Need recommendations on good but cheap bookshelf speakers I can modify to improve

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DangerBoy

DangerBoy

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Joined 2017
#1
Hello,

I just joined and this is my first post.

I am helping my friends' 12 year old girl who is really into retro music and audio put together her first sound system on a shoestring budget. I found her a good working Technics SL-Q200 turntable with the stock Technics cartridge for a good price. I put that together with a pre HDMI era Yamaha AV receiver and a pair of old 2 way speakers that I had kicking around and now we're all set to surprise her with her first sound system when she gets back on Monday from her summer holidays. She's been buying up old Queen and other classic rock LPs and has been jones'n to play them. She's going to be so surprised and happy... :cloud9:

I'd like to eventually upgrade the speakers in this system as I think the ones I gave her are the weakest link in the system. What I'd like to do is find a pair of cheap underrated bookshelf speakers that I can make some simple mods to (like re-capping and/or replacing crossovers or tweeters) to make a lot better.

Perusing the local classifieds, I have found the following speakers that are in my budget range which is less than $100 CAD (~$75 USD) excluding the cost of the modifications. The asking price of these listed below are $80 CAD (~$60 USD) or less.

Polk R20
Dalquist PDQ-607
ProLinear PL3.5B
Sony SS-CCP1
Yamaha NX-E300
Polk Audio Monitor Series II Bookshelf

Do any of these have particularly good potential with modification? What mods are required to make them better?

If none of the above have very good potential, is there another brand/model that I should look for and what mods would I need to make to them?

Thanks in advance for your advice.
 
#3
Konzentr8 said:
What are the speakers you already have?
Could you not spend your budget on upgrading them instead?
Click to expand...

They're just a pair of two-ways from an old CD Stacking JVC Ghetto blaster I had. They don't sound horrible but they're not that good either. Not worth modifying I don't think.

I think she would really think it's cool to have a pair of upgraded/modified vintage speakers if I could find some with good potential and make them noticeably better. But failing the vintage part, I think she'd still think it's cool to have a pair of more modern second hand speakers that we've made better and given a new life with a few mods.
 
#4
Shame you're not a bit nearer i've got a nice pair of vintage Kenwood 3 ways i'd have donated to a good cause , as for suggestions it's difficult to recommended anything in particular as almost anything has potential for improvement .
The older Yamaha amps had a nice warm sound and i had good results using the few i've owned with Wharfedale speakers , E 30's had excellent synergy with an old AV receiver i used to have .
Problem is anything ' vintage ' or ' retro ' seems to command ridiculous prices now , especially on ebay etc. , if you are planning on improving whatever you get i would be inclined to look at obtaining something with nice cabinets and reasonable drivers to start with then after a listen decide what needs replacing or needs to be modified.
 
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#5
As those are all cheap speakers it is likely that improvements could be made with upgraded XO parts (or even just newer, caps keep improving), better bracing (i’d guess most are in cheap MDF boxes), better damping, more optimal tuning (i have found few cheap BR that don’t benefit from being pushed towars aperiodic), and reduced diffraction signarure.

dave
 
#11
Replacing aged and dried up caps! - yes definatly. If there is some cheap bipolar caps or filmcaps in fairly new speaker, these wil be fine and changing them for better caps, will not change the sound dramatically (depends on who you are, I know).

Dynaco A10 have rubber surround, but these can be up for repair. I thought refoaming was a common expression, no matter if the edge is foam or rubbber?
 
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#16
I have posted this same basic question on another forum and got a recommendation to purchase some Pioneer SP-BSS22-LR speakers and do the Dennis Murphy mods on them. That sounds appealing to me but it's more money than I had originally intended to spend but I'm thinking I may be able to get her parents or grandparents to chip in so I stay within my budget for the project.

Today I came across a pair of Polk Monitor Series 7s up for sale that I might be able to get for the same price as the Pioneers. I believe they are the original version with the Peerless tweeters. Assuming the Polks are in good shape and working well, would they result in a better speaker after mods?
 
#18
Not so cheap speakers but I like modification 😀 :
 

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#19
HarryY said:
How about building new cabinets and robbing the elements out of the existing speakers?
Click to expand...

Not worth it. The existing speakers are just some old 2-ways that came with a CD stacking JVC ghetto blaster I hadn't gotten around to throwing out yet. Very cheap components inside. They don't sound horrible but they don't sound anywhere near great or very good either. Merely acceptable. By donating an old pre HDMI Yamaha AV Receiver I had lying around and those old speakers and some old 16 gauge speaker wire, I kept the project on a budget she can afford - $45 CAD (~$35 USD) which I paid for the Technics Quartz lock direct drive TT with the stock Technics cartridge.

This speaker project is something I'm hoping to do as her Christmas gift and I may do it in partnership with her parents or grandparents so I can get the budget up a little higher to give me more options.
 
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