Kappa 9 adoption
- Thread starter BrianLW
- Start date
.
slimpikkins
Super Member
Great work and very nice listening space.
Jim
Jim
Funny it took you two trips. I had to do that with my Kappa 9s as I could only squeeze one into my Honda Civic at a time. No big deal, since the seller only lived a couple of neighborhoods away.
It was a bigger deal when I could only fit one RS II into my Neon. That seller lived a couple of counties away, about an hour to him and an hour back. Still worth it!
It was a bigger deal when I could only fit one RS II into my Neon. That seller lived a couple of counties away, about an hour to him and an hour back. Still worth it!
Bahamayellow
Super Member
Nice setup and welcome to the Kappa 9 club. I bought mine from the original owner in pretty good shape. He had already done the refoam and the rest of the drivers were in great shape. Just hooked mine up around 2 months ago.
Last edited:
Time for an update.
I have been using and enjoying the Kappas with a pair of undamaged but yellowed polydomes I bought on ebay. The original orangish pair (one torn) were set aside. I finally sent the orange pair to Bill Legall at Millersound for a rebuild. His turnaround was one week as promised, not counting shipping time.
Millersound claims their dome is stiffer, and therefore less prone to Doppler distortion do to flex at large excursions.
They also add some damping material to the face of the magnet to cut back on reflections, and they recommend reducing the fill material in the midrange cavity by half, to take advantage of the improved dome. I did try a comparison after installing just one, in mono, switching between L and R speakers. I couldn't really tell a difference between the rebuilt Millersound unit and an original (yellowed) unit in a quick test flipping back and forth. I installed the other unit and enjoyed them for a couple days.
Then I reduced the fill behind the polydomes by half, and something changed in the sound. I had to readjust the levels on the crossover panel. I had previously dialed in the sound to closely match my Monitor Audio Silver 6s (ignoring the extended bass the Kappas provide). I had the mid-bass at 3 o'clock (boost), the polydome at 12 o'clock, and the emit and semit at 9 o'clock (cut). With the rebuilt polydomes installed, they are now set at the nominal settings of 1 to 2 o'clock. I emailed Millersound, and Bill Legall confirmed that I had been compensating for the stiffened suspension of my old polydomes, which he says become harsh on the high end and lacking in the lower end as they age.
They now sound exceptional. As to looking original, I suppose I would prefer the look of an OEM driver if it was still clear. Once they turn yellow or orange I find the color unattractive and prefer the black. Also, the upgraded polydomes have the Infinity logo embossed on them, and match the embossed dust caps that I put on the woofers when I refoamed them. My old woofer dustcaps were crumbling.
Both Bill and Loretta at Millersound were very helpful via email throughout the whole process.
If I had it to do over again, I would have just sent the original domes to Bill for a rebuild while I was refoaming the woofers.
I have been driving the Kappas bi-amped with a Belles 450 on the woofers, and an ARC VS110 on the upper drivers. In my living room this works very well.
I have been using and enjoying the Kappas with a pair of undamaged but yellowed polydomes I bought on ebay. The original orangish pair (one torn) were set aside. I finally sent the orange pair to Bill Legall at Millersound for a rebuild. His turnaround was one week as promised, not counting shipping time.
Millersound claims their dome is stiffer, and therefore less prone to Doppler distortion do to flex at large excursions.
They also add some damping material to the face of the magnet to cut back on reflections, and they recommend reducing the fill material in the midrange cavity by half, to take advantage of the improved dome. I did try a comparison after installing just one, in mono, switching between L and R speakers. I couldn't really tell a difference between the rebuilt Millersound unit and an original (yellowed) unit in a quick test flipping back and forth. I installed the other unit and enjoyed them for a couple days.
Then I reduced the fill behind the polydomes by half, and something changed in the sound. I had to readjust the levels on the crossover panel. I had previously dialed in the sound to closely match my Monitor Audio Silver 6s (ignoring the extended bass the Kappas provide). I had the mid-bass at 3 o'clock (boost), the polydome at 12 o'clock, and the emit and semit at 9 o'clock (cut). With the rebuilt polydomes installed, they are now set at the nominal settings of 1 to 2 o'clock. I emailed Millersound, and Bill Legall confirmed that I had been compensating for the stiffened suspension of my old polydomes, which he says become harsh on the high end and lacking in the lower end as they age.
They now sound exceptional. As to looking original, I suppose I would prefer the look of an OEM driver if it was still clear. Once they turn yellow or orange I find the color unattractive and prefer the black. Also, the upgraded polydomes have the Infinity logo embossed on them, and match the embossed dust caps that I put on the woofers when I refoamed them. My old woofer dustcaps were crumbling.
Both Bill and Loretta at Millersound were very helpful via email throughout the whole process.
If I had it to do over again, I would have just sent the original domes to Bill for a rebuild while I was refoaming the woofers.
I have been driving the Kappas bi-amped with a Belles 450 on the woofers, and an ARC VS110 on the upper drivers. In my living room this works very well.
Last edited:
slimpikkins
Super Member
Thanks for the update, they are looking great! Nice info on the polydomes. Millersound always adds a touch more to their work to go beyond expectations. Glad it is all sorted out. They are local to me and just as nice in person.
Last edited:
Time for an update.
I have been using and enjoying the Kappas with a pair of undamaged but yellowed polydomes I bought on ebay. The original orangish pair (one torn) were set aside. I finally sent the orange pair to Bill Legall at Millersound for a rebuild. His turnaround was one week as promised, not counting shipping time.
Millersound claims their dome is stiffer, and therefore less prone to Doppler distortion do to flex at large excursions.
They also add some damping material to the face of the magnet to cut back on reflections, and they recommend reducing the fill material in the midrange cavity by half, to take advantage of the improved dome. I did try a comparison after installing just one, in mono, switching between L and R speakers. I couldn't really tell a difference between the rebuilt Millersound unit and an original (yellowed) unit in a quick test flipping back and forth. I installed the other unit and enjoyed them for a couple days.
Then I reduced the fill behind the polydomes by half, and something changed in the sound. I had to readjust the levels on the crossover panel. I had previously dialed in the sound to closely match my Monitor Audio Silver 6s (ignoring the extended bass the Kappas provide). I had the mid-bass at 3 o'clock (boost), the polydome at 12 o'clock, and the emit and semit at 9 o'clock (cut). With the rebuilt polydomes installed, they are now set at the nominal settings of 1 to 2 o'clock. I emailed Millersound, and Bill Legall confirmed that I had been compensating for the stiffened suspension of my old polydomes, which he says become harsh on the high end and lacking in the lower end as they age.
They now sound exceptional. As to looking original, I suppose I would prefer the look of an OEM driver if it was still clear. Once they turn yellow or orange I find the color unattractive and prefer the black. Also, the upgraded polydomes have the Infinity logo embossed on them, and match the embossed dust caps that I put on the woofers when I refoamed them. My old woofer dustcaps were crumbling.
Both Bill and Loretta at Millersound were very helpful via email throughout the whole process.
If I had it to do over again, I would have just sent the original domes to Bill for a rebuild while I was refoaming the woofers.
I have been driving the Kappas bi-amped with a Belles 450 on the woofers, and a pair of modified Dyna Mk IIIs on the upper drivers. In my living room this works very well.
Glad it worked out well for you.
Time for you to enjoy them now.
Bill at Millersound recently repaired my 5" Watkins woofers.
Highly recommended. Exceptional service and it was truly a pleasure dealing with Bill and Loretta.
Bahamayellow
Super Member
Looking good glad they turned out well. Thanks for sharing.
