daniam Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 I've just picked up a set of monitor audio silver 8i's. I haven't heard these as new, they have some years on them. So, not having owned them from new, I have no reference point for what they could sound like. Even if I did, my memory is not that good So, are there any specific indicators for drying up capacitors etc? If it were a set of speakers from the 70s, I wouldn't blink, I'd just do a crossover upgrade. Also, yep, everything is subjective, I am happy with the sound that I am currently getting, not looking to do a xover upgrade or the sake of it - same as many of you, so what is your tipping point? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gryffles Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 Surprised they use electrolytic caps. Have you checked? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniam Posted January 15, 2019 Author Share Posted January 15, 2019 5 minutes ago, Gryffles said: Surprised they use electrolytic caps. Have you checked? Things have changed since I was younger it would seem So, xover upgrades are no longer necessary after a period of time on newfangled stuff? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gryffles Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 21 minutes ago, daniam said: Things have changed since I was younger it would seem So, xover upgrades are no longer necessary after a period of time on newfangled stuff? Haha, maybe mate. If they have electrolytic caps in the crossover then I would change them 100%. If not then probably not although the choice is of course yours Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniam Posted January 15, 2019 Author Share Posted January 15, 2019 Good on you Gryffles, I appreciate the help. It's what you don't know that catches you out, in my instance, anything from changes in toast technology, let alone electronics since 1980, to surprising modern revelations that cat's can have gender reassignment (10k+ vet bill this xmas, coz the poor thing had something similar to kidney stones - gawd knows how much the bills will be for ongoing psychological treatments for having his willy chopped off without his consent). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steever Posted January 16, 2019 Share Posted January 16, 2019 Having swapped out a bunch of electrolytic caps for polypropylene ones in a range of speakers over the years , I can say it's a worthwhile investment. I've just done it on my floor standers with solid gains. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Addicted to music Posted January 16, 2019 Share Posted January 16, 2019 21 hours ago, daniam said: to surprising modern revelations that cat's can have gender reassignment (10k+ vet bill this xmas, coz the poor thing had something similar to kidney stones - gawd knows how much the bills will be for ongoing psychological treatments for having his willy chopped off without his consent). I may need some Psychological counselling trying to get my head around this.... Because somehow every time I think of replacing electrolytic in speaker xo, the thought of gender reassignment will pop up in my head! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted January 16, 2019 Share Posted January 16, 2019 Does anyone know how long polyprop's stay within specs ? Anecdotally, electro's are said to last only 7 or 8 years. Electros are much cheaper for large values uF that polys, and I suspect sound the same when both are new. (could be wrong) I use polys on tweeter and mid, electros on woofer and sub, based on cost (and nearby Jaycar have them). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted January 17, 2019 Share Posted January 17, 2019 37 minutes ago, Nigel said: Does anyone know how long polyprop's stay within specs ? Anecdotally, electro's are said to last only 7 or 8 years. Electros are much cheaper for large values uF that polys, and I suspect sound the same when both are new. (could be wrong) I use polys on tweeter and mid, electros on woofer and sub, based on cost (and nearby Jaycar have them). Sort of. Trouble with generalisations is that they're not always correct. I recently rebuilt a pair of AR speakers, dating from 1973-ish. They've done a fair bit of work, apparently. Most of the HF drivers are shot and two mids had failed. The small electros on the mids and HF drivers were showing signs of their age, but were still not too bad. The electros on the bass drivers were spot-on. Well within tolerance and ESR was excellent. Very well made electros. I would expect polyprops to remain in spec for several life-times. That said, I have found a few dead ones over the years. Some were of recent manufacture. Sound-wise, polyprops may offer some sonic improvements, depending on various factors. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted January 18, 2019 Share Posted January 18, 2019 Thanks Trev, nice to hear polys last a long time, usually. I dressed up some ARs and JB4410s with some polys on the tweeter and mids. One side at a time, for comparison. Ze chalk and ze cheese. Not so sure for woofers what type of cap, so long as they are doing their job correctly (within spec) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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