dtafil Posted September 17, 2023 Report Share Posted September 17, 2023 Hi All - Been a while... last stop here was for some AR5's some years back, and probably picked up some other tips on AR2ax's and AR3a's as well over the years. Glad to see this wonderful forum is still chugging along!!! In any event, I had the opportunity to pick up an original owner set of AR3's locally a few weeks back. Thought they would be a Fall project, but had some other things move around. Before I knew it, speakers were on my bench, grills removed, and you all know the rest. 20 pounds of mortite (?) later, all 6 drivers were carefully removed. I do need to get the original tweeters and mids rebuilt, so checking on my options and timeframes there. For now, pics to enjoy! Serial numbers are 2 apart. Interior of the cabs immaculate, date stamped 1964. More to come. Rheostats to be checked out, and crossover caps to be replaced. Any recommendation on modern replacements for the rear controls? Cheers! Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genek Posted September 17, 2023 Report Share Posted September 17, 2023 Kent is the go-to person for replacement level controls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtafil Posted September 17, 2023 Author Report Share Posted September 17, 2023 2 hours ago, genek said: Kent is the go-to person for replacement level controls. Thanks @genek Reached out to @JKent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jnolan5784 Posted September 18, 2023 Report Share Posted September 18, 2023 I haven't done a set of 3's (only 3a's), but what are the gold terminals adjacent to terminal 1 and 2? I highly recommend Kent's ceramic pots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted September 18, 2023 Report Share Posted September 18, 2023 Thanks for the kind words but I’ve sold out of the pots. I may not order more because it’s a big initial investment and kind of a hassle importing them from China. L-pads may not be authentic but they work well. Roy will attest to that and speaking of Roy, he’s the guy to restore your mids and tweets. Beautiful speakers Dave. Good luck with the project. Kent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtafil Posted September 18, 2023 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2023 Thanks Kent. If anyone has a set of 4 from Kent's supply not in use they'd consider selling, please let me know. Those looked pretty stout. I may also look into some older pots from prior AR* repairs I have to see if I can cobble a set of 4 together; I have not yet gotten into the ones in the AR3's yet. If not, will go the (new) L-pad route as a last resort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reel Man Posted September 19, 2023 Report Share Posted September 19, 2023 As big a pain as it is to remove mortited speakers, I wouldn't replace the pots with the AR style ones. The rock wool is hard on the copper bits in them; my wipers broke into pieces. I used the L-pads I bought in 2017 when I rebuilt my AR-3 speakers over the last year, as well as poly capacitors, as I don't want to tear into these again for as long as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giorgio AR Posted September 22, 2023 Report Share Posted September 22, 2023 On 9/18/2023 at 5:54 PM, dtafil said: I may also look into some older pots from prior AR* repairs I have to see if I can cobble a set of 4 together Hi...I have these original Pots from 1969 in surplus, they are deoxidized, completely cleaned and the solder has been desoldered from the contacts. The one marked KO is still valid for the interval in use both for the adjustment of the mids and the tws, but marked to distinguish it from the others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtafil Posted September 22, 2023 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2023 Drivers off to @RoyC Caps ordered (went with Solen's) Looking into the controls this weekend; spares on hand look VERY nice. Will clean and test sweep; pics posted soon. 2 spare "3" pin repro's sourced from Roy as well 🙂 Anyone have pointers to grill replacements? Mine are the plastic version, each has a single crack on top, "fabric" looks nice though. Thinking fresh cloth at this point as well. Cheers all! Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reel Man Posted September 24, 2023 Report Share Posted September 24, 2023 I didn't have much luck finding 18 count linen recommended in the AR-3a guide last year for my 3a's; I ended up getting some VERY reasonably priced stuff on Amazon; tighter grained/threaded than factory, but at this price, I'm not complaining. I bought Ivory, but may get light beige. https://www.amazon.com/Needlework-Embroidery-Stitching-Rose-Flavor/dp/B07C8GKLRQ?pd_rd_w=x2kUT&content-id=amzn1.sym.d7105005-1122-4ebb-804b-fda01cf6b56f&pf_rd_p=d7105005-1122-4ebb-804b-fda01cf6b56f&pf_rd_r=ZH86BP2PJK64WFJFHDM9&pd_rd_wg=Wmv2P&pd_rd_r=b7199e62-97ad-45f9-af01-5d8264462070&pd_rd_i=B07BLPWPQ7&ref_=pd_bap_d_grid_rp_0_1_ec_t&th=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reel Man Posted September 24, 2023 Report Share Posted September 24, 2023 This is also available, but I haven't found a supplier who doesn't charge a price that didn't make me gasp. I elected to stick with my original covers. https://www.wendellfabrics.com/mellotone-acoustic-fabrics/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted September 24, 2023 Report Share Posted September 24, 2023 There’s a seller in Canada that sells the Mellotone and that’s authentic for the AR-3. I don’t have access to my computer now but search CSP or maybe another member will chime in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lARrybody Posted September 24, 2023 Report Share Posted September 24, 2023 https://qcomponents.ca/collections/mellotone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtafil Posted September 24, 2023 Author Report Share Posted September 24, 2023 Thanks to all for the fabric choices and recommendations... I'll be going through 'em all. Appreciate it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidR Posted September 24, 2023 Report Share Posted September 24, 2023 I'll give a shout-out for Mellotone. I used it on my Bose 901_II and they look great. Well made material. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reel Man Posted September 26, 2023 Report Share Posted September 26, 2023 This is also an option. https://www.fatquartershop.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=%2358+-135L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GD70 Posted September 27, 2023 Report Share Posted September 27, 2023 On 9/18/2023 at 11:54 AM, dtafil said: Thanks Kent. If anyone has a set of 4 from Kent's supply not in use they'd consider selling, please let me know. Those looked pretty stout. I may also look into some older pots from prior AR* repairs I have to see if I can cobble a set of 4 together; I have not yet gotten into the ones in the AR3's yet. If not, will go the (new) L-pad route as a last resort. What a gorgeous set of 3s! Those will clean up nicely! For the pots, contact baco99 (Brian) on Audiokarma. He also sells them. I’ve also used the Mellotone and it a virtual perfect match to the original. Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GD70 Posted September 27, 2023 Report Share Posted September 27, 2023 1 hour ago, Reel Man said: This is also an option. https://www.fatquartershop.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=%2358+-135L Yes, I bought fabric for a set of 3As I recently restored, and it’s a very nice option if you want the linen look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GD70 Posted September 27, 2023 Report Share Posted September 27, 2023 Another possible pot source. https://www.tedss.com/2022004125 These are the ones I’ve used, and others here as well with good results. Can’t find them now on fleabay. Use to be listed regularly. https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/potentiometer-RA40Y-25w_60775567103.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted September 27, 2023 Report Share Posted September 27, 2023 49 minutes ago, GD70 said: Another possible pot source. https://www.tedss.com/2022004125 These are the ones I’ve used, and others here as well with good results. Can’t find them now on fleabay. Use to be listed regularly. https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/potentiometer-RA40Y-25w_60775567103.html The ones from Tedss appear to be open so they would have to be enclosed. The ones from Alibaba are the ones I sold but there’s a 100 piece minimum order. Then there’s shipping from China. And import duty. The kits I put together, with crimps, washers and knobs cost me about $27/pair. I sold them here for $30/pair so you can see why I’m not eager to buy more. L-pads work very well and they’re cheap. Kent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GD70 Posted October 21, 2023 Report Share Posted October 21, 2023 On 9/26/2023 at 9:33 PM, JKent said: The ones from Tedss appear to be open so they would have to be enclosed. The ones from Alibaba are the ones I sold but there’s a 100 piece minimum order. Then there’s shipping from China. And import duty. The kits I put together, with crimps, washers and knobs cost me about $27/pair. I sold them here for $30/pair so you can see why I’m not eager to buy more. L-pads work very well and they’re cheap. Kent I hear ya, and you did a great service for all of us who purchased them from you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReliaBill Engineer Posted October 26, 2023 Report Share Posted October 26, 2023 The light beige looks just like my original cloth grill on my 2ax. Very difficult to see any difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtafil Posted October 30, 2023 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2023 Hi there guys - Sorry for going radio silent, a few other irons in the fire, now worked out. Back to the AR3's 🙂 Got 4 of the controls disassembled and cleaned; all 4 came out beautiful. Tested full sweep on all with my Fluke, no deadspots whatsoever. Nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtafil Posted October 30, 2023 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2023 Also got the tweeters and mids back from Roy in record time and in AMAZING shape, Solen caps in for replacements, new grills/cloth on hand, ready to reassemble. Good times, right? Not so fast, lol. One woofer has a mechanical rattle using a 400Hz sine wave once the volume is turned up a bit that I missed last month. Checked the black ring on this one, seemed really solid from what I can tell. Other woofer also had a bit of rattle at higher volume testing w. the same sine wave. Sending another note to @RoyC stay tuned... 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.