• The move to the new server is done. There are some software and database maintenance updates in process. This has us passing the hat around to help out. We appreciate any donations. Seriously, even a dollar helps. The payment page may be found here - https://www.audiokarma.org/support.html

Estate sale find: SP-3500 speakers, great cond! $150.

Plomaman27

Plomaman27

SparkJockey
I was checking out estate sales and noticed a pair of Sansui SP-3500's. They were in decent condition with intact surrounds and the front lattice grills were in good shape. I picked them up for $150. Did I get a good deal? I noticed they are rated for 105 Watts.
 
Register to hide this ad
These don't seem to get much love here (or most anywhere it seems) but I'll give them a favorable vote. I own a pair, and once the crossovers have been recapped (using film, not electrolytic caps) I find them a respectable, but somewhat unconventional sounding speaker.

Keep in kind they are a product of their time, and were designed in the wattage wars mindset of "more is better" hence the firing squad of 5 different drivers per cabinet. The cabinets are very well made, the drivers are average. Magnet on the woofer is serious, but doesn't translate to great low frequency response. That is more likely due to the cabinet being a bit undersized for a ported enclosure with the chosen driver compliment. Not terrible, but good down to about 45-50 hz which is a little shy of contemporary expectations. A subwoofer may be in order to pair with these to get that extra low end kick that most seem to want now.

Add to that they are equipped with horn tweeters. Not exactly a smooth sound, more a lively and in your face quality. I happen to like that but many who consider themselves serious audiophiles clearly take issue with it. I'd give these a 5 or 6 out of 10, they are decently suited for jazz and classic rock/blues in my estimation.

Symphonic/chamber/operatic music is probably not their strength, since they undeniably sound very bright, moreso than natural. $150 for a really nice pair isn't a bad deal, but do recap the crossovers before you decide whether or not they appeal to your own taste, it does make a noticeable difference.

All that said, I like my sp-5500s better, they are a much larger version of the 3500's with an added massive horn midrange and higher power handling that puts them in a class of their own. They are also nearly impossible to find, and are not likely to gain wifely approval (not an issue I have to worry about) given their massive size.
 
Sansuiman said:
These don't seem to get much love here (or most anywhere it seems) but I'll give them a favorable vote. I own a pair, and once the crossovers have been recapped (using film, not electrolytic caps) I find them a respectable, but somewhat unconventional sounding speaker.

Keep in kind they are a product of their time, and were designed in the wattage wars mindset of "more is better" hence the firing squad of 5 different drivers per cabinet. The cabinets are very well made, the drivers are average. Magnet on the woofer is serious, but doesn't translate to great low frequency response. That is more likely due to the cabinet being a bit undersized for a ported enclosure with the chosen driver compliment. Not terrible, but good down to about 45-50 hz which is a little shy of contemporary expectations. A subwoofer may be in order to pair with these to get that extra low end kick that most seem to want now.

Add to that they are equipped with horn tweeters. Not exactly a smooth sound, more a lively and in your face quality. I happen to like that but many who consider themselves serious audiophiles clearly take issue with it. I'd give these a 5 or 6 out of 10, they are decently suited for jazz and classic rock/blues in my estimation.

Symphonic/chamber/operatic music is probably not their strength, since they undeniably sound very bright, moreso than natural. $150 for a really nice pair isn't a bad deal, but do recap the crossovers before you decide whether or not they appeal to your own taste, it does make a noticeable difference.

All that said, I like my sp-5500s better, they are a much larger version of the 3500's with an added massive horn midrange and higher power handling that puts them in a class of their own. They are also nearly impossible to find, and are not likely to gain wifely approval (not an issue I have to worry about) given their massive size.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the information Sansuiman. Would it be a bad idea to try a different value capacitor to lower the response of the bass driver? Those drivers look dry as a bone, the surround included. Im not surprised the response is weak. I am going to upgrade the caps as you suggested. I read somewhere to use non polarized electrolytic caps in these speakers is that a good idea or do you think I should use film caps instead?
 
I'd not recommend changing any of the capacitor values. These are calculated to determine the crossover points for each driver, in conjunction with the corresponding inductor coils. I doubt there is much to be gained unless you designed and built and entirely new crossovers. Even then, the mids and tweeters on this design are probably operating near their design limits in terms of the frequency response, so it's likely there is very little change possible without leaving gaps in the output.

Keep in mind also that the woofer is attached directly to the input signal (it has no hi-cut frequency since it isn't fed by the crossover) as it utilizes an integral high frequency rolloff, per the original owners manual and brochure. Thus, unless you add a high-cut filter of some sort inline with the internal woofer leads, you can't limit the upper frequency passed through to it just by tweaking the existing crossover circuit.

Further, even if you did that, the result would probably leave a gap in the lower midrange response. The midrange drivers on the 3500's are rather unremarkable. They are sealed back 5" drivers by my recollection, and have very little excursion range due to the surround deisgn, so their lower-mid frequency response is apt to be pretty slim. They'll do what they were designed for, and no much - if any more - to be succinct about it.

Back to the caps though, I'd use (and have on several pairs of speakers now) non-polarized film caps. Crossover capacitors must be non-polarized in any case but if you are going to the effort to replace them, skip the electrolytics and the pricey boutique stuff also - these speakers won't gain anything from such frivolity - and just get Dayton's from Parts Express, or something similar in price.

If you aren't a terribly discerning golden-eared sort (of the type who thinks nothing of dropping thousands on speakers) and can deal with the bright, forward presentation of these speakers, they might just surprise you. I like them despite their known shortcomings, though naturally I'd like a pair of Cornwalls over them, if that were within my budget. It isn't, so I remain satisfied with speakers of a less exclusive pedigree.

Really, they aren't terrible. They simply tend to offend the sensibilities of critical listeners who believe nothing should unduly "color" the source material. Just about every component in the chain, starting with the recording engineer, will do that to some extent, and if you like the sound of the end result that's all that really matters.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom