Vern48

I do have the original labels and "3" pins. Didn't attach them yet just in case I try to find some of the original grill material. Attached a couple more images of that detail.

Thank you. In my retirement I've decided to start down-sizing back to my roots in hifi, if you will. Started working on the Dynaco ST-70 pair and PAS-3 preamp I assembled as kits, which were connected, of course to the 3"s. [I have the receipts for the Dynaco gear, too. Actually, I bought the second ST-70 used.]

Recently completed restoring my AR3 speaker pair, purchased February 27, 1967. [Yes, I have the receipt.] Replaced original pots with Violet AT-40H L-pads. Sent midrange drivers to Roy to be refurbished. The tweeters seem to be fine at this point. Replaced caps with Dayton 1% caps, also matched by Roy. [2.7/3.3 and 12uf X 2] 25 ohm, 10 watt resistors added on midranges and tweeters. I reinstalled the original stuffing material, although I did not take it all out of each cabinet and weight it to determine if the amounts were uniform. Laid in a piece of crinoline before installing the woofers. Used Parts Express gasket tape on the the mids and woofers. Checked the glue on the woofer masonite rings and spiders - didn’t note any separations. Also, did not apply sealant to the surround-didn’t conclude it’s needed at this time. Initially, I planned to reuse the original 3 grill material, but after successfully cleaning it, realized the one piece had damage and/or shrunk a bit on the narrow ends and would not reattach properly to the plastic frame. So instead, I used AR3a frames covered with the same fabric used on my 2ax restorations. The one frame fit loosely, so I used a shim in the lower cabinet groove to hold the frame in place. May just leave them as is, if I don’t/can’t replace the material. I’m fine with the way they look. I have the original AR badges and “3” pins, but have not reattached them. Finished the cabinets off with several coats of linseed oil. My goal was to restore the speakers to a proper working condition and not necessarily get every detail “period correct” if that’s even possible. I’m grateful to this forum and the collective knowledge that is found here. I doubt if I would have attempted these repairs without this information. Many thanks are also due Roy for the support in knowledge and service to restore these vintage speakers.

Oops, neglected the image showing the color difference of the veneered cabint.

Pair restored February 2021: https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/13241-my-ar-2ax-restoration/#comment-134198 Pair restored March 2023: https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/17127-comparing-oem-and-hivi-tweeters-in-restored-pairs-of-ar2ax-speakers/#comment-143750 The 2/21 pair needed the veneer on the top of one cabinet replaced, something I've never done. It turned out okay, but not perfect, as the color match was not great. The color of the cabinets are not a match either, so I was fine with that. The one cabinet is darker than the other. After some sanding on all four cabinets, several coats of linseed oil were applied. Again, they are not perfect, but look much better than before. I needed frames for the 2021 pair and decided to purchase them from Vintage AR, instead of trying to make my own. Following a suggestion by Roy, I painted the fronts flat black, so the frame cut outs do not show through the fabric. The fabric I used is not the, perhaps preferred, linen cloth, but rather a more burlap-looking variety. I purchased 6 yards of this fabric twenty years ago and paid $18.00 at the time! The images with the AR2ax badges are the 2/23 restoration pair. So....these ARs are finally finished. It's been a longer journey than planned, but I'm pleased with the result. My goal was not necessarily a "factory original' restoration, but rather speakers that actually worked and looked nice at a reasonable cost. I appreciate all the wisdom available on this forum. I also appreciate greatly the service and advice Roy provided. [Will be posting my AR3 restoration journey shortly.]

IARrybody, thanks for your reply. I went back to the HD link, "nominal" size is 1/4 inch; the "actual" size is .22 inch, close enough, I suppose. It's not carried at the local store, so I'd have to order online if I wanted to go that route. Thanks.

To finish up a couple AR restoration projects, I need to make new grill frames to replace broken or missing ones. I'll probably need six all together, for 2a, 2ax and 3 cabinets. I was thinking of using this: https://www.homedepot.com/p/DPI-DECORATIVE-PANELS-INTERNATIONAL-40-total-sq-ft-1-4-in-x-48-in-x-24-in-Standard-Hardboard-Handy-Panel-5-Pack-HDSS22024485/311322859 Is this a good choice, or is there something better? Thank you.

Sorry about the lack of clarity of my attached images. Both cabinets are filled with 20 oz. of fiberglass. Interestingly enough, to me at least, was that originally, one cabinet had 20 oz. of fiberglass and the other had 16 oz. The image with the white fabric is crinoline I picked at Jo Anns to place between the fiberglass and back of the woofers.

In February 2021 I posted the restoration of my first pair of AR2ax speakers: https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/13241-my-ar-2ax-restoration/#comment-134198 A couple weeks ago I was able to complete restoration of the second pair of 2ax’s referenced in my last post of that thread. I did follow through and install a pair of restored OEM tweeters by Roy C. Dayton caps were used in both – 4uf on the OEM tweeters and 3uf on the HiVi tweeters. Did not use 25 ohm resistors on the tweeter L-pads, did install them on the midrange controls along with the Dayton caps. I was now interested to see what the difference might be between the two sets of tweeters. I used tracks from the following CDs for my listening: BY REQUEST John Williams and the Boston Pops COPLAND Bernstein & New York Philharmonic DUETS Tony Bennett THE LOOK OF LOVE Dianna Krall GREATEST HITS BeBe & CeCe Winans THE VERY BEST OF Erich Kunzel & the Cincinnati Pops THE PLANETS Charles Dutoit & Orchestre symphonique de Montreal I want to be clear about one thing: my hearing acuity is not what it used to be-my upper range diminishes at around 6-7-8K, so, my thoughts and observations may not be the same as someone else. I did the listening in my living room with the speakers on short stands about eight feet apart, placing the tweeters and midranges at about ear level. The stands were located about two feet away from side and back walls. My sitting position was about eight-to-ten feet away. I periodically switched the speakers between the “inner” and “outer” position on the stands. I would often listen to the same track several times, switching back and forth between pairs. To make level adjustments easier, I installed AR3 type knobs on the L-pad shafts so that the knob pointer lands at the cabinet “dot” at the center of their rotation, the twelve o’clock position, if you will. I tried many mid/tweeter level combinations. I ended up with the mids at eleven o’clock and the tweeters at one o’clock, on both pairs. Those settings sounded good to me, but again, it may be my hearing deficiencies skewing the results. So, eventually, I drew the following conclusions: 1. On some tracks, I was not able to discern a huge difference, if any. Occasionally, I lost track of which pair I was listening to. 2. Both pairs were satisfying in longer duration listening sessions. 3. I could hear differences on some tracks that I thought were just that, different, but not necessarily better or worse. 4. However, I eventually concluded the OEM tweeter had an edge over the HiVi tweeter. I thought this was most evident on the Tony Bennett and Dianna Krall tracks. There seemed to be a quality of clarity and realism to such instruments as the cymbals and brushes. The pronunciation nuances on the Krall vocals also seemed smoother. What would I recommend to others wanting to restore their AR’s? If absolute originality and a drop-in replacement are the priority, go with the OEM. If lowest cost is the absolute priority, or the originals are unavailable, then the HiVi. If I was doing this again – restoring two pairs of 2ax’s, I think I would go the OEM route for both sets, although I would have to say the HiVi does make for a slightly cleaner look without front wiring. Roy’s work in designing the HiVi/inductor combination is to be highly commended. I was satisfied listening to my first restored pair for the last two years. So, all in all, I’m a happy camper. I have two pairs of restored AR2ax’s and am satisfied with both.

Interesting thought. It didn't occur to me that if that driver was put in the 3, it may never be called on to reproduce frequencies in the problem area because of the higher crossover. I'll give it a try and see what happens. Probably won't get to it until next week.

I recently discovered the midrange driver in one of my AR3a speakers, serial 86650, is faulty, emitting a crackling, buzzing sound around 800HZ. I determined this by playing frequency bands on a test CD. [Has anyone come up with a repair for the mids as is being done for the tweeters?] I have a single older, poorly stained, pine AR3 cabinet that has a ‘service replacement’ mid driver in it. I believe it is the Tonegen. Got this speaker quite a few years ago with a bad mid and had it replaced by AR in Norwood, long before I started doing repairs myself. This pine cabinet looks to be early and is in pretty rough condition although someone with more skill than I could most likely refurbish. I believe the Tonegen would be a correct, suitable replacement in the AR3a. Not sure if a crossover change is required. I’m trying to decide whether to “steal” that driver out of the old AR3 to replace the bad AR3a driver, or try to locate a used driver that matches the one in the 3a cabinet, which I believe is a ’70-73 era, 200010-1, based on the images in the restoration document. I guess I would just part out the rest of the old cabinet, But, I hate to trash a working AR speaker, even if it looks bad. As far as I can tell, there are no issues with the woofer and tweeter. Another factor, I’m now retired, and thinking of downsizing my equipment stash. My hearing isn’t quite what it used to be, either. Thinking the pair of 3a’s would be more desirable, if I decide to sell them, if they both have “period correct” mid drivers. Looking for wisdom and thoughts approaching this in case there are factors I have over-looked. Or, am I overthinking this?

Actually, I was thinking about asking the same question. I installed a pair of HiVi's in one pair of restored 2ax's and was considering getting a pair of originals rebuilt for another unrestored pair. I believe Roy and Chris, members of this forum, do this, but I'm not sure if there is a "correct" protocol to follow in making such a request. Looking for guidance.

I mentioned in my opening post I had 17 AR speakers. Two of that 17 is another pair of earlier 2ax's that need restoration. Maybe when I get that far along, I'll have the originals in those rebuilt. Then I can make a comparison between the two. I do plan to downsize my collection at some point, but will probably keep that pair due to a bit of nostalgia - we bought that pair soon after we were married.

Thank You, Roy. The woofers are a pair I picked up reasonably and had to refoam. They do have a sticker on the back identifying them as a service replacement. I removed, disconnected one wire and measured the resistance of each mid: 6.2 & 6.3 ohms. If I do add a series 3 ohm resistor, I do not change the 25 ohm across the L-pad, as, if I understand it correctly, that just affects the control. [I did not put a 25 ohm across the tweeter L-pad.] This may be a question for a new thread: Wondering about the rebuilt tweeters. How long have they been available? How many members have used them? What's a reasonable life expectancy compared to HiVi? What's the consensus opinion between the two so far? Maybe one of "those" decisions? Vern

Thanks for the kind remark, ar_pro. I’m not quite sure what I’ll do next. Initially, I wasn’t really planning to keep these cabinets, but decided to use them as a “getting my feet wet” kind of experience in speaker restoration. Having to replace the tweeters lead me down an unplanned path. I’ve done about a dozen woofer refoams (not all ARs) and some pot changes, but this was my first complete internal speaker restoration. After investing more time and effort than I expected, I was also quite unexpectedly happy with the end result. So, now I may have to keep them….. The cabinets need work – the top veneer of one cabinet needs replacing and both need refinishing. I do not have frames, cloth or emblems. So, these are the decisions I’m contemplating: 1. How to proceed on the cabinet repairs. 2. Grills: do I try to make frames, buy & install the cloth, buy the badges – or just purchase them ready made all-in-one? I’m not sure the time/effort vs savings ratio works. 3. How do the HiVi tweeters compare to the originals? Should I have the original tweeters rebuilt and swap them out? I think the HiVi sound pretty good, although the originals were pretty bad. Then again, my hearing isn’t quite what it used to be. Will I even hear a difference? So, in a lull for now, enjoying the sound of my labor thus far.