New to the Polk family--looking for help with 11T's

John in MA
John in MA Posts: 1,010
edited November 2006 in Vintage Speakers
I'm always on the lookout for good speakers, and a yard sale today produced a pair of Polk Monitor Series 11T speakers, I believe the ones commonly known as RTA-11T. Overall decent shape, but one tweeter (SL-2000) is burned out. Now for the questions:

Anyone have more information about this speaker? Searching hasn't turned up all that much as far as history or technical info.

As far as replacing the tweeter, my options seem to be buying a used original replacement or a pair of upgraded new ones. Any opinions as to which direction I should go? The new one sounds nice, but I'm wondering if it's $100+ nice. I've also seen folks selling SL-3000's, but I'm not sure how those would sound in these speakers, or what modifications would be needed.

I'm impressed with the sound of the one fully working speaker and I look forward to getting lots of use out of it. Might replace my old Klipsch Heresys or KG4s in my main system.
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  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited September 2006
    either replace the bad tweeter with a used same tweeter. or upgrade them both...

    how much did they cost you at the yard sale?

    check out his link... http://www.polksda.com/rta11t.shtml

    oh yeah Welcome to da club!
    PolkFest 2012, who's going>?
    Vancouver, Canada Sept 30th, 2012 - Madonna concert :cheesygrin:
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  • george daniel
    george daniel Posts: 12,096
    edited September 2006
    Congratulations and welcome. I've owned 11t's before,and I prefered the rdo (new) upgraded tweeters. There seems to be an abundance of sl-2000's and I'm sure that someone will chime in that may have a spare. If it were me,I would buy the new tweets. Enjoy :)
    JC approves....he told me so. (F-1 nut)
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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited September 2006
    Thanks for the link, nice photos. One of mine had a potted plant left on it, so the wood's a little fouled up. Nothing a good sanding and oiling won't help.

    If anyone reading this does have a working SL-2000 kicking around I'd be interested. Right now I have a line on a few, but don't know if I can get them.

    I paid $40 with declaration that they worked fine. I mentioned the dead tweeter to the guy later and got a bad poker face and "good luck." Not that it bothers me for the price.
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  • george daniel
    george daniel Posts: 12,096
    edited September 2006
    FORTY washingtons :eek: for a pair of 11t's,,damn good deal :D now,go get those new tweets ;) you owe it to yourself.
    JC approves....he told me so. (F-1 nut)
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  • hearingimpared
    hearingimpared Posts: 21,136
    edited September 2006
    Welcome to the club John.
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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited September 2006
    Still thinking here...Any particular advantage to getting SL-3000's and hacking the crossover to an 11TL vs. the stock silk dome replacements?
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  • schwarcw
    schwarcw Posts: 7,341
    edited September 2006
    John in MA wrote:
    Still thinking here...Any particular advantage to getting SL-3000's and hacking the crossover to an 11TL vs. the stock silk dome replacements?

    Hi John! No!! Get the silk replacements (RDO-194) or another SL2000. I think there are some for sale on the Flea Market.

    Welcome again! Glad to have you in the Polk family:)
    Carl

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  • schwarcw
    schwarcw Posts: 7,341
    edited September 2006
    Here's a link to the SL2000's for sale.

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43533

    Carl
    Carl

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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited September 2006
    Boy, friendly bunch. Glad to be aboard. So many families to be in these days...Klipsch family, Electrovoice family, Realistic Mach One family (very small), Ohm Walsh family, Black Panthers, Polk family. No, wait, one of those isn't right.
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  • schwarcw
    schwarcw Posts: 7,341
    edited September 2006
    There are a lot of good, friendly people here who want to help. I've learned a lot from Forum members over the past year.

    Carl
    Carl

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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,731
    edited September 2006
    Still thinking here...Any particular advantage to getting SL-3000's and hacking the crossover to an 11TL vs. the stock silk dome replacements?

    Given that choice I'd get the silk domes. There is an advantage in upgrading the crossovers to TL's with the SL3000 replacement silk domes, but it'll cost more than the speakers are worth.
    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

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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited September 2006
    Well, it looks like I'm on my way to getting the tweeter business sorted out. Thanks for everyone's help.

    What's the general opinion of this speaker, anyway? And how'd it end up a "Monitor Series" but not actually part of the Monitor Series?
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  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited September 2006
    another vote for getting the silk dome replacement tweeter. I did that earlier this year.. and i'm so glad I did. The SL2000 was shrill sounding compared to the silk replacement one.
    PolkFest 2012, who's going>?
    Vancouver, Canada Sept 30th, 2012 - Madonna concert :cheesygrin:
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  • halo
    halo Posts: 5,616
    edited September 2006
    I had a pair. I upgraded to the RDO194-1 silk domes and I rebuilt the crossovers with Solen caps, Mills resistors, & new polyswitches. I also added new bases, and spiked feet. The silk domes are much nicer than the sl2000's.

    I've owned the RTA 11T, & RTA 15TL as well as the Monitor 10A, 10B, and 11. I really liked the RTA series over the Monitor line. Just a personal preference - no dissing intended.
    Audio: Polk S15 * Polk S35 * Polk S10 * SVS SB-1000 Pro
    HT: Samsung QN90B * Marantz NR1510 * Panasonic DMP-BDT220 * Roku Ultra LT * APC H10
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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited September 2006
    Got my new tweet today. These things don't sound half bad! Coming from Klipsch Hereseys they're not as clear, but I think a much more even sound overall. These puppies'll do until I get my Walshes fixed up.

    Univera, if you're reading this your PM box is full.
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  • amulford
    amulford Posts: 5,020
    edited September 2006
    Which Walshes do you have?? I've got some, too. I guess you know about the ugrades, huh?
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  • hearingimpared
    hearingimpared Posts: 21,136
    edited September 2006
    Hey John did you sell some 1.2 TLs in August to a guy in Philly?
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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited September 2006
    Nope, if I had any SRSes I'd keep 'em. :)

    They're Walsh 4's I was given a while back. The surrounds are shot and one has a bad rattle. I want to get them going again, but the $600 it'll cost for a rehab doesn't come easily. Nor the $2K for the upgrades.
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  • amulford
    amulford Posts: 5,020
    edited September 2006
    I hear that. I only have a pair of 2's. But I have to say they are doing an excellent job for what I want them to do.
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  • dorokusai
    dorokusai Posts: 25,577
    edited September 2006
    You should use the Walsh's for firewood and keep the RTA's in top shape.

    The replacement tweeter is miles above the SL2000, so no suprise here. The big difference between the Heresy and the RTA is obviously the tweeter, which is quite audible. They are radically different in soundstage.
    CTC BBQ Amplifier, Sonic Frontiers Line3 Pre-Amplifier and Wadia 581 SACD player. Speakers? Always changing but for now, Mission Argonauts I picked up for $50 bucks, mint.
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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited September 2006
    I wouldn't say that. The working pair of Walshes I've heard were stunning. These Polks are nice, but I could use something bigger and with more punch. In the meantime I'll probably'll upgrade the tweeters when I stop shoveling cash into the Jeep.
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  • dorokusai
    dorokusai Posts: 25,577
    edited September 2006
    That's what's great about audio. One man's nirvana, is another man's nightmare
    CTC BBQ Amplifier, Sonic Frontiers Line3 Pre-Amplifier and Wadia 581 SACD player. Speakers? Always changing but for now, Mission Argonauts I picked up for $50 bucks, mint.
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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited September 2006
    For anyone who cares, here's what these puppies look like. I do have both grills, one looks like a cat snagged it. Cabinets (oak veneer) are in great shape, other than the top where a plant was set. Baaad shape there. Maybe someone here can explain this to me--some dingbat runs out, buys a pair of $1000 speakers, and then sits a leaky bowl of dirt and water on top. Why?

    11t-1.jpg
    11t-2.jpg
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  • halo
    halo Posts: 5,616
    edited September 2006
    The person who spent money on the RTA's probably isn't the same dingbat that put a potted plant on top of them.
    Audio: Polk S15 * Polk S35 * Polk S10 * SVS SB-1000 Pro
    HT: Samsung QN90B * Marantz NR1510 * Panasonic DMP-BDT220 * Roku Ultra LT * APC H10
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  • cfrizz
    cfrizz Posts: 13,415
    edited September 2006
    Beautiful speakers John. I hope something can be done to repair that top.
    Marantz AV-7705 PrePro, Classé 5 channel 200wpc Amp, Oppo 103 BluRay, Rotel RCD-1072 CDP, Sony XBR-49X800E TV, Polk S60 Main Speakers, Polk ES30 Center Channel, Polk S15 Surround Speakers SVS SB12-NSD x2
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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited September 2006
    Spent the evening doing some light sanding and tung oiling. The undamaged parts of the cabinets came out beautiful looking. The spot where the plant leaked was so distorted and cracked I had to stop when I hit the particle board on a high spot. But it's a big improvement. Went from looking like raw water damage to some really odd-looking grain figuring.

    Also rotated and remounted a woofer. Looks like the owner pulled a driver out of the one with the damaged tweeter and stripped the screw holes when it went back in.
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  • schwarcw
    schwarcw Posts: 7,341
    edited September 2006
    Atta boy John! Show those 11's some love and they'll sing to you beautifully!

    Carl
    Carl

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  • cfrizz
    cfrizz Posts: 13,415
    edited September 2006
    New pics please!
    Marantz AV-7705 PrePro, Classé 5 channel 200wpc Amp, Oppo 103 BluRay, Rotel RCD-1072 CDP, Sony XBR-49X800E TV, Polk S60 Main Speakers, Polk ES30 Center Channel, Polk S15 Surround Speakers SVS SB12-NSD x2
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  • John in MA
    John in MA Posts: 1,010
    edited October 2006
    Not very good pics, but here they are. The plant damage is terrible (wood was swelled around a 1/4" in one spot) although now it's not as noticable.

    11t-3.jpg
    11t-4.jpg
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  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited October 2006
    why do so many people use vintage speakers over the years as plant stands? I have never understood this.

    John, i know you just got these.. i am just thinking out loud.. as they why this happens. i've run into so many older speakers that have water damage.
    PolkFest 2012, who's going>?
    Vancouver, Canada Sept 30th, 2012 - Madonna concert :cheesygrin:
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