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Polk RTA 11t - worth upgrading tweeters to RD0194-1?

samid

samid

Active Member
Hi,
I have a pair of Polk RTA 11t speakers and quite like them. I saw some discussions about upgrading the tweeters on those speakers to RD0194-1 which are available from Polk and are supposed to sound (much?) better... would appreciate opinions from those who did that upgrade, was there really an improvement? Thanks.
 
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It was a downgrade for me and a complete waste of money. The replacements were dull and lifeless and sound nothing like the stock tweeters which are lively, musical and sound like a live performance with a huge soundstage. New is not better in this case. If you like your speakers now with no complaints about them then don't even consider it.

1. http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1238624&postcount=11

2. http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1190784#post1190784

3. http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=92729
 
samid said:
Hi,
I have a pair of Polk RTA 11t speakers and quite like them. I saw some discussions about upgrading the tweeters on those speakers to RD0194-1 which are available from Polk and are supposed to sound (much?) better... would appreciate opinions from those who did that upgrade, was there really an improvement? Thanks.
Click to expand...

I had a similar discussion with a coworker of mine who was thinking of replacing the tweeters in his polks. He actually did buy a pair of replacements for something like 50 bucks each and brought them to work for all of us to check out. We listened to them in the conference room and while they sounded "different", I couldn't honestly claim they sounded "better". Maybe they needed to break in, or maybe my ears needed to "break-in". :scratch2:

Compared to newer diy offerings for the same price like the SB29's, these Polk replacements were pretty underwhelming as far as construction goes. For sure they are Asian imports, so they could be exceptional like the Ushers, or average like Tang-Bands. I don't think I'd put them in the Usher range.... I had a pair of 9950's at point.

But I think at the $50 price point they could definitely be beat with the latest tweeters from Seas and the like.

I think for the plug-and-play crowd these would probably be sufficient, but if you have some DIY ability, you can do much better. We are now helping this person with the Polks with integrating new tweeters.
 
I've heard from many Polk Audio native threads (at the Polk Audio website) that those replacements far surpass the SL3500 and SL2500 tweeters. That's just what I read though. I have the Polk RTA-15TL's with the SL3500's and love 'em, but I do agree with one post I found on them which stated that the crossover frequency for the tweeter was a little low.

Maybe worth a try?
 
I'm using these as the fronts in my HT along with a Yamaha HTR-5960. The sound is warm, smooth and silky with the stock tweeters. I changed the tweeter in my CSI3 center to the matching SL2000 tweeter so my front 3 all match. No mod of the crossover point needed for these. I tried and it didn't help. The crossover mod is needed on the SDAs tho.

http://polksda.com/rta11t.shtml
 
The RD0914's have a flatter frequency response than the original tweeters, eliminating the 12kHz hump. So, for a while, they are bound to sound flatter and somewhat lifeless compared to the original. And, if your hearing has a natural rolloff (due to age or whatever other factor) around 12kHz and up, the originals might sound like a more lively tweeter.

I have used both, and although never having had a 'problem' with the originals, I came to prefer the more accurate response of the RD0914's. They sounded slightly more natural to me over the long term.
 
I have changed them out in al of the Polk speakers I've owned and to my ears, it was a major upgrade. Of course, everyone's ears are different and, apparently, some worse than others. Try them like they are and see what you think about them. If you like them, don't change them. If you don't mind spending the $100 or so to get new ones for YOUR ears to decide, then do so. If you don't like the new tweeters, you can always sell them off.

No crossover mods were ever needed on the 3 pairs of SDA's I own/owned. I just upgraded the caps and removed the TNC protection circuits. But only remove those if you are driving them with known good power.
 
I'd like to see, if there's any difference in opinion on stock vs. the "upgrade" tweeters, with relationship to whether the speakers in question have, or do NOT have, the little "deflector plate" between the tweeter and the top woofer.

I've found that the RTA11Ts with the "deflector plate" sound significantly better, IME... in stock form. Never heard a pair with the "upgrade", AFAIK...

Regards,
Gordon.
 
Many thanks for all the replies. Seems there's no consensus on this... so I guess the only really good way would be to get and try the new ones and then sell whatever tweeters I like less...

A related question - upgrading the caps on the crossover was mentioned, I would appreciate more info on that. Is it a good idea just because the old caps are now probably old and out of spec, or is there another reason?

Thanks.
 
samid said:
Many thanks for all the replies. Seems there's no consensus on this... so I guess the only really good way would be to get and try the new ones and then sell whatever tweeters I like less...

A related question - upgrading the caps on the crossover was mentioned, I would appreciate more info on that. Is it a good idea just because the old caps are now probably old and out of spec, or is there another reason?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

All the crossovers in my 4 pair of SDAs and 1 pair of RTA 11Ts are stock and sound so good that I don't feel a need to upgrade the x-overs. I do believe that if the replacement tweeters are installed then a x-over upgrade is necessary to get back the clarity, detail and soundstage that is lost with the new tweeters.

Basically you have $100 pair of speakers there. I paid $100 for mine and they came with a pair of monitor 4.5's. They will never sound as good as the SDAs. Is it worth spending another $100 on tweeters and another $100 on the x-overs? For me the answer is definitely no.
 
Thanks for the reply. Just wanted to clarify, why are you saying that if I replace the tweeters I'll have to upgrade the crossovers? My understanding was that the RD0194-1's were a drop-in replacement and did not require any changes in the x-overs. I.e. tweeter replacement and x-over upgrade are, as far as I understand, independent in this case... what am I missing?
 
Yes they are independent. My point is that once you hear the replacements you will think something is missing and want to do the x-overs.
 
I (and actually pretty well everyone at Club Polk, and at Polk Audio, actually) could not disagree with Cornhulio more on this. While he shows 3 links to 2 people who have not liked the swap, there are about 1000 more from people who have loved it.

The SL 2000 was a tweeter with a major flaw. Polk, which is one of the few companies to do this, actually went back and corrected the flaws in the tweeter and gave a drop in replacement that was much better sounding. How many companies give that kind of support for a product that has been out of production for 2 decades? Not just having replacement parts available, but having much better quality ones at that. Cudos to the crew at Polk!

No changes to the crossover are needed to make this work. However, replacement of those old and tired caps is certainly STRONGLY recommended. Not too many components to swap in the 11t's, so I would definitely do that.

My strongest recommendation for the RDO-194 swap. :thmbsp:
 
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I will second what Bigerik said. Cornholio knows not what he is talking about. IMHO. I have upgraded all my old 2000 tweeters and replace the caps and resisters in several vintage Polks with all with major improvements.

Treat yourself and your speakers to some new tweeters, caps and resisters.

Scott
 
Thanks guys. I think I'll go for it, just to see, sorry hear, things for myself. Can anyone point me to/post a list of suitable replacement caps and resistors for 11t's?
 
If you upgrade one x-over or tweeter at a time, it's much easier to do a before and after evaluation. Otherwise by the time you do the upgrade and let them burn in, you can easily forget exactly what they sounded like before. A left (new) vs right (old) comparison is indisputable and helps identify the smallest improvements or disappointments as well as major ones.
 
samid said:
Can anyone point me to/post a list of suitable replacement caps and resistors for 11t's?
Click to expand...

The schematic is on the forum at the Polk Audio website. Look under the Vintage Speakers heading, it should be contained in one of the sticky's at the top.

I've found ClarityCap PX's (available at Madisound) to have great synergy with these. But, that's just my ears talking.
 
I have the 11T's w/ the sl2000 tweeter and they are absoulutely wonderful w/ Cambridge Audio amplification and Linn speaker wire. The amplification and cabling is the key to a balanced sound. The polymide tweeter is very airy and reveals all the air and space in a recording. I wouldn't change mine.

These speakers are so good at imaging, detail, and midrange clarity that I wouldn't want to give it up by softening the top end w/ a different tweeter. I also find they are very balanced and full sounding w/ the grill cloths "on" vs. "off". They only give up a little in resolution w/ the grills "on", but the coherance in sound is worth the trade off. I'm sure that they were designed to be used w/ the grills in place (typical of vintage speakers), unlike modern speakers w/ no grill cloths.
 
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That's the key thing. Listen to them first and let YOUR ears decide on if they "need" something. If not, sit back and enjoy them. Replacing older electrolytics with poly caps can be a nice upgrade for little money as would removing the TNC protection circuit "IF" good amplification is used. Parts Express is a good outlet for the Dayton 1% (or 5%) poly caps or the Solens are a nice choice. They also sell the Mills wire wound resistors.
 
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