Thiel Owners

jafant, thanks for pointing me to this thread!

Currently have Thiel CS 2.3s driven by Krell KAV-300il with Audioquest CV-8 speaker cables.  Front end is Oppo BDP-103 used as transport, PS Audio Perfect Wave DAC (and getting the Bridge and converting cds to NAS next, will run Roon and Tidal).  PS Audio UPC-200 for power, AC cord for Krell is an Audioquest NRG 3 with 20 amp plug, converted to IES with Black Voodoo converter.  Silnote Morpheus XLR cables.  Room is 11.5' x 22' x 8.5', no treatments, pics coming on virtual systems soon.

Loving this system so far, have greatly enjoyed each improvement.  However, I am looking to improve highs which sometimes lack crystal clear clarity, I think the technical term is "tizzyness?"  Also would like to improve the vocal/midranges, make these warmer and deeper.  What should my next upgrade be? I am thinking that a significant improvement is going to cost $2000-$3000, in the meantime I was going to try some DIY room treatments.  In setting up my HT I convinced myself the room is the most important part of the system, or at least the most bang-for-the-buck improvement wise once you have a decent system in place.

Background - dove into two channel hifi at the beginning of 2018, goal was to put together a decent sounding system in a dedicated listening room using used, discounted, even vintage equipment, all for less than $5000. I think with the PS Audio Bridge I will come in just over that mark.  Geoff Poor at Glenn Poor's Audio and Video in Champaign IL demonstrated the magic of time and phase aligned speakers and after some research I Ianded on the CS 2.3s.  I had been using my brother's old Maggies and had already purchased a Krell integrated amp for these along with Audioquest cables, also had an Oppo universal player from an old HT set-up, so that's where I started. 

I am looking to improve highs which sometimes lack crystal clear clarity, I think the technical term is "tizzyness?" Also would like to improve the vocal/midranges, make these warmer and deeper. What should my next upgrade be?

Upgrade the crossovers!

Seriously, this will be your best bang-for-the-buck move and I imagine you will be very happy with the result. Tom Thiel has an idea regarding “tizzyness” and Thiel’s reputation, among some, for being bright despite the ruler flat measurements. Unfortunately for you, Tom is not currently planning an upgrade kit for CS2.3, partly because of lack of demand for that model (as measured by responses in this thread). But maybe your need will spur him?

If you can’t wait for a kit that may or may not ever come, you can start your own upgrade. I have replaced the OEM resistors in my CS2.4 SEs to notable improvement with Mills MRA-12s. Highly recommended. I will build entirely new boards later this summer/early fall, replacing all parts. My SEs are something of a test mule for Tom’s kit development.

Tom may chime in with some ideas for you but feel free to PM me if you want more details about capacitor choices. The CS2.3 boards are roughly similar to those in my 2.4s, a bit simpler, even. The main unknown, for me, is how much room you have to replace the 100uF electrolytics with film caps. You can probably otherwise directly replace the extant caps and resistors with higher quality parts.

The result should be amelioration, if not complete removal, of the "tizzyness" and notably enhanced clarity and transparency. Jim Thiel engineered some superb drivers - these merit higher quality passive parts!