frankmarsi

@ gahamby, Correct, that coil looks like it had its last word. At times like this, you can either disassemble the cone from its voice coil unsealing the voice from the spider and then glue it all back together and hope and trust your construction abilities. Or, you can install a used woofer purchased where ever you can find, it shouldn't be difficult to find them as the 2Ax was very popular and, you may find a couple of woofer fully re-foamed and ready to go. Some here are fearful of purchasing online though, all I can say to that is: "Yous pay da price, you take your pick and you take your chances". Back in the '70s and '80s regarding my foam problems, I was entirely alone, no such thing as web-sales back then. The many newcomers in the last 20 to 30 years have it easy, although they missed all fun I had in that period also. I mean, geez, I been on this forum going on 20 years already! The auction site has protections in place that will usually take sides with the buyer. Communicate well with the seller and go from there. See link below. If it wasn't for eBay offerings, I don't think I would've been able to keep my AR's going strong 52 years later. As a long term owner of AR speakers (52yrs.), by the mid-eighties I wasn't able to use my AR-3a's because I wasn't able to locate or even ponder a possible option of re-foaming them. I silently became very annoyed at AR for using foam that just simply would deteriorate in the time I owned them. Generally, these days foam-surrounds have much improved quality manufacturing. Same for my LST's up until 1989 when I noticed a small ad for foam surrounds offered for sale, I don't recall if it was in Stereo-Filel magazine or elsewhere. It was a sole proprietor out of the Carolinas somewhere. I was the new owner of 5 AR-LST's that couldn't be used because their surrounds were completely gone, same with my originally purchased in 1971, AR-3a's. I needed a few foam sets but, decided to start working with one set for my LST's first. Back then the foam-surround market was no where as flooded with suppliers as it is presently. In fact seamless, single-piece molded surrounds were not anywhere to found. The surrounds I received had a split in them that had to be joined together once it was applied to the stamped basket edge and woofer's edge. It took more time, as I was uncertain of every step of the installation. Luckily, the first installed set of foam surrounds worked out well and I continued to re-foam the second set. Not long thereafter, many suppliers started to appear with single one-piece surrounds making assembly much easier. To date, I've probably re-foamed over 26 woofers since 1989. I also keep a supply of spare used woofers, tweeters, and midrange drivers all bought used on the auction site as I'm committed and fully dedicated to AR speakers. And, as an admirer of their sound quality practically most of my life, I'll not let the speakers down and more importantly won't let myself down. For me, it was a challenge to buy them, much less afford them and use them properly since I was 20-21 years young. Today, I still strongly hold the course. At the time, older hi-fi guys thought I was a well off kid, what they didn't know was I worked a number of jobs and made certain sacrifices just to buy them. At 20-21 years old, most kids weren't into stereo as much as I was and I still played in a band and had a steady gal, and a car. Friends usually came to me with, "what do think I should get for a stereo Frank" , and "gee, those AR speakers are just too expensive". Of course vinyl was the medium of choice back then. Today, vinyl still is my medium of choice except, there too I've gone the distance to learn how to use vinyl to its best advantage with a regiment of ultra-sonic cleaning for any disk that finds its way to my turntables. Top quality cartridges and excellent care of 'set-up' and record-care top it all off. You're lucky there's such a forum as 'CSP' for all of your AR questions and needs as I am also. FM https://www.ebay.com/itm/155854619477?hash=item2449a8c355:g:8oUAAOSwoQFlPFLl&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA8IKo2%2Fz60pX1f35Ed79dT%2FptgUJfdfAeChufYEcxSF6hLH2d9IHjgyp91cwsHshuXvipn5NZXfWUplKYMFUpU7I33hwmmZ5Fobs99Kwy%2FA%2F6fHCW8ONOOfbFEFlSUydyZcRtUUj1AhMzCOnOyOcRA%2BCBAHQ0Quihyp5dwg1Bm4hR0Gdf2V%2BGMIFrnhdMHfzOiGtiiGWHJPGTtlQGxAwSntpJ69SyTb%2BLw6JaxaDx0M6fufPXhxpcfvaYz05Yp9JolKtCFN2ulLN77BROnLN%2B%2BaX6OEpW53pO3Kw9a0K6yRmTvIPcMn3Bi3mVPU18LXAp2Q%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR57Dv5byYg 11

Bravo, but! Since I first joined this forum in 2004, I’ve always endorsed high-power. In fact I've been pushing high-power since my first purchase of a Phase Linear PL-400 in 1974. It made me understand differences I didn't know existed and led me to new heights of musical enjoyment. Across the years I went on to buy 5 more PL-400's and three rebuilt PL-700 Series II. A couple of years ago there was a new person on this forum who insisted 28WPC was enough for his AR-3a’s. When I attempted to allow him to understand he was uninformed, I was admonished by others and was negatively flooded with other inept opinions completely contrary to mine. That novice guy is still pushing low wattage on other sites to this day. Forgive them for they not know their elbow from their belly-button. Thankfully, some do realize that high power is a crucial necessity for use with watt hungry speakers as I do. These folks go on to listen to music at realistic levels and surely don't sit back wondering if their system is sounding the best it could. However sad, on the other side of the tracks some are content with boring sound reproduction that doesn’t approach life-like levels. So, good luck in your belief in the benefits of high power even though it probably won’t sway the non-believers with their lackluster sounding playback as they just don't get-it. See what I listen to with room filling realistic levels of bass response that can tickle the little hairs on your toes and with you-are-there mids and highs that approach a real live performance: https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/10649-do-ar-speakers-really-sound-that-good-more-new-video/ FM 1.6

I guess the above post is what they call off-topic? And it should be in the Mods, Tweaks, and Upgrades to the Classics as those AR-2ax's are modded. And here it is again, "AR-2ax: Early Midrange" https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/17353-ar-2ax-early-midrange/ And it's on A.K. also, I own two pairs of AR-2ax's and have extensive listening hours with them way back in the early '70s. Although I enjoyed the many hours of listening to them, for me, they never matched the AR-3a's, are smaller-scale sounding and quite frankly feel they certainly do not deserve repeated same point (?) discussion and repeated postings of the same videos in multiple threads and forums. What is the point of such repetition? 781

I agree with Gene, those AR-1's are from a different time. I've never heard them but, they must have a vintage sound that differs greatly from AR's domes. Probably closer to my father's old Magnavox console than my AR-3a's and AR-LST's. By the time I became an aspiring audiophile, to a degree many people were still disputing dome tweeters but, AR forged on ahead. With-in a couple of years and many undisputed positive listening tests, many other manufacturers adopted domes. Not to mention, when I did enter hi-fi, most speakers were ported designs or simply sealed enclosures or simply, open-back enclosures. AR had many battles proving the 'acoustic-suspension' design principal at the onset. In due time many non-believers of acoustic-suspension prinicpal also came to understand the benefits. Many relatively new- comers to audio and speakers on this and other forums simply take it for granted whereas fifty or more years ago this was a major issue for the buying public. You had to read all about the technology first and then go listen as many times as it took to make you a believer. The many AR brochures printed were also eloquently written and almost handing their design principals to you on a silver-platter. Today, for the 10 or 15 grand and if I was never aware of AR's. I'd go another direction and probably would've bought used "Apogees" and spending a whole lot more. Though at the time in the late 1960's and early '70s I had strongly considered the Wharfedales and the Rectilinears, heck I even considered the "Fisher" bookshelf models too, while Advent was still to come about. I took the plunge in 1971 with tremendous trepidation. I was 20- 21 and spending money that was so important to me for other diversities and my education, I was shaking all over. When I finally had the two 3a's horizontally up on 6 foot elevated wall shelves (as prescribed back then), in my room, I knew I made the correct choice and that my prays were answered even if the highs were somewhat muted. Today, all things considered and compared to back then, I'm on another level. And now 52 years later whenever I put on a record and due to all the elevated quality details I put in place (cables, cartridges, tonearms, etc), I'm certain that that's how the music sounds as it was recorded. Realism is key, exaggerated highs, bloated bass are not what I seek. It took countless listening hours in my own room and many hours visiting salons, showrooms and listening to friend's systems served to confirm that my direction was correct. FM 387

@ meta-noia-fot, if you haven't already, look into E. Power Biggs. More traditional renditions and these older recordings may not have the extremes of frequency response as the ones in your recommendations. I have a few of his LP's and listening for extended periods can be monotonous as listening to any singular instrument can, even though the organ pretty much covers the gamut of frequencies. Of course these are classics nonetheless https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIBnIp1SoUs FM 372

That appears to be an AR woofer from the early seventies with a AR-3 woofer center damping ring glued in. The older inner foam ring was added later to a newer woofer. The center dust cap is an early seventies cap and that's the most obvious. On the auction site, two AR-3 woofers are going for an outrageously, ridiculous price. I've also seen AR-3a cones at times in a slightly lighter shade of grey due to fading, sunlight and age. Your photo is contrasty and therefore showing extremes of tone from light to dark. I'm happy knowing I started my habit of stock-piling woofers in the early 2000's and like an old car they don't sit well when not in use. Beyond rotating the stock to equalize their springy positions. I'm confident when the time comes to use them, I'll be able to coach them back into shape as there's no sense in refoaming until needed. Though, I may start to stuff the backs of the cones against the frames with soft foam or plastic bags to support the cone and spider from sagging too much. I've tried it already but, even the plastic bags sag and actually do not offer even and equal support of the cone. I any event I'll be planning on a harder foam of uniform size to support the cones in a better way. My current problem is having 18+ of them taking up so much room along with spare tweeters. I think you'll be O.K. as long as all other performance criteria and cone alignment are correct. FM 21

@jnolan5784, you recall a good time of your youth as it was. For me, at the early age of 21 was when I had in my possession two AR-3a’s and couldn’t be happier. Then in 1987-89 I was lucky enough to start listening to AR-LST’s to the present date and beyond. “”I now have a set of LST's that I am currently working on and acquiring the appropriate components to power those beasts.”” jnolan5784 I’m glad to know that you’re alert of the needs in terms of actual amplifier power for maximum positive results in using them. In my experience and as anyone who has learned through proper listening knowledge and experience, I would agree, “these beasts” do require loads of power to respond at their best. And in general, all AR speakers need power contrary to what some unknowing folks say. I too started my AR journey with only 17.5WPC (short time) then 60WPC (short time) until and thankfully up to ultimately almost 400WPC which was the best my AR-3a's ever sounded, period. Below is a sound-sample recorded directly with an early 2005 digital camera or a $59. cell phone (I don't recall), seated 15 feet away from the speakers. It wasn’t separately miked or mixed, just the camera's built-in mike. You can expand the screen to full-size by clicking the double-arrows in the upper left corner. Be aware, if using miniature-computer speakers, it will sound miniature so,.… Nonetheless, the only way to achieve this sort of big-house-filling-sound is with big-power. It would be the same for new or vintage speakers. https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/10649-do-ar-speakers-really-sound-that-good-more-new-video/ I’ve have been very lucky since I made a life-long choice at the onset of my continuing membership in the world of ‘Hi-Fi’ and have remained loyal since as did the other prior two posters. FM

9/20/2023 I’ve been fortunate to be able to own and listen to my AR speakers for 52 years, in fact since 1971. I realize there may be many more recent owners who are enthusiastic about vintage AR speakers as compared to a handful of long term owners but, if given the choice. Which way would you rather spend your money? Rare Original Acoustic Research AR-1 Speakers on the auction site. Cost: $10,000.00 for sale. Go take a look. Or your choice of new? https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/editors-choice-speakers-5000-10000/ To respondents, please tell us the span of your ownership.

Testing speakers on floors while not observing correct room placement while playing sources of questionable fidelity without indicating equipment powering the whole shebang is hardly qualifying in appraising audio equipment. Out of numerous possibilities I sometimes use a vinyl album by “Super-Tramp” called, ‘Crime of the Century’. A forward-rock album which contains plenty of sound variations that can be easily used to judge sound quality of speakers and other components. Many older recordings on almost any format are not recommended as good sources due to advances made in audio recording since. FM 630

Doesn't anyone use the standard 'WPC' anymore? It's industry standard to give 'WPC'. What about giving a Continuous Power Rating instead of making folks do the math. It's helpful to know an amp's brand name when speaking of it How about noise and distortion ratings, I mean if we're going to talk amps, noise is an important number or is the term the newer generation is using 'Metrics'? In my time 'metric' always meant European standards be it measurement or distance it's a name of measurement. A few years ago there was a novice discussion that did the same whenever I listed my amps at 700RMS WPC @ 4 Ohms before any clipping and 550RMS WPC Continuous Power Rating @ 4 Ohms the novice responded by and not being specific stating his amp's total number with both channel's rating together. Is it blinding envy or miscommunication? Electronics is a area/study that uses exacting numbers. Power ratings have always been a nebulous area of discussion across the masses however, Continuous Power ratings is all that really counts. P.S. As nice as it is and I would be happy to own one or two. Though designed for heavy use, the Yamaha 2200 isn't powerful enough for my needs, read it here @ 200 WPC Continuous. https://www.manualslib.com/manual/197290/Yamaha-P-2200-2201.html?page=8#manual P.S. II, I speak this way because I go back to the days when the most popular and only 'hi-power' amp around was the Crown D-300 @ 150 WPC and as it was, most folks didn't know about cause few were into the hobby. Back in the late '60s early '70s there weren't any real high voltage transistors available that would economically work in a consumer amplifier. As it was, Phase Linear used some of the only available transistors which they had bought from GM's A/C Delco division that were being used in heavy duty truck ignitions. Even in 1971 for the general public transistors were still not common place. The only amp I knew that had more wattage was an amp we were taught about in naval electronics school of 700 watts RMS total. It was a multi-tube monolithic huge monster almost 6 feet tall that was used in WW 2 Essex class carrier's PA systems. Already being years prior immersed in 'Hi-Fi', I recall by the time Phase Linear first came out with their PL-700 monster it was unheard of at any time before, anywhere. That was 1971-72 and that revolutionary first step led practically every manufacturer to introduce their own high wattage monsters. FM 3

I'm not sure what exactly you mean about 'all-metal woofers'? They're stamped-steel basket with a surround set back into the frame more than normally seen in such designs. The actual cone area is smaller than say a AR-2ax or similar 10" (8"piston) paper-cone design. AR did a study many decades ago that proved their 12" woofer had the ideal moving piston diameter of 8 inches. When I ran across the 'New' Advent 10" woofer the piston size was close to a standard 8" woofer cone/piston. I surmised due to this design, it must've had more piston travel. I'm a loving fan of the AR 12" woofer and have trusted AR's findings of so many years ago. For me, another size woofer has its own set of circumstances . For instance, a 15" can be slow and lumbering in their musical and 'Hi-Fi' response to a signal whereas a 12" AR proved is the ideal size all things considered and can respond quicker. Conversely, an 8" woofer has to work a little harder to present any sort of quality bass response and still has smaller cone surface radiating air moving ability. As an electric bass guitar since 1967, I taught myself the differences of musical amplifier reproduction sound quality. The larger the speaker's cone, the larger the sound response and volume. In the past a bass amp with two 15" drivers in most every case sounded better than two 12" speakers that had to work harder. When I converted my Fender Bassman amp from two 12' to two 15" I attained a bigger sound. However, using my Hofner bass it was not as noticeable as when I used a short-scale or 'P' bass which has a deeper, bigger sound. Once again, a little extra information put forth confirming that the input-'source' has much to do with what comes out of the speakers. For some years now bass amps have been using multiples of 10" speakers. They offer quicker response and faster output-ed sound but, fail in the super gut-wrenching response larger cones offer. Therefore for me a 12" woofer is the optimum size as AR determined so long ago in hi-fi use. Although, small 'sub' woofer cones can put out impressive amounts of sound in 'Hi-Fi' applications as it's done electrically and in cone design. In musical instrument applications one isn't always aware of a 15" slowness as compared to a 12" or 10" but since they output so much more sound due to their larger cone area, I prefer two 15" drivers in a musical instrument scenario. In Hi-Fi, I appreciate the all around ability of a 12" woofer because it's faster and retains a large enough piston area to work in most applications. FM 73

I would describe them as RoyC did. The stamped frame woofers in mine did not have the Masonite ring residing in front of the surround though I assume earlier versions did. My tweeters don't have the metal plate behind them. The cones have the reversed surrounds. This is/was a simple vinyl-clad two-way speaker in a no-frills mdf cabinet. If I recall I paid something like $200. and about the same for the Kenwood receiver in 1978. I think they were advertised as the ‘New’ Advent. Used my 1972 AR turntable with a Shure M55 cartridge and a Dust-Bug. My main system was AR-3a’s and a Phase Linear PL-4000/400 combo. FM 62

8/25/2023 First bought a pair of Advent vinyls for my gal in 1978. Hooked them up to a Kenwood 4070 sweet little receiver of 40WPC. These Advents sounded very good in a small Manhattan apartment. They went with from apartment to apartment as they fit in smallish apartments wonderfully. By 1996 they were in need of a re-foam job. Of course I foam my own, though I found mine had no Masonite ring and the foams were mounted differently. I had to glue the foam to the bottom lip of the woofer, a first for me as I was only familiar with installing AR front/top mounted foam replacements. I installed as they came, with foam on the bottom lip. A little messy at first until you get the hang of it. After I was done, they sounded as good as they did in 1978 almost 20 years earlier. The tweeters were orange in color with their own little metal front grill-cute. I still have them in my den on top of the fireplace and they’re a perfect size in that application. The Kenwood was used so much during the 1980's thru 1999 at which point was it stored. I attempted to use it a year later and beyond all the lights being burnt out from so much use, the thing had no sound at all. Yet, another project waiting for investigation and repair. FM 38

Hi Norman, A close friend bought a pair of these back in 1989 or whenever they first came out. He drove them with a single B&K 202 at 150 WPC. They sounded balanced but, that amp was such a muted hang-dog sounding amp it was slightly difficult to discern their actual sound quality. The amp was suffering from too little power. He went out and bought the B&K mono-blocks that offered more power but, to me those still lacked any excitement across the frequency spectrum. Overall (for me), the speakers reminded me of more powerful AR-2ax. Though they had wider dispersion and slightly healthier bass response combined with slightly elevated and a more natural midrange response. I did enjoy them more than the AR-2ax and heard no problems in the short times I listened to them and felt them to be an enjoyable and pleasant sounding speaker. I’m not able to offer any further personal listening impressions because I didn’t listen critically often enough to form a more thorough opinion. However, I liked them enough to keep in mind for future purchase though, I never did. This friend who owned them I’ve described before in this forum. He owned AR-11 in '78 and switched to JBL L-100’s and then bought the Thiels. After several years he sold them and repeated his original purchase and bought another set of AR-11’s. I’ve included two links reviewing them. When Jim Thiel passed away in 2009 I felt the company would loose its direction and they did close their doors in 2018 AFAIK. Overall, I did like them and wish you luck with them as they are still favored by many. https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/thiel-is-officially-closed https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/renovating-thiel-cs3-5-speakers.18978/ FM 38

AR-90's very well may go lower than the 4 ohm rating, info claims that they can low as low as 3.2 as Stimpy has indicated. Read older posts here on this site and elsewhere before buying. You may have to spend some dollars in buying an amplifier. Quality sound does not come cheaply no matter what novices say around the web where misconceptions and half-truths run rampant. Research is necessary and by seeking opinions of professionals and people who are at the top are where you will find correct answers. It may mean reading through loads of info, but, in the end you'll feel confident. The inter-web deluge on the amateur sites sometimes does more harm than good. What's the old expression, "opinions are like belly-buttons, everyone has one". https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Audio/Archive-Audio-IDX/IDX/70s/Audio-1979-11-OCR-Page-0090.pdf FM 211

This is an old topic and is oddly wrapped in more mystique than many other aspects of electronic possibilities. One must walk on shaky ground as it is with old AR speakers. If you're innocent of electrical possibilities, you're better off. However, with decades of doing this 'hi-fi' thing, I still know the ship can sink. I myself since 1971 have used 4 ohm speakers with amps that were built without any indication as to what's forbidden or recommended as optimum for best results. As far back as those early years, I've blown out amps and likely due to 4 ohm speaker use yet, I forged on doing whatever was necessary to play my music. Overall, we all take chances with old speaker use. Of all the owner/users of AR-3a's etc at 4 ohms, how many here skirt that same issue? I've lived with 4 ohm LST's and not only does stress an amp just to drive them but, that 4 ohms can dip even lower. I'm not saying anyone must take chances like I do but, there are ways to alleviate the fear when in doubt. Diligent use of the correct fuse values is one, another is cooling fans. This is not a fail proof remedy but will assist is lessening some fear while helping an amp along. Nothing is fool-proof or promised, case in point for almost six years I drove my AR-3a's with a Phase Linear PL-400 amp. at 4 ohms, with 400 WPC. I used it from the beginning of the day to the end of the day, even extended periods of time. I installed two 4 inch cooling fans, fuses and not always respectful of power levels in a 35 X 22 X 12 foot room. All operated as I wished until one day for no apparent reason the amp blew at low background music levels. It's known fact that driving any speaker at 4 ohms or lower can present a difficult situation for almost any amp, yet there's all those AR-3 and AR-3a users out there for decades with no reported problems regardless of amplifier make or volumes used. No matter what, using old low ohm speakers/amps is dicey and we all still do it. What's the risk of driving on the highway? We all still do it while knowing almost anything could happen. Maybe, it's just one of the vagaries of life, like crossing the street, a car could come out of nowhere and mow you down. We look both ways, check and double check but, there's always that chance some maniac will turn the corner that you didn't see or expect. That almost tight-rope risk we take with speakers and older amplifiers is sort of built in. Even fail-safe procedures can fail. Of course, I'd rather not live that way but, it's part of life. By the same token, I bet many folks would run out of here when I'm with friends and having a good time. I have a a few close friends that are products of the '80s and almost twenty years younger. They'll listen at any high volume level that I subject them to and even thank me for turning them on to my world and the experiences that brought me here. Through out my adult life, since I was 21 I've endorsed AR and high power to many individuals. And half century later I'll still say it; if you haven't experienced my last sentence, you don't know what you're missing. Since 2009 I've been using four, four ohm AR-LST's with two Phase Linear PL-700 Series Two amplifiers that have been rebuilt to factory specifications by a well known 'Guru' of PL rebuilds. I use fuses, fans, and I do push the entire system like few here probably never have realized AR's are capable of. That's 14 years going on 15 already with my present system and every system I put together since the late '60s and I'm still going strong. And like life, when and if an issue or problem arises, we deal with it the best we can. The goal is to have fun and pleasure. Here's another opinion about using 4 ohm or 8 ohms driving amplifiers. https://youtu.be/j8liG1nLfcY Also: You want to talk about taking chances, in a 1949 plane today. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rh-0rz-fvBY FM 99

Not familiar with this model but, read here, seems to make me think this amp would be O.K. 4 ohm operation doesn't seem to be a problem. https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/need-opinion-on-choice-of-power-amp.889829/ 82

On Flatbush Ave. and Ave. U. When I got my AR-LST's the 3a's became 'donors' although I still have all the cabinets and drivers. I have enough spare drivers to rebuild all of my speakers, that was the plan. Nineteen years ago, I realized the lay of the land and which way the wind was blowing and went on a buying frenzy of used and some new spares. During that same period, I joined "CSP" and I proved myself correct. There were other folks of the same mind set. I'm grateful for the years spent in NYC when it was all it was cranked up to be, recent transplants are there because they've heard all the accolades and have seen it in movies. There was a time when it was the greatest city in the world. I'm glad I saw it, lived it and cherished it when it was still the genuine article. I imagine that now it's all hype of what it once was. I knew the subway system like the back of my hand and I could be anywhere in the city in short time or quickly walk the rest. Be it the financial district, the printing district, the flower district, the photography district, the machining district, advertising district, and every other district that existed. In the mid- '70s, landlords couldn't give floors away, the place was too old and run down. Today, from what I hear about costs, like rent, etc. a normal person could no longer survive healthily or, happily. What I rented for in 1978 for $400./month is now going for over 2 grand. What I rented for $2,000./month is now going for over 6-7 grand. I sometimes use to say to newer-type of arrivals: "this place will chew you up and spit you out" ,"unless you work very hard and are extremely lucky". And, I saw it happen countless times too. Sometimes, you'd meet a person one week and with less than two or three weeks, they were gone. No money. no work,, no go, they left. When I was abroad, folks acted like NYC was the 'Center of the World' and from childhood to when I left nineteen years ago, it was. Now, homogenized, sameness, weak copies of originals and wanna-bees. I know, strongly opinionated but, I lived in it when it was thriving at its historically latest and greatest periods. Actually, for me, it was when I watched the second-plane hit the towers as I stood 2500 feet away, I felt it was all over. All before that, an outsider would never believe how great it was. Ah, such bliss to live,. work and love there. FM 748

Hi JohnnyTheG, @frankmarsi ""What a great story about getting your first ARs. I live in Brooklyn and would love to know where that old hi fi store was on Avenue U. I am sure it went out of business during the Reagan years haha."" Yep, born in Manhattan, raised in "Bed-Sty" and "Flatbush-Kings's County", Brooklyn was the 'real' melting pot since its beginnings. Still is the fourth largest city in the USA with 4 million in population. Forgive me but, my father had the correct idea to leave it while we were able to. A lot of history there though in the growth of the city which Brooklyn housed most of the folks who created Manhattan into the mega-city it was in those early days. Now, being away from that whole world I can only imagine what it's like these days. Though, still I'm happy for my time there, which is most of my life's learning about the rest of the world. World wide typically everyone knows "NYC". The time I spent in Japan and Europe the folks there, made me feel like a VIP because I was from NYC. My take is the last century was the time to be there as it still retained so much of what it was since the growth of the 'Industrial Revolution' with each neighborhood being what it was for decades. From the changes I saw happening in the period I left it all and hearing from a few friends who are still there, it is very much changed. Due to technological and cultural changes and the mere time/history aspect of things I don't believe I'm missing anything that I once enjoyed while I was there for about 43 years on the work-force. In other words, it's totally different there now than its history once enjoyed or it boasted of. Just the buildings and pavement are the same. Interesting thing is that all of my AR speakers I had there I still have with me now so, these crazy good speakers have been the long-term friend I always knew they'd be. I purchased my first pair of AR-3a's in 1971 and still own them and most of the equipment I used back in my formative days. And like NYC, the newer equipment is just not as attractive or original feeling to me as the vintage stuff is. Then again, I enjoy the history of the world around me and the familiarity of my surroundings than the uncertainty of present days. I guess it's all relative. Just the same, listening to music on my old AR speakers allow me the sort of pleasure of something I'm most comfortable and familiar with. P.S. That store was called; "Stereo Corp. of America". I doubt it's still there but, ya never know. I did find a copy of their later 1977 catalog on the web.They were a mail-order only, no store front or showroom, it was a warehouse with a counter/desk up front. FM Below, have a quick listen. Click the double facing arrows in the upper left corner for large screen. https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/10649-do-ar-speakers-really-sound-that-good-more-new-video/ 716

So, "Regarding placement. You have plenty of room and enough options. You don't need spikes but you could use adhesive felt pads to ease movement on the wooden floor." To me, the pictured room is too small for those speakers, especially the woofers. Speakers do best when their stands or spikes, etc. are in direct contact with floors. When I was inside my AR-9's the lower woofer-chamber was empty as I described in my 2014 post and certainly as DavidR has patiently explained here (3X). And as I recall, the 8 inch lower-midrange has its own separate mini-enclosure and stuffing. I won't mention the amount of necessary wattage needed for the best results but, I use 700 WPC RMS and they do eat it up quickly. FM 598

6/26/2023 About 15 or so years ago there was a foto circulating on the web that showed an individual who used stacked Advents (the vinyl clad version)*. The owner properly used a separate Phase Linear PL-400 Series One amplifiers for each pair of speakers which is the correct way to to hook double speakers. This unknowing trend of novices stacking speakers and only using one amplifier is incorrect and not advised if you value you amplifier. Running speakers this way will over tax the amp and therefore lessen the effect of a system’s fidelity. Long term it will burn out your amplifier and teach a fast lesson to the user. I myself have stacked my four AR-LST’s with double Phase Linear-PL-400 amps starting in 1989 with good results except over-all the system wasn’t what I had expected. It wasn’t until I took the advice from a AR corporate representative I had met at a well known NYC stereo salon. He told me he and other AR corporate types had hooked-up two Phase Linear PL-700B’s with two sets of AR-LST’s. He said that with that system, the sound was unimaginable. At that time I had too many aspects of my life where I couldn’t afford new amps. Luckily, by 2005 or so I bought another used Phase Linear PL-400 and enjoyed a new found huge-ness of sound over-all. It wasn’t until 2009 that I upped the size of my amplifiers to two rebuilt Phase Linear PL-700 Series II amps and I’ve been enjoying excellent and balanced sound to this day with additional huge-ness, even bigger sounding than with two PL-400's. I have no need to improve, I'm at the top of the mountain already. Four AR-LST's and 2800 watts RMS is enough for me. When one uses only one amplifier, it puts undo stress and strain on the amp. I learned that quickly. I had one PL-400 out for repair and decided to use only one amp to drive both sets of LST’s. With in less than 2 weeks of that configuration, it left me with no sound at at all as the stress and strain blew out that singular amp. Admittedly, driving four AR-LST speakers with one amp was a stretch for any amp but, I’ll never do that again. My current system since 2009 uses 'matched' double amps for double 'matched' speakers and that is the only way to render good unstrained sound. Both amplifiers must be identical as should the speakers be identical. I'm speaking of high-fidelity not playing with speaker boxes as if they were a child’s set of building blocks as a few novices may use them as. If using mis-matched speakers or amps, it's the lowest common denominator that will prevail. Not good and certainly not a purist move and definitely not a sophisticated use of components. There's been a couple of novices around here and 'AK' who play like children with mismatched speakers and mismatched amps and have the mindlessness to brag about it-you know who you are. *This is a photo of double Advents that has mysteriously disappeared from the web as I had to do a long search to find this one below. Notice the two Phase Linear PL-400’s on floor against the front wall of system. This photographed double pair of Advents has been referred to often when speaking of the double set-ups across the web for years. I wanted to show the foto but, this forum's allotted space will nor permit it so, here’s a link of the foto. Scroll to bottom of page to see double advents in use. This system's owner was correct to use double Phase Linear PL400's as seen in background of photo as I bet it must sound thrilling. If I purchase another pair of vinyl-clad Advents, I'll be sure to hook up such a system for curiosities's sake in my den. http://wajonaudiosv.weebly.com/high-end-audio-on-a-budget-getting-the-very-best-hifi-sound-at-the-least-possible-cost-short-version.html 21.1

So much for that lark. He doesn't remember. (""I’ve had them for a while. I actually do not remember. "") Would've been nice but, I bet they fit some other manufacturer's woofer and can be tracked down.

Why didn't I think of that? Dumb. Well, I left message and if he's nice enough, he'll let me know and I will post the foam-surround source here. Sit tight.

Does anyone know the source of these super wide foam surrounds? Ultimately, I wonder if any differences would be worth it. I'd post a photo but, I'm out of space to do so. https://www.ebay.com/itm/166176133621?hash=item26b0de91f5:g:mPwAAOSwsxdkjGoz&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA8ONwBJbZJUV7cYDq0yzP8qPSIzMXK%2FFG%2BT0Ix9He4jDJZ4kMaGWekU9SsjmhQ7ogrjOPa4YGTiei%2FBdSA71UuHla63OzcqqZ2%2F17mllzLK%2FgwkKuEZ4koCltuXmyh9f5hSm1SCZMQ59Oi89rCrAmHYD%2BYQomWkiCDiFq7tIPEJTWn3iyy96F4cpQE2xLphnDVw6tRpijOzljWXiZ%2BXt1c04hxbNAqS6moEWpaFi%2BJAV3n2qMsHDCdZbAylG6OQdOwYlekXhjWPkEJXR1LH6AxgDiIScsTL489d4WVyxbzekfdCPX53YqnRvVA4YVDp0UYQ%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR8bw6uaYYg

DavidR, that was for one. I have six now in the collection and one day I'll bring those into shape. Since 1987 when I got them, I actually can't believe I have the LST's. Back when they came out in '72, it was such a far off dream. But, getting back to Alex C, he'd have to weigh the possibility of such a big money out lay and a possible long search for those AR-1's. Then what? One must draw the line between owning museum worthy speakers or speakers that are work-horses and serve their owner as they are meant to. I'm careful and still value my components, like my costly phono-cartridges but, there comes a time when they must be used to the point of enjoyment and not stared at like some manmade temple of worship. Ah geez I can't lie, yes I do look at my system as if it were a precious object of wonderment and when the music gets to a point of intoxication, I let it take me away. FM