PSB Gold,tweeter upgrade.

I agree with Trelja. However, I should add that Solens, Axons, and SCRs are one and the same. The different companies would only have one believe different. Also, I prefer Mills to Ohmite. I think that you could do much better with caps than the SCRs. I must admit, I am a little partial. I have modified several of these speakers.

Have fun,
Jeff

Jeff, thanks for your input. I have not listened to Mills, but take your word on them.

The SCR capacitors, while built in the same factory as the Solens, are a better capacitor. They use a 7 mil polypropylene film, with a thicker aluminum deposition than the Solen and their 5 mil film. As such, SCR specs a 630 VDC rating, against the Solen 400 VDC. I believe you are correct about the Axon caps, and they feature lines from both Solen and SCR.

Jeff, I have not looked into the Golds in a long time. Can you please bring me up to speed? I believe they feature a 2nd order crossover, with no air core coils. Is my memory correct? And, what about the caps, I think they used a mid level type, representative of their price. Maybe polyester, with some electrolytics in there as well.

I am curious to find out where you found the most bang for your buck in the crossover. Do you feel that reengineering of the crossover values is worthwhile, or is it best to simply upgrade the components?

Thanks so much!, Joe

Thanks for your comments;as always well thought out and well expressed. I have a lot of equipment and thought I would play around with these older speakers. I am going to upgrade the crossover,and wish to really step up the performance of the tweeter which I find shrill at times,a characteristic of many metal domes I think,especially inexpensive ones.
The issue of the impedence is an interesting one as the impedence of the PSB Gold's really drops at low frequencies. The answer? Bi-amp with a pair of Bryston 3BSST's using a Legacy Steradian processor.Opens up mid range as well as delivers a tighter bass. Thanks again.

Sharpe49, I think you are well on your way to making a very good speaker a great one.

Your impressions of the PSB Gold are spot on. The Vifa metal dome is harsh sounding, and a bit hashy. A good soft dome would solve this problem, and the Vifa D27TG - 45 would do it for about $50 for the pair.

You are wise to also ratchet up the crossover. As I stated earlier, you will improve the speakers with the tweeter upgrade, but most loudspeakers are really hamstrung in their crossovers. Even many expensive speakers. You would be surprised. The Solens we spoke about being inferior to the SCRs are about as good as one could ever hope for in a manufactured speaker except in rare instances.

Coils make a big difference in impact, detail, and clarity. For this speaker, I would go with 12 gauge or better.

Resistors are the easiest, cheapest way to improve a speaker, outside of proper setup.

The PSB Gold is a bear to drive. The sensitivity is actually much lower than specified, 83 db/2.83V. Add to that the brutish impedence/phase angle, and most amplifiers are simply not able to drive the speaker like it is meant to be driven. The Bryston you are using sounds like a good solution for the bottom. I found the Adcom 5802 to not be up to the task. The Carver Lightstar/Sunfire amp really awakens the sleeping giant. Otherwise, the speaker merely sounds good, when you partner it with an amp that can take charge of it, the results are awe inspiring. And, this comes from a person who is not easily impressed by most speakers.

Good luck to you!

I'm interested in a tweeter upgrade as well since I own a pair of PSB silvers which use the same Vifa metal dome as the PSB Golds.

Does anyone know if the Vifa D27TG - 45 soft dome that Trelja mentions will just "drop in" to the PSB speakers????

What Specs would I look for? Just diameter? or electrical specs as well?

Please e-mail me if anyone has info on this.

Thanks.