Guest David in MA Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 Here I am w/ a pair of fully (finally) restored AR-9 w/ Issac Stern performing the second movement of Brahm's violon concerto on my Thorens TD 125 W/ SME 3009 II tone arm and shure 881S....I love my AR's. I have to let her know that love her. I love you my AR's!!!!!Seriously, I went by a local audiophile place to look at some amplifiers. I came across $40K DALI speakers. I ask the sales person if I can hear them. Unfornately, he couldn't get the thing started. I really wanted to see what it would sound like but didn't get the chance. I wonder, have you any experience w/ these $10k+ speakers? Are they that much better? What's up?Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankmarsi Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 >Here I am w/ a pair of fully (finally) restored AR-9 w/ Issac>Stern performing the second movement of Brahm's violon>concerto on my Thorens TD 125 W/ SME 3009 II tone arm and>shure 881S....I love my AR's. I have to let her know that>love her. I love you my AR's!!!!!>>Seriously, I went by a local audiophile place to look at some>amplifiers. I came across $40K DALI speakers. I ask the>sales person if I can hear them. Unfornately, he couldn't get>the thing started. I really wanted to see what it would sound>like but didn't get the chance. I wonder, have you any>experience w/ these $10k+ speakers? Are they that much>better? What's up?>>Thanks.>Dear David, nice and interesting news, but should I really have to think about any other speaker other than a vintage AR big classic? Are you leaving the ‘AR pack’ ? Do you find yourself straying away from the AR family? Do you have something better? Are you becoming a ‘non-believer? Are you turning elsewhere? O.K. I can’t hold you back of course, do what you will, I can’t stop you, but you’ll be back, mark my words. I know this to be certain as I’ve never left my family except for service to my country and my family itself. I’m the good son to AR vintage, as I was to my father, I stayed the course, I did what was expected of me from birth. I’m still here and I don’t intend to leave the ‘AR’ family, my family, or country, EVER! Go, see what you will find, and then if you ever can come back, me, and you, we’ll talk about it all and see what’s what.Must I remind you where you came from? AR family, it taught you just the same about what's right and what’s not.I’ve tried JBL, Altec, Apogee, Wharfdale, Advent, Magi, B & W,Tannoy, Klipish-Horn etc. etc. in listening tests and many other situations, and here I stand right from where I discovered to be the first place, the best place, family. Many friends, lovers and other good times, but AR is where I’ll be first and last. Mello-dramatics, maybe, solid ground and footing, with out a doubt.AR vintage from back in 1970 much like my family never forced me to listen, I just did and found that it let me be me with Rock, Classical, Opera, Jazz, Pop, sound effects, what ever it was, it always let me be me as long as I was capable of knowing good from bad, sense from non-sense. AR vintage sound is just like this country, it will be good to you as long as you will be good to yourself and the others around you, like true family, distant or close. Not a bad credo in life. Settle down, be calm, appreciate and realize. You decide to be my brother or my nemesis; I did ‘the right thing ‘ for you!frankmarsi@verizon.netHey am I over doing it? Maybe? This is just 2006 that’s all. Time is passing. Never forget history.P.S. Listen to “Bad Company’s” “Ready for Love” at high volumes like I do and you will easily understand all that there is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 It's sort of like cars, yes 150k ars are nice, but how nice. A 20k well made car provides everything that is needed from an auto.If you take a look at a brochure fom the AR glory days back in the 60's one really gets the feeling of how music can be enjoyed when lisened through quality speakers. The AR product and their marketing were second to none, I'm sure I would have bought some model 3's after listening to a 'live vs. recorded' demonstration back in the day. It's no accident AR had close to 1/3 of the speaker market in 1966! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest flammaster Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 Wow I just found this place. I thoght I was the only one who thought this way about AR speakers. I just got a pair of them again. (XP series) I am looking for a nice set of vintage AR's next. (4's or maybe 7's) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest David in MA Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 >Wow I just found this place. I thoght I was the only one who>thought this way about AR speakers. I just got a pair of them>again. (XP series) I am looking for a nice set of vintage>AR's next. (4's or maybe 7's)Welcome! If it wasn't for this site, I would not have been able to restore my AR-9's as quickly as I did. The members here arevery helpful and they are very passionate about their ARs. I can honestly say that you will find restoring classic ARs very rewarding and fun (except when you're removing the glue stuff off the woofer basket when refoaming...). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest danamc Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 Hi David,You mentioned that you were able to "finally restore" your AR-9s. You were having mid driver problems as I recall. How did you resolve your problems? Dana Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankmarsi Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 >It's sort of like cars, yes 150k ars are nice, but how nice.>A 20k well made car provides everything that is needed from an>auto.>If you take a look at a brochure fom the AR glory days back in>the 60's one really gets the feeling of how music can be>enjoyed when lisened through quality speakers. The AR product>and their marketing were second to none, I'm sure I would have>bought some model 3's after listening to a 'live vs. recorded'>demonstration back in the day. It's no accident AR had close>to 1/3 of the speaker market in 1966!So, Right! Andy. When I picked up my first AR brochure in 1967 and went through it , I felt as though I had walked into a Federal Court building or something, it was that impressive with a sense of corrected-ness and truth and justice and the American way! When I read on the back cover where they made in MA. I knew they had to be the best of all choices, just like the tea party people thought.After going through it I knew that this was the only way to go when it came to hi-fi. Don't laugh, but I still have the original copy of that brochure. I made a point of going back to the E.J. Korvettes store and stole a hand full more, I just had to have ‘back-up units’ and I still have those too. I read the 36 or so pages over and over, studied intensely the photos trying to undertstand how these things were constructed as I was a DIY'er back then and I had already made about 3 or 4 boxes containing salvaged drivers from street acquisitions, like dumped TV's, radios, etc. When I finally had the masculine 'go-nads' to ask the salesman to play the AR-3's for me I was a little unsure suddenly as they sounded a bit set back in the treble region compared to what was playing in their show room, like there was a blanket over them. I listened to the AR-2ax's, the 4's, and 5’s and then back to the lovely looking Wharfdales and others. Some how I kinda felt that even though the AR3's sounded muffled they had to be the better sounding units by virtue of the appearance and construction, and they were one of the higher priced ones too. I figured I just come home with them and simply turn up the treble control on my Dynaco-3X 'self-built' pre-amp. Yes thanks for the applause about the Dyna, I was proud of myself for doing it. E.J. Korvettes was the only department store in my boro at the time, kinda like a K-mart with clothes, night-gowns and flip-flops imported from Japan, but remarkably they had one nice Hi-Fi showroom oddly enough. They wanted list price for the 3's and I could never afford that being just out of high school. The 2x's were pricey too, but I felt as long as I was going to spend some money at all, I should wait and take the plunge with the 3a's, or at least the AR5’s. Between me and you, I felt the best would be that 12inch woofer, it just had to be! Long story longer, my draft number was up and my dreams had to be put off because my uncle Sam, well he liked me more than he did my girlfriend, so I went with him to 'learn how to be a man' in the US Navy. Upon discharge I went back to E.J. Korvettes and suddenly the AR3's were gone 2 years later, the salesman, an early proto-type of a nerdy guy said a new and improved model had taken their place with the AR-3a , but still their price was too high, $25. more in fact. Long story, longer I found a place in good old Brooklyn in the back of High Fidelity Magazine and got the speakers for $196. each in the walnut finish. Wow I thought I was stealing them. I still have them and a couple of more sets I bought recently, so they’ll have company, kinda like goldfish.frankmarsi@verizon.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest David in MA Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 >Hi David,>>You mentioned that you were able to "finally>restore" your AR-9s. You were having mid driver problems>as I recall. How did you resolve your problems? >In another thread I responded:I contacted Larry (ebay userID vintage-ar) and he had replacement parts for the upper midrange. It is cosmetically different than the original driver as it is all black. I paid $89 plus $9 shipping. I just got the driver today and WHAM!, my AR-9's are finally restored to its fullest potential. As far as I can tell, the driver Larry sent me matches very well with the original driver. I can't tell the difference.Larry also recommended that in the near future I should purchase an extra tweeter and a upper midrange just in case they fail again. He said these parts are harder to come by as years go by. I think we should all consider this, no? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.