JKent

Welcome to CSP DM Very nice. The 4x's are very good sounding speakers, so something is amiss. I suspect the 20uF wax capacitors have drifted and the pots are shot. As for the woofers, Im pretty sure there were a few woofer styles in the 4 series but they all had cloth surrounds (and none had that external gasket). I suggest you pull the woofer. You'll have to do that to replace the cap and pot anyway. See if you can identify it or post a picture of the back with any markings here. There's probably some of the original dried putty sealant around the perimeter of the woofer cut-out and that's what's making it angle out a bit. It's also possible that woofer does not have a good seal, adding to the sound issue. If it's a woofer from a later AR speaker it may be OK to keep it. In any case I'd do the electronic work first and then audition them. The slight difference in color is easily corrected. If the veneer is otherwise good, I'd clean both with mineral spirits then use clear Watco Oil on the dark one and walnut Watco Oil on the light one. But I see you're a woodworker so you probably know what to do (and if you have a better method please share it). Kent

THEY'RE BACK Please PM me with your email address, what you need and a mailing address. I'll send you an exact price quote. Thank you! Kent

"Squawker" doesn't sound very hi-fi 😀. That looks like a Mitsubishi logo on there but Panasonic also made that model squawker. I don't know whether Rectilinear ever used Japanese drivers but "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". I'd just do the re-foam and install new crossover caps. My only first-hand experience with Rectilinears was with the Mini III, XI and XIa. They all need new caps.

A little heat, like from a hair dryer, may help soften the putty.

Cool video! Includes an interview with Henry Kloss.

Odd. I just sent the link in an email. Feel free to post pics of the innerds if you want.

LOL 😆 No worries

One member—I forget who—wrote that later Twelves used the Five’s woofer. I dunno. Check the pictures in this thread

I have, Gene. Ended up sacrificing that one because they don’t go back together well 😠 I’m away from home and can’t get pictures from my computer but if you look at Ebay item 255803762838 there are pictures of the innerds there. Kent

In pairs, maybe. I have photos at home but I’m away for now. They’re probably posted here somewhere. The Twelves had double magnets, the Fives single. I never worked on the Twenty-Threes but I imagine they would have had the single magnets.

New ETA: December 10. Please PM me with your email address AFTER DEC 7 with your needs and shipping address. Pair of pots with mounting hardware and knobs $30 + postage. Using your old knobs? $28. These prices are for CSP/AK members. Ebay price $50/pr. Kent edit: 12//12/22: They were hung up in customs. Hope to have them within the next couple of days. Import taxes raised my cost so I'll probably increase the price to $32/pair after Jan. 1st. I'll honor the old price until then. Will post an announcement as soon as they arrive. Thanks for the patience.

Beauties! Listen to Roy for all aspects of the refurb. I’ll just add that you have oil filled capacitors that should probably be retained. Check the capacitance with an LCR meter but they are probably good. Kent

Local pickup…….. ?? Where?

Hi Craig Sold out for now but expect a new shipment around New Year. I’ll post here when they’re in Kent

RoyC may be able to fix the mid.

That’s a mid. Leonardo is looking for tweets.

Sold out again but should have more by the New Year (2023). I ordered more this time so I can keep the price at the same level of $30/pair for CSP/AK members. Happy Holidays! Kent

The Twenty Three or Twelve will work but some Twelves have double magnets. Search threads here. It’s been discussed.

PeteB is an expert on this. Maybe he’ll chime in. When I restored some OLAs I used the latest xo design and replaced the foam with fg. Also used better inductors per Pete’s advice PS: found the link http://baselaudiolab.com/ADVENT_LA_XO.html

PeteB is an expert on this. Maybe he’ll chime in. When I restored some OLAs I used the latest xo design and replaced the foam with fg. Also used better inductors per Pete’s advice

Welcome dbeav The Rectlinear section doesn’t get a lot of traffic so you may not get an immediate answer. Look through the threads for info and pictures of XIIs. The port should be filled but looks like it originally had a screen over it. The mid driver should be a whizzer cone. Hard to tell from your picture but it doesn’t look like it to me. Woofers need new surrounds. Grille cloth looks like a replacement. Kent

Daytons are used by MANY people here. No problem at all. The Solen is also a good choice but you may as well buy all the parts from one dealer. PE also has nice foam gasket tape for your woofer.

or leave it. It looks old and discolored with age.

First a disclaimer: Although I have owned and loved Allison: Fours I've never been inside them (and I no longer have them). A little Google search found pretty standard looking NPEs of 50 to 100V in Allison 8 crossovers. If the upgraded caps are film they would have a different ESR. Maybe replacing those with NPEs would restore a more original sound. Some members here are very fond of Mundorf NPEs. OTOH, if you have decided you prefer the Focals and want to sell the Allisons, I'd leave them as-is and tell prospective buyers you had them restored by a reputable shop, with new surrounds and new caps. "magic midrange" is pretty hard to quantify and I think it is VERY likely your perception that is the key. You are A/B-ing speakers separated by decades. There may be other variables, such as different room characteristics and certainly hearing changes over the decades. I do not believe it would be dishonest to not mention your impressions to prospective buyers. "Just the facts, ma'am." New surrounds. New caps. Reputable shop. If this is still gnawing at you, why not go back to John and tell him your concerns. He could listen and test them and give you his impression. Based on your description he sounds like one who stands behind his work and, I would think, be willing to discuss this when you present it as you did in a non-accusatory way. Just my 2 cents... Kent PS: SOME people say new caps need to "burn in". Probably hooey but what do I know? Also, new foams may need to break in a bit. So maybe let the speakers play for several hours or days and then listen again.

Looks like the label is about 5-1/8" x 8-1/2". Guarantee card is about 5-1/2" wide. That's based on my AR-3s and the labels are pretty beat. I no longer have 2-ax's. Too bad, they're really nice speakers.