 
|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
|
|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
76.104.169.8
I've resurrected some 80's Sony ss-U500 speakers and am joyfully spinning some vinyl for the first time in many years. The system so far is free so I was thinking of what the cheapest and easiest upgrade would be so I decided to replace the capacitors in the speakers.
Surprisingly the only thing in the box was one capcitor on the mid-range and nothing on the tweeter or woofer. If I were to put in a cheap three way crossover how would I go about choosing one? The speakers sensitivity is 91db which is a good match for my 30 watt receiver so I wouldn't want to mess with that. Would it be better to just replace the mid-range capicitor?
Follow Ups:
I received my new parts from parts express and installed them. My initial goal was to just replace the one cap that was in there and test one speaker but for some reason I also installed the extra tweeter cap at the same time.
I completed one speaker in about 15 minutes and set it up to test. The first 10 second impression was the new parts were not as bright and had slightly less volume. After a bit of back and forth it became apparent that the speaker with the old parts was not as smooth in the highs and everything distorted before the one with new parts did as the volume went up. With both speakers new parts installed the balance is excellent and improvement is noticeable, especially as the volume goes up.
Probably should have done the midrange first but I was a bit impatient. Maybe I'll go back and test again without the .47 uf tweeter cap. The old mid caps measured at 3.7uf from the 3.3uf label which suggest they were funtioning somewhat.
It's worth noting that the biggest improvement came before any mods to the speakers when I move them to the basement which has a concrete floor and room treatments. I have a bit of a novice recording studio that has treatments on the walls and ceiling.
Buy some speaker stuffing and put it in each speaker. You will get cleaner sound since you are removing some of the reflected sound from the interior of the speaker.
https://www.parts-express.com/Acousta-Stuf-Polyfill-1-lb.-Bag-260-317
Edits: 06/10/23
But if you over stuff it or put the stuffing in the wrong place you will strangle the sound and especially the dynamics. Use as little stuffing as you can and Never put it right behind a driver.
... less is more is usually good advice.
I just may throw caution and 20 bucks to the wind and buy a couple different values and throw it on the tweeter and see what happens. I'll start with a new 3.3uf to replace the old one on the midrange and if that doesn't ruin anything then maybe fiddle with the tweeter. I'm thinking some long wires coming out the vent hole to easily change caps and possibly a wasted afternoon.
I would leave it as it is, and just upgrade to a decent polypropylene film capacitor to replace the 3.5uf/50v bipolar electrolytic in the midrange.
A large portion of the music lies in the midrange, and this would make a nice improvement.
Something inexpensive like Audyn Q4 3.3uf, or Clarity Cap ESA 3.3uf.
If your totally anal, wire a .2uf film cap wired in parallel to either 3.3uf in order to get to 3.5uf.
mg16
Edits: 06/10/23
just change the cap with a Dayton, from Parts Express,same value or close.
Is this better? I believe it's non polarized.
Edits: 06/09/23
and a film cap of the same voltage/uf might improve things a bit. No cap or anything on the tweeter? Not likely so maybe a pic of that and an overall pic of everything please. It pays to take better shots of things for inquiries, we need a couple shots more for an overall perspective
A cheap 3 way crossover will probably sound worse than the simple one you have now. Crossovers are complex and they must be designed for the combination of parts making up each speaker to sound good. The box volume and design and the drivers are a unique combination and so is the crossover. A good crossover doesn't only act as a crossover but also equalizes the individual drivers which are rarely flat in response.
Try an improved capacitor.
I am surprised there's no cap on the tweeter(unless it's a series crossover. Without a cap in a regular crossover the tweeter gets full power from bass on up and no tweeter can handle that. Are U sure there is nothing on the tweeter?
Yes nothing on the tweeter or woofer. All drivers are two wires straight to the binding post.
I can find what looks like the exact 3.3uf 50v nichison non polarized capicitor. Too many choices so I'm not sure what a suitable upgrade would be. I'm tempted to just try something on the tweeter just for fun as long as it's not too much money. $20 a cap would be okay but less is even better.
That would explain the lack of a series cap. Piezo elements are inherently capacitive, hence naturally highpassed, and don't need a filter.
But it LOOKS like a dome. If it has a conventional voice coil, it must have a series cap (maybe concealed internally?), or I don't see how it could long survive a fullrange signal from the amp.
It's a paper dome with a stamped steel enclosure. It's certainly possible something is hiding in there. I'll try to get a look in there when the new mid range cap arrives.
Edits: 06/15/23 06/15/23 06/15/23 06/16/23
.
Have Fun and Enjoy the Music
"Still Working the Problem"
and it's possible the cap for the tweeter is mounted to a circuit board inside the enclosure so get out the flashlight
No circuit board inside. Drivers wired straight to the binding posts. One midrange cap literally the only thing besides the drivers themselves.
Yeah, I would just replace the cap with a film cap and call it good.
I might change the cap- keeping the value, but going to a film or oil/paper cap-
But adding a new "cheap three way crossover" would change the efficiency, and may not improve the sound-
The crossover is a compromise between the driver specs, the box and the goal-
Happy Listening
| FAQ |
Post a Message! |
Forgot Password? |
|
||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:
Top of Page ]
[ Contact Us ]
[ Support/Wish List ]
[ Copyright © 2025, Audio Asylum, all rights reserved ]
