Legacy Whisper Dunlavy SC V opinions - Page 19

Dynaudio tweeters cannot be baught directly. They must be pilfered from existing speakers.
I got my esotar2 from a pair in the upper end of the Focus series.

You can sometimes find drivers on ebay. But they are the old models from when Dyn sold raw drivers, 8+ years ago.

Dynaudio makes the best soft dome tweets. But if you need replacements for Dunlavy there are a couple from Morel that work nearly as well.

Can you please suggest the rigth tweeter from their product catalog?

http://morelhifi.com/products/raw_tweeters.html

The one requiring the least amount of extra work would be the CAT 308.

Obviously they have "better" ones now, but they all would require extensive reworking of the crossover and an anechoic chamber to get precisely correct.

The only issue with the CAT308 may be that the faceplate is larger than the original Vifa in the Dunlavy.
So, you could either carefully rout out the extra area to make it flush, like the Vifa is. Or, just shim to match the rest of the area surrounding the Vifa.
Believe me, the 1/16 inch difference between these two positions is NOT going to make much difference in the time domain at the listening position.

Hi all,

I recently purchased a pair of dunlavy sc-iii's and whether it was an existent condition or my fault, I now notice that the rubber surrounds on two of the mids have separated from the cone. One of the mids has about half the rubber separated while the other is just a tiny area. Is this a serious issue or can it be fixed with glue? If this is fixable, can someone recommend a proper glue and how should I go about fixing?

Also, is this issue expected due to the age of these speakers? I'm thoroughly freaking out because of the effort put forth in acquiring these speakers after much research and reading up on the comments posted here. It could also have been my fault -> I was switching sources from phono to CD and didn't check the volume, which was set up high on phono. Can someone please calm my nerves?

Thanks for any help upfront.

About a year ago I acquired a pair of SC-V's that I later had to sell, they never came out of the crate at my place. When the new owner received them, he reported the same problem with two of the drivers. After some e-mails back and forth, he decided on gluing the cones back onto the surrounds with the help of a local AV shop. He said he'd get back to me if he had any problems, but I never heard from him again so I assume that it all worked out okay. I'm not sure what kind of glue he used, but I'd assume anything that will have a very strong bond (super glue or the like, applied carefully) would be acceptable. I'd definitely let it cure for at least 24 hours with the face pointing down before even attempting to re-install it and use the speaker.

Super glue not so much a good idea. The glue used at the factory for those drivers was a type of contact cement.
Thats what you should use to repair them. I would recommend 3M brand, but any should work.
Most contact cement comes with a brush for application. Put a small amount on the tip of the brush and slip it into the open area and cover as much as possible.
Let it sit just like that for about 20 minutes. Do not try to make it adhere immediately. Contact cement needs to be slightly tacky to the touch. Once it's in that state it will bond to itself very strongly.
So, after you wait 20 minutes, try to pinch the two surfaces together.
That should be it.

On another note..........

Anyone living within driving distance of Utah should seriously check this out.

http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls....y-SC-IV-Walnut

I'd get them myself but the gas getting there would make it not such a great deal.

I live in Phoenix...almost worth considering. As a sanity check, I was checking the set up shown in one of the pictures for these speakers. Shouldn't the speakers be toed in? Also, aren't they too close to each other?

Improper set-up was and is rampant with Dunlavy. It's the primary reason they weren't more popular.

Hi all:

I just found this thread (it came up in google during my search for a Dunlavy CC). Lots of great information here - highly appreciated by Dunlavy lovers everywhere.

I thought I'd share this ad I found for those into Dunlavy SC-VI eye candy (I have no affiliation):
http://atlanta.craigslist.org/nat/ele/2756622644.html

Cheers.

Looking for a CC-1 or CC-2 or SC-1av

Listening to Chris Isaak on vinyl with my SC-IVA's as we speak. John's speaker still impresses me daily, even after a decade or so. Every now and then I look around at other speakers, change is natural, but can't find myself pulling the trigger once I get back home and hear my Dunlavy's.

The ONLY downside of his speakers are the ability to play loud without the tweeter coming unglued. At moderate levels, you need to spend $50,000 to get better performance (I too looked around). I can only imagine what John could do today if he were alive and set his mind to it.

At the used prices, they are probably the very best deal in audio speakers!!!

I've been reading everything I can possibly find about Dunlavy speakers and I'm thrilled that I've just entered the magic kingdom in a very strange way.
Dunlavy was always out of the question economically for me because I am a musician and I buy the best possible instruments....I have a magnificent 1911 Steinway and a Petosa AM1100 artist model accordion. I'm a musical director and conductor and I'm always tweaking performances in real time.
Today I just bought a Dunlavy HRCC-1 center channel and a TSW IV/A from a carpenter who was given the speakers by a home theater owner who just had a complete remodel. I know it's a strange way to jump in, but I've just learned what I have in hand.
What do I do next? Any suggestions?

In two simple words, RUN PANDOVSKI!!

Even though I have never seen those speakers in my life, I can tell you with 100% certainty that they go against every design principle John Dunlavy stood for! The speaker configuration, the choice of drivers, the non-alignment of the drivers on a left/right axis, the non-recessed midrange and tweeter (relative to the depth of the woofers), the wide width of the cabinet surface (relative to the width of the woofers), the design and build quality of the cabinets, and who knows what else since I'm just going by a single picture!

Even the formatting of those specs are not how John Dunlavy would have written those out!

Maybe in this case the DAL really stood for Dumb Ass Liars?

First and foremost, congratulations on your recent Dunlavy acquisition!

As for what to do next, you didn't really mention any specifics about your current budget, your room or any equipment (if any) you already own or plan on using, making it somewhat difficult to narrow down a possible reply. There has been alot of very good information posted on this thread over the past several years by very knowledgeable Dunlavy fans, so my guess is none have wanted to re-hash that topic without more to go on.

Assuming that you've already read this entire thread, (along with the fact that it would take several hours of typing to try to cover such an open-ended question), I am sending you a private message with my contact info so we can go over this a lot more efficiently.

Wow! Those are absolutely White Van speakers!

I had never actually heard of anyone trying to knock off a Dunlavy since they were such a relatively small (niche) manufacturer, but now it all makes sense! Do not buy anything those crooks are trying to sell you!

Thanks for the heads up.

Agreed. I was a Dunlavy dealer for 5 years and the only similarity between these and ANY Dunlavy speaker is the shape of the drivers. :-)

Wow! A TSW IV/A! I saw a pair of these online hmmm...maybe 2006 on Audiogon. It was the only time I've heard of them aside from reading about them available in a subwoofer buyer guide. I'd love to see a picture of these. Did you just get one or a pair of them? I've got a pair of the biggest brothers, the TSW-VI. FYI, even though there are two pairs of binding posts on the back, the internal wire is only connected to the bottom post. I confirmed that by pulling mine out at the back.

I have a pair of Dunlavy SC-VI (#s 160A and 160B), driven by monos Krell fpb 750mcx, Krell Phantom and Playback Designs MPD-5 and MacMini.

I would like to bi-amp them with a second pair of Krell fpb 750mcx, using the active crossover of the Krell Phantom after severing the woofer portion of the crossover from the mids/highs.

Does anybody know the low-pass and high-pass frequencies of the SC-VI crossover? Does anybody have the crossover schematics or know how I may be able to get them?

Thanks!

There exists no official crossover schematic for ANY Dunlavy speaker. Each serial number has a unique crossover tuned to the exact drivers being used.

However, the crossover points remained pretty consistent. And I've managed to reverse engineer (so to speak) every model in the line EXCEPT the SC-VI.
So there is really no telling what the crossover frequency is between the top binding posts and the bottom binding posts.

If you REALLY want to do this, it's going to take some applied effort. If you felt up to it, you could remove the screws on the back of the speaker and take some hi-res pictures of the crossover boards. (They slide out on a rail). There's a good chance I could ascertain the crossover frequency by identifying the relevant parts on the circuit board and doing the math.
I know the board layout is the same as the SC-V, which I've already done extensive modeling on. So I'm thinking I could figure it all out just by getting a decent look at the capacitor/inductor values.

On a side note though, before doing any of this I would check to make sure the Krell active crossover were operating in 1st order mode. If it's not, all you are going to do is diminish the performance by trying to go active.

Hey Endurance_Man,

Since you're obviously seeking better bass performance, you should try to get a hold of Michael Osadciw (The posting just above yours) and see how much cash it would take for him to part with his INCREDIBLY RARE Dunlavy TSW-VI Subwoofers! I think he'd be crazy to sell them but if your offer is temping enough, who knows?

And as long as your floor's infrastructure can handle the additional weight of yet another 1,000+ pounds, that extra pair of Krell FPB 750mcx amps would be put to better use anyway.

Then you'll just have to come back and post pictures for the rest of us to drool over!

Hello,

Shocked One: Thanks for the suggestion, but I am actually not looking for more bass. The Krell Phantom is even better than the Krell KRC, and with the 750mcx, Playback Designs, and SC-VIs the bass is incredible, best I have heard.

There is a Krell dealer who told me he experimented with Dunlavy bi-amping (not the SC-VI) and said I should expect better definition, more control, and better soundstange if I actively bi-amp the SC-VIs.


Champ04: It is great you have modeled the other crossovers.

The users manual of the Krell Phantom says the crossover can be set to: The options are: HIGH PASS, LOW PASS, FREQUENCY, 40Hz, 55Hz, 75Hz, 100Hz, BYPASS, FILTER, BUTTERWORTH, 12dB, 18dB, 24dB, or 24dB Linwitz-Riley. Additionally normal or inverted phase.

http://www.krellonline.com/downloads...0Reference.pdf

So, it does allow for 12db Butterworth, which I understand is the type used in the Dunlavys. However, it only allows 40hz, 55hz, 75hz and 100hz options for the hi-pass and low-pass filters, and only normal and inverted phase. Do you think those options are sufficient?

Thanks,

Vicente

Actually, Dunlavy is a 6dB Butterworth. Using 12dB essentially negates what John Dunlavy was trying to achieve.
Even so, the way the speaker is set-up, the top binding post feeds the tweeter and mids. The bottom binding post feeds the 8inch midbass and the 15inch woofers.
This means the crossover point between the two is probably somewhere near 300Hz. Maybe a little higher.
So it's not likely you will be able to use the Krell as an active filter.

Also, keep in mind that this functionality is most likely intended to fine tune passive subwoofers. And any time you use a active crossover filter you need to bypass the passive one. Otherwise you are doubling the rolloff. Not to mention defeating the purpose of the active filter, which is simply to make a direct link between the amplifier and the drivers.

Hope that helps.

Hello Champ04, this is very useful information.

What would be the best 6db butterworth active crossover to use in this situation? A Krell KBX?

Do you think this is a worthwhile pursuit or should I just give up this idea?

Thanks,

Vicente

Anyone know a place to get IV-A grilles recovered? I'm in California.

Dear Champ4,

Which type of VIFA D27TG is used in the SC-VI? (late model: 160A and 160B), the D27TG-35-06 or the D27TG-05-06? Or the D27SG-05-06?

In case it is the D27TG-35-06 the frequency and impedance curve look really similar to the Morel CAT 308 that you recommended. The D27TG-05-06 and the D27SG-05-06 have different impendance curves, with peak at 1K.

In case it is the D27TG-35-06, would you recommend just replacing the tweeters and use the CAT 308 with no changes whatsoever to the crossover?

I understand the 8" woofer of the SC-VI is the Vifa P21WN-20-08, correct? Do you know the brand and model of the 15" woofers (Scanspeak?)?

I am going to change my SC-VI binding posts to Furutech FI-806(R) that just arrived and take pictures of the crossover to send you. I intend to replace all resistors and caps to Duelund CAST.

Thanks,

Vicente

Hey Vicente,

Don't forget to post those pictures on this thread, so we can all enjoy them!

D27TG-35-06
Yes, electronically speaking, it is a direct drop in. No need to change anything in the crossover.
Technically speaking, there is a very slight depth difference between the two tweeters that will "technically" alter the time coherence. But this is not something to get concerned about. You really couldn't do anything to change it anyway. You should notice an increase in treble clarity as well as significantly improved power handling just by dropping in that CAT308.

Correct on the 8" woofer.

I actually tracked down what that 15" woofer was a long time ago but have since forgotten. I'm thinking Eminence. But either way, it's long out of production. And I never did find it's stats. I wouldn't worry about it one bit. Given it's limited role, you're not going to improve on that driver anyway.

Those duelunds are an interesting choice. I'm not personally a fan. But I know others love them.
Looking forward to crossover pics! Make sure you do some before/after.

Oh, I should mention. You're going to find a ton of caps and coils in there. Be careful which ones you swap as not all are as important as others. If you need help with that, get me some quality pics first and I'll help you prioritize.
And if any of the coils are not labeled (very likely) I can also help in determining their values.

Has anyone looked at the new D27TG-35 yet (it's back in production)? I'm curious about how closely they match those that Dunlavy originally used & if they'd be a good replacement when people cook tweeters.