LSiM703's are here from Polk eBay! Advice or suggestions?

[Sprags]

They arrived about a half hour ago. I opened one just to check to make sure they looked OK.
With me being a Senior Manufacturing Engineer that does project planning, CNC programming and tool design for the aircraft industry for jet engine and aircraft components and the the automotive industry I've grown to be a detail oriented person for quality. My first quick examination of the speaker I noticed that everything for the most part visually looked OK except for on the bottom flat surface where I saw 3 small indentations about .030 t0 .035 of inch in diameter and maybe one smaller one about .020 in diameter and one groove about .010 deep and perhaps .375 long. These defects do not look like something that could have happened in transport since the speaker was packaged inside a soft cotton 'bag' which is inside the plastic wrapper and then tightly packed with the styrofoam inserts on each end. There were also cardboard shims to prevent movement on three sides. I did not see anything loose that could have caused that to occur from bouncing around.

The indentations certainly will not effect the sound quality. I want to bet that is the only thing wrong with the speaker. Everything else looks like there aren't assembly errors or damage to any of the other speaker or electronic components.

Since the indentations are on the bottom surface which will be sitting on the speaker stands they wont be visible. additionally I image if I got a woodworkers 'touch up' crayon from Home Depot I could fill them in and I imagine they will be become virtually invisible.

Thanks to working in this industry my OCD disorder regarding things like this has become amplified. I wish I would have persued are career that utilized my creative side more than my analytical side.

Is this the type of thing that may be why the parts are sold on eBay?

My plan, once I got the speaker stands which more than likely will be the Sanus Ultimates, is to find some type of a gel padding perhaps an 1/8" thick cut to the shape of the stands top plate shape to place the speakers on. I am not planning on 'bolting' them to the stand. I don't think I need to considering the stand is supposedly very sturdy and the weight of the speaker should hold it in place with the gel pad's qualities to prevent it from sliding or bouncing (i hope) on the stand. If there is another preferred way to locate and hold the speakers on the stands please let me know.

Opinions? Thanx....Blake

[ZLTFUL]

Minor manufacturing defects most likely and probably why they ended up on the eBay store instead of a normal retail venue or their own web store.

[Sprags]

Just to put this in perspective for non mechanical engineer types:
.030 of an inch is about the size of a a pen point...like those Gel pens that says .07 pen tip size.
.020 of an inch is the size of a .05 pen tip size.
.010 is about the size of the thickness of two or three sheets of paper.

The indentations were maybe .005 to .015 of an inch deep.

Like I said...I'm very detail oriented.

When I worked for the Helicopters Division of Boeing the gears we made looked like they should have been shipped in velvet lined jewelry boxes. Even jet engine parts are not finished that good. The airframe parts we made for the F22 and F35 Joint Strike Fighter did not have flaws like that. Automobile parts that are on parts of the car that are not visual and do not have paint or some other coating such as plating or chrome have flaws like that on non functional surfaces.

To be honest I don't think most people would have seen the flaws I noticed.

[pitdogg2]

When i start flying my speakers I'll start worrying about small blemishes that affect airflow or structural integrity


Try blue tack for the speaker stands found at any mart(wal-K) or at any office store works great and will leave no marks.

[rpf65]

Use the cotton bag between the speaker and stands. Hook them up, play them, and start enjoying. Worry about gel pads on your way to work, take a long lunch, and then buy them. You have a new toy to play with. Merry Christmas, either belated or early.

[Sprags]

I hooked them up to my Sony 7.2 receiver while I'm waiting for my tube amp to be completed. They sound awesome! I didn't crank them way up ...yet. Are there any recommendations for breaking them in? Besides avoiding awful death metal or gangsta rap? :-)

[DSkip]

Just let them sing. Can't wait for you to get a real amp on them and see what they can do. They respond VERY well to upgrades in the path.

[-Stanley-]

I received my 703's yesterday and had the same thing. A couple of very small marks on the bottom of the cabinets. The rest was fine. I was a machinist for 40 years and am fussy about details also. Since the marks on are the bottom of the cabinet I really don't care. Worth the savings plus the additional 20% off they has them on sale for. Just kickin back and enjoying.

[Sprags]

That's good to know mine were not any different. Thank you!

[-Stanley-]

That's good to know mine were not any different. Thank you!

My guess is they are actually new speakers damaged during the manufacturing process. It shows their QC guy is on top of things. If the marks had been anywhere besides the bottom I would have sent them back. Out of site out of mind.

[Dawgfish]

Just to put this in perspective for non mechanical engineer types:
.030 of an inch is about the size of a a pen point...like those Gel pens that says .07 pen tip size.
.020 of an inch is the size of a .05 pen tip size.
.010 is about the size of the thickness of two or three sheets of paper.

The indentations were maybe .005 to .015 of an inch deep.

Like I said...I'm very detail oriented.

When I worked for the Helicopters Division of Boeing the gears we made looked like they should have been shipped in velvet lined jewelry boxes. Even jet engine parts are not finished that good. The airframe parts we made for the F22 and F35 Joint Strike Fighter did not have flaws like that. Automobile parts that are on parts of the car that are not visual and do not have paint or some other coating such as plating or chrome have flaws like that on non functional surfaces.

To be honest I don't think most people would have seen the flaws I noticed.

My uncle was/is an engineer with the Helicoptor Division of Boeing. His name is Alfred Smith. He lives in PA. Any chance y'all know each other?

Congrats on your LSiMs. I love my 703s. Mine took about 80hrs of break-in before they really opened up. There were additional small changes up to about 150 hrs, but by and large most of the larger changes occured by 80 hours. I put my source on repeat and just let them play constantly for break-in.

[decal]

Just to put this in perspective for non mechanical engineer types:
.030 of an inch is about the size of a a pen point...like those Gel pens that says .07 pen tip size.
.020 of an inch is the size of a .05 pen tip size.
.010 is about the size of the thickness of two or three sheets of paper.

The indentations were maybe .005 to .015 of an inch deep.

Like I said...I'm very detail oriented.

When I worked for the Helicopters Division of Boeing the gears we made looked like they should have been shipped in velvet lined jewelry boxes. Even jet engine parts are not finished that good. The airframe parts we made for the F22 and F35 Joint Strike Fighter did not have flaws like that. Automobile parts that are on parts of the car that are not visual and do not have paint or some other coating such as plating or chrome have flaws like that on non functional surfaces.

To be honest I don't think most people would have seen the flaws I noticed.

If you are that particular about small stuff, get out of this hobby now. You will more than likely worry yourself to either death or bankruptcy !!!!!!!

[falconcry72]

...If the marks had been anywhere besides the bottom I would have sent them back...

Keep in mind, we're talking about refurbs here, NOT brand new speakers. They are SUPPOSED to have small physical flaws.

They should have came with (8) small, circular, adhesive-backed dots to put on the bottoms of the speakers. If they didn't, contact Polk CS and they'll send you some for free. I use them and they work very well.

Congrats on the new speakers! Those 703's offer excellent performance/cost. Enjoy!

[Sprags]

If you are that particular about small stuff, get out of this hobby now. You will more than likely worry yourself to either death or bankruptcy !!!!!!!

Prior to me purchasing them I specifically asked if there are visible flaws on the Polk eBay speakers. At least 1 person replied that there aren't any. Regardless I can live with the small flaws. I just wanted to know if that was what they may have been returned or rejected for. No one answered the question. Obviously the flaws that are on the bottom are of importance to Polk if they are on any surface other than the bottom since they aren't on those surfaces. Perhaps they work harder on making sure those surfaces are perfect.

As I said though I can live with them being the way they are. They sound fantastic with my Sony 7.2 AV reciever. I can only imagine them sounding even better once they have been run and being driven on a Push/Pull Tube Amp.

Thanks

[Dawgfish]

My uncle was/is an engineer with the Helicoptor Division of Boeing. His name is Alfred Smith. He lives in PA. Any chance y'all know each other?

[falconcry72]

Prior to me purchasing them I specifically asked if there are visible flaws on the Polk eBay speakers. At least 1 person replied that there aren't any.

Who did you ask? Polk Customer Service, or the forum? Random people on this forum are not authoritative Polk Spokespeople. Talk to Polk Customer Service if you want a real answer to a question like that.

From the Polk ebay REFURB LSiM page:

Refurbished products may have minor cosmetics blemishes and/or imperfections... Cosmetic blemishes and imperfections are not covered by the warranty.

just sayin...

[Upstatemax]

If you're getting the sanus UF series stands, they come with small pads that do a great job gripping the speaker while isolating. No need for the gel pad in my opinion.

I use the UF's with my LSi 9's.

[robert0507]

I second that statement. Sanus UF are the best.

[Loud & Clear]

My 703 showed up with some visible defects on top of the speaker. I realize that the speaker was 20% off, but I wasn't pleased. Having purchased polk refurbs before, I wasn't expecting as much scarring as this one had. They gave me an additional $50 off so I kept it, but I was very, very close to returning it. I'm using mine as a center speaker and it's fantastic.

[Sprags]

My uncle was/is an engineer with the Helicoptor Division of Boeing. His name is Alfred Smith. He lives in PA. Any chance y'all know each other?

I worked for a gear shop in Chicago Boeing Helicopters purchased because they were one of two facilities certified to heat treat Vasco steel in the 90's. they ended up selling the plant to another company which I thought was going to close down but surprisingly is still open for business. Sorry, I do not know your uncle.

[Sprags]

Who did you ask? Polk Customer Service, or the forum? Random people on this forum are not authoritative Polk Spokespeople. Talk to Polk Customer Service if you want a real answer to a question like that.

From the Polk ebay REFURB LSiM page:



just sayin...

I asked Pope Francis for Christ's sake

[cowtrimmer]

From the Polk ebay REFURB LSiM page:

Refurbished products may have minor cosmetics blemishes and/or imperfections... Cosmetic blemishes and imperfections are not covered by the warranty.

just sayin...

Apparently attention to detail in an ebay ad and CNC programming and tool design are worlds apart.

[Dawgfish]

I worked for a gear shop in Chicago Boeing Helicopters purchased because they were one of two facilities certified to heat treat Vasco steel in the 90's. they ended up selling the plant to another company which I thought was going to close down but surprisingly is still open for business. Sorry, I do not know your uncle.

Gotcha. Was just curious. How are you liking the 703s soundwise?

[Sprags]

sonically the 703's are fantastic. I splurged on a remaster of Dark Side of the Moon on the way home from work and am very impressed with how they sound....and I don't even have they set up on Sanus Ultimates on the tube amp. I can tell they will be even better once they are.

[Sprags]

Apparently attention to detail in an ebay ad and CNC programming and tool design are worlds apart.

I asked the people here because I wanted to see what real people have found as opposed to listening to a Polk Audio employee tell me something that is more likely going to be focused in such a way as to not be negative even if that were they truth.

Management for any company wil be that way no matter what. People here are less likely to be biased if there are negative issues.

[falconcry72]

...I asked Pope Francis for Christ's sake...

...as opposed to listening to a Polk Audio employee tell me something that is more likely going to be focused in such a way as to not be negative even if that were they truth...

That is a bunch of BS. Polk CS would have been straight-up with you. When I've called and asked about refurbs, they'll even open one up, describe any imperfections, and then send me that EXACT speaker, so I know what I'm getting. Pretty cool if you ask me.

You didn't read the explicitly stated ad, you didn't contact Polk CS... you listened to one of the random loony tunes on the forum.

To be fair, I can't blame you; you haven't been around long enough to realize how full of nut-jobs this place is!

jk

Enjoy speakers. I have a pair and love them!

[Dawgfish]

sonically the 703's are fantastic. I splurged on a remaster of Dark Side of the Moon on the way home from work and am very impressed with how they sound....and I don't even have they set up on Sanus Ultimates on the tube amp. I can tell they will be even better once they are.

Good deal. I'm running mine on a tube setup and I can attest the sound is fantastic. The soundstage on my 703s was kind of narrow and shallow until I got about 80 hrs on them. Then they opened up beautifully. I continued to notice small changes through 150-200 hrs, but the greatest changes occured in the 80-100 hr range. If you like them now..........

[Upstatemax]

That is a bunch of BS. Polk CS would have been straight-up with you. When I've called and asked about refurbs, they'll even open one up, describe any imperfections, and then send me that EXACT speaker, so I know what I'm getting. Pretty cool if you ask me.

You didn't read the explicitly stated ad, you didn't contact Polk CS... you listened to one of the random loony tunes on the forum.

To be fair, I can't blame you; you haven't been around long enough to realize how full of nut-jobs this place is!

jk

Enjoy speakers. I have a pair and love them!

Not everyone at Polk CS is great...

I've had some real D*bags when I've called before.

[Drenis]

I thought Polk CS was located in Baltimore? How can Polk CS look at refurbs in the west coast warehouse if CS is in Baltimore?

Correct me if I'm wrong. Just commenting to falcon...

[falconcry72]

I thought Polk CS was located in Baltimore? How can Polk CS look at refurbs in the west coast warehouse if CS is in Baltimore?

Correct me if I'm wrong. Just commenting to falcon...

Believe it or not, Polk Audio has telephone and email capabilities!

I asked about a 704c. The person I was emailing described the exact condition of the speaker. The speaker I received matched the description to a T. I don't explain the magic, I just note that it happened.