Thiel Owners

rule - I would need some prompts to address the lack of braces. The 3.5 development dates from around 1987 - I am unclear exactly when. That's after our first CNC which is when the pierced shelf braces became feasible. I remember front-to-back lumber braces as well as the structural midrange tube enclosure which handle the heavy lifting. The baffle was 3" MDF laminated cross-direction. I remember a lumber transverse cross-brace in the lower area of the sides, but don't remember whether that made it to production. Memories fade. As a side note, the O3 and O3a & b had birch ply cabinets, but I think the CS3 &+ went to MDF. If I saw one I could reconstruct the picture.

The 3.5 pre-dated Stereophile's review analysis (or Thiel's ability to do so) so we don't really know the nature of its resonance behavior.

Note that any replacement driver would necessitate crossover changes since all parameters affect the various resonances which are compensated and corrected in the XO. Also, that driver had some level of Thiel proprietary magnet geometry and so forth; that motor came after we were developing sophistication beyond normal industry offerings. So, let's try to keep the motor and find or create a replacement coil system.

Motors are forever. Cone systems with their surrounds and spiders are for pretty long term precluding damage. It's the voice coil and lead braids which burn out or fatigue. It is possible that we could source that voice coil, on its former or not, and devise a replacement protocol, essentially rebuilding the driver using its own motor and cone system.

What d'ya think?

Just curious, has anyOne received either Tom or beetlemania xover mod?

andy - I am way behind schedule due to competing priorities. No one has received anything. But I have all the parts and am making the new boards for beetle to populate. Not yet, pretty soon you'll be getting some early reports.

Not yet, pretty soon you'll be getting some early reports.

Thank you Tom for the update.  For some reason, I thought some of the Mod's have been available.  But good luck with your works.