I replaced the Damn polyswitches

zarrdoss
zarrdoss Posts: 2,562
edited July 2009 in Vintage Speakers
I went down today and listened th Larry's 1.2tl's and got home and was contrasting and comparing from memory with my 2.3tl's and noticed the left top tweet cutting out again. I already had the switches but was putting off installing them. So I yanked it out and installed the new switch in that one and while I was in there I re-touched all the solder and put it back in. I got it going and noticed the highs on that side were better or so it seemed. So I did the other side and got it going and boom it seems the overall highs are much clearer and more defined, or have I just smoked to much crack today? I will be doing the 2.3's tomorrow.:D
Post edited by zarrdoss on
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Comments

  • michaeljhsda2
    michaeljhsda2 Posts: 2,186
    edited July 2009
    I bypassed the poly's altogether on my SDA 2's and there was definitely an improvement.
    SDA SRS 2.3TL's
    Silk Audio MS-90-BT integrated tube amp
    Yaqin MS-20L integrated tube amp
    SDA 2B TL's
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  • zarrdoss
    zarrdoss Posts: 2,562
    edited July 2009
    I thought about doing that but with my luck I need all the insurance i can get.
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  • hearingimpared
    hearingimpared Posts: 21,136
    edited July 2009
    If you are confident in your amplifier's performance you should consider illiminating the poly-switches all together. I got rid of mine and haven't looked back.
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  • george daniel
    george daniel Posts: 12,096
    edited July 2009
    +1,,me too
    JC approves....he told me so. (F-1 nut)
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  • zarrdoss
    zarrdoss Posts: 2,562
    edited July 2009
    Polk sent me some new ones free of charge, but if I have anymore trouble they're history.
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  • zarrdoss
    zarrdoss Posts: 2,562
    edited July 2009
    Lasareath wrote: »
    I couldn't stand the way they changed the sound of the highs so I took mine out.

    did yours only have 1 switch?

    also did it make them sound too bright?
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  • motorstereo
    motorstereo Posts: 2,150
    edited July 2009
    When I recapped my 2.3s I went against the flow and decided to keep my poly switches in place. Last week my improperly secured tt ground wire came off and took out 4 tweeters on my lesser speakers. The poly switches thankfully did their job and saved all 6 of my 2.3s tweeters.
    If there's somewhat diminished highs on my 2.3s with the switches in place I haven't noticed it. It is nice to know though that the protection circuit does indeed work the way it was intended to.
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  • AudioGenics
    AudioGenics Posts: 2,567
    edited July 2009
    i believe in
    practicing "Safe Audio"
    always use protection....

    gotta consider the consequences !
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  • george daniel
    george daniel Posts: 12,096
    edited July 2009
    motorstereo wrote: »
    When I recapped my 2.3s I went against the flow and decided to keep my poly switches in place. Last week my improperly secured tt ground wire came off and took out 4 tweeters on my lesser speakers. The poly switches thankfully did their job and saved all 6 of my 2.3s tweeters.
    If there's somewhat diminished highs on my 2.3s with the switches in place I haven't noticed it. It is nice to know though that the protection circuit does indeed work the way it was intended to.

    must have been one hell of a pop/thump :(
    JC approves....he told me so. (F-1 nut)
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  • Disc Jockey
    Disc Jockey Posts: 1,013
    edited July 2009
    Part of the improvement is taking some noise out of the signal path. The other is that you've removed some resistance so the highs get boosted a little.
    "The secret of happiness is freedom. The secret of freedom is courage." Thucydides
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  • zarrdoss
    zarrdoss Posts: 2,562
    edited July 2009
    Good idea but might be better if it was a fuse?
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  • george daniel
    george daniel Posts: 12,096
    edited July 2009
    in my mind the poly is sort of a re-setting fuse,,I know that there was some talk about removing the poly and replacing with a resistor,,but I do not remember the value,,one of our members was experimenting with it IIRC
    JC approves....he told me so. (F-1 nut)
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  • Face
    Face Posts: 14,340
    edited July 2009
    I believe it was .5ohm. I would just replace the resistor inline with the tweeters with one that is .5ohm higher.
    "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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  • motorstereo
    motorstereo Posts: 2,150
    edited July 2009
    george daniel wrote: »
    must have been one hell of a pop/thump :(

    Nope; No thump or pop at all. I was wondering why the switches kept popping even though the volume was quite low. By the time I investigated I had lost 2 vintage klh tweeters and 2 rs leaf tweeters. Thank goodness for those little polyswitches that saved my polks from a very expensive and needless fix.
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,748
    edited July 2009
    The other is that you've removed some resistance so the highs get boosted a little.

    That is correct, so I always recommend replacing the poly with a .5ohm resistor.
    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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