Newbie Question

[Guest Johnny Salami]

I'm in a quandry and I need help for my poor newbie soul. I recently came into possession of some vintage AR cabinetry and wanted to rehab these to get these as close to original as I can. At the same time the Doctor is telling me to start getting rid of stuff, so I want to get some vintage audio systems set up for people (Don't ask about my reciever collection from 1970 forward!). Maybe they'll think of me and smile, unless they're any of my ex-wives; then the expression will be one of grim self-satisfaction.

What I have is a complete pair of later model 2 AX's. Complete with bad crossovers, bad surrounds and iffy cabinets, I mean. I have 3 extra redone woofers and 1 extra midrange for these. The cabinets aren't dinged, but the veneer looks lousy and was thinking of putting cherry or maybe birdseye maple veneer on them. Has anybody had luck or horror stories about this?

The rest have no drivers at all. The cabinets on these and the others are in good condition. I have a pair of 2 X's that have crossovers - no doubt shot.

I have a pair of AR 5's, one with a crossover and one without, and a pair of AR 8's. One of the 8's has no crossover and one has a damaged back panel which can be fixed easily and is complete. I also have tweeters that are supposed to go in an AR 4 but will work in these.

None of the cabinets have grilles, speaker cloth or badges except the 2 AX's. Unfortunately, the cloth on these are a stained as my favorite t-shirt.

Add to this that I recently lost the use of my right arm and you get the picture that I'm kind of a coconut. But I want to do this for my friends, so I'm asking your honest advice on the following points:

Are the AR5's a good upgrade compared to these others? If not. which are better?

Are the 2AX's a good project to restore, and should I re-veneer them?

Thank you for being patient enough to read this mish-mosh.

[KlausDK]

Are the AR5's a good upgrade compared to these others? If not. which are better?

Are the 2AX's a good project to restore, and should I re-veneer them?

Hi Johnny

I am not sure that I manage to get the full picture of your stock of AR speakers, but I will try to answer your questions. AR-5 is a very good speaker, I would say better than the AR-2ax due to the better midrange driver, other might think different. If I were to focus among your projects, and assuming that you have all the drivers in the AR-5, I would concentrate on these speakers. I understand that one of your AR-5 speakers are missing the crossover, on this link you can buy an AR-5 cabinet complete with crossover at a reasonable price:

http://www.oaktreeent.com/AR_Speaker_Parts.htm

You can buy new complete AR-5 grills and logo plates on ebay, BTW the grill for AR-5 also fits the AR-2ax, only the logo plate differs. AR-2ax is also a good restauration project, but whether you should re-veneer or not must be a matter of taste, the sound would be the same. If you want to restore them for sale, I don't think you will get the money back you spent on the veneer job, however, if it is for your own pleasure, then that must be your judgement.

I hope that helps.

BRgds Klaus

[JKent]

Hi and Welcome

I agree with Klaus. The 5 is a great speaker, well worth restoring. If you have one xover you should be able to build another, recapping both in the process. OTOH that cabinet with xo may be the way to go--then you'll be able to use the best 2 cabinets. That 5 cabinet is also the same as the 2ax.

Before you go to the trouble and expense of veneering the 2ax cabinets, why not try Howard's Restor-a-Finish. I love this product. Google it to find their website, and you can buy it in Home Depot. You apply it with 0000 steel wool and it can really renew an old, dry, scuffed finish. You said there were no dings or chips. Give this stuff a try--it works great. You may end up using it on all your speaker cabinets (I do).

Although I like my AR2ax speakers alot, they are not worth much money, and you should consider that before investing the dough it will take to fix yours up. If it were me, I'd make the 5s top priority--either for listening or to sell. Of course, a surround system with 5s in front and 2ax's in back would be pretty awesome

btw--Larry at Vintage AR is a good source for parts, and he has new grilles and excellent reproduction logo plates.

Also--be sure to download the excellent booklet by CSP members:

http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/library...ring_the_ar-3a/

MUCH of the info in there is applicable to your AR speakers, even though they are not 3a. It will even tell you where to get new cloth and how to apply it.

Good luck

Kent