New AR1 Speaker owner

[Alex C]

I recently purchased an AR1, AR1-W and Janszen l-30 from the original owner. I’m absolutely blown away by the AR1 so far, but haven’t tried the other two speakers yet. Any suggestions on finding a matching second AR1? Curious if I’m better off finding a matching pair or trying to find one with a close S/N to this? Unsure how to post pics of my speakers, seems I cannot use iCloud URL’s, but my serial number is 0519 on the ar1.

Thanks,

Alex

 

[Alex C]

[Alex C]

Just figured out how to post the images

[ar_pro]

You're a very lucky guy - an unmolested AR-1 is quite the find, these days.

A pair of these systems went for $5700 on eBay a couple of months ago!

[Alex C]

Thanks! Honestly I’m just blown away by how it sounds and have a deep appreciation for the historical significance of the speaker. I’m still trying to learn everything I can about the differences between the various eras of this model and also figuring out how I should go about keeping it preserved while remaining as original as possible. 

[AR surround]

7 hours ago, ar_pro said:

You're a very lucky guy - an unmolested AR-1 is quite the find, these days.

A pair of these systems went for $5700 on eBay a couple of months ago!

Gasp!   That price is unimaginable.  Gee, I really should have picked up a pair in 1954 and put them into humidity controlled storage.   Of course, one has to have been around in 1954 and not just a gleam in their father's eyes. 

[genek]

The odds of finding a good match at a price a sensible person would be willing to pay are slim. If this was part of a vintage mono system the original owner had, might be a good idea to see if the rest of it is still available.

[frankmarsi]

 

@AR surround

I was there but, I wasn’t strong enough yet at 4 years old to even push one of those boxes.

 

@Alex C  Congrates with your new find of a classic AR speaker. Eyes will have to be glued to the auction site to find a singular hopefully matching double. That blond-birch finish is probably the most uncommon one produced so, time and patience are necessary virtue.

Just one additional mention and that is one mustn’t forget the input/signal source as also being of major importance. Invariably some new comers feel that the speakers are the absolute most important and while speakers are the ultimate last link in the signal chain and therefore ultimately will put forth their sound quality or lack of it, the input quality is certainly just as important at the beginning of that chain. Squeezing all that I could into my mind and learning and spending much time to get my system to sound its best was  planned and configured with this always in mind.

That is to say I already knew I had the best speakers AR made for that period of manufacture in the 1970s and, bearing that in my mind, I proceeded to improve all that my speakers belched out of their cones. From turntable speed accuracy, tonearm precision, the best phono cartridges I could afford, the same for the best interconnect and speaker cables.

Within the same consideration of system building was the constant attention to room placement of speakers and furniture location along with consideration of reflective surfaces such as windows, mirrors and other possible surfaces of sound reflection, deflection or absorption.

Unless you’re a speaker hoarder like many of a certain generation are here as I could be guilty of to some degree also, sound quality should be your ultimate goal. Some folks simply warehouse-pile up speakers, components and often get caught up in collecting what they missed and were too young to own back in the ‘60s and ‘70s and forget or are unconcerned with a high quality stereo system relying on misconceived notions that if they have good speakers, their work is done in building their systems.  I taught myself as I was there in the ‘60s and definitely the ‘70s so I had a head-start sort of speak on devoting my system to grow as much as it could to approach the greatness I read and learned it should be all those years ago. Every change should make a notable difference for the better as the system becomes better, you learn more.

When I decided to set-up my ultimate system after building varied ones from 1967 on, I had to commit to all that I mentioned above and that is the ultimate-system would be the best I could do. I’ve always kept my mind open from my stereo system beginnings and tried to absorb all I could. Teaching myself how to be a critical-listener  became a prime directive early on for me and, still is. Admittedly, there is a learning curve involved but, that in of itself is the fun aspect of learning and building a fine system. All the time spent listening-critically also made me appreciate and enjoy the music more and it led to opening my mind to all types of music, it's a learned ability. you could say.  Learning all you can from those in history who have made listening a fun and important aspects of life is what must be adhered to. Though, sadly due to some who minimize history, important facts are often times ignored and therefore incorrect information is circulated, it's all over the internet yet, often times with smug attitudes the unknowing march on.

FM

https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/10649-do-ar-speakers-really-sound-that-good-more-new-video/

 

https://community.classicspeakerpages.net/topic/9747-i-wish-members-here-would-show-photos-of-their-set-ups-and-listening-rooms/

 

 

 

 

85

[JeffS]

Hello Alex,

Congratulations on finding an early AR1 and AR-1W. That's quite a find, especially since you were able to obtain these from the original owner! Your AR-1 is a very rare early unit that was assembled at 23 Mt. Auburn St. in Cambridge, MA.

The company founder, Edgar Villchur, in a Jan. 2005 article in Stereophile magazine stated: "In 1955, we shipped 455 speakers. About half were AR-1s and half were 1Ws." That dates 0519 to early 1956.

If you're serious about adding another AR-1 to make a pair, one suggestion would be to take any one that you can find, and it may be more important to you to find another one with a birch cabinet and maroon grill cloth to match the one you have. The reality is that you could wait for years to find a match either in close serial number or cabinet finish, and the asking price will probably be between $2000-$3000.

Another, more practical, suggestion is to use your AR-1 and AR-1W as a pair, and find another Janszen I-30 to go with the AR-1. This would require you to change the setting on the three binding posts on the bottom rear of the AR-1 to woofer only operation (switching the strap from A-B to B-C). This would shut off the 755A.

Out of curiosity, does the finish on your AR-1W match that of the AR-1?

 

 

 

[Alex C]

@JeffS

 

 Hi Jeff,

Sorry for the delayed response. Thanks so much for all of this info, it's a lot of fun learning about this stuff. 

I've always been in love with the AR1's place in history and I'm super grateful to have found even this single speaker. I'd love to find a second matching one, but I don't know what the likely hood of that ever happening is. I didn't realize it was possible to run the AR1 and AR1-W as a pair. I feel like it may drive me nuts having the 755a driver disabled though, since I've always wondered what they sounded like and finally have one. I'll give it a shot later tonight and let you know how it goes! I'm going to run them on my Marantz Model 1 preamplifiers and Marantz Model 2 amplifiers. Do you think that'll be a good pairing for them? 

All three cabinets (AR1, AR1-W and Janszen I-30) are luckily the same exact finish. I only have a picture of the serial number on back of the AR1-W on my phone, but I'll send some pictures of that and the  Janszen I-30 when I get home in a bit and hook everything up! 

Just curious, it hard to find matching pairs of AR1's if you aren't picky about serial numbers? Obviously they'd be extremely expensive regardless of serial number.

 

Thanks so much again.

 

Alex 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Alex C]

@frankmarsi

Hey Frank,

Thanks for taking the time to write all of that out, very helpful info and lessons that I need to keep in mind. 

I'm 35 and got into this stuff around 3 years ago, so I've got a ton to learn still. I've got a pretty decent collection of tube amplifiers but still need to figure out speaker setups for a few listening spaces in my house. I most recently bought a pair of Marantz Model 1 preamplifiers and a pair of Marantz model 2 amplifiers that I intend to use with the AR stuff. Do you think this would be an ideal pairing? 

I'm in the middle of moving all of my systems around and trying to optimize stuff, but I'd love to send some pictures of my listening spaces some time this week when I'm done and see if you have any thoughts or suggestions. 

[JeffS]

10 hours ago, Alex C said:

Just curious, it hard to find matching pairs of AR1's if you aren't picky about serial numbers? Obviously they'd be extremely expensive regardless of serial number.

Alex,

Pairs of AR-1's with matching finishes occasionally come up for sale, if that's what you're hoping to find. Finding an AR-1 that matches yours will be more difficult since that veneer / grille cloth combination was much less prevalent than walnut with beige cloth, or mahogany with maroon cloth.

You do have choices with your setup. You could run it in stereo as it is until you find another AR-1, or find another Janzsen I-30 to go with your AR-1 as I suggested above, or enjoy driving your single AR-1 in mono with period recordings.

And, congratulations on your collection of Marantz Models 1 and 2. That's the envy of every Marantz collector! Those amplifiers should be fine, in either output mode, for safely driving your AR-1's.

I'd love to hear the story of how you acquired this exceptional collection of 1950's hifi.

[Alex C]

@JeffS

Thanks for all of that info. Let me know if you see either a matching pair or single anywhere. 

 

I'll try running it the way you suggested and see how it sounds. 

I got into tube amplifiers about 2 years ago and have put together a collection of around 10 different tube amplifiers or pairs of monoblocks. The Marantz was actually bought from the original owner locally. He had owned a stereo repair shop from the 1960's to 1980's and his son listed all of his equipment for sale a few months ago. I had been looking for these specific pieces and paid fair value for them, which I was totally fine doing given the condition everything is in. 

Other amplifiers include but not limited to: Pair of MC225's Pair of MC60's , Altec 128a,  McIntosh 20w2 and a number of others

I think I've found what I'm looking for in terms of sound from amplifiers / preamplifiers and hope to figure out what speakers I ultimately want for a few of my setups and then just enjoy. 

 

 

 

[genek]

The original owner would most likely have started out with a single AR-1 in a mono system, then later expanded it to stereo with a second AR1, this time a W with an add-on tweeter because an exact match to the first speaker was no longer available. That was apparently a satisfactory solution at the time, so there probably no reason why it shouldn't be one now.

[Alex C]

@genek That is a fair point and an outcome that I'm okay with accepting, however I'd have to make the decision if I'd be better off selling my single and buying a matched pair if the opportunity arises. It's hard to not want a perfect matching set when spending that kind of money. 

[genek]

Unfortunately, either another blonde AR-1, an AR-1w with that tweeter in blonde or just that tweeter in blonde is going to set you back quite a lot.

[Alex C]

@genekHow much do you think I'd be looking at?

[genek]

A blonde AR-1w with a black Janszen l-30 was sold on eBay in February for $630.

There is currently a blonde AR-1 with original Altec tweeter for sale on eBay for $4000.

[DavidR]

Check Craig's List. Two have shown up in my area within the last year.

Love your 'space heaters'. Much larger than my room heater (below).

 

[AR surround]

45 minutes ago, DavidR said:

Check Craig's List. Two have shown up in my area withing the last year.

Love your 'space heaters'. Much larger than my room heater.

 

If there are two 'audio visuals' that I love, they are blue VU meters and the glow of a tube amplifier in the dark.  Alas, I have neither.

[DavidR]

1 hour ago, AR surround said:

If there are two 'audio visuals' that I love, they are blue VU meters and the glow of a tube amplifier in the dark.  Alas, I have neither.

If you get a new Jeep you can have the blue VUs

[DavidR]

If someone is looking for an Acoustic Research AR-1 with Western Electric Altec 755a there is one on U.S. AudioMart.

[frankmarsi]

6/1/2023

There's a pair of AR-1 speakers available for sale rite now on the auction site and for a ridiculous price at that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

433

[AR surround]

Each AR-1 speaker had a list price of $185 in 1954 when it was released.  (I don't know about discounts.)  That's $2086 per speaker in today's dollars.  It was a good chunk of change back then.  So these asking prices for 70 year old antiques seem absurd.   I guess it is the high collector's value.

https://auralfetish.com/pages/acoustic-research

[frankmarsi]

In late 1970 I made the promise to myself that I would buy AR speakers. I was still on the fence whether it would be the AR-5 or the 3a. By mid 1971 I made my decision final AR-3a's it would be but, at $250. each, it was a tough nut to swallow. I began to scour my hi-fi magazines looking for the  lowest price which was something I did daily anyway. I went from store to store only to be let down because everyone wanted $250./each except for the occasional price a few dollars less, most were out of my low-budget. Until one day in the back of High-Fidelity Magazine if spotted a tiny 1/8 page ad for a warehouse in Brooklyn who wanted $196/each. I called first and jumped in my car and raced across the Verrazano Bridge onto the Belt Parkway headed to Ave. U. I located the building and with a fist full of dollars, ran inside and ordered my AR-3a’s. Problem was they only had only one speaker in stock with more due in two weeks. I didn’t care, I was in a wild mood because I felt if I was to make this big (for me) purchase, heck, I’ll take one now and will return for the other.

Two weeks later I was on Ave. U again and walked inside to retrieve my second speaker.

Got home and saw that the finish was slightly different from the one I already had but mostly the wood grain was different as the shade of dark walnut was similar. It was then and there that my thinking was how could AR assure the exact matching of wood grain? They couldn’t besides, commercial installers weren’t so concerned as sometimes they’d buy odd numbers for sound installs or simply order the plain pine utility finish. Wood is naturally occurring and is not always matching, period.

In any event, the super attractive price of $196.00 each was more than irresistible. I returned home and even today I cannot explain how nervously happy I was as a new AR speaker owner.

Of course, I still  have them but,  only use the four LST’s for listening as they make me the happiest.

FM