My Finished AR2ax's

[Jess]

Well I finally finished my speaker rebuild of a pair of AR2ax's.

Here is a recap (pun intended) of what I did:

1. Removed original pots and cleaned them to work like new and reinstalled.

2. Replaced the original caps with new Solen caps from Parts Express.

3. Rewired all connections to make it easier to work on in the future (not that I will need to).

4. Repacked with original fiberglass insulation (itchy stuff ).

5. Replaced woofer socks with fabric used for dust covers in furniture building (the stuff attached under your bed).

6. Resealed woofers using duct putty sealer purchased at Lowe's. Worked great and looks and feels like the original stuff.

7. Plugged the holes some idiot drilled on top of the cabinets. Redrilled the holes to 5/16" and used a 5/16" plug cutter to cut some solid walnut plugs.

8. Refinished the cabinets and put 3 coats of Watco Walnut Oil Danish.

9. Replaced the original grill fabric with linen that is like the original. Looks great and looks new.

10. They sound great!

One thing I did not do is re-dope the cloth surrounds which I found to be very pliable and supple even after all these years. I also attached a nylon tongue at center-bottom of each grill (see pic) to make grill an easy task and applied a couple of velcro tabs in the center to suck and hold the grills in place. Works extremely well.

Here are the "before and after" pics.

[JKent]

Looks great!

[joelongwood]

Looks great!

Ditto! I love the before and after pics.................really shows what a little elbow grease will do. Thanks for sharing.

[RoyC]

Very nice work, Jess...and you made some excellent decisions, IMO.

Roy

[Guest PhoenixRising]

Great "recap", har har har.

Beautiful work on a really nice pair of 2ax's.

[Guest mikeg]

Very cool.

AR2ax speakers have been my favorite for a long time.

Maybe this is a good place for a "show me your AR2ax"

I have attached a couple of pix of one of my latest repairs.

The fabric on my surrounds were in sad shape and not recoverable.

[dynaco_dan]

Very cool.

AR2ax speakers have been my favorite for a long time.

Maybe this is a good place for a "show me your AR2ax"

I have attached a couple of pix of one of my latest repairs.

The fabric on my surrounds were in sad shape and not recoverable.

Hi there;

Who designed your new switches?

[Guest mikeg]

Hi there;

Who designed your new switches?

Vern,

Actually I did.

I am a mechanical designer, but I also do some electrical/electronic design.

I did them as a side project because I didn't want L-pads and rheostats are

coil inductive trouble makers.

The resistors are not bulk metal film, but the next best thing. Metal film resistors

with low noise and good high frequency characteristics.

Those switches and the sulens capacitors make the mid and tweeter drivers

sound really good.

I have already pumped the max wattage for the AR2ax's and have had no

problem having them handle it.

I was planning to show them and find out if there's any interest in them.

They are 16 ohm and will fit AR2,3,4 and any others that require the 16 ohm

rheostat.

They won't be as cheap as L-pads, and might even be slightly more expensive

than new rheostats. It will depend on the quantity I have made.

Mike

[Shacky]

Vern,

Actually I did.

I am a mechanical designer, but I also do some electrical/electronic design.

I did them as a side project because I didn't want L-pads and rheostats are

coil inductive trouble makers.

The resistors are not bulk metal film, but the next best thing. Metal film resistors

with low noise and good high frequency characteristics.

Those switches and the sulens capacitors make the mid and tweeter drivers

sound really good.

I have already pumped the max wattage for the AR2ax's and have had no

problem having them handle it.

I was planning to show them and find out if there's any interest in them.

They are 16 ohm and will fit AR2,3,4 and any others that require the 16 ohm

rheostat.

They won't be as cheap as L-pads, and might even be slightly more expensive

than new rheostats. It will depend on the quantity I have made.

Mike

Let me know if you go forward. Would be interested in a couple of sets.

[dynaco_dan]

Vern,

Actually I did.

I am a mechanical designer, but I also do some electrical/electronic design.

I did them as a side project because I didn't want L-pads and rheostats are

coil inductive trouble makers.

The resistors are not bulk metal film, but the next best thing. Metal film resistors

with low noise and good high frequency characteristics.

Those switches and the sulens capacitors make the mid and tweeter drivers

sound really good.

I have already pumped the max wattage for the AR2ax's and have had no

problem having them handle it.

I was planning to show them and find out if there's any interest in them.

They are 16 ohm and will fit AR2,3,4 and any others that require the 16 ohm

rheostat.

They won't be as cheap as L-pads, and might even be slightly more expensive

than new rheostats. It will depend on the quantity I have made.

Mike

Hi Mike;

In the library there is a switch and installation manual created by another member for a resistor setup.

I do not remember the members name or if he went ahead and is selling them.

I do not remember him writing here since he posted the kit.

Both yours and his are very creative alternatives to the painful and non-available pots.