Replacement for SL2000

[WilliamM2]

I have a set of SDA1C's that I purchased new in 1989. One of the tweeters has developed a scratching sound with certain frequencies.

I have read that there is a different tweeter used as a replacement now, so I know I will have to replace one tweeter in each speaker to have them sound the same. Would this be OK, or should I replace all four?

And if I decide to drop $200 on these 16 year old speakers, how reliable are the rest of the drivers? Are they known to die from old age as well?

[F1nut]

Get 4 new ones, you can thank me later. The other drivers are good to go for many more years.

[WilliamM2]

One other question. If the problem was in the crossover, or polyswitch, would the scratching appear in both tweeters? It's definetly only in one, as I disconnected it, and it went away.

I just want to make sure it IS the tweeter before replacing.

[F1nut]

If it was the polyswitch/crossover, the problem would be in both tweeters. If you want, put the "bad" tweeter in the other speaker to see if the problem follows as I'm sure it will.

The new tweeters are so much better you'll kick yourself for not getting them sooner.

[ohskigod]

I'll second Jesse on this. get the 4 silk dome replacements (call polk audio to order, tell them you are a member of club polk)

swapped out the sl2000's with the replacements in my SDA-1B's and i'll never look back. replacing all 4 will be a little steep, 48.00 bucks each, but it will be well worth it.

[WilliamM2]

Thanks for the advice. I assume these are a direct drop in for the SL2000?

I guess it's not too steep considering what I originally paid for them, and the years of enjoyment I have got out of them.

From 1979 or so, I bought new speakers at least once a year, until I got the SDA1C's. Never have heard anything (under $2000 anyway) to make me want an upgrade.

Are these things still worth anything? Just curiousity, they are not for sale. They will be in mint condition after I glue one of the cloth side panels back on, had to do the other speaker about three years ago.

[ohskigod]

My 1B's were about 400.00 which i considerred a great price. 500.00 would be conservative, i've seen them for over 600 on ebay at times.

[F1nut]

Originally posted by WilliamM2
I assume these are a direct drop in for the SL2000?



Yes and what Lou said.

[WilliamM2]

Ordered them this morning, but I was told the part number was BD0194-1. I thought the number was supposed to be RD0194-1.

Is this the same thing?I hope it is the right tweeters...

[BobMcG]

Yup, the correct number is RD0194-1.

[ohskigod]

dont worry, you got the right one. my shipping invoice had the BD as well.

[WilliamM2]

Well, I was told that the part I will be recieving is BD0194-1, I even had her double check, and she said that was the new SL2000.

I did a search here for BD0194-1, and got 0 results. I sure hope they are the right tweeters, the same ones everyone is raving about here.

Looks like I will have 3 SL2000's for sale if anyone needs them.

[WilliamM2]

Thanks ohskigod, I will rest easier now.

[madmax]

If you should happen to get the wrong ones it will be obvious. The spade connectors will not fit on the wiring tabs. Don't worry, they know what you are talking about. :)
madmax

Oh yea, you will wonder how the original tweeters sounded so bad without being noticed. These are great speakers and should last another 10-15 years with no problem.

[BobMcG]

Seems a bit strange...... but I'm sure it will work out.

I installed my six new tweets when, a month ago or so. I ordered from Ken and the only number that came up in the conversation was the RD and that's what my invoice said....... maybe the stock number has changed???

[Polk65]

From what I recollect, BD/RD refers to the source where the driver was manufactured. BD is a previous prefix and RD is the current.

xx0194-1 is for the sl2000 and sl1000.
xx0198-1 is for the sl3000 and sl2500.

[Loud & Clear]

Originally posted by Polk65
xx0194-1 is for the sl2000 and sl1000.

The SL1000 isn't drop in replaced by the RD0194-1. I think that's important to note for people out there, like myself, who can be fooled by CS or posters who suggest similarly.

[Polk65]

Excellent point. I was thinking of sonic replacements and trying to help with the BD/RD prefix confusion.

The sl1000 and Peerless tweeters are smaller and will require some creative means to mount their replacements flush with the face of the cabinet.

[WilliamM2]

Well I should have gotten them today, but FedEx just called, the package has the wrong first name on it, and the wrong address, so it was sent back to the station. They don't know if they will make it today now. I'm wondering how the charge was even approved, since nothing matches my billing address.

Odd, because I was told they were coming UPS 2 day air. Not real impressed with customer service so far.

[ohskigod]

wierd. if it has the wrong name and address, how did they know to call you?

might have just been a typo, call CS back and see if they can help if you dont get these things by tomorrow. polk CS has been nothing but great for me.

[WilliamM2]

My phone number was on the shipping label.

I've already called Polk and had the info corrected, and FedEx has the correct info now as well, so I'm sure I will get them tommorrow. Maybe even later today, they didn't know.

[F1nut]

Relax, typo's happen. Polk CS is second to none!!!

[WilliamM2]

I'm relaxed, I called FedEx because they didn't make it back today, and they will hold it at FedEx for me to pickup tommorrow. I work two blocks away.

And I'm sure Polk's CS is usually good, and they were willing to take care of it when I called, but I had already done that, and just wanted their info corrected in case of any warranty issues or returns.

I was just anxious to hear the improvement after reading about them here.

[Polk65]

William, sorry to hear you're having troubles.

Here's a Polk CS story that pretty much sums up what length they will go to make our problems go away.

http://clubpolk.polkaudio.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=23236

[PolkFreak]

I think it is harder to say RDO194-1 ect.... You can just ask for the new and improved silk SL2000 tweeter. Or just the silk SL2000 tweeter. There is really no need to say the RDO194-1 model number. I don't think they would send anything other than the silk SL2000 after saying that is what you want. Mine came to me fast enough to put a smile on my face:D

[madmax]

Let us know how excited you are after hearing them for the first time. We never get tired of that. :)
madmax

[PolkFreak]

The new silk SL2000 tweeters were as smooth as milk chocolate M&M's and the sound melted in my ears and not in my hands.;)

[WilliamM2]

I installed them two weeks ago, they are a little smoother, I'm very happy with them. I need to do some more listening, as I was waiting until I had let them run in a bit before really evaluating them. They have about 70 hours on them now.

But it's funny how one thing leads to another. For about ten years I used to spend all my cash on audio, until I finished my current system 15 years ago. I was so pleased with it that the upgrades stopped (finally!).

But I seem to have the bug again. This started out with just replacing the tweeters, and replacing a noisy volume control on my pre-amp.

Then I decided to replace the rear surrounds with a set of R15's, decided to get a new CD changer, purchased a Panamax line conditioner, bought all new interconnects (RS fusions), purchased a new universal remote, and at this very minute I am in the middle of changing the SDA cable with twelve guage wire, and the rca connectors from the old RS gold series cables for pins. All this in just two weeks, on a hobby I thought I was done blowing money on.

And I am also looking for a new surround proccessor and center channel. Though I really don't watch many movies, so I'm in no rush here, usually only 2 channel listening. The wife thinks I've lost it, but she is cool with it, she knows I will either spend it on that, or motorcycles.

I now have the following:

Denon POA 2400 - front amp, 200watts @ 8ohms, 750 @ 2ohms
Parasound HCA-500 - rear amp 50watts
Yamaha AVC-70 - Pre-amp
Onkyo Integra T-4500 - tuner
Yamaha CDC-685 - cd player
Panamax 5100
Polk Audio SDA-1C - front
Polk Audio R15 - rear
Samsung remote
JVC 36" flat screen, don't remember model.


Probably more than you needed to know.

[Polk65]

Originally posted by WilliamM2

The wife thinks I've lost it, but she is cool with it, she knows I will either spend it on that, or motorcycles.

Upgrade your audio equipment as you like but keep that wife. :)

[Larry Chanin]

Originally posted by WilliamM2
I installed them two weeks ago, they are a little smoother, I'm very happy with them.

Hi William,

Glad to hear that you found your drivers and that they sound good. I understand that the replacement is a simple "drop in" procedure. Was the process straight-forward and simple for you with no complications?

The reason I'm asking is that I've got a pair of SDA-1C's and a pair of SDA-CRS+'s and I'm seriously considering doing the replacement. Ideally I'd like to try to do the replacement without moving them from their locations behind a false wall in my home theater. The 1C's are up on 15" stands, and one of the CRS+'s is mounted 9 feet up in the air. If possible I'll like to try to replace the tweeters while on a ladder rather than moving the speakers.

Do you or others who have done this replacement think this is feasible, or do you recommend that I go to the effort of hauling the speakers out of their permanent mounting positions? Here's a drawing of their positions:
http://mysite.verizon.net/res8ycu4/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/front.gif

Thanks.

Larry

[WilliamM2]

I never had to move my SDA-1C's, they drop right in from the front. Very simple.

Aren't those speakers a little high for a seated listening position? Just curious.

[ND13]

I'm not much of an HT guy, but isn't the center channel mono?
If so how does the CRS+ SDA work as a center?

[WilliamM2]

I would imagine they run mono, so no SDA effect, but they would be a great voice match for the SDA-1C's.

[Larry Chanin]

Originally posted by WilliamM2
I never had to move my SDA-1C's, they drop right in from the front. Very simple.

Aren't those speakers a little high for a seated listening position? Just curious.

Hi William,

Thanks for the response.

If you notice from the drawing the tweeters of the mains are vertically centered on the screen. Likewise the dual stack CRS+ yield a phantom center channel centered vertically on the screen. The intent of this arrangement was to more realistically center the action on the screen.

I'm quite pleased by the results.

EDIT: I should have mentioned that the rear seating platform is 14 inches high and raises the listener's ears so they are almost level with the tweeters. Nevertheless, the soundfield in the front seating is still excellent even though the tweeters are much higher than the listener's ears.
http://mysite.verizon.net/res8ycu4/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/profile4.gif

Larry

[Larry Chanin]

Originally posted by ND13
I'm not much of an HT guy, but isn't the center channel mono?
If so how does the CRS+ SDA work as a center?

Hi ND,

Yes, William is quite right on both counts. You can only get the SDA effect with stereo signals.

I used to use a CS400i as the center for my SDA-1C's. It was a pretty good timbre match, but not perfect. The SDA-CRS+'s have the identical tweeters and mid-range drivers as the 1C's and they are a perfect match as William surmised.

Larry

[ND13]

Originally posted by Larry Chanin
Hi ND,

Yes, William is quite right on both counts. You can only get the SDA effect with stereo signals.

I used to use a CS400i as the center for my SDA-1C's. It was a pretty good timbre match, but not perfect. The SDA-CRS+'s have the identical tweeters and mid-range drivers as the 1C's and they are a perfect match as William surmised.

Larry

I thought the CRS+ had two tweeters(one for sda). Also, how does the SDA driver work out in this set-up. I'm just trying to educate myself on different HT scenarios for the future. I prefer vintage Polks over the newer designs. I'm not knocking the new stuff at all. I just think that for the money it's hard to beat the vintage.

[Larry Chanin]

Originally posted by ND13
I thought the CRS+ had two tweeters(one for sda). Also, how does the SDA driver work out in this set-up. I'm just trying to educate myself on different HT scenarios for the future. I prefer vintage Polks over the newer designs. I'm not knocking the new stuff at all. I just think that for the money it's hard to beat the vintage.

Hi ND,

The original CRS's had two tweeters. I'm not sure whether or not they were used for the SDA effect. Perhaps one of the veteran SDAers can chime in here to clarify the issue. The CRS+ are thought to be preferrable by many Club members. As you can see in the photo below they only have one tweeter.
http://mysite.verizon.net/res8ycu4/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/shadow2.jpg

I do know that some of the early SDA's had SDA tweeters and that Matt Polk eventually discovered that it was the mid range drivers that were most responsible in producing the SDA effect. Therefore, he later discontinued SDA tweeters.

Notice that my mains have two tweeters, but they are vertically arranged and are not used for the SDA effect. For the SDA effect to work the SDA drivers must be spaced horizontally apart by about a head's width.

I believe that some folks here find the SDA speakers with SDA tweeters were not bad, but slightly "phasey" in sound. Therefore they were less pleasing than the newer SDA's without the second tweeter.

You'll find that many folks here, including myself, share the belief that the SDA's were the best speakers Polk Audio ever manufactured.

Click on the link in my signature for some more photos of my home theater.

Larry

[ND13]

I agree, I have the 2A's. I just got the two CRS's confused, to many Ebay looks at ignorant seller's gear I guess. But when using a SDA for center channel(mono) are you not utilizing the other driver?

[Larry Chanin]

Originally posted by ND13
I agree, I have the 2A's. I just got the two CRS's confused, to many Ebay looks at ignorant seller's gear I guess. But when using a SDA for center channel(mono) are you not utilizing the other driver?

Hi ND,

No, since I know I can't get the SDA effect on mono signals, I haven't even contacted the interconnect cable. As a result the SDA driver (mid range) is idle. I suspect it would still be idle even if the the interconnect were connected.

I know of one Club member, Raife, who rewired his SDA drivers on his CRS+'s in parallel with the stereo drivers in order to have them active when he was using them in a center channel application.

Larry

[F1nut]

Originally posted by Larry Chanin
Hi ND,

The original CRS's had two tweeters. I'm not sure whether or not they were used for the SDA effect.



Yes, they are. Any of the SDA's with two tweeters mounted horizontally uses one for the SDA tweeter.