3a-"Improved" ??

[Guest mrhagerty]

Speedracer,

Perhaps my input help in addition to Search (which I found troublesome if used at the bottom of the forum).

I've had a pair of Improved for about 4 years now. Bought them on eBay and have not been disappointed. I have known AR since the 60's and always relished a pair but could not afford them.

As a purist I wanted the 3a's not the improved, but have found that they live up to the standard as well as any other. Mine had been professionally refoamed for the woofer. After 4 years I'm looking for a tweeter replacement, but that sort of goes with the territory on 30 year ol units.

Being a purist again, I also replaced the grill cloth with a very close vintage grill, and they certainly now have the look of the originals.

If you have a genuine appreciation for a neutral speaker and know the value of that concept, you'll enjoy the Improved with no regrets, assuming they're in good shape.

I would make sure the seller proves any refurbishing by photos and if possible the paperwork. The price he's asking has the likelihood of telling you if he's put some money into them (but there are some risks).

I had an AR 12 in. sub-woofer before getting the 3a's and I was actually able to turn off the sub, the response was so good.

Goes without saying that the key will be knowing your seller and what he's actually offering.

Mike

[Guest Zoltan]

Hi, I've included some photographs of my father's hi-fi equipment featuring modified AR-3a Improved speakers.

I'm a 19 year old university student living in Melbourne, Australia. Photos were taken using a Nokia 6300 mobile phone so please excuse very poor picture quality. I took the mesh (attached via Velcro) off the left speaker and photographed the drivers closer up and photographed the right speaker mesh with a close-up of the badge.

The AR-3a Improved speakers are powered by a Pioneer SA-8500 amplifier (preamp incl. for turntable phono output). It is connected to a Dual 701 Turntable and the world's worst Sony CD player from the 1980s. The CD player is so sensitive to bass that it skips not only because of Tchaikovsky's cannons in the 1812 overture but also during chamber music adagios and walking within a 5 metre radius of it. As can be seen I have used packaging foam as a makeshift buffer to reduce transmission of vibrations to the CD player. However, the most commonly used audio medium is my laptop which i use to play mp3s. Please don't tell me that I have a cassette tape style S/N problem or I better get the digital equipment upgraded - I know.

The speakers where entirely revamped about 8 years ago by Total Recoil who were recommended by Tivoli Audio. The dome mid-range was replaced with a 6" cone mid-range made by Total Recoil. The Tweeter was also replaced with a larger dome tweeter made also made by Total Recoil. Both speakers sounded better than the AR originals. Unfortunately the Total Recoil's site contains not information at all about their speakers but I had seen the models at the time online. I have forgotten information regarding the crossover although i remember getting it at the time. As can be seen, the mounting for tweeter had to be cut to fit in the exceptionally large midrange. The woofers are original but have been recoiled and re-coned. All speakers have high-quality Kevlar cones but the garish yellow of these can scarcely be seen through the mesh (see photo). Purists may be horrified by such great modifications but I have never heard any speaker of any price produce such a good sound as these.

The system is contained within a wooden cabinet (mum's orders) which probably does as much to the sound as listening to them underwater. Lower bass is very 'boomy', almost 'subwooferish' due entirely to the cabinet. With AR-3as, outside of the cabinet I remember the bass being extraordinarily well defined (at any volume) imparting no sound of its own onto the audio - this is something hardly ever achieved by systems available today. Clarity of midrange (already brilliant) would be vastly improved if the speakers were elevated such that the midrange is close to ear level.

Several years ago I connected the speakers to a computer and played MS Flight Simulator. Flying a Boeing 777 is stunning. Engines, turbulence and aircraft hydraulics (gears, flaps etc.) are reproduced with acoustic realism. Aircraft noises subject speakers to an extremely broad array of frequencies. Take-off and landing are particularly fun - it can be felt just the same as if one was in a real jet.

Due to lack of a decent equalizer, (except when used with my laptop, here the problem is "solved") I am unable to increase the response around the upper bass (around 250hz) and decrease it in the upper parts of the midrange where it is too prominent. This makes the speaker sound too bright and lack warmth.

[KlausDK]

The speakers where entirely revamped about 8 years ago by totalrecoil. The dome mid-range was replaced with a 6" cone mid-range made by Total Recoil. The Tweeter was also replaced with a larger dome tweeter made also made by Total Recoil. Both speakers sounded better than the AR originals.

Hi Zoltan

My most sincere "condolences"; I am sorry but I do think it is a great loss not to have the original drivers. I have just finished the restauration of my 3a Improved (new caps, resistors and woofer surround), and they sound absolutely superior, they sound as the name say 3a Improved, probably due to the lack of the rheostats the midrange and the highend is even clearer and more open, with a rock steady soundstage, amazing. They are a bit to the bright side, but I have bypassed the swithch and made a fixed filter in the "high" position, ie without resistor in the signal path to the tweeter. So there is no posibility to regulate sound.

I have used a 35 year old Capacitor for the tweeter, from the highly regarded Bosch MP series (Metalized paper/oil), I happened to have a 6 myF capacitor, I have bypassed it with a 100 nF polystyren cap. After having restored several AR-3a's, LST, 5's etc, I have come to the conclusion, that the normal metallized paper polypropylene capacitors (like eg the Solens), don't work that well with the paper dome 3a/LST/5/2ax tweeter. Film and foil (polypropylen) like the Zen Crescendo cap or Paper Oil (like Jensen or Bosch MP) works better with that specific tweeter.

The cabinets/enclosures are not of the "normal" oiled walnut type, but with a less warm coloured veneer, Teak I think. On th efront you will see that there is no remains from the connection for the frontwired tweeter and midrange, both units are backwired and the cabinet is 100 % designed for that, not adapted.

Responding to Minh's request about pictures, I have enclosed a few of my 3a Improved. The pictured crosover is the original unrestored.

BRgds Klaus