 7b's , what would be an "upgrade" if ever they do go out?

The reason for my question is , I read alot about sl-2000 or the sl-2500 and the fact that some can be upgraded to the peerless tweeter without changing the xover and have a major improvement in sound quality. What type of improvement would upgrading to the peerless offer me?

I found these peerless, http://www.speakerbits.com/Default.aspx?f=box&progress=search&key=Peerless%20810665 , would this work? Model 810665

billbillw

I thought your speakers already had the Peerless (or Peerless like). Not sure why you are thinking of replacing.

The attached picture is the SL1000. You definetly don't have them. Stick with what ya got.

jakelm

Well I'm getting confused now. The CS told me that I have the sl-1000 with the hole in the middle. He told me that it was not Peerless. Mine look just like that, Bill, but they are not shiney. They are flat black with a hole dead center in the middle. I took one out and there is no visible marking on the back to see what model they are. So I'm just going by what the CS told me. The one you show in your pic has a shiney ,almost plastic looking dome. Mine have a tectured black dome almost fabrick looking. I oringinally assumed they were peerless, until the CS told me otherwise. He told me they were Polk made with the hole (dimple). http://www.rswpartner.com/showimage.html?img=http://pictures.macrosysinc.net/rsw/812215/24618C.jpg You can kind of see in the pic.

jakelm

Also , I asked this in another thread. There seems to be alot of dust (dirt) on the dome itself. Does this effect the SQ? Is there a way to clean it?

nadams

jakelm- do your tweeters have the polkaudio logo on the fronts? If not, and they're just plain black, then they're the peerless tweeters, which are sought after.

Here's the full thread of pics of tweeters. Pick yours out! http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25377&highlight=vintage+tweeter

jakelm

They do NOT have the polkaudio logo. Click on my link to the picture. No sign of polk anywhere on the tweeter. They are just plain black. But why would Polk audio parts list and CS tell me that sl-1000 and not peerless are my original tweeters?


Well then if they are peerless, I'm better off than i thought

jakelm

The second set of pictures with the tweeter with no name, thats what I have. nadams wrote "peerless replecments for the sl-1000" in his second post with additional pics. Does this mean that my tweeters have been replaced with peelress and were not shipped from the factory with the peerless?

nadams

Could be either. There was some overrun between models. The specs aren't always 100% accurate. Or, in the case of my 5jr's, I bought them with two damaged SL1000's, and bought the Peerless replacements from PE. Could be either...

jakelm

Hey Nadams, How do you clean them? Mine have considerble amount of dust on them.

nadams

Soft, dry cloth... no solvents or cleaners. Just wipe gently, but don't put too much pressure on the domes or you'll crinkle them. Just be very gentle.

jakelm

Gentle is a new word for me, but i'll try. How much does the dust effect the SQ? If there is no effect then I'll leave it alone.

nadams

i don't know how much it'd effect it... I'd imagine it would depend on the amount and thickness of the dust...

jakelm

well nadams, I appreciate all the help you've given me. Thanks abunch

jakelm

One more thing. The CS rep told me that the new mw6503's perform better than the mw6500. Whats your take on this? One of my mw6500 froze up, due to glue and magnet shift, so I'm replacing both with mw6503. Just wanted to get a "nondealer" opinion on the performance of the 6503 compared to the older 6500.

thehaens@cox.net

jakelm wrote:

Hey Nadams, How do you clean them? Mine have considerble amount of dust on them.

You may also want to try some compressed air. You can get it at any hardware/computer store...

Scott

nadams

quite possible... products are always being refined. It's good that you're replacing both... you'll get a uniform sound out of them that way. Even identically spec'ed drivers will sound different if you're comparing an old driver to a new.

As for the tweeters, one last thing... you can try just blowing on them to see if some dust comes off... just try not to spit.

Tour2ma

^ ... but don't expect them to buy you dinner...

You'll never see "Peerless" in any Polk parts list. SL1000 was Polk's part number for the Peerless and the other tweeter as well. We tend to think of the Peerless as "The Peerless" and the silver-bezeled tweeter billbillw posted as the "SL1000". Polk did not...

As for the MW's... Polk consolidated their spares a while back. Move was dictated by cost and which MW's were used the most. The 6500 and the 6503 are not identical, but close enough that it is doubtful that you could tell the difference. That said, now that you know there is a difference, you might "hear" one.

Used 6503's pop up on ebay all the time. Used 6500's show up as well, albeit less frequently. Just buy from a reputable seller and insure the shipment. I think a fair percentage of the ones sold there are "pre-seized"...

jakelm

The CS also told me the dfifference between the 6500 and the 6503 is the ohms. The 6403 is about .5 ohms less than the original 6500. I'm hoping the .5 ohms difference doesnt make that big of a change in dbs. I know having a lower ohm creates higher wattage and increases overall dbs. I just hope theres is not that much difference to overpower the tweeter. I am always very sceptical about changing out drivers with different ones. As a test i might put the one good 6500 in one and the new 6503 in the other and see if I can tell a difference.

As for the tweetrs , I checked again last night and there is no polkaudio logo on the front. But at the same time there is no peerless logo on the back. But I'm pretty sure they are peerless.

Its amazing the SQ comming from these "badboys". I keep switching "a" "b" channel to see the difference between them and the other speakers I have hooked up on channel "b". There is no comparison.

I was also very impressed with the 1987 monitor 4's I picked up. Even though these little jewels dont have the peerless tweeter, they are still very nice and easy to listen to. I have them as surrounds, and they are the best surrounds I've heard so far. The "boxless" idea that Polk was aiming for, really worked well back in the days, and I have the speakers to prove it.

My dad teases me, saying "you see, you have to go all the way back to the 70's to know what real sound quality was like, with out spending over $1k". He's right. Of course he has "stacked" Polk 7a's which are absolutly fantastic.

He owned a hifi audio shop back in the mid 70's, so I'm familiar with the older products (Polk, Hafler, Infinity, Magnepans, Jennings Research, Carver, Absolute Sound, Amzilla, Linsondeck, harmon kardon, etc...) and the "raw" sound from hand made equipment, instead of the massproduced electronics made today. Not that there arent excellent audio equipment out there, but to get ones hands on that , the average guy like me just cant afford it. So I turned back in time to the 70's.

Tour2ma

Dad is a wise man...

I did not think Ampzilla was that old...

jakelm

Ampzilla and Son of Ampzilla, mid to late 70's early 80's

jakelm

If I inherit the 7's when he passes. I'll have a wall of sound...lol

jakelm

Last night I'm listening to them and I notice a slight buzzing-distorting sound coming out of one of the tweeters. I switched left and right and the buzzing continued on the same speaker. Think its blown? Or getting close?

I may end up having to buy new peerless anyway.

jakelm

Unless Polk still has the peerless sl-1000, not the polkaudio logo one. What would be my best choice for a new pair of tweeters?

jakelm

Ok here is my tweeter. They have no markings on the back to see what model they are. Does anyone know?

jakelm

If it is the same peerless as these, will they work ok. Will the ohm and wattage match ok?

I'll just take my soldering gun and make the hole in the middle as Polk did.

http://www.speakerbits.com/Default.aspx?f=box&progress=search&key=Peerless%20810665 810665 peerless

billbillw

IF you go with new Peerless shipped from down under, which are way overpriced by the way (Partsexpress had them for $35 each before they ran out), I wouldn't do the hole in the middle.

jakelm

Are the specs the same as my original peerless with the hole in the middle? And will the new peerless fit without modifications to the cabinet? I'm hessitent to purchase new peerless if SQ will change. I was also wondering if there was a way to repair the original peerless from the distortion in the 10k-15khz range?

I appologize for all the questions. I just want to make sure I replace them with the correct replacements. And keep the same SQ.

riteleg

hey i need to know what kind of sda or rta tweeters to shop for. which are the most sought after? ownin' front sda srs2's/surrounds rta15t's/center cs400i/bADCOM amps with a slew of other bADCOM components in middle atlantic rack w/clamp style shelves/earthquake safe in Cal.
thanks for any help

Tour2ma

jakelm,
Obviously no one had a certain answer for you., at least no one that saw your question. And 'fraid it's not me... Maybe someone will see it this go 'round.

riteleg,
Looks like you are searching for SL-2000 replacements. Contact Polk CS and they'll fix you up...
EDIT: Part number is RD 0194-1.

Welcome to the Club...

jakelm

Thank you for the welcome Tour, I found a pair of peerless (or at least i think they are peerless) , all black; silk dome; with no logo on them, in mint condition (with the pin hole) on ebay. Installed them last week, they are absolutly fantastic!!

Jake

Tour2ma

You're welcome...

They are kinda special sounding aren't they? The pin hole makes them Polk.

RuSsMan laid the story of the hole on us years ago. It's a Polk mod that was done with the tip of a soldering iron. Seems it reduced beaming. How that was discovered remains a mystery...