onepixel
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How are they different?
Sansui TOTL Speakers SP-5000 and SP-5500 Side By Side?
- Thread starter 4-2-7
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fish mojo
Active Member
https://www.hifiengine.com/manual_library/sansui/sp-5500x.shtml
Compare the specifications,weight, cabinet size, build quality and there is a considerable difference. Go back to the start of this thread and see how the SP-5500 and SP-5000 are built compared to the SP-5500X. Night and day. Twice the weight and cabinet size. Wood grain vinyl on the X....Sorry, not meaning to be putting your speakers down, but these are only similar in the name with the "X" attached. Sansui did have some strange naming conventions for their equipment.
Compare the specifications,weight, cabinet size, build quality and there is a considerable difference. Go back to the start of this thread and see how the SP-5500 and SP-5000 are built compared to the SP-5500X. Night and day. Twice the weight and cabinet size. Wood grain vinyl on the X....Sorry, not meaning to be putting your speakers down, but these are only similar in the name with the "X" attached. Sansui did have some strange naming conventions for their equipment.
Roboneal91
Member
Update, took them off and IMO that's a handsome ass speaker, looks diesel now, before with the factory stands they looked like they needed to be on the floor and bulky but now idk I just like it a whole lot, in case anyone wants to know what a 5000 looks like with no stand here you go, it's funny too now they look tiny compared to my corals on the bottom
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Roboneal91
Member
Appreciate it, yes sir electrolytics for the low and mid and polypropylene for the hones, I'm debating on rebuilding the rest of the crossovers and resoldering the old connections as well but haven't made it there yet
Thanks your only a hop skip and jump away, come by some time and you can flip tough records and check out the stereo. I don't have the Sansui's anymore though but plenty more speakers.
You said fun, I think I just turned it into a weapon with the addition of another pair of 250 TIs and almost 2000 watts..
100 to 150 watts output = THUNDEROUS volume, powerful bass notes vibrate the pants on my legs, it is impossible to have a conversation without face to face shouting. I can feel the house shaking and can only imagine how loud it is in the neighborhood. Sometime when enough neighbors are gone, I will try this long enough to to go out and walk around the neighborhood just for shits and grins...
This is acurat but even with shouting you would not really hear anything @ lets say 8 feet from the speakers and a 150 watts.
I don't know how this guy is measuring their watts but I got to call BS on this statement. The SP-5000 are rated @ 90 watt, 102 db, I was driving mine with two McIntosh MC275 Mk VI, they can push out 90WPC stereo 180 WPC Bridged. Now the SP-5000 took all of the 180 watts but would drive into distortion at that point. So lets say they are pretty clean at a extremely loud 150 WPC driving them. I see no way in hell they will not fry going over 200 WPC. Understand my tubes would have given more room for error do to soft clipping than a dangerous SS clipping. If I'm hearing distortion and soft clipping at 180 WPC, then one will be smelling smoke at 200+ watts.
onepixel
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Thanks for the invite. I don't make up to the city that often, maybe when I'm passing by. Cheers!Thanks your only a hop skip and jump away, come by some time and you can flip tough records and check out the stereo. I don't have the Sansui's anymore though but plenty more speakers.
You said fun, I think I just turned it into a weapon with the addition of another pair of 250 TIs and almost 2000 watts..
I did, in fact a long long time ago when I first got mine.
I'm in San Mateo if that helps any.
onepixel
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I've been to San Mateo, couple of times.I'm in San Mateo if that helps any.
I'm down in San Jose.
restorer-john
Addicted Member
His Spec 4 meters are peak reading and he's playing music, interpreting the +3dB meter ballistics swing as being 'real' watts. A Spec 4 barely hits 180w/ch both channels driven in a tailwind. Even that would vaporise the Sansuis.
90 watts continuous sine wave would take them out, but then again, 90 watts continuous dissipation is an awful lot for any vintage speaker long term. Peaks, sure, but hour after hour- no way.
BLAH BLAH
Super Member
Yes same here...the article is what prompted me to buy the SP-5000 speakers..
BLAH BLAH
Super Member
Your out of the SP-5000/5500 speaker club now...Thanks your only a hop skip and jump away, come by some time and you can flip tough records and check out the stereo. I don't have the Sansui's anymore though but plenty more speakers...
Hand in your membership...
Pretty much what I was thinking that he can't get the power out put form UV meter, far far too inaccurate. I also doubt his power transformers will hold that power for anything but the instant high peaks. But the speakers do handle 180 watts but start distorting, however at 8 feet away you might be able to listen to a song with 150 watts leaving a little head room, but we're talking very loud.
No way, my thread and hands on knowledge.
Bound2Glory
New Member
Bound2Glory
New Member
Proud owner of the SP-5000 model!
Mated to a fully restored Pioneer SA-9800 (rated @ 100 wpc). Thinking about two things: 1) adding a tube pre-amp to amp up power (pun intended). 2) recapping the speakers.. But worried about altering original sonic presentation. Also, reading different opinions on type of Caps to potentially use; film, electro, or poly (I think - sorry.. Brain fart).
Any input would be much appreciated!
Thanks
Mated to a fully restored Pioneer SA-9800 (rated @ 100 wpc). Thinking about two things: 1) adding a tube pre-amp to amp up power (pun intended). 2) recapping the speakers.. But worried about altering original sonic presentation. Also, reading different opinions on type of Caps to potentially use; film, electro, or poly (I think - sorry.. Brain fart).
Any input would be much appreciated!
Thanks
nikmills
New Member
We need pics to officially put you in the 5000 club......
Ok, I'm officially entering this fray with pictures.
When I first posted here I'd just bought a pair of SP-5000 in Vancouver, WA. The guy's barn was stacked with equipment so tight that amps were on their sides, stacked like books on the shelves. He told me these speakers were recapped. I didn't even know what that meant. They sounded fantastic and they were 95% clean. I paid $400. Very nice wood. I struggled to carry them into my house and hooked them to my Sansui AU-717 and I've been blown away ever since. Astounding speakers. I've heard $10,000 speakers and honestly I think these high end Sansuis are a hidden sleeper of the audio world.
So when I was in New York last month I tracked down two more pair. One for $125 and the other for $200. So now I have a six pack spread across the county. These pairs were both uncapped and both about 50% on the clean scale. They might have lived in a dorm room by the scratches, but no one spilled beer on them that I can see. It's moist on the east coast and I bet these spent time in a basement; the screws on the back of one of the four were so corroded that four screws just stripped their philips slots and I couldn't get the back off - yet.
So these four uncapped purchases sit in a friend's garage in NY for the moment. I want to recap them myself and I'm looking for some advice on that process.
Having read a little about capacitors and immediately noticing the vast difference between my first recapped pair and the two non-capped sets I bought in NY" I am sold on recapping. It's night and day. I'm even considering a recapped AU-717 on ebay to see if recapped amps benefit to the degree that speakers do. Anyone got feedback about that?
Here's the original crossover with purple caps and a pic of the recapped crossovers. I see that whoever did the job sometimes used two in place of one, adding up to slightly more 'MFD' with the new caps. (What's MFD?). My instinct is to copy exactly what I see in the recapped pair to match the other two pairs. Clearly I'm a newbie to electronics, but I'm a sculptor by trade. I can tig weld and braze and I'm sure I can solder just fine with a little practice.
So I'm hoping people can throw in their two cents concerning the best move with the caps:
1. where to purchase caps.
2. whether to copy the set up I find or is that a hack job someone did because they just used what they had. why two in place of one?? Is that a special technique?
3. what's the best soldering iron and solder for this job?
Thanks in advance. I've gleaned a lot from this forum and I really appreciate people's input.
And I am blown away by the sound coming out of these damn speakers. WOW.
ps. does anyone know what the 'red dynamite sticks' (last picture) are. They weren't changed in my recapped speakers.
THX!
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Roboneal91
Member
I'd like some help from an sp5500 owner if anyone would be willing to take the time, it's not a small task I'm asking because you'd almost have to if not completely have to dismantle one of your 5500s to help me, I have a set of 5500 components that I've purchased I'll be getting within the next couple weeks and I want to build a factory spec cabinet for them, everyone who frequents this post knows the rarity of 5000/5500 speakers and finding specifications such as that even on a way more common 2500 would be impossible without the cabinet right in front of you, especially the dimensions of the internal braces and bracing blocks, I could make a cabinet that "fit" the drivers no problem and it would be close but not close enough to be an actual 5500, I'd be using correct materials as well so thickness of all pieces would be needed to including the internal absorption fabric and all dimensions of routed edges as well, I'd be documenting the process of this as it went but with life being so hectic I don't see it being a quick project nor would I want it to be, after the fact I'd like to invest in some walnut burl veneer and make this thing pop like never it never could before it was dismantled, the other issue is the grill it's an impossible "part" to find and I'd spend forty years trying to carve a kumiko grill by hand, if anyone knows how to make them or someone who does that info would be appreciated, I'm asking a hell of alot out of someone if anyone is up for this please do reply and by no means do you have to rush I'll be taking my time to acquire the materials and do it perfectly so I'll need in the neighborhood of 200-300 in materials first off, the only part I'm throwing around changing is the build of the factory stands, I ripped the ones off my 5000s they had served their duty and were way worn the speakers look way more hefty without the lady legs on them
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