Has anyone taken apart a pair of Linn Sara 9 Speakers

[bencat]

Hi having taken the MIniDSP DDRC 24 unit out of my Quad ESL system downstairs I now have a free unit that keeps looking at me and calling me to do something with it. I also have a nice pair of Linn Sara 9's that are currently just sitting there and my thoughts turned to perhaps converting them to Digital Active operation .

However the crossover for the Sara is inside the cabinet and the only way in is to remove the Bass Drivers (as this is an Isobaric loading) . I have never attempted this and I am not sure if this is a simple job or one fraught with problems . I do know that it is essential that when they are put back they are sealed correctly but aside from this no real clue.

So has anyone worked on this speaker who could advise on just how difficult it is to get access to the crossover , disconnect it and then wire the drive units directly to the bi wire terminals?

Any assistance appreciated .

I am going to put this in the Linn forum as well as there may well be a few on there who know lots about this.

 

[sq225917]

They're stuck in place with sealant. It's a messy job. Ask Andrew popley on PFM, he's done it.

 

[bencat]

Right now that my KEF 103 units are not working due to a blown Tweeter I have no music in my computer spare bedroom . This is not something i can live with for very long so I have to now find a quick substitution without swopping out too much equipment .

Having spoken to two different other users I know for certain that i am not the best equipped to dismantle my Linn Sara 9's so that is not an option . What I will be doing either tonight or at the latest Friday is to put the Linn's in place of the KEFS bi amped and use the MiniDSP DDRC 24 by passed for crossover but live for DIRAC . I will have to conduct a full DIRAC measurement session and get the filter set up for the Linn,s . 

Then it will be a straight Quad 405 for each speaker Left and Right one side handling the bass and one side handling the treble . I had used the Sara's straight Bi Amped (and Bi Wired) and they responded very positively to both with Bi Amping being the best option . I like the sound of these speakers anyway so it will be interesting to see how they respond to the DIRAC DSP treatment and if this improves the sound to the same extent that it has for the KEF and Monitor Audio speakers I have used it on . 

Appreciate this is not very DIY intensive but will report the results anyway as it may be useful for others considering using the MiniDSP units passively for filtering only . 

 

[bencat]

Okay I have removed the tweeter from the KEF and there is no simple fix like a wire coming loose or unsoldered so have to wait. I have been offered a replacment Diaphragm for the T52 but not really that confident in my skill at replacing the original myself not even sure if it is that which is the issue.

So out go the KEF's for the moment and back in with the Sara 9's . Connected up and ran a DIRAC session with the MiniDSP DDRC 24 crossoover and eq all on by pass so signal is straight through but the DIRAC Filter will be sent through .

So made some sensible adjustments to the suggested filter curve (ignore anything above the line and get the filter to match the curve of anything below the line so that you are not trying to fill a huge hole. Was not surprised to see that the Sara 9's were a little ragged here is the average spectrum before



Line across is the suggested curve . Here is the all before without any target line



As I say decided to follow on from my experiences with the Quad 57 and try to follow the curve a bit more and not have steep differences so here is my curve averaged after



Musical results are very good with a huge tightening of the bass as percieved and the improvement in imaging is very welcome as this was never somehting the Sara 9's were very good at . Now not only do they have very wide seperation (without a whole in the middle) they now also have real depth which considering thay are back against the wall is quite something. They have made me smile and given how p-------d off I was abotu the blown tweeter that is a real bonus. I now have music that i can enjoy without feeling cheated by having to reduce back to a passive singlke amped system (nothing wrong with them but after the speed of active they do make you feel like something is missing) Bi Amped is a half way house and not as good as fully active but more than good enough to stop me from being too upset .

 

[WMalinak]

Hi bencat -- Are you still monitoring your intriguing thread?

I was thinking of a similar experiment on a pair of my Sara 9's when I found your posts.  I have always loved their musicality (knowing full well they had their own "character").

I want to move them (again) to a 2.0 config where their low end has always held its own.  They are currently fronts in a 5.1 setup (I call it sys#3of5) bi-amped, with 3 Linn Kans as center & surrounds, SVS  PB-2000 pro, etc.).

Thanx, Be Safe...

==>BillM

 

[bencat]

Yes I still have the Sara 9 but not using them as I discovered getting inside them and removing the tweeter is a big job and I do not have the mechanical skills . May well see if I can get someone to do the work but it will not be cheap.