Thiel cs2.4 upgrade to cs 2.4 se

@desmond888 
Thiel used unleaded solder (high melting point) but I do not know the brand. I am using Cardas (leaded) for my new boards. In my case, I plan to replace everything from the terminal posts to the driver wiring. Posts and wire will be Cardas, so OEM solder is completely omitted.

I do not know the brand of caps Thiel used on your boards. Solen is a good guess but I suggest you ask Rob Gillum.

Are you still hearing an imbalance with the woofer? Did you change anything on the woofer board? The 2.4 layout I have says the DC resistance is 32 ohms for the coax (measured from hot in to hot out). @holco posted the same layout but someone wrote 31 Ohms DCR. My new board checked in at 30.4 ohms. I will measured the OEM board very soon to see how it compares. DCR on the woofer is <1 ohm. My new and OEM woofer board measured 0.4 ohm. Changing caps and coils can affect DCR even if the resistors are the same. This could have small effect on the sonic balance but shouldn’t change to the degree you reported. Perhaps something else is wrong?

Also, I am surprised you report no problems with your room. I suggest a few simple wall coverings, such as throw rugs to the side and rear wall, to dampen early reflections.

Dear beetlemania, 

I did not change other thing except the caps i mentioned in the forum. The only variable is i used two clatitycaps of (10uf +3.9uf= 13.9uf) as compared with its original caps of (13uf +1uf = 14uf). There is a deviation of 0.1uf. 

I will let it run in further before making further assessment.

Btw, holco, may i know what is the character of  jantzen capacitors?

Thus far, i found out the clarity caps csa tends to produce a less fatigue sound/ golden sound, something similar to class A amp sound but it is not my cup of tea. 
 I prefer a more neutral and clean sounding caps. I might need to recap or mix the cap later after confirming the sound.

As the year ends, it marks a beginning of another new year and new hope.  I would like to take this opportunity wishing you and your family a wonderful year ahead.

@desmond888 
interesting report, thanks. Holco’s report is earlier on this thread.

My preliminary take is that the CSA is more transparent and resolved for pretty much all instruments and vocals. More open and clear, with notably better microdynamics. I will have more to say later, on the Thiel Owners thread.

But my subjective take should differ from yours. I have a late SE version with XOs sourced from FST. The coax feeds are Clarity SA but all other caps are CYC MKT, which is a lower quality. Also, I’ve been running Mills resistors since May. And my upgrade is a full rebuild with Multicap RTX bypasses on the coax feed CSAs. There is nothing from the OEM boards remaining, not even the coils. So, my starting and ending places are both substantially different than yours.