SDA 1 vs. SDA 2B

24

Comments

  • Face
    Face Posts: 14,340
    edited July 2008
    I can see where you're coming from. Probably more due to the shape than the actual dimensions, my 2B's didn't sound great in a 10x16 room. In the 15x16 room, they sound much better. I'm babysitting a pair of SRS 2's for someone and currently have them hooked up in the same 15x16 room, they fit the room well and the amount of bass is very impressive, but I wouldn't try anything larger in there.
    "He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you." Friedrich Nietzsche
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  • Ron Temple
    Ron Temple Posts: 3,212
    edited July 2008
    When I bought my 2Bs I did a comparison with the 1Cs. Stock crossovers with RDO 194s...H9s comments mirror my impressions. The 1Cs played taller and deeper with slightly more information in the upper midrange and mid bass. The 2Bs seemed wider. I prefer the 1Cs, but there certainly isn't a night and day difference. When I get around to doing the crossovers, I'm sure the differences will scale similarly. Room is 18x14x8 and running SDAs in a 5.1 config is overkill, but I do it anyway.

    Combo rig:

    Onkyo NR1007 pre-pro, Carver TFM 45(fronts), Carver TFM 35 (surrounds)
    SDA 1C, CS400i, SDA 2B
    PB13Ultra RO
    BW Silvers
    Oppo BDP-83SE
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    Oh, believe me, my 2B TL's have no problem filling my 12 x 12 room. They are gorgeous. I wouldn't be doing this out of any dissatisfaction whatsoever with these 2B's. But if I can grab these at a great price, pimp them out with Sonicaps and new tweeties, and check out if they sound better, great. If they overpower the room or they don't make much of an improvement, then someone on the forum who's not a diy'er will be able to pick up a pair of tricked out SDA's at my cost. Either that or I'll do the same with the 2B's. Hopefully someone lives in the NYC and will want a rockin' pair of SDA's...

    Let's see if I win the auction. Still no bids, but never know if someone comes in with a $700 bid with 6 seconds to go...
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • MillerLiteScott
    MillerLiteScott Posts: 2,561
    edited July 2008
    All things equal. Sonicapped 2B's w/TL mod vs Sonicapped 1C's. I think the 1C's would win on dynamics, bass, mid bass and soundstage.

    But I have grown quite accustomed to the qualities of the 198 tweeter in the TL mod and that may win me over, over the added dynamics, bass mid bass and soundstage at least in my room.

    It is a tough call. I have decided to pass on the 1C upgrade route, considered the SRS 2's but they are not TL friendly. So I would have to jump to the 2.3TL level which is about as big as I would want to go period. I have decided to stay with what I have and tweak with better cables etc.

    I am very happy with my 2B's with the TL modifications especially in my small room. As a side note I have found that even though they are not fully broken in yet. Switching to MIT Shotgun S3s speaker interface wiring was as significant an improvement as going from the stock 2B's to the sonicap TL modified 2B's.

    Scott

    IMHO YMMV
    I like speakers that are bigger than a small refrigerator but smaller than a big refrigerator:D
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  • IrishNiner
    IrishNiner Posts: 116
    edited July 2008
    If you guys don't mind, I could also use some help Identifying my newly aquired SDA 1's.

    Details are:

    Walnut cabinets
    4 SL1000 tweeters,two marked sda1-s,two marked sda1-d(replaced with194's)
    4 mids
    1 12" passive rad
    Serial # R SDA 2582, the left serial number missing but ends in a 9?
    Fuses are marked: Fuse HF stereo and Fuse HF dimensional
    Interconnect is B/B
    They both have a gold plaque that reads "Signature Edition"
    Maroon sticker on the back that indicates Left and Right channel

    What might an x-over upgrade run on these?

    Any help/info would be greatly appreciated.

    Farrell
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    Funny. I'm sitting down in my listening room right now listening to the Duke Ellington "Blues In Orbit" MFSL 24K on the 2B TL's. I really don't know why I would want to change anything, this sounds so freaking good :cool: Duke was the man...
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    IrishNiner wrote: »
    What might an x-over upgrade run on these?
    Farrell

    That totally depends on what caps you use....
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,204
    edited July 2008
    IrishNiner wrote: »
    If you guys don't mind, I could also use some help Identifying my newly aquired SDA 1's.

    Details are:

    Walnut cabinets
    4 SL1000 tweeters,two marked sda1-s,two marked sda1-d(replaced with194's)
    4 mids
    1 12" passive rad
    Serial # R SDA 2582, the left serial number missing but ends in a 9?
    Fuses are marked: Fuse HF stereo and Fuse HF dimensional
    Interconnect is B/B
    They both have a gold plaque that reads "Signature Edition"
    Maroon sticker on the back that indicates Left and Right channel

    What might an x-over upgrade run on these?

    Any help/info would be greatly appreciated.

    Farrell

    4 tweets per cabinet; doesn't sound like an SDA 1. They had 2 per cabinet. Probably a typo on your part. A pic would help, but they sound like 1st or 2nd gen SDA 1's.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • IrishNiner
    IrishNiner Posts: 116
    edited July 2008
    Sonicaps seem to be the cap of choice from what I've read around here.

    Nspindel, I agree Duke ellington "Blues in orbit" is great! In fact, the whole Starbucks Piano Jazz cd is fantastic.:)

    Farrell
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  • IrishNiner
    IrishNiner Posts: 116
    edited July 2008
    Sorry, typo on my part. 2 per speaker.
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    Blues In Orbit is great, but I think Jazz Party is even better!
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • IrishNiner
    IrishNiner Posts: 116
    edited July 2008
    I'll check it out. Thanks

    Farrell
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  • IrishNiner
    IrishNiner Posts: 116
    edited July 2008
    H9, Thanks for the info!

    I'll try to post a picture shortly.
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    Oh my. It seems those SDA's on eBay are now mine!!!! The guy's got them on Craig's list as well. I threw him an offer and he accepted. ****, my wife is going to KILL ME!!!!!

    AWESOME!!!!!!
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,204
    edited July 2008
    nspindel wrote: »
    Oh my. It seems those SDA's on eBay are now mine!!!! The guy's got them on Craig's list as well, listed for $400 or best offer. I threw him and offer for $250, and he accepted. ****, my wife is going to KILL ME!!!!!

    AWESOME!!!!!!


    SCORE

    Nice snag, get the Iron hot.......
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    The iron's barely cool from doing my 2B's!
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • IrishNiner
    IrishNiner Posts: 116
    edited July 2008
    Wow! Good price. Congrats on your new score.
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  • zingo
    zingo Posts: 11,258
    edited July 2008
    Awesome price and you better keep that iron hot!
    Jake
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  • criverajr
    criverajr Posts: 1,675
    edited July 2008
    Had a beat on these and passed, glad a fellow polkie got them, need to do a side by side shootout and report back to us.

    CRj
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    Got 'em!!!! They were about an hour's drive, picked them up today.

    They're a bit rough on the cosmetic side, as you can see from the photos in the ebay link the grill cloth is a mess, no big deal I'll change that out. They've got the cloth sides, so I think I'm going to need some coaching on how to get the side panels off to re-cloth them.

    I haven't been able to test them out, because one of the binding posts broke on the car ride home, the original owner had it screwed all the way out, and the speaker was laying bottom down in the back of the truck, so the black post snapped off. No big deal, I'll be replacing them anyway.

    I did test the cabinets by pressing on the PW's to see if the woofers pop out, they do just fine. The owner said they were working fine, I'll take that at face value, but I'm not too concerned anyway given the amount of mods I'm soon to embark on.

    My main question is to know exactly what speakers I have here. The back just says they're SDA 1's, the serial numbers are 6132 for the left and 6595 for the right. Two tweeters aligned vertically on center at the top, then four woofers under them. SDA interconnect is blade-blade.

    So if any of y'all with a helluva lot more knowledge than me can let me know what I've got my hands on here, and even better if there's a thread showing what the crossover rebuild will look like, I'd really appreciate it!

    Thanks.....
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • McLoki
    McLoki Posts: 5,231
    edited July 2008
    Cloth sides, 4 woofers and 2 vertically aligned tweeters... Sounds like SDA 1C's to me.

    Post some pics when you get a chance though and we will be able to tell for sure.

    Michael
    Mains.............Polk LSi15 (Cherry)
    Center............Polk LSiC (Crossover upgraded)
    Surrounds.......Polk LSi7 (Gloss Black - wood sides removed and crossovers upgraded)
    Subwoofers.....SVS 25-31 CS+ and PC+ (both 20hz tune)
    Pre\Pro...........NAD T163 (Modded with LM4562 opamps)
    Amplifier.........Cinepro 3k6 (6-channel, 500wpc@4ohms)
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  • MillerLiteScott
    MillerLiteScott Posts: 2,561
    edited July 2008
    The side panels come off easily with a putty knife. The glue will have become very brittle and it just lets go. Scape all the residual glue off the side of the speaker and panel hard board. Redo the cloth however you like, I have just repaired the existing cloth because mine were not in to bad of condition. I purchased some paneling adhesive in a 10 oz. caulk tube from HD and glued the panels back on. The trick is to come up with a way to hold both side at one time or just do on side at a time using a little weight to hold the panels in place and down while the glue cures. PM me if you have any questions. I did have a thread showing how I did it probably in the vintage section.

    Scott
    I like speakers that are bigger than a small refrigerator but smaller than a big refrigerator:D
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,204
    edited July 2008
    nspindel wrote: »
    Got 'em!!!! They were about an hour's drive, picked them up today.

    They're a bit rough on the cosmetic side, as you can see from the photos in the ebay link the grill cloth is a mess, no big deal I'll change that out. They've got the cloth sides, so I think I'm going to need some coaching on how to get the side panels off to re-cloth them.

    I haven't been able to test them out, because one of the binding posts broke on the car ride home, the original owner had it screwed all the way out, and the speaker was laying bottom down in the back of the truck, so the black post snapped off. No big deal, I'll be replacing them anyway.

    I did test the cabinets by pressing on the PW's to see if the woofers pop out, they do just fine. The owner said they were working fine, I'll take that at face value, but I'm not too concerned anyway given the amount of mods I'm soon to embark on.

    My main question is to know exactly what speakers I have here. The back just says they're SDA 1's, the serial numbers are 6132 for the left and 6595 for the right. Two tweeters aligned vertically on center at the top, then four woofers under them. SDA interconnect is blade-blade.

    So if any of y'all with a helluva lot more knowledge than me can let me know what I've got my hands on here, and even better if there's a thread showing what the crossover rebuild will look like, I'd really appreciate it!

    Thanks.....

    Pull the MW drivers if;

    (4) MW6501 then 1A's
    (4) MW6509 then 1B's
    (2) MW6511 (reg drivers) (2) MW6510 (dimensional drivers) then 1C's

    1A's are blade/blade
    1B's are blade/blade
    1C's are pin/blade
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,204
    edited July 2008
    Your serial #'s for 1C's fall in the range where if you want to use the AI-1 cable for non-common ground amplification you need to contact Polk CS to have your x-over slightly modified. Since you will in there doing work anyways, if you think at some point you will run a non-common ground amp it would be a good idea to get the info and just do the modification then.

    My info comes from the compendium.
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,204
    edited July 2008
    Probably no need to pull the drivers as cloth side panels and your serial #'s mean they are most likely 1C's; early 1C's. Maybe just peek at the drivers to make sure they are correct when doing the x-over work.

    Nice score

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    The drivers are the 6510/6511 combo, but they're blade/blade, so sounds like one of the in between jobs, huh? I'm intrigued by the AI-1 mod, but would I ever be able to use an AI-1 with a blade/blade pair? I thought the AI-1 was exclusively a pin/blade interconnect...
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,204
    edited July 2008
    nspindel wrote: »
    The drivers are the 6510/6511 combo, but they're blade/blade, so sounds like one of the in between jobs, huh? I'm intrigued by the AI-1 mod, but would I ever be able to use an AI-1 with a blade/blade pair? I thought the AI-1 was exclusively a pin/blade interconnect...

    Yep, it's one of "inbetween" models. Yours require "plug adapters" and a x-over modification for AI-1 use. Call Ken at Polk unless Raife sees this thread and can provide more details. The compendium simply says what I have stated, no other details.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    Okie doke, I'll give Ken a call and find out a bit more. AI-1 is no emergency, but you're right, if I'm going to be pulling the crossovers I may as well take care of it.
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited July 2008
    Now this is a cool picture:

    IMG_7888.JPG

    What a great shot given the title of this thread!!!


    This one ain't bad either:

    IMG_7889.JPG
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • ben62670
    ben62670 Posts: 15,969
    edited July 2008
    OK blade blade with those drivers means that it is wire just like the pin blades. Only one blade is doing the SDA function. Take a MM and measure the ohms between the top blade, and ground. It should be about 2-4ohms. The other should be a dead short to ground. BTW congrats!
    Please. Please contact me a ben62670 @ yahoo.com. Make sure to include who you are, and you are from Polk so I don't delete your email. Also I am now physically unable to work on any projects. If you need help let these guys know. There are many people who will help if you let them know where you are.
    Thanks
    Ben
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