[Danny Richie]

The kicker is my pair was pulled from stock for a show, measured by Andrew Jones, and sealed back up. They were never used so I essentially got a brand new pair!

That really doesn't change anything. They can still be significantly upgraded if that was something that you are interested in.

[Neccros]

That really doesn't change anything. They can still be significantly upgraded if that was something that you are interested in.

I know, just saying its essentially a new pair... B-stocks usually a returned item...

[Potassic]

Hi all, I've decided to upgrade the crossover components in my UB5. I realize that it is not a mod-friendly speaker as I am taking it apart. Below is what I've done so far.

The beauty ring can be taken off the same way as Danny described in his Elac B6 upgrade post. For both of my speakers, the 10:30 position of the woofer portion of the ring is not tightly fitted and this was the position I started tearing it off. Here is the front side.



And here is the back side. Notice the extra pin in the middle comparing to that of the Elac B6.



There are 7 screws holding the crossover board, 4 at each corner and 3 across the middle section. These 3 screws are located right underneath the middle structural piece. It's almost impossible to turn the screws using a regular screwdriver. I eventually used a tiny ratchet to take them out. Here is crossover with the middle screw popping up.



The wires to the tweeter/mid go through a hole filled with hot glue. The alcohol trick did not work well for me when removing the hot glue. I managed to rip it apart enough to slide the wires through.



The crossover board is approximately 1/8" wider than the woofer cutout. I will need to cut a notch to let it pass through.



The internal wires are 18AWG and are labeled "AWM 2468 VW-1".



I ain't sure if this is upgradable but the drivers' internal wires are also 18AWG (visually about 1mm in diameter).

[Potassic]

I have managed to take the crossover board out of the cabinet. Every component is glued to the board. I did some measurements using my cheap DMM with the components still attached on the board.

Here is the front side (the labelled values are in blue and the measured values are in black).



Here is the back side.



And the corresponding schematic (courtesy of Digikey for the schematic tool).



I am hoping to send the crossover board to Danny for a more accurate measurement and his upgrade recommendation. Thanks in advance!

[Wind Chaser]

Cool, looking forward to your impressions.

[Tom Bombadil]

That is a very nice looking crossover board for a speaker in that price range. 

[Danny Richie]

You may have to lift one leg of the inductors from the board to get an accurate measurement on them.

[Potassic]

The component values in the schematic above have been updated with more accurate measurements.

[Danny Richie]

The component values in the schematic above have been updated with more accurate measurements.

If you want then we can provide you with the parts needed to build out a point to point wired crossover.

[rofo]

Anyone look at the Uni-Fi UB51? no sure of the difference between the UB5 and the UB51.

[exsomnis]

I'd love to see an upgrade to the UB5. I have a pair lying around to play with and am itching to start my first mod and hopefully move on to full DIY projects - particularly Danny's kits.

[Potassic]

Anyone look at the Uni-Fi UB51? no sure of the difference between the UB5 and the UB51.

Mine (non-slim version) says UB51-BK at the back. I guess UB5 is more like a marketing name and UB51 is the model number.

I'd love to see an upgrade to the UB5. I have a pair lying around to play with and am itching to start my first mod and hopefully move on to full DIY projects - particularly Danny's kits.

There are certain difficulties that I experienced with UB5 upgrade so far. Owing to its 3-way design, UB5 uses capacitors and inductors of large values in its original crossover design. Even the basic audiophile-grade replacements can be expensive. There is also not enough room to put higher-end components that are large in size. Such components cannot be mounted onto a board because either the woofer cutout or the middle structure piece would block the whole thing from sitting properly.

You may want to scratch the itch by replacing the damping materials with No Rez and the binding posts with tube connectors. Ultimately, building the point-to-point crossover from scratch will be more satisfying, but it will definitely cost more than the UB5 itself or Danny's bookshelf kits.

[exsomnis]

There are certain difficulties that I experienced with UB5 upgrade so far. Owing to its 3-way design, UB5 uses capacitors and inductors of large values in its original crossover design. Even the basic audiophile-grade replacements can be expensive. There is also not enough room to put higher-end components that are large in size. Such components cannot be mounted onto a board because either the woofer cutout or the middle structure piece would block the whole thing from sitting properly.

You may want to scratch the itch by replacing the damping materials with No Rez and the binding posts with tube connectors. Ultimately, building the point-to-point crossover from scratch will be more satisfying, but it will definitely cost more than the UB5 itself or Danny's bookshelf kits.

If that's the case I'll just leave them be. As for Danny's kits, my major problem is getting someone local to source MDF and CNC the cabinets/enclosures at a reasonable price. Plus having to build and assemble from an apartment.

[speedmadness]

Potassic.  Did you ever end up doing any mods or upgrades on your ELACs?  Not only are there a ton of crossover components, there are some unusual values in the mix (7.5uf).  Most higher quality replacements are physically much larger.  I'm going to swap the tweeter caps with Solen (7.5uf) and Jantzen (2.7uf) and the 10uf midrange cap with some Jantzen MKT I have laying around.  I picked those because they are physically quite compact and should fit.  I'll bypass them all with tiny Vishay 1837 .01uf caps and swap the resistors with Jantzen Superes and Mills once I have the crossovers out.  It appears they build the cabinet around the box somehow.  Might not hear any actual improvement, but it will be a fun little project.