Thiel CS 3.6 vs 3.7

I just bought a CS3.7 and discovered a shed load of issues. There is a support person in KY that can provide technical support to resolve all of these problems. If you buy a CS3.7, I suggest you take some measurements to make sure your speaker is up to spec. If you can (with good shipping materials, send it to KY to have the tech guy, Rob Gillum, test it out.

A few days ago Tom Thiel posted a long historical description of the 3.5 and the 3.6. It is on Jafant ’s Thiel speaker thread.

That is great that you sent it to Rob. If I sent mine to Rob he would say "no mas".

I also had a few cosmetic issues. The first one being the aluminum shell had a few annoying looking scuff marks. I contacted Rob and he told me to use a specific spray paint on it. I did that and it looks great now.

I had a lot of marks on the veneer and I decided to paint the veneer black to make an all black speaker. I bugged my local paint store half a dozen times for advice before I had the confidence to paint it. That paint job also turned out great. Not as good as a factory job but a ton better than the scratched up used speakers I bought.

I am also putting 2 new COAXs (from 2014) and replacing my COAXs from 2008 and 2012 (maybe keep as backup if they are not damaged). I also got some outriggers in the case my son tries to climb it. I have a feeling my crossovers will need some repair. Fun times.

BTW - I never heard the 3.6 but the 3.7 is one of the best speakers I have heard. I have heard quite a few speakers. The 3.7 always sounded correct to me (my current messed up used speaker notwithstanding).

The problems I am having are somewhat fun since I am fixing them 1 by 1. If it did not cost money I would have no issue at all :). I am learning a lot by the things I am finding. I hope to have everything ready to go either next week or by the end of December. The health of the crossover will determine the timeframe.

I took measurements of the CS3.7 recently with the REW software (free) and a $100 Minidsp microphone. A great learning experience from that too.

What a fantastic video and so helpful to me. I have to solder the COAXs back into the speaker. I will likely also have to remove the crossover. This video showed me how the experts do it and I will copy them. I am not technically skilled in any of this but learning as I go along. I need to practice some soldering before I do the real thing.

BTW - I will post this on the big Thiel thread and put your name on it. All the Thiel folks are on that thread. You will see a A'gon notification when I do that.

@yabe1951 My Thiel CS3.7 are really rocking now. You video was an incredible help since it showed me some soldering tricks.

I was going to buy a new DAC and a new amp to make the system sound better. However, after all the fixes and a big DSP tweak no need. This speaker will stay with me till the grave. Sounds amazing now.