Monitor 7b's for $65?

daway · October 2010

Hey everyone,

First post here! I already posted over on Audiokarma.org but figured you guys would know more about these.

I was browsing the local Craigslist and came across an ad for some Polk Audio Monitor 7bs for $65. Called the guy and I'm going out Sunday to check them out. I am pretty excited, $65 seems very fair for these speakers and I'll have a chance to try them out before I buy as well.

I'm new to "real" stereo equipment and am just getting in to vinyl as well (coming from some crappy Altec Lansing 2.1 system with mostly mp3s...what a difference vinyl and decent speakers make!).

Right now I have a pair of newer Series II Polk Audio Monitor 30s paired with a PSW-10 sub (all scored on newegg.com clearance for under $200 total), so I'm excited to try out these vintage Polk speakers as I've heard that the 7bs are pretty well regarded.

Anyone have thoughts on these 7b's? Anything I should look out for when I got check them out? I've attached the pictures from his ads.

ben62670 · October 2010

Great buy. Those have the peerless tweeters to boot.
Welcome to club Polk.
Ben

Ricardo · October 2010

Those look beautiful and for $65 you won't find a better speaker. They will blow your new monitors in sound quality.

When you go see them gently press and hold the passive radiator. The midwoofer should move out and stay there for a couple of seconds. If it doesn't move, the MW might be frozen. Not good. If it moves but goes right back, you have some air leaks in the cabinet. Probably an easy fix.

cnh · October 2010

Welcome to Club Polk!

And what a way to 'enter'. Those are nice bookshelves. I have the Peerless M-5s, a model down from yours, and do have one of the problems Ricardo mentions above. My drivers are not properly sealed so it looks like MORTITE (in case you have that problem--I hope not).

cnh

indyhawg · October 2010

Those are great speakers. Can't beat them for 65 bucks.

vstarkwell · October 2010

indyhawg wrote: »

Those are great speakers. Can't beat them for 65 bucks.

I agree!!!!

HB27 · October 2010

Those aren't the original stands. Kinda tall and you might lose some bass having them that high.
If they seem a bit shallow sit them off the floor about a foot and angle them back about 5 degrees.
Nice condition MODEL 7's, Peerless, and a top notch speaker in that size bracket.
Grab 'em up and enjoy. Great entry into 2 ch Polk!
Welcome to Club Polk.

dorokusai · October 2010

Why you didn't buy them already is odd. I'm not sure I agree with the stands comment from HB27, not original...agreed but perhaps I missed the height of them as simple.

Any loudspeaker nut should always have a really nice pair of stands to complement bookends, period. 24-26" will cover almost anything you will find...as a generic figure. I have a pair of adjustable stands that have worked for over 3 dozen loudspeakers over the years.

A nice stand investment will always work a great return....get a pair and you'll never lose a penny on resale if they're solid.

daway · October 2010

dorokusai wrote: »

Why you didn't buy them already is odd. I'm not sure I agree with the stands comment from HB27, not original...agreed but perhaps I missed the height of them as simple.

Any loudspeaker nut should always have a really nice pair of stands to complement bookends, period. 24-26" will cover almost anything you will find...as a generic figure. I have a pair of adjustable stands that have worked for over 3 dozen loudspeakers over the

I haven't bought them yet because Sunday is the first day we're both available to meet. I'll definitely take your advice on the stands though! I knew those weren't the right stands but if he's throwing them in I'll take them for now.

skrol · October 2010

Excellent speaker and deal.

The 7B was produced 1979 – 1984 and retailed for ~ $480. I am guessing that yours are an early production of the 7B since it has the cardboard gaskets around the MW and PR and the Peerless tweeters.

Stan

comfortablycurt · October 2010

For $65, that's a no brainer. Excellent sounding pair of speakers.

I've got a pair of 7A's...which are essentially the same speakers...and I absolutely love them. Truly a great sounding pair of speakers. I doubt that you could find a better sounding pair of speakers for less than $200 or so. I highly doubt that I'll ever part with my 7A's.:)

gdb · October 2010

It looks to me as though the fuse installed on the rear of those might be the wrong amperage. I pretty sure those require a 1amp fast-blo.:)

ben62670 · October 2010

You are correct gdb.

daway · October 2010

gdb wrote: »

It looks to me as though the fuse installed on the rear of those might be the wrong amperage. I pretty sure those require a 1amp fast-blo.:)

Where can I get the correct ones?

doctor r · October 2010

I bought a pair of the 7Bs in 1979 and still own them. That is an excellent price if the drivers are in good shape. The fast blow 1 amp fuses are not uncommon, possibly Radioshack if no other place. Many online parts places like parts connexion. I did rebuild the crossovers in mine a few years ago replacing the electrolytic capacitors and updating the resistors. Made a very nice improvement and was a pretty simple project. The large drivers are passive radiators that are coupled to the mid driver by the sealed cabinet. That is why the instructions were given to gently press the passive radiator and see the motion of the middriver. The original mid drivers sometimes froze up or slipped their magnets causing them to not move. If they respond appropriatly this is a very good price for some IMO excellent vintage speakers.

vstarkwell · October 2010

daway wrote: »

I haven't bought them yet because Sunday is the first day we're both available to meet.

Well did you get them?

daway · October 2010

Yup picked them up today. Got to listen to them there before I left and they sounded perfect, then I brought them home and now one of them has some distortion!

I've tried switching speaker cables, switching channels on my receiver, and even switching fuses between the speakers.

The distortion sounds like it could be coming from the tweeter, but I am not really sure.

vstarkwell · October 2010

Congrats!!!!!, you won't be disappointed as for the distortion I'm not technically proficient. I'm sure some of the kind knowledgeable folks on this site will be able to assist. Actually a few of the responses you got on this thread are from some of thee most knowledgeable.

HB27 · October 2010

daway wrote: »

Yup picked them up today. Got to listen to them there before I left and they sounded perfect, then I brought them home and now one of them has some distortion!

I've tried switching speaker cables, switching channels on my receiver, and even switching fuses between the speakers.

The distortion sounds like it could be coming from the tweeter, but I am not really sure.

I'd check the mid woofers for the distortion.
They're notorious for the magnets shifting in transport. The glue on the magnets dries up after so many years allowing the magnet on the frame to actually shift and cause the noises or even lock up causing lack of base.
I'm not saying that's your issue but it's a possibility and worth checking out.
Then again, anything electronic can fail at anytime.
It's a simple system so troubleshooting will be quick and easy.
Congrats on the purchase.

daway · October 2010

HB27 wrote: »

I'd check the mid woofers for the distortion.
They're notorious for the magnets shifting in transport. The glue on the magnets dries up after so many years allowing the magnet on the frame to actually shift and cause the noises or even lock up causing lack of base.
I'm not saying that's your issue but it's a possibility and worth checking out.
Then again, anything electronic can fail at anytime.
It's a simple system so troubleshooting will be quick and easy.
Congrats on the purchase.

I pulled the mid woofer and nothing seemed out of place, but then again I am not really sure what I should be looking for.

I actually think I may just be hearing the rattling of the rubber covering of the tweeter (sorry I don't know what else to call it). I have been messing around just feeling the tweeter and manipulating the tweeter's cover as it is playing and now it magically sounds better....

Forgive me for being so technically inept

daway · October 2010

Hopefully the sound stays away, although I really don't know what I did to get rid of it. But I LOVE these speakers, they sound so natural and smooth compared to my new Monitor 30's paired with PSW-10 Woofer (not that they are slouches by any means). Both sets of speakers are hooked up to my Pioneer VSX-5600 receiver through the A & B channels so I can switch between them pretty easily. Definitely a different listening experience that I really appreciate.

I think I will try to build stands for the 7b's soon so they can reach their full potential, which doesn't seem to hard after looking at this thread:

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24335

comfortablycurt · October 2010

Good to hear you're enjoying them!! Peerless M7's are one of the best sounding budget speakers out there. They should definitely smoke your Monitor 30's up, down and all around...and should put out more bass by themselves than your PSW10 is capable of.

I'd highly recommend building/finding a proper pair of stands for them. Mine didn't have stands when I got them, but I managed to track down a pair of original stands for them. They made for a VERY appreciable improvement in sound.

I've found that the 7's can be somewhat picky in regards to toe-in. I'd suggest playing around with different amounts of toe-in over the next few weeks. I've found mine to work best with about 1 1/4" of toe in, with them spaced about 9' apart and the seating position about 8' from the center point of the sound stage. This gives them enough toe-in that the tweeters fire past the ears, and intersect at a point roughly 2 feet or so behind my head. Makes for some great sound staging, and some very cheap sonic bliss.

I'd also strongly recommend performing the Mortite mod to them. Search the forum if you haven't heard of this. It's a very cheap upgrade to perform($3-4 or so), and makes for a very substantial improvement in bass extension and authority. It really makes the low end a lot more solid.

Monitor 7b's for $65?

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