Woofer_01

For Andy Kotsatos This background info is so great to hear. Thank you for jumping in to explain how these wonderful models came to fruition So can we talk about the surrounds for a bit... Most of the controversy I have seen is with how the inside edge of the surround is mounted to the cone edge. On the OLA Henery used a "Reverse Roll" (or with the bulged portion of the surround ring facing inward and away from the listener) with the surround mounted under the Masonite board and the inside edge secured on top(?) of the cone lip. I have seen some OLA inner edges also mounted under the cone lip rather than on top. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On the NLA and Advent/1 the surrounds are mounted to the frame with a "Forward Roll" (or the bulged portion of the surround ring facing outward toward the listener... which is the most common surround configuration we see today). The contriversy is with the surround inner lip being secured under the cone edge or on top of the cone edge. 1. Which configuration is most is most correct for the different speakers? 2. ...and what are the destructive and constructive differences that occurs from one configuration to the other?

Hi Razorhack Sorry just saw this post and question... I got them from Parts Express. https://www.parts-express.com/Gold-Plated-Banana-5-Way-Speaker-Terminal-260-302

....and how did that go?

DARN!! did you ever sell these?? I forgot about yours until scrolling around in here today I have two sets of AR18B's now... Just got the second set off eBay... they are due in Thursday and they are not as nice as yours either... grrrr My bad! One thing you are right about... they are wonderful speakers. I also have a set of AR 18S and they are perhaps only slightly better than the "B"s but not enough to worry about. They are indeed worth experiencing and spending time with.

Oh you too? We live tortured lives... sigh I am buried in the following EPI (10 each? (not counting two EPI 100W with MDF water damage to the cabinets), AR (10 (no... I also have an orphan AR 28s *phew*) 11 each), Advents (10 each?), Klipsch (10 each), Cambridge Soundworks (8 each), and assorted misfits (a dozen maybe??) (wow!, 🤨 the number TEN must mean something... This is the first time I have tried to do a mental inventory of the "clutter") Seems the numbers are fluid as some things have been squirreled away...

Slight variation with mine...

Duplicate in error

Baby Advent Tweeter repair... https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/baby-advent-tweeters-why-they-break-around-the-screw-holes-and-how-to-fix-them.951944/#post-14609549

(This is an old post...) But if you are still here... try this using a Q-Tip to apply and smooth. you must It is best to place or bend the fine wire so it is close to the path you want, then hold the wire in place with a jewelers screw driver or tweezers while dabbing a very thin layer of the liquid on. It dries quick!

AR 18B Restoration Set #1 Thoughts... Managed to track down a replacement grill... Grills cleaned same as above... Wool-Lite is great for getting old cigarette discoloration out of fabric (This method only works with PLASTIC GRILL FRAMES) The sound between the AR 18s and AR18B... They are very close...really The AR 18s is slightly brighter when doing a left-right comparison. WIll have more to say when I get more break-in time on them. AR Speakers in the works... AR-28S Orphan (Looking for a mate) Second set of AR 18B speakers due in (more on them later)

"Every picture tells a story... don't it..." Here is my AR 18s restoration in pictures... Two comments... The crossover board is acoustically sealed with 2-sided foam tape and screwed on. The plastic framed grills are gently cleaned by soaking in roasting pans using "Wool-Lite" (last Picture).

Awesome... Not bad for the first time! Restored...these speakers make better music than any of the news ones costing over $400. Enjoy them! Consider replacing the iron screw connection terminals in the back... pop out the woofer, unscrew the back old "round speaker connection", stick a Phillip's screw driver on the crossover side to hold the screw, remove the locking nut on the back, remove the old iron screw assembly (shown below) I put these in an old parts bag and taped them to the inside of the cabinet so they stay with the speaker after I am long gone. Someday they may have an historical value to some purest Now you have your choice of several updated gold-plated connection systems from a parts house like Parts Express I used these... (Disclaimer: I do not work for this company or would accepted (or have accepted) any kickbacks for this referral. It was just what I used) The new replacements just pop in the existing holes and on to the original wire terminals and fasten with the new gold plated nut (circled in picture) Here is what they look like after the upgrade This system accepts five different speaker connection options and provides better overall connection performance. Here is another option... This one I like because of the speed you can pop the wire or pin connectors in... Just push, insert, and release and you have a solid connection. These install just as quick and easy using the existing holes. (discard the gold wire tabs or use them to replace the old terminals). NOTE: These do stick out the back of the cabinet a bit so only consider them when you are not placing a speaker of a shelf or close to a wall (which is not a good idea for best soundstage. Most larger speakers sound better when carefully placed away from a back wall about 8-14 inches and angled to the listeners) No soldering or crimping required with either system if you use the old terminals which work just fine

I have mostly "New England Sound" speakers... and also a few Klipsch. There are plenty of places to go for Klipsch, just not here. Here is the the charter for this group...read carefully the YELLOW HIGHLIGHTED TEXT

Since the woofers are 8 ohm that means the amp is seeing a static ~4 ohms on each channel. Most of the EPI 8" woofers I have measured are ~7.6 ohms to 7.8 ohms (7.7 ohms seems the most common). Wiring the EPI woofers in parallel means the amp can now see ~3.8 ohms to 3.9 ohms for each speaker hookup. I measured some speakers (EPI, Advent, and AR) using the external hook up terminals this morning and found ALL of these speakers in a static state measure around 4.1 - 4.2 ohms. This includes some M180s I tested. So what's happening here? Where does the 8 ohms impedance come into play? I am assuming that the audio cine wave as it goes positive and negative causes the overall impedance to "look" or "feel" like ~8 ohms to the amplifier?

Here is a version of the EPI M180 that came with the Tweeter switch. I rewired and recapped the crossover as shown, The schematic was a redraw of the original to match my updated wire labeling.

Sweet job! I will be talking to you as soon as I finish my current project.

Thanks... For now I am doing some restoration tricks with color coordinated Minwax Wood Putty and Stain Pens (Provincial Walnut). Will post pictures later...

NOTE: GET A RED SHARPIE and color cod the spade that the RED wire goes to so you hook them back up correctly. My AR 18b rebuild See comments on pictures I snagged this pair on line... Cabinets were rough, grills have holes, surrounds where gone, and on AR badge was missing Woofer surrounds were toast... as expected Grills will need recovering... not an issue with plastiv frames IF they are in good shape. Original input terminals and the dreaded SN label New input terminal with these really slick spring loaded input terminals Woofer out to be repaired and the first peek at the Crossover Crossover out and exposed New cup and new Dayton Audio 250V 1% Tol Caps. Original value is 5uF so I had to use a pair of caps wired in parrallel (2uF and a 3uF) wich electronically "looks" like a 5uF cap. Hot glue and strong nylon tiewraps should work long term to keep things together All together and breaking in. The new input terminal cup required the original AR Labels on the back to be moved. Used a heat gun and they easily came loose. Repositioned them slightly higher. NOW... Here is the amazing part... These little book shelf speakers SOUND AMAZING!!! I am quite stunned how nice they sound!! Cabinet work and new grill work still to be done. More pictures coming. AR 8b wiring diagram PLAN VIEW Also... I now have a set of AR 18s...

Hi Norman... Thanks for the reponse... I have been working on one set of my EPI M50s this weekend. One set was previously opened up and they look like they might have been redone with updated rubber surrounds. I have not pulled the woofers out to look at the crossover yet on that pair. I have decided to start my tear down of the otherset which is in an original state. Observations so far... The grills are a "pain in the *ss" to break free. The 6" woofer surrounds on this first speaker is also rubber... but of a poorer quality and not quite as wide as the ones I found on the other pair. Inspite of this, they are still pliable and servicable for now. I have never tried to remove a rubber surround and I suspect the paper cone does nor enjoy the process. The cabinet was in really good shape, but it is getting a little TLC while it is apart. I have a new set of speaker connectors on order to better fit the round "factory-bored" access hole in the back panel. Just a note about the Crossovers... yes, they use a 10uF cap like most of the other EPI 2-way speakers, BUT on the M50, the caps are in series with a 5-ohm resistor. I suspect this is deigned to throttle back the tweeters to better match up with the smaller 6" woofers. Check out my other post in this group documenting the rebuild of three EPI M180V speakers. Pictures of the crossover work... The round connection panel hole possed an interesting challenge... The usual terminal block I normally use would not allow room for attachment of the original factory Serial number tag. This is an item I feel that is important to keep with the speaker. I decided to locate the masonite input/crossover board lower and use the space abover the EPI logo for the input terminals. This arrangement allowed room for the label too. These spring loaded connectors are really handy and allow quick connections with 'Pin Jacks" mounted on the speaker wires. I was a bit concerned about how far out the connectors protrude out the back of the speaker. Last picture shows the clearance when the connectors are depressed to insert the "Pin Jack". Once they snag the Pin Jack, the clearance issue is minimal. Cabinet work... Baffle Board ready to be painted Crossover layout and connection complete Ready to stick inside speaker using doublesided tape and fasten with 1/2" screws. Label is attached Clearance issue - which is not a problem once speaker wires attached A look at the layout... centering is a tad off... (oh well) Speaker wires attached to check clearance issues. I really like how easy to is to attach these speaker wires using these pin jacks

Recapped my AR 18bs and the improvement was quite noticeable. I have been moving toward using these Pin Connectors for all of my speaker wires (See picture) so I can quickly test and break-in a number of different speakers. They are good for all types of speaker terminal plates with their various connector styles. The eBay pricing is reasonable for the 20-piece sets For this project, I upgraded the Connection Cup that has these spring-loaded connection points and It was a good choice...I really like these with the speaker wire Pin Connectors and the existing screw holes in the AR cabinet line up perfectly. ("Parts Express" Round Speaker Wire Terminal Cup 2-15/16" Gold Spring-Loaded (Part # 260-276)) There is one down side The round lip will cover the factory applied serial number label. Careful application of a Heat Gun will allow safe removal and reapplication of the label in a slightly higher location to preserve this important document.

Here is the business end record of the restore... Refoamed surrounds and rewired with 16awg. Also installed new Parts Express Round Speaker Wire Terminal Cup 2-15/16" with Gold Spring-Loaded connection terminals. These are prefect for use with the 2mm Pin Connectors (Last pic - They are eBay products) on the end of the speaker wires... I am slowly converting all my speaker wires over to these connectors for the ease in which they can be used to quickly swap speakers Also added new caps (2uf and a 3uf=5uf) Now I have to figure out fixing the cabinet damage. When I first put the sound on them... I was actually stunned... jaw dropped! These speakers are blowing my mind! They sound way bigger than their actual size! The cabinets are scratched up a tad and I can't stop listening to them to work on the cabinets. I am off today to pick up a set of AR-18s speakers that also have some very minor cabinet damage... I am anxious to get them up and running just to do a comparison between the 'b and 's versions. I have been led to believe the 18s will blow the 18b out of the water... we will see over the two weeks...

Has anyone recovered their cabinets? any lessons learned or suggestions?

Where are you located... (roughly)

Status?

Still?