Sl3000 and Rd0194-1 Question.

Loco57

Could someone please let me know if the SL3000 tweeter and the RD0194-1 tweeters are the same item or not. I am looking at upgrading my SDA SRS speakers and my local Polk Agent has informed me they have SL3000 tweeters in stock but are these the same as the RD0194-1's and if not what is the difference?

He tells me the SL2500 were the replacement for the SL2000 that I currently have and that the SL3000 is the replacment for the SL2500, if these are the same as the RD0194-1's then this will save me importing any.

thanks in advance.

heiney9

Loco57 wrote: »

Could someone please let me know if the SL3000 tweeter and the RD0194-1 tweeters are the same item or not. I am looking at upgrading my SDA SRS speakers and my local Polk Agent has informed me they have SL3000 tweeters in stock but are these the same as the RD0194-1's and if not what is the difference?

He tells me the SL2500 were the replacement for the SL2000 that I currently have and that the SL3000 is the replacment for the SL2500, if these are the same as the RD0194-1's then this will save me importing any.

thanks in advance.

I had someone tell me the same thing about a year ago. Call again and ask for Ken, if he's busy ask for the tweeter by name RD0194-1. Helen could probably take care of you as well. Just a little confusion in the parts dept. is all.

The sl3000 (as we know it) is not the correct replacement and to my knowledge has been out of stock and production for awhile. Same goes for the sl2500.

H9

Loco57

Sorry but I have only been in contact with the Australian Importer, emailed Polk US earlier with a view to ordering but no reply yet. I am in Australia ( just in case you missed that bit ) so you can see the situation and if these are the same units thay are already here so far less hassle.

thanks.

F1nut

The only tweeters that you can use in your SDA SRS's are the SL2000 or the RD0194-1. That's it, period.

The SL2500 did not replace the SL2000, nor did the SL3000 replace either of those. They were simply tweeters with different specs used in different speakers. Again, neither one will work properly in your speakers.

Mike Reeter

I wouldn't think the SL3000 would work to replace the SL2000 unless some changes were made to the cross-overs.

Not sure,someone will reply here in just a bit.

heiney9

Loco57 wrote: »

Sorry but I have only been in contact with the Australian Importer, emailed Polk US earlier with a view to ordering but no reply yet. I am in Australia ( just in case you missed that bit ) so you can see the situation and if these are the same units thay are already here so far less hassle.

thanks.

They can't be used because they have different electrical characteristics than the sl2000. They will fit and plug in and sound will come out but the design parameters are different. If you have NO other choice the sl2500 is the closest match.

Realize that your Aussie Importer has stock that's more 3 years old as the company and process that produced the tri-laminate material the domes were made out of discontinued production. The RD0's came out around 2003 for this reason.

Good luck and the best way to reach Polk is by phone, I know being in Australia is a bit of an issue.

rskarvan

The SL3000 is a far superior tweeter to the SL2500.

heiney9

rskarvan wrote: »

The SL3000 is a far superior tweeter to the SL2500.

That's not even remotely what he asked. The sl2500 is much closer electrically to the sl2000 and that's what I was referring to. If he had absolutely no other alternative the sl2500 is a better match. The sl3000 would not be a good match to his speakers electrically and not recommended.

The best solution is to get the proper silk dome which is the RD0194-1. Sheesh, this is how the wrong things get passed on and on and on.

Perhaps sonically in the correct application the sl3000 is superior but this isn't that situation.

H9

candyliquor35m

I've replaced my 6 sl2000's with 6 sl3000's in my 2.3's for a number of years now with no problems. You're welcome to come over for a demo.

heiney9

You guys are missing the point. It can physically be done and it is a Polk driver it's just not the best choice based on how the speakers were designed. They were designed using the drivers already in place. All the MW65xx mid-bass drivers are different in that they have different electrical characteristics one being the impedance. Same for the (5) different tweeters Polk used in their vintage Monitors and SDA's. Physically they are all interchangeable but electrically and sonically they are different. If they weren't then we'd have a single Polk tweeter and not (5).

Enough already.

H9

avguytx

Remember the SL-3000's I had in my SDA-1C's back when I got them last year? The original owner said that the Polk dealer had put them in there as an "upgrade" for someone and they had that 7.5-ohm resistor on them. At least that's what I think it was anyway. I'll have to dig back thru the threads and see.

I still changed the 3000's out for the RD0-194's and they sounded much better. Much Better. (yeah, I said that twice)

Edit: Nope, it was a 5W 5-ohm 5% resistor per this thread.

Loco57

Jeez your a passionate lot, thats what I love about this obsession everyone has an opinion ( as we all should ) once again thanks to all for the great info.

Loco57

H9, do I read you right that all the MW65 bass/Mid drivers are different and need to be kept in their original position in the array to maintain the correct effect?

All my drivers were marked exactly the same but I kept them in the same removed positions on reinstallation just to be safe as with the tweeters.

Needed this post to get me off the number 13 whew!

F1nut

candyliquor35m wrote: »

I've replaced my 6 sl2000's with 6 sl3000's in my 2.3's for a number of years now with no problems. You're welcome to come over for a demo.

That can't sound right. Two totally different tweeters with two totally different high frequency circuits.

F1nut

Loco, let's keep it simple. Yes, keep the drivers in their original positions.

heiney9

Loco57 wrote: »

Jeez your a passionate lot, thats what I love about this obsession everyone has an opinion ( as we all should ) once again thanks to all for the great info.

Well I'm just trying to keep things how they should be. It's really not a matter of opinion other than Candy....has put a different tweeter in the circuit without problems. There will be no smoke and fire but it will sound different and it may be positive or negative.

As far as the mid driver are concerned the SDA SRS's use the same drivers for both the stereo and dimensional drivers, being the MW6503. As F1 suggests try to keep them in the same position they were originally if possible. Not a huge deal if they aren't.

Some of the SDA models (like my 1C's) use 2 different model mid drivers (one model for stereo and one model for dimensional) and it's essential they be put back in the correct position.

Good luck and if you find getting the RD0's is too costly and you can get either the sl2500 or sl3000 locally I would most certainly check with Ken at Polk to see the best way to implement them into your project. They won't be exactly what you are looking for but being in Australia sometimes you have to do what you have to do. Polk has great customer service so I'm sure they will be able to get the RD0's to you as economically as possible.

H9

candyliquor35m

F1nut wrote: »

That can't sound right. Two totally different tweeters with two totally different high frequency circuits.

The sl3000's in my 2.3's don't sound odd or unusual or out of place in any way. They're my 2nd favorite polk tweeter behind the sl2000's. I haven't heard the rd0198's, sl1000's or sl2500's yet.

rskarvan

F1nut wrote: »

That can't sound right. Two totally different tweeters with two totally different high frequency circuits.

Obviously, you are wrong.

Face

rskarvan wrote: »

Obviously, you are wrong.

Says one person? Compare the crossover diagrams between any speaker with a SL2000 and SL3000, they're different. They may seem fine to him because he doesn't know any better, or he loves super bright speakers. Obviously, you have no clue what you're talking about...again.

F1nut

As if either one of you has any credibilty when it comes to even a basic understanding of how a crossover circuit works and since ronnie no longer owns any SDA's, that makes his comments even less relevant.

What your comments do reveal is that both of you have probably lost a good portion of your high frequency hearing.

3 out of 4 stars, eh ronnie!?!

jakelm

I replaced them all with a Klipsch horn...Beat that.....:D

candyliquor35m

Actually I compensate for any minor brightness in my tweeters by running the warmest, tubiest tubes I can find or putting a cap on them at the tweeter level and not at the x-over level. I'm mixing and matching to get the sound I like just like we're all doing with wires, cables, tubes, tweeters, and gear in general. There's no right answer in this hobby. It's all subjective based on our personal likes and dislikes.

dorokusai

If you connect a generic speaker to an existing Polk crossover....it will reproduce sound. Is that good sound? Who knows, it doesn't matter. It's sound.

Did a petition go around that I wasn't aware of? If you don't currently own SDA's, you have no opinion? Previous ownership means nothing I see, or is it personal?

F1nut

dorokusai wrote: »

If you connect a generic speaker to an existing Polk crossover....it will reproduce sound. Is that sound good? Who knows, it doesn't matter. It's sound.

Did a petition go around that I wasn't aware of? If you don't currently own SDA's, you have no opinion? Previous ownership means nothing I see, or is it personal? The latter is clear and it's lame.

How about the petition about purchase of Polk speakers in the last month or year(s)?

Aside from Viva la SDA, what do you actually do for Polk Audio?

1. You wanna make at least a little bit of sense?
2. Means he hasn't played around with his SDA's. Seemed pretty clear to me. Don't you dare preach about what is lame.
3. HUH?
4. I don't work for them, that's for sure and seeing how that's the case I really don't have to do anything for Polk Audio.

jakelm

Doesnt, putting a drive or tweeter, with different parameters, in the mix, change the entire speaker? Changes the ohms, the responce, the wattage handling, along with phase and peaks and gaps in the frequency response?

Not saying its good or bad, but doesnt it change everything about that speaker?

dorokusai

1. You're and old man.

2. Don't dare you? Who are you, my Father? Should I address you as Sir Jesse from now on?

So his prior experience means nothing? That would mean your prior experience means nothing as well.....please expound upon that. I own SDA's, does that mean I wouldn't know what I'm talking about when I comment on them? Do I have to modify them to comment?

3. Filler.

4. Then why are you here? I'm here because I have a love for the product, manufacturer and the family....you brought me here no? I wasn't an employee when that happened and had a pretty high post count prior to that fact. Do you think that was just fluff? I was just hanging out so I could be cool like you? Biding my time so I could become a bigger ****? You folks read way to much into what I actually do on a daily basis.

No. It was for Polk....and our forum, and our friends. The old days were the Golden Age and I rolled in on the cusp of that "era", and gained some solid connections and lifelong friends. You seem to confuse a couple phone calls and a few get togethers with the core that existed prior to the hype but that's because you're friendly....I'm not friendly. Don't use employment as an excuse for common sense.

F1nut

Oki doki then.

heiney9

candyliquor35m wrote: »

Actually I compensate for any minor brightness in my tweeters by running the warmest, tubiest tubes I can find or putting a cap on them at the tweeter level and not at the x-over level. I'm mixing and matching to get the sound I like just like we're all doing with wires, cables, tubes, tweeters, and gear in general. There's no right answer in this hobby. It's all subjective based on our personal likes and dislikes.

That's all fine for you but for a new member who is trying to get the proper info about upgrading his SDA's your advice is confusing. You are certainly entitled to do what you like but I am trying to keep the OP from making frankenpolks and keep them as original sounding as possible.

I can buy a plug in play tweeter from Parts Express which would fit in my SDA's that doesn't mean that's the best solution. Let's keep things in perspective and try to guide a new member in the correct direction rather than helping him make frankenpolks.

Actually your further explanation as to why you did what you did is probably helpful to the OP so he can understand why you put a mis-matched tweeter in your SDA's.

H9

Marty913

Wow, a lot going on here and some of it doesn't appear to be about speakers. I seemed to have arrived a couple of years too late - maybe a good thing.

jakelm

H9 and F1, are correct. For a newb to read this, what a confusion it must impose. Lets state the correct replacememnt drivers, that Polk intended, then say "what also might work for you is bla bla bla..".

Loco57

H9,
not confused ( to old for that ) but jeez it seems their is some underlying issues amongst the members that I would rather not get involved in. My course of action will be to get a full spec sheet on the sl3000 tweeters and contact Polk re their advice and if possible order a full set of RD0194-1 tweeters either direct or through my contact at the polk importer in Australia.

On another subject I looked at Lasareth's web site and excellent photos of how he bought his SDA'S back to life and I noticed his Crossover was nothing like the one's in my speakers! Mine have 3 wound coils and far more electronics with a large circuit board that it all hangs off so I am not sure what goes their.

I pulled the Crossoover out this morning and will take some photos of it and post so maybe someone could give me some background on how to approach the electronics upgrade as it doesn't seem to match the Pdf schematics either.

Did Polk make interim/experimental Crossover networks and maybe this is one of them ? I will also be stripping the second cabinet this weekend and starting the internal works so if I can get the tweeter issues sorted and Crossover as well then I should be half way their when they go back together.

Once again thankyou everyone for your comments and help.