sarals

I'll give this a go, but not just yet. This is a great thread!

Hi Kent! Yes, the HiVi tweeters are still in use. I haven't sent the originals to Chris, yet. I'm curious, too, as to how they'll sound in comparison to the HiVi's, which I honestly consider to be very good. They certainly don't do anything to the sound that is negative! I'm thinking they may either stay in the AR-5's or go to the AR-2ax's IF the original tweeters warrant the exchange. Thank you for the kind words! I have to admit that I haven't had this much fun or been so enthralled by a piece of audio gear in quite some time. That's saying something! ~~Sara

I am SO enjoying these speakers! They are so involving, so immersive. I'm past the point of marveling about their age and "antiquated" engineering, and simply enjoying them. Which is very easy to do. Fifty years of speaker "growth" and "design advances" and "new ideas" (plus Thiel/Small) mean nothing when I press "play" on my Marantz SA8260, turn off the lights, and sit back. These AR-5's make the room disappear, replacing it with the room in which the recording was made. They simply make great sounds, and they are astounding in that regard. The cabinet edges aren't beveled, the drivers aren't time aligned, the cone material isn't some exotic combination of materials, the magnets aren't made from unobtainium, the woofer baskets are stamped steel and not cast....so what? AR did it right with the materials and knowledge of their day, and these speakers are a testament to how good that old fashioned engineering and great ears were back in the day. Respect!

@crumpets beautiful work! I'm with @Aadams, if those mids are working, leave them alone. And, yes, they are wonderful, wonderful drivers. Congratulations on your AR-5's!

Just to add to my impressions, the HiVi's are working beautifully in my AR-5's. I've not changed the polarity on either tweeter, I don't know that I'd hear a difference. They certainly sound fine the way they are. I don't know that the AR-5's sounded like with the original tweeters, so no comment on that, but with the HiVi's - they're wonderful. Absolutely contemporary in their performance. Good luck with your AR-5's!

I used short wood screws to secure the HiVi tweeters I'm using in my AR-5's. The screws are arrayed at the 12, 8, and 4 o'clock positions. There is no need to remove any wood to clear the terminals on the tweeters. Also, the HiVi tweeters come with a foam gasket. I used the terminals mounted on the front of the baffle to connect them, running the signal wire through the mounting hole at the 6 o'clock position. I used some of the "clay" sealer to close up the hole, from behind, after I ran the wire through it.

Recorded with my iPhone XR. https://www.facebook.com/sarals/videos/10218307775596872/

You are very kind!!! That means a lot to me. I've got more photos to share, but the software here isn't letting me - I keep getting a "failure to process - 200" error. When I get that cleared up, I'll put some more up. @ra.ra, you folks are terrific! Thank you so much!

@ra.ra, I'll take that ding, with honor!! Maybe that's were the bottom octave is, tied up in those flat dust caps?

This morning I completed the second speaker. I was going to determine Fs on the woofer, but I couldn't find a 10 ohm resistor. Nothing even close! So, that did not get done. I proceeded with the assembly, reasonably sure the woofer would be fine. I cleaned the pots with Deoxit, with success! The caps were all replaced, the HiVi tweeter was prepared with the 0.05mH inductor, and installed. I hooked up a source and tested the pots. They worked just fine. The stuffing went back into the cabinet, and then the woofer was installed. Another test was performed, using interstation noise from my old Harmon Kardon 630 receiver. Nothing seemed to be amiss. I let the speaker reproduce that noise at a low level for about a half hour. Then, I set the both of the AR-5's up, driving them with my Audible Illusions/SCS MOSFET power amp combo. That was about ten o'clock this morning. It is 4:40 PM as I write this. I stopped listening about an hour ago. I ran the gamut - rock, folk, new age, electronic, brass, opera, classical, and finished up with some selections from the Stereophile Test CD2. The sources were CD and vinyl. The speaker setup was not optimal, but not bad. The speakers are about seven feet apart, and nine feet from my listening position. They're sitting on top of Small Advents. which are on the floor. That brings the AR-5's to ear height. They're a little more than three feet into the room. Impressions? Right away I liked what I heard. I needed to reduce the level of the midrange, turning the controls down to 3/4. That midrange certainly can be forward! Once I did that, I settled in. Rather than gush (I sure want to), I'll keep it concise. These speakers, in spite of their lack of low bass, are among the finest speakers I've ever heard. Yes, they are. I have heard better, but "better" is a matter of degree. The AR-5's are very refined, very well balanced tonally, and are ruthless in their objectivity. They give you what is on the recording. They render voice with a very natural timbre, and piano (which many good speakers don't quite get right) is stunning. They reveal inner detail, they're very nuanced, very detailed - but not glaringly by any means. There is nothing dishonest about the way they image - the sound stage can be wide, or it can be narrow, whatever the source intended. They can layer depth beautifully. They portray the space the recording was made in as well as anything I've ever heard. They just make music. Beautifully! I'm going to be listening to these things for some time to come. I'd post a photo of them, but this site isn't letting me do that right now ("error processing upload"). All of you fine folks who said I'd like the AR-5's? You were certainly right! To think these speakers are almost 50 years old....

I noticed these on eBay yesterday. They look quite nice, and they come with original accessories. Someone may get a good deal! https://www.ebay.com/itm/vintage-ACOUSTIC-RESEARCH-SPEAKERS-AR-5/233141913361?hash=item3648574711

"Value added", perhaps, with the supertweeter?

One of the things I love about audio is the differing opinions,. What I find about that, when a piece is good - neutral, gets most right - most everyone agrees. I have had no experience with classic AR speakers in almost 50 years. I never heard the 2ax's before I acquired my current pair. I never heard AR-5's, ever. I wasn't even aware of them until I came to this forum. I've had many a speaker system since my college years, and - here it is again - what strikes me about the speakers I really liked is how similar they sounded. It seems to me that the current crop of well regarded ('bookshelf") speakers are voiced very similarly (and to a degree that I think is right). They're also very articulate and open, presenting nuance, as well as solid, clean bass. I kind of wish AR had extended the bass in their 10 inch systems (agree, Pete). Based on what I recall of my beloved 1972 Advent Loudspeakers (larger), they could have. I have no idea why AR did things the way they did, but I have a suspicion cost was a factor. They developed, what, two midrange drivers, the dome used in their top tier speakers, and the cone used in the 2ax and the 4a? Spread the wealth, I guess.

I noticed that inductor, Pete. The 2ax's were built to a price point, I'm sure. Even so, they have the same overall character of the AR-5's, the voicing is very similar.

I will. Thanks!