Thiel Owners

Good Afternoon All,

I am picking up a pair of CS3.5s this Thursday in piano gloss black. How does the CS3.5 compare to the CS3? I will probably end up selling my CS3 locally in Colorado because I imagine the CS3.5 will be a considerable upgrade!

I had the 3.6....listen to Vandersteens.....the same kind of sound....Thiels are a bit more brilliant (high frequency favoring)

bianuzzi22 - Identical concept and specified performance.

The main difference is the midrange driver. The original CS3 Vifa was upgraded to a custom ScanSpeak midrange that allowed broader (7 octave) coverage. Also, the CS3 woofer got a polymer coating which smoothed out its upper range. Crossover tweaks were necessary and the baffle angle is a little different. Same tweeter. The 3.5 EQ is a little more sophisticated.   The CS3 sold 2000 pair and the 3.5 sold 5500 pair. I consider the CS3.5 as quintessential Jim Thiel. I am bundling the CS3 and 3.5 together. All upgrades will apply to both platforms. 

Hi everyone,

Long time reader of this thread here, but first-time poster (: I was hoping for some insights on the following: I recently exchanged my CS1.2s for a pair of 2.4s. When I brought them home, I noticed a sort of brown residue were the surround meets the cone of the mid driver. It looks a bit like ferrofluid. I'm wondering whether this is just something that happens to these drivers with as the glue ages, or whether it means my driver needs servicing or has been tampered with. I'm especially curious because to my surprise, the 2.4s sound a bit brighter than the 1.2s, where I was told they were one of the more mellow-sounding Thiels.

Any insights would be greatly appreciated. Here's a link to a picture of the driver and the residue: 

https://www.icloud.com/photos/#0d0w-Z13Lc7fTf9ntPVQODZqw

Mine has that as well just slightly noticeable. Being I purchased the pair brand new in 2005 it's got to be the many years of temperature fluctuating and normal playback wear and tear. Maybe take a Hex Key and tighten all the front screws in the case they became loose over the years which hold the speaker cones in place. 

These speakers require lots of quality watts to sing their best. What amplifier are you using?