powerglide Posted January 17, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2020 This thread is all about the AR-2ax's they are amazing just the way they are, yes I could switch out the tweeters, if they were available at a reasonable price, but in my opinion they don't need any further work. I've spent hours with them now and really enjoy their calming lack of attack from the digital format. They definitely don't suit the Benz / Sansui combo, I've had a new ruby cantilever and stylis put on my Rohmann which is arriving next week, I'll throw that in the mix but predict the best result will be with the brighter Cambridge Audio amp. I refurbished these as a bit of fun and never intended to put them in the room pictured, but it's the best place to test them to their full potential, I'd like to sneak them past the wife into my lounge room, but that's another issue that I'm sure others face. 2 hours ago, dxho said: I'll add that it's probably worth the effort to set the ARs in the bookshelf and gauge performance... Nah, I was so intrigued with the results of moving the AR's around that I bought the JBL's forward and did the same test to get the same result, best position was as pictured but wider apart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Pearce Posted January 21, 2020 Report Share Posted January 21, 2020 I heard a couple of terms here that stuck in my mind and they are lively quote and flat quote. That's probably the most important statement in the writing, the reasons for that might be obvious. I think that speaks of the differences between the east coast and the West Coast sound, (ugh) in other words engineering goals and speaker design goals or voicing or whatever some of you may prefer to call it. Then of course someone alluded to the fact that some of the components, the tweeters I guess, have been degraded in one of the set of speakers which of course trumps everything, there is no way a valid subjective audition could be done given that, unless it was stated from the outset that you were going to compare a pair of speakers with degraded tweeters to a different pair of speakers with up-to-speed tweeters. If another driver were added to one of the pairs then of course they would not be the same speakers as designed, ditto if they were redesigned with a different circuit or a different component. Then there's the idea of newer technology if the jbl's are from a later era. My two cents. Oh, right... Location, location, location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerglide Posted February 9, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2020 So I've had the 2ax's in my listening room for 6 weeks or so now and after many component combinations I've gone full circle and settled on the Sansui as being the best amp for the job I believe the extra power brings more body to their sound. I also upped the speaker cable gague not sure or any sonic benifit but the most rewarding change I made was bringing the speakers down to just off the floor and raking them back with a bit of toe in. This has softened the bass even more and somehow lifted the mid and high range. (I am sitting a lot closer to the speakers) Also ditched the DAC for TT and bounce between two carts. As recommended I needed to add the missing barrier cloth between the woofer and the glass wool wadding. I decided to remove all the old wool and replace both speakers with the same medium and weight, the grey was off by a mile. I used some geotextile fabric that I had for the barrier between the bass drivers. I have found a bunch of albums that I've never heard sound so good, especially reggae. Peter Tosh's - Equal Rights, already a favourite of mine, the lower end seems to melt together with perfect balance yet separation of the higher frequencies. Another stand out is Becks Morning Phase, the string arrangements are sublime and lead me to believe the AR's would be good with classical music, a genre I'm not that fond of. I think I'm now getting the most out of the 2ax's and enjoying the AR sound more and more. I find myself listening for long periods without fatigue. I'm keeping an eye out for some 3's but the only set they has come up were way over priced, which other models should I be chasing that have the distinctive AR house sound? Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aadams Posted February 9, 2020 Report Share Posted February 9, 2020 If your tweeter has not been rebuilt or you have not installed a QR1 mod then what you are hearing is probably similar to an AR2 shown below. The "house sound" of the 3 ways assumes a properly functioning tweeter above 5000hz. Most of the AR two ways beginning with AR4 series,that used the wide range tweeters, will sound at least as good as the the 10 inch two ways only missing a little of the bass. AR14 was the pinnacle of 10" two ways for AR. Adams Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ar_pro Posted February 9, 2020 Report Share Posted February 9, 2020 5 hours ago, powerglide said: Another stand out is Becks Morning Phase, the string arrangements are sublime and lead me to believe the AR's would be good with classical music, a genre I'm not that fond of. In early advertising, AR speakers were lauded for their "natural reproduction", something that would be important to those who knew how acoustic instruments sounded in a live setting. Two typical vintage ads attached. From the Classic series, speakers considered superior to the AR-2ax would include the AR-5, and the AR-3, subsequently replaced in 1969 by the AR-3a. The AR-3 and AR-3a are legitimate icons of the company, and the loudspeaker industry in general. Aadams makes a good point - the domed tweeter's condition will really affect the quality of sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerglide Posted February 9, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2020 The tweeters were replaced in 82, or should I say someone has put a sharpie ''82'' on the back of each tweeter, still that's a long time between drinks. Searched for QR 1 Mod both here and on the web for no results, can someone add a link for me, is this mod something I can do myself? When restoring vintage AR's is it assumed that the tweeters have wandered off spec as this is a common trait or do people measure the Hz or is it a more complicated process determining functionality? thanks Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted February 9, 2020 Report Share Posted February 9, 2020 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aadams Posted February 9, 2020 Report Share Posted February 9, 2020 36 minutes ago, powerglide said: Searched for QR 1 Mod both here and on the web for no results, can someone add a link for me, is this mod something I can do myself? When restoring vintage AR's is it assumed that the tweeters have wandered off spec as this is a common trait or do people measure the Hz or is it a more complicated process determining functionality? Sorry for the Q1R typo. Not all tweeters, only the tweeters with three orange dot suspension like yours. Don’t toss your old tweeters if you install the HiVi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerglide Posted February 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2020 Thanks guys on special at Parts Express. Ordered and on the way Via Texas, my Brother is flying down at the end of the month so save $40 freight. 9 hours ago, Aadams said: Don’t toss your old tweeters if you install the HiVi. I'm all about preservation but surely they can't be repaired economically as the replacements were just $30USD a pair Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aadams Posted February 10, 2020 Report Share Posted February 10, 2020 7 hours ago, powerglide said: I'm all about preservation but surely they can't be repaired economically as the replacements were just $30USD a pair I can't say you will notice the difference between rebuilt and a properly setup HiVi, with a 2ax, but it is sad to lose those tweeter bodies for the AR5s and 3as that need them. You might need two more of thesefor the HiVi pair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerglide Posted February 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2020 Arrrrh, for the Lpads? connected the same way as I did the mids? I found those resistors locally so not to much bother, I am going to use the coils as detailed in @Steve Lanich post so still required? 5 hours ago, Aadams said: sad to lose those tweeter bodies for the AR5s and 3as that need them The 3's are on my radar, as mentioned before I drive classic cars and never toss anything out. In twenty years the original tweeters could be worth a fortune to the right buyer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aadams Posted February 10, 2020 Report Share Posted February 10, 2020 1 hour ago, powerglide said: Arrrrh, for the Lpads? connected the same way as I did the mids? I found those resistors locally so not to much bother, I am going to use the coils as detailed in @Steve Lanich post so still required? Yes, yes and yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerglide Posted February 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2020 Rodger and thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerglide Posted March 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 10, 2020 Rendezvous with my tweeters in NZ and finally have them back in Oz. Just to be sure, I will be wiring them as per photo but with a 25ohm - 10w resistor across the terminals for L-pad function? And for connection I should reverse polarity for starters? and maybe a future switch for a preference test. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aadams Posted March 10, 2020 Report Share Posted March 10, 2020 3 hours ago, powerglide said: for connection I should reverse polarity for starters? and maybe a future switch for a preference test. Yes on the parallel resistor but there doesn't seem to be a hard rule on the polarity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerglide Posted May 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted May 7, 2020 Thought I'd post the last few finishing steps on this refurbish. Measured out the correct volume and replaced the glass wool with a more Eco friendly earth wool. As suggested I added a barrier cloth between the wool and the bass driver, I used some agricultural mat that I had on hand. Installed some small dials to the L Pads Followed through with replacing the tweeters with the Hi-Vi's Happy with the results and have had these center stage in my room since Easter. Simply wonderful speakers, thanks to everyone who helped with my research into refurbishment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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