JP267 Posted October 18, 2018 Report Share Posted October 18, 2018 Hi everyone! I'm hoping one of you speaker experts can help me identify a pair of speakers I picked up this afternoon at Goodwill. Even though I have an AR XA, some EPI and Bozak speakers (yeah really new to this) I'm still very green when it comes to vintage audio equipment. I saw these and what drew me to them were the tweeter adjustment, The Made In USA stamp, and the weight. They are heavy. It appears the grills were possibly homemade as the attach with velcro. Anyway, I'm stumped. I only have $8 in them so it's not a big deal. They're probably nothing special. Just really curious. Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!? PS Sorry I couldn't add the photos directly. I kept getting an error that the upload failed and it wouldn't let me link directly to the photo with the URL option. Hopefully the below will get you to the pics. If not let me know and I can try something new. https://ibb.co/cCZGO0 https://ibb.co/kdwVi0 https://ibb.co/gbRkGLhttps://ibb.co/bLLUbLhttps://ibb.co/haE0i0https://ibb.co/bWJt30 https://ibb.co/nGaHVf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ra.ra Posted October 18, 2018 Report Share Posted October 18, 2018 Hi JP... I probably can't be be too helpful, but here's a few observations. You may be having trouble uploading pics because some of your files seem to be very large (4.1 MB) when in fact all you need is to re-size images as jpeg's in the 100KB size and they should load just fine in this forum. Without additional markings of some sort, those speakers certainly look pretty generic, but that is not to say that they might not be decent speakers. As you've noted, the cabinets appear pretty substantial, and perhaps even have a very nice walnut veneer. The woofer offers no visual identification, but appears to be an 8-inch (or maybe 10?), and is that a rubber surround on the woofer? And is it fitting concentric to the baffle cut-out? The tweeter is a phenolic ring type - - these are generally pretty good and often showed up in speaker models made by Rectilinear, Fisher, Marantz and others, but the installation looks a bit sloppy - - I'm wondering why it wasn't screwed in. The empty port hole is a little weird - - - usually these are connected to a tube that penetrates much of the cabinet depth. The tweeter control appears to be a typical L-pad, which is always a nice feature to find in a simple speaker. Remove the three perimeter screws and the crossover panel should pop right out. I'm a bit perplexed by that third terminal, unless it is some sort of RCA jack. You gotta love a Goodwill find with potential for $8....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP267 Posted October 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2018 Wow thanks for the detailed response!! And for the info on uploading pictures. Next time I'll shrink them. When I get home tonight I'll open up the rear plate. The woofers do seem to have rubber surrounds. There was also like a dried up putty around the tweeter that's falling off. The third jack had a simple piece of standed copper cable with an RCA at the end. I was thinking it was a ground or something at first. My research kept turning up Marantz, but the "Made in the USA" stamp makes me think they aren't. Correct me if I'm wrong wouldn't Marantz be Japan made? My other thought is it was a set of speakers someone made. My uncle did that in the 60s from a kit he bought at Radio Shack. Anyway, more info and pictures when I get home. I was just excited because it was the first pair of older speakers I've ever found at Goodwill. Usually all I find is plastic Aiwa'sl Stay tuned more info coming later tonight! Thanks again! Truly appreciate it!! 3 hours ago, ra.ra said: Hi JP... I probably can't be be too helpful, but here's a few observations. You may be having trouble uploading pics because some of your files seem to be very large (4.1 MB) when in fact all you need is to re-size images as jpeg's in the 100KB size and they should load just fine in this forum. Without additional markings of some sort, those speakers certainly look pretty generic, but that is not to say that they might not be decent speakers. As you've noted, the cabinets appear pretty substantial, and perhaps even have a very nice walnut veneer. The woofer offers no visual identification, but appears to be an 8-inch (or maybe 10?), and is that a rubber surround on the woofer? And is it fitting concentric to the baffle cut-out? The tweeter is a phenolic ring type - - these are generally pretty good and often showed up in speaker models made by Rectilinear, Fisher, Marantz and others, but the installation looks a bit sloppy - - I'm wondering why it wasn't screwed in. The empty port hole is a little weird - - - usually these are connected to a tube that penetrates much of the cabinet depth. The tweeter control appears to be a typical L-pad, which is always a nice feature to find in a simple speaker. Remove the three perimeter screws and the crossover panel should pop right out. I'm a bit perplexed by that third terminal, unless it is some sort of RCA jack. You gotta love a Goodwill find with potential for $8....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JP267 Posted October 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2018 99 OK so I finally popped it open. The woofer is stamped 80601/W8 which would make it a Philips 8in woofer. The tweeter is stamped with 200430 and what looks like 137 7331. I wasn't able to find anything on the tweeter. Interestingly enough instead of screwing the tweeters in place small staples were used where the screw mounting holes are. The RCA jack is jumped to the positive lead coming from the woofer.?? Here are some photos of the internals. Starting to think they may just have been someone's project. Oh well I'll hook them up tomorrow and see how they sound. Thanks again for the help!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ra.ra Posted October 19, 2018 Report Share Posted October 19, 2018 That tweeter should be pretty good - - the 137 designates it as a CTS driver - - this company manufactured drivers which were used in many very reputable speaker models. The 7331 dates its production from 31st week of 1973. The 200430 is most likely the part number or another type of inventory code. The Philips woofer is also probably a very good driver. See attached data sheets - - it's interesting to note that this driver was intended for sealed (not ported) cabinets. You might be well served by replacing that old capacitor with a new one of similar uF value and equal or higher voltage rating - - in this configuration, it could not be any more accessible or easier to replace. The wiring looks all correct to me: the brown wires are the commons; the red is positive for woofer; and the white is positive for tweeter in line with the cap and the control. The RCA jack is simply a single point connection in lieu of the (+) and (-) screw terminals - - its inner conductor is connected to (+) terminal, and the outer conductor is wired to the (-) terminal. Was there any stuffing inside these speakers? With the note above about the Philips woofer intended for a sealed enclosure and the unusual construction of the port opening, I am almost wondering if these might make a very decent acoustic suspension speaker if they were all sealed up tight and packed with insulation? I do not think these were homemade DIY's - - instead, my guess (reinforced by the appearance of that pleated grille front) is that these were low budget mass production speakers that happened to use very good readily available drivers purchased in bulk - - - maybe they were retailed at places like Sears, Montgomery Ward, or JC Penney. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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