The Old AR Showroom

[Guest vintagesnell]

Does anyone remember the AR showroom in Harvard Square (Cambridge MA)? This the 70's anyway - maybe earlier (?). Anyone could just drop in, take a seat, and listen to the music over a pair of ARs. One of my earliest audio memories. It was right next to the old Design Research dept store (which went bankrupt in 1979 or so). - Jill

[Steve F]

I went to college in Boston and visited the AR soundroom many times. it was just outside Harvard Square in Cambridge on Brattle Street. In the late 60's-early '70's, Harvard Square was home to several popular stereo stores, and many a Saturday afternoon was spent going from store to store by me and my fellow stereo-hobbiyst college friends.

AR's sales and marketing difficulties during that time period have been widely chronicled by myself and others on the Forum, and none of the major stores in the Boston-Cambridge area carried AR (except to disparage and sell against). Think of the irony: AR's home turf was Cambridge, they had contributed so much to the industry that was now flourishing around them, yet they were so inept at marketing their own product that they couldn't get a fair shake in the stores right around the corner from their plant. What a shame. A once in a lifetime opportunity--the expolsion of college kids buying stereo equipment in the late '60's-mid '70's--and AR blew it.

It was at the Brattle St. Sound Room that I first saw and heard the LST--in black, no less. I think by 1973 the Soundroom was closed.

Steve F.

[frankmarsi]

>I went to college in Boston and visited the AR soundroom many

>times. it was just outside Harvard Square in Cambridge on

>Brattle Street. In the late 60's-early '70's, Harvard Square

>was home to several popular stereo stores, and many a Saturday

>afternoon was spent going from store to store by me and my

>fellow stereo-hobbiyst college friends.

>

>AR's sales and marketing difficulties during that time period

>have been widely chronicled by myself and others on the Forum,

>and none of the major stores in the Boston-Cambridge area

>carried AR (except to disparage and sell against). Think of

>the irony: AR's home turf was Cambridge, they had contributed

>so much to the industry that was now flourishing around them,

>yet they were so inept at marketing their own product that

>they couldn't get a fair shake in the stores right around the

>corner from their plant. What a shame. A once in a lifetime

>opportunity--the expolsion of college kids buying stereo

>equipment in the late '60's-mid '70's--and AR blew it.

>

>It was at the Brattle St. Sound Room that I first saw and

>heard the LST--in black, no less. I think by 1973 the

>Soundroom was closed.

>

>Steve F.

I agree with you Steve about AR not taking advantage in a certain demographic, however I was in college in the late 60's and 70's, also in the military with-in those years. I almost feel AR was sort of referred to as being your father's 'Buick' and JBL as the young man's speaker back then. Funny, I've always loved the 'Duece and a Quarter' and the Riviera 455 or Grand Sport and Stage One at all of my ages. Problem was AR's were typically too expensive for a young man of 19 to 24 years old back then, just like the Buicks. I had a few friends who bought AR speakers here and in the Far East from the military stores as they sold AR's there also. In fact I own a pair in good condition AR-2ax's that a buddy bought in Thailand in 1971 while stationed there. He brought them back in fine condition, we listened to them many a night from then on. In 1978 I gave him $100. for the two. Presently they need surrounds of course and replacement tweeters, but I'll get to those eventually.

I've become 'stacking-crazy' since I met a fellow at 'Singer-Stereo' here in NYC in 1990, they were having a show for AR's new series of amp and pre-amp. I came upon a sales rep, a man from England. I told him of my AR-LST's with much joy. He looked at me and smiled as he recalled to me about him and a bunch of AR executives back in England in 1973 or maybe slighly earlier having a great time together. He recounted about using 4 stacked AR-LST's with 2 Phase Linear 700B's. His face lite up with happiness about the sound that was created by that combination. I enjoyed 'stacked' LST's since around that time in 1990, however I can only afford 2 Phase Linear 400's presently. My next 2 future projects include stacking AR-3a's and stacking AR-2ax's as I feel each set-up will bring me rewarding differences with their individual sound. Not long ago I read some info on the net about stacking the Advent larger & smaller speakers also. It seems to bring out the qualities in a certain, better, bigger, way obviously with out over driving the speakers, unless you chose to.

Sincerely, frankmarsi@verizon.net

FM

[charger3834]

Frank,

I like your Buick analogy. This is an excellent illustration of the youth marketing failure that Steve F describes.

FYI, If I were to compare AR-LST's to a Buick, I would go with the 1970 GSX 455 Stage 1. This car's level of performance was and still is outstanding !

[tysontom]

>Does anyone remember the AR showroom in Harvard Square

>(Cambridge MA)? This the 70's anyway - maybe earlier (?).

>Anyone could just drop in, take a seat, and listen to the

>music over a pair of ARs. One of my earliest audio memories.

>It was right next to the old Design Research dept store (which

>went bankrupt in 1979 or so). - Jill

Actually, the “AR Music Rooms,” as they were known, fulfilled a great marketing purpose for Acoustic Research during the period of 1959 – 1974. It was strict company policy that no sales were to be initiated or made at either of the music rooms, but many thousands of people -- particularly in New York’s Grand Central Terminal Music Room, listened in a relaxed environment. AR’s Jerry Landau once said that over 100,000 people each year stopped in to listen to music in the GCT Music Room. Since listeners were never intimidated, they were free to stay and listen for as long as they wished. This had a very positive effect on many people, and once they had heard music reproduced through AR products, many were “hooked” on the spot and went right out and bought AR equipment.

http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/dc/user_files/1029.jpg

AR Music Room, Grand Central Terminal, New York City

AR opened the New York music room in May, 1959 and the Brattle Street Cambridge location in October, 1960. The NYC music room was originally space owned by Charles Fowler, an early publisher of *High Fidelity* magazine. After a false-start in an audio business there, he decided to abandon the area and it became available to Edgar Villchur, who had visions of a relaxed-atmosphere listening room in which weary travelers could drop in between trains and listen to music through AR speakers and other AR products. The Brattle Street location was once a hi-fi dealership, and the owner apparently got behind in payments to AR. The dealer defaulted, I believe, and Ed Villchur decided to make that location another music room. The Brattle Street location was inconsequential compared to the New York room, but it nevertheless served a purpose. It was eventually closed in 1973; the NYC Music Room was then closed in 1974 -- marking the end of an era.

There is no way to know exactly how successful AR was with the music rooms. It is thought that many thousands of speakers were sold as a direct result of experiences people had in these music rooms. Beyond the marketing pros and cons of such a place were the pleasant memories that so many people had of those music rooms -- such as Jill in the post above!

--Tom Tyson

[frankmarsi]

>Frank,

>

>I like your Buick analogy. This is an excellent illustration

>of the youth marketing failure that Steve F describes.

>

>FYI, If I were to compare AR-LST's to a Buick, I would go with

>the 1970 GSX 455 Stage 1. This car's level of performance was

>and still is outstanding !

Brad, thanks! I owned 3 Rivieras at the same time, with the 455 C.I. engine(7.5 liter) of course which had the 'Corvette' steering box,3 turns lock-to-lock and althought they didn't move like the GSX, at about a thousand pounds heavier, it was still a 455 and a Buick in finish and quality, and nothing on the High-Way would typically catch up to me, if I didn't want them to. This actual car was considered a large Corvette in the 1963-67 vintage era. The differences weren't that much, maybe a 2.5 seconds from a GSX. But, yeah, my analogy was pretty good, wasn't it? Give me a second,oh, oh, this feels good for me. I'm patting myself on the back, O.K. that felt good!

Thanks for your acknowledgement, its good to feel the agreeble nature of AR fans and their shared love of something in this present day of confused perceptions of the life we all live. At least us dudes can relate to something from yester-year that was and is still by all measures considered great by those who can appreciate it and was provided for us by those great people for us to use today.

The 'conescenti', if you will. The knowledable, the enlightened.

Respectfully, Frank Marsi

P.S. Personally my AR-3a would be the GNX, and my LST's the big Riviera of the late 60's and early 70's. Just my perception, trust me Brad, it was SO MUCH of an automobile to drive, like the LST's are to listen to, they came out at the same time. hey, what, that's it for me! I glad for what I have in my time!

[frankmarsi]

Please Tom, I had a chance to go many times as I passed it by in Grand Central in a rush, what else, but I unfortuately never did. I could bang my head against a wall it hurts so much that I didn't!

Frank Marsi

[Guest vintagesnell]

Thank you all for responding to my inquiry. I am flabbergasted to now learn so much about the AR Listening Room(s) after so many years. Enjoyed the photo of the NYC location and the discussion of AR's bungled marketing during the every-college-kid-wants-a-stereo-system days of late 60's- early 70's. Tech Hi-Fi ads were all over the place back then - also a short lived chain in Boston called Stereo Componenets Ltd. I visited at least 3 different Tech Hifi stores back then and while I don't specifically remember them disparaging AR, I also dont remember specifically seeing them or being referred to them . Of course they loved pushing their house brand TDC speakers back then. I bought Bose 501s in 1973 but that whole throw-the-sound-around trip fell out of my favor within a few years. Today my main speakers are mid-80's Snell JII (see my post in Snell section) and 1990 Icon Lumen (I switch back and forth every few months or so). My husband prefers his big Cerwin Vegas party speakers (what I call them). I do fondly recall a college buddy's ARs(Model 2a I think)but havent heard those early ARs in years. I'm babbling. Anyway, thanks again. - Jill

[Guest pbda]

I investigated most of the Boston (and Providence) hifi stores in the mid-seventies, particularly Tech HiFi and Tweeter, but for the life of me can't remember whether or not they carried AR speakers. I certainly remember Advents, and Tech HiFi seemed to push Ohms.

[Steve F]

None of the Boston-area stores in the early 70's carried the Classic AR's, not Tech, Tweeter, Atlantis Sound, DeMambro, or any others. They all sold against them.

Tweeter did carry the ADD line in 1975-76 (10 Pi and 11; not the MST as I recall) and were mildly successful with them.

There was a single-store operation in Harvard Square (whose name escapes me) that carried the 10Pi, 11, 12, 14, and 16 and did pretty well with them in the '76 time frame.

Classic AR's were a dead issue in Boston in 1970-74. It was all Advent and EPI, with a smattering of others (like Ohm, Tech's house brand.)

Steve F.