AR55 Posted September 12, 2021 Report Share Posted September 12, 2021 I recently came across a bargain priced pair of 3-way AR38BXi’s. The speakers needed restoration. Most of which was fairly straightforward (the drivers needed re-foaming & the grille fabric needed to be replaced). There were, however, a few restoration hic-ups. One of the tweeters was defective & its replacement assembly didn’t immediately fit, plus a jury-rig fix was needed for a broken grille mounting pin. The tweeter replacement wasn’t costly (found a 48BX replacement on eBay for just $40), but the installation could have gone more smoothly. The 48BX tweeter was attached to a “Twin Unit” mounting plate, and removing the tweeter would most likely break off its lead wires, so there it stayed. The problem arose when I tried to slip the 48BX plate into the 38BXi recessed cutout. It was 1/32” too long!! Fortunately, the plastic plate was easy to file down & the installed plate shows no signs of being reworked. A broken mounting pin (ball) also proved to be more of a challenge than expected. The existing grille pins are slightly larger in diameter than any of the replacement mounting pins I could find. I tried expanding the pin’s diameter with some success, but it still wouldn’t grab. Ultimately, I resolved the problem by slightly drilling out the existing socket and installing a plastic sleeve that matched up with the smaller pin. So, how does the restored 38BXi sound? Better than I expected, considering the BXi series less than stellar reputation on this forum. I used one my favorite 2-way speakers, an AR-15, for comparison. Both speakers have 8” woofers in similar sized cabinets, so I wasn’t surprised to find almost no difference in their bass response. Good, though not extremely deep. At the opposite end, I found the 38BXi to be brighter, maybe a touch too bright. Overall, though, the 38BXi’s sound is more detailed with better presentation of both male and female vocals. The differences aren’t great, but they are noticeable. Also, I briefly switched out a 38BXi with one of my AR-11’s. It wasn’t really a fair comparison. 38BXi’s sitting on top of a pair of AR-14’s AR-15 & AR38BXi sitting on top a pair of AR-14’s. The 38BXi Cabinet is OK, but vinyl cladding just can’t compete with walnut veneer. 38BXi Mounting Plate 48BX Mounting Plate Sleeved socket for new smaller mounting pin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.