Alesis monitor one mkii speaker modification.

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I would like to suggest one more tweak.
Replace all the internal dumping material of the speaker (usually cheap plastic foam), with 100% wool. I use old blankets of 3-5 mm thick and hot glue to do this.
You may also consider adding a wooden bracket internally before you apply the wool in order to reinforce the side walls of the cabinet. Put the bracket a little off center.
 
I recently did the same capacitor modification to my old Monitor Ones and I must say the difference is phenomenal. I have owned them for about 13 years now and I would be very familiar with their sound - which has all changed now that I replaced the caps with cheap "Audaphon" polypropylene ones. Vassilis is absolutely correct that they are now like high end speakers, no longer harsh at high volume levels. The midrange is the biggest improvement, while the bass is now deeper and more controlled.

I was about to get rid of them, but am so glad I did this mod as I will now definitely be hanging on to them. They are now part of my travel setup, where I suspect they will remain for a long time.
 
I recently did the same capacitor modification to my old Monitor Ones and I must say the difference is phenomenal. I have owned them for about 13 years now and I would be very familiar with their sound - which has all changed now that I replaced the caps with cheap "Audaphon" polypropylene ones. Vassilis is absolutely correct that they are now like high end speakers, no longer harsh at high volume levels. The midrange is the biggest improvement, while the bass is now deeper and more controlled.

I was about to get rid of them, but am so glad I did this mod as I will now definitely be hanging on to them. They are now part of my travel setup, where I suspect they will remain for a long time.

After 4 years i have to say thank you, i still own the alesis speakers and i have to say that they perform exceptional after the tweeks. I hope you still have them.
 
Just to chime in...

This is rather interesting topic and I would like to thank Vassilis for sharing the positive experience from this upgrade with us. It only confirms my personal observations about the importance of changing the components in the crossover of every commercial speaker or at least checking if that’s necessary. I can assure you, the chance that you gonna need an upgrade is huge. If you think the more expensive brands and speakers use better components, think twice. I’ve recently done the same with a pair of Focal Chorus 706. I changed all the caps and the coil in the low-pass filter. You had to see my smile when I hooked them to the amp for the first time after the upgrade and played some music. I measured them before and after the upgrade, but there is no change in the frequency response, which is normal and I didn’t expect anything else. Yet the sound is somehow different in a VERY good way.

You have to understand one thing, the speaker manufacturers exist for only one purpose - revenue. Period. They have the know-how and some very experienced engineers work there, but at the end of the day they need profit. That’s one of the many reasons I moved to the DIY audio and I don’t intend to buy commercial speakers ever again.

I’m particularly interested in this thread for one more reason. I have a pair of Alesis Monitor One MK II, which are under another kind of upgrade - changing the tweeters because there was an accident with the one of them. I’m going to give the second one as a spare part to a friend of mine who has the same speakers. In addition, I was thinking of making a new crossovers for him with quality components. After reading this thread I’ll most likely go for it at some point. Apparently it’s worth it.

As for my project with the tweeters, I’ll probably publish the results when I finish it, but for now it’s frozen due to the pandemic and the fact that I don’t have a job. Anyway, I have the schematic diagram of the original crossover, which might be helpful for other people who want to upgrade their Alesis Monitor One MKII. You can find it below. Happy upgrading.

-@llex
 

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