Modifications to Cerwin Vega D-9 circa mid 80's

[phattires68]

Hi gang, they are old and not that pretty by today's standards but I got a lot of good memories w/ these speakers. They were cool when I was a mullet wearin' camaro drivin' kid. I'm hoping to rebuild/replace the Mid's and High's which are lack-luster. The woofers were rebuilt a few years ago.
I found this post Reviews/Speakers/Floorstanding Speakers/Cerwin Vega D-9 Its quite interesting.
The reviewer was S Lee(Unregistered User) and posted Dec 30, 2003

Summary:
Well what can be said about the D-9's that hasnt been already covered? BASS
true, but the high end and mids are pretty crappy with real high quality
amplifer(s) and gear. To solve this (after 15 years of pounding on them) I
decided to relace the mids and tweeters, mod the crossovers and add a bit of
reinforcement to the cabs. You will not believe what a Morel MDT-30 or
MDT-37 soft dome(s) (the latter is a semi-horn soft dome) and a pair of Vifa
Dm-75's 3" soft domes, and as well I tried a pair of Hi-Vi 6" kevlar w/phase
plugs. Verdict? Use the MDT-37 semi horn soft dome, 1 vifa 3" soft dome and
1 Hi-VI 6", you want audiophile sound with rock and roll bass extention-
this will do it trust me you will be amazed, esp. if you have good quality
power amps and other gear. (I hit these with well over 1000wpc per side,
bi-amp'd and they just smile)
Strengths:
Very high SPL (efficient), very good freq. responce (esp. when moded) For
the price they can not be beaten- And FYI I also have B&W's (603's) and a
pair of PSB Stratus golds, the "new Cerwins" kill both the previous in ALL
aspects. I couldnt believe it after I first moded them.
Weaknesses:
cheap mids, and a low cost vinyl/mdf finish but hey after a few mods these
things are great. After all this time with them (15yrs or so) I do wish they
were taller and more "narrow" but otherwise- none.

What does this sound like to you?
Anyone got a clue about mod'ing the crossover?

Or am I wasting my time. These speakers would be my Rt and Lt channel for a 5.1 system and mains for 2 channel music listening.

Thanks,
Jason

[JeffKnob]

Hi gang, they are old and not that pretty by today's standards but I got a lot of good memories w/ these speakers. They were cool when I was a mullet wearin' camaro drivin' kid. I'm hoping to rebuild/replace the Mid's and High's which are lack-luster. The woofers were rebuilt a few years ago.
I found this post Reviews/Speakers/Floorstanding Speakers/Cerwin Vega D-9 Its quite interesting.
The reviewer was S Lee(Unregistered User) and posted Dec 30, 2003

Summary:
Well what can be said about the D-9's that hasnt been already covered? BASS
true, but the high end and mids are pretty crappy with real high quality
amplifer(s) and gear. To solve this (after 15 years of pounding on them) I
decided to relace the mids and tweeters, mod the crossovers and add a bit of
reinforcement to the cabs. You will not believe what a Morel MDT-30 or
MDT-37 soft dome(s) (the latter is a semi-horn soft dome) and a pair of Vifa
Dm-75's 3" soft domes, and as well I tried a pair of Hi-Vi 6" kevlar w/phase
plugs. Verdict? Use the MDT-37 semi horn soft dome, 1 vifa 3" soft dome and
1 Hi-VI 6", you want audiophile sound with rock and roll bass extention-
this will do it trust me you will be amazed, esp. if you have good quality
power amps and other gear. (I hit these with well over 1000wpc per side,
bi-amp'd and they just smile)
Strengths:
Very high SPL (efficient), very good freq. responce (esp. when moded) For
the price they can not be beaten- And FYI I also have B&W's (603's) and a
pair of PSB Stratus golds, the "new Cerwins" kill both the previous in ALL
aspects. I couldnt believe it after I first moded them.
Weaknesses:
cheap mids, and a low cost vinyl/mdf finish but hey after a few mods these
things are great. After all this time with them (15yrs or so) I do wish they
were taller and more "narrow" but otherwise- none.

What does this sound like to you?
Anyone got a clue about mod'ing the crossover?

Or am I wasting my time. These speakers would be my Rt and Lt channel for a 5.1 system and mains for 2 channel music listening.

Thanks,
Jason

I would suggest going to the forums at Partsexpress.com. There are many knowledgeable people that know exactly how to do what was talked about in this review. You can also get all of the parts from partsexpress.

[phattires68]

Thanks jeff I'll check that out. In your opinion, is this a waste of $300-500? Should I sink that money into something else? I could get two Ed Frias mod'd DV-62CLRS plus a good quality sub for around a grand.

[JeffKnob]

Thanks jeff I'll check that out. In your opinion, is this a waste of $300-500? Should I sink that money into something else? I could get two Ed Frias mod'd DV-62CLRS plus a good quality sub for around a grand.

If you are looking for a project to work on because you think you would enjoy that, then modding the CV might be worth the money. I have never actually done a project that required a custom crossover to be created. I have read many times though on the partsexpress board that part of it would be figured out on a computer with some software. You would then need to listen to it to see if it fits your tastes. If it doesn't fit your taste then I have seen that the experienced people would know what crossover components would need to be changed. This is why I haven't ventured into custom speakers. I just don't have the time and money to keep messing with the crossover until perfection.

If this would be your first attempt at working with electrical components like this, then you might be better off buying the DV-62CLRS and a sub.

[Glen B]

Strengths:
Very high SPL (efficient), very good freq. responce (esp. when moded) For
the price they can not be beaten- And FYI I also have B&W's (603's) and a
pair of PSB Stratus golds, the "new Cerwins" kill both the previous in ALL
aspects.
Give details of the "all aspects." If you are driving the D-9s with the HK receiver in your profile, it would likely sound "better" than PSB Stratus Golds (are they the Golds or Gold i's ?). D-9s are an easy, high-sensitivity load, whereas the PSBs present a difficult impedance, severe phase angle, are low sensitivity and require better amplification than a HK receiver. BTW, I have owned Cerwin-Vega D-9s, 380SEs and AT-15s, so I am quite familiar with the brand. I currently own PSB Stratus Gold i's.

[jamison]

you know what would be sweet would be mating some klipschorns with the CV woofer. with their high sensitivity i think it would sound pretty awesome.