[AR18J Restoration - information and help]

 

@ra.ra Thank you for your inputs. I will go have a look at the other pair coming week and pick them up. My cabinets look much better in the picture than in real life!

I will work on new wiring for the speaker internals. Will keep the nut type connector and get rid of the 0/-3db switch on the rear. Will bypass it but keep it to complete the authenticity! 

Any good source in the USA for the capacitors? Girlfriends friend is coming in a month and I can have her bring them when she comes. Maybe some good wire for the internals?

@djcheung your set looks so good! Is the speaker on the right (the one sideways ) the rear of the other speaker? Did you re vinyl your speakers?

 

The originals have a black "ring" around the woofer to cover up the excess metal. What material is that. Any alternatives and substitutes?

Regards,

Sudhir

[AR18J Restoration - information and help]

Thanks you for the reply Ra.Ra. That was a lot of information and trivia I was unaware of!

Yes the capacitor is a 6uF. What kind would you suggest replacing it with? 

Any suggestions for the internal wires?

So i managed to track down a guy who has another pair in India but with a EJ Suffix. So I guess they are identical to what I have. They are not in the best of shape, but I am interested in the woofers and spare tweeters. He is asking 12,000 rupees (185 USD). I know it sounds like a lot, but the Indian prices as a thumb rule are twice US eaby price plus a little more.

I am attaching a few pictures from the seller. Will have a look at them in a week and give him a token deposit.

Probably will make a custom cabinet with a decoupled tweeter with the white woofer and spare tweeters for the bedroom. :-))))

[AR18J Restoration - information and help]

Hello All,

My Name is Sudhir and I write from India. I am very happy to have found this forum of great know how and people with expert knowledge of these wonderful speakers.

I have owned a few AR's in India. These are quite a rarity in this country and I have been relentlessly searching to get my hands on more of these speakers.

I have a AR18J, the TSW210 and the TSW510 (Dads). Of all these the AR18's are my favorite. I bought them from a guy 15 years ago for some 15$. At that point one of the speaker was not working . A quick inspection revealed that one of the lugs had come off at the woofer. These little speakers have been paired with a Rotel RA - 414 for the last 15 years and have been with a friend when I left the country and are back with me now.

Now the 18s were not in the best shape when I got them , but have always sounded nice and rounded. The woofer material seemed to have been replaced locally and I have been searching for a replacement original on ebay for a while and nothing seems to turn up. I see a lot of replacements for the B and BX suffix models , but none for the J suffix.

The aim is to return the speakers cosmetically to the condition they were when new.

1. I am willing to CNC the box to exact specs and use the old front baffle as I love the typography on them!
2. Recap the speakers
3. Silver internal wire
4. Use new / refurbish connectors on the rear.
5. I know i will not get the original veneer colour, but will substitute with something very close.

 

Here are some pictures of the speakers and the listening setup. I know i have placed the speakers horizontally, but will have them back vertical as soon as I get the stands shortened! 

 

Picture

1: How it looks from the front

2: The typography and front baffle

3. Crossover : Everything seems to original

4. The fill seems to have been added at a later stage. See the colour difference?

5. Woofer front

6 , 7 and 8: Rear of woofer (Seems to be original)

9 and 10. Cabinet disintegration as I moved them around for the pictures!

11 and 12. The original foam grilles in a very delicate shape.

13 and 14 . My listening setup!

 Experts! Waiting for your suggestions!!!!!

Thanks and Regards,

Sudhir