Question for Polk Guys

Drumingman

Do you have a Higher quality crossover I can install in my R50's?
I know the new monitor series have higher quality crossovers in them and
I want to modify my R's to a better quality crossover for better sound.

dorokusai

No, it is not available.

Drumingman

Then I guess I'll spend my money elsewhere, I know someone has to make them.

Dennis Gardner

Wasted $$$ in my opinion. Polk made the R line with entry level drivers, crossovers, and cabinets. I know you like the looks of your R50s, but the line is what it is...............the lowest level made. High $$$ crossovers won't transform them.

If you like cherry, save up the $$$ and go with RTi or LSI in that finish.

Drumingman

Well Dennis, I have to disagree with you. If what you say is a fact, why do folks like you and me opt for better cables? It's a fact that better crossovers and better wiring make for better sound. If this wasn't true then polk would not advertise mylar caps in the crossovers for increased clarity in the new monitor series. While the R series might not be your cup-o-tea, I happen to think they can be improved without spending 2000 dollars to replace what I have but thanks for your input.

Dennis Gardner

Because I can resell the cables and recoup some of the $$$. You won't get anything in return for modded bottom line speakers in for your investment.

Don't feel bad, I wouldn't put a Mercedes engine in a Yugo either.

Dennis Gardner

Let me be specific, without being rude or condescending as I'm sure you took from my posts.

Polks vintage models (SDA line for the most part) that listed for upwards of $2k-$3k 15-20 years ago are being upgraded here on the forum regularly with better capacitors with nice results. Part of this is done because the speaker is worth the investment as they no longer make them (or ever will again) so they are getting more rare and semi-collectable, and the life of capacitors is 15 to 20 years so they are approaching the useful lifespan of the original parts. This makes $$$ sense to the owners to preserve/improve on that type of speaker.

The lower level Polks from that era are still very nice models and are highly thought of for their value and performance, but few even consider the investment since the mods could run as high as the current purchase price.

This type of modification doesn't get mentioned much at all for the new speaker lines that I can recall. You may be the first I've seen to enquire about it. Many with the R line upgrade to higher level Polks throughout the years, for more power handling, better balanced sound etc. Since Polk does all of their own crossover and driver design in house and rarely uses anything "off the shelf" most Polk owners figure that the drivers and crossovers are pretty well matched from Polk for the intended usage.

It is simply a matter of return on investment, but if you feel the need to tweak, have at it, just make sure you report on your findings so others can benefit from your experience.

Cheers,

DG

F1nut

If you're hell bent on upgrading your crossovers, it's not hard to do it yourself. Ask Polk to send you a schematic, get the values needed, order the parts and have at it. There may be mylar caps in your speakers already, they aren't the best. If you want better, go with film/foil caps.