ar 2ax woofer issue

[Yarg]

Hello All,

I am new to this forum as well as vintage speakers to boot although I've done a bit of research since inheriting a pair of beat-up ar 2axs. The serial numbers are AX-82297 and AX-822?? (the sticker is torn). The woofers have the cloth surround. The goal is to get the speakers in working order since what I have now is a pair of lame mid 80s Marantz speakers. The main issues with the ARs as I see it are: 1) slightly water-damaged cabinets; 2) scratchy pots; and 3) a buzz from both woofers. I'm looking at the woofer issue now and would like to see what can be done about it before dealing with 1 and 2. Based on posts I've perused here and at audiokarma I turned the speakers upside down to see if the buzz went away. No luck. Laying the speakers on their backs however causes the buzz to disappear. I have since pulled one of the woofers without cutting any wires and there's a buzz when it is held vertically, but not horizontally, confirming the results of the speaker lay down test. I'm not hearing a scratching voice coil rubbing sound when I push on the woofer. Does this sound like spider sag or maybe something else? What does everyone recommend I do next?

Thanks for your input,

Brennan

[JKent]

Hi Brennan and Welcome!

I'll let someone with more knowledge of speaker anatomy answer but just wanted to say be sure to download the outstanding AR3a restoration manual:

http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/library/acoustic_research/original_models_1954-1974/original_models_schematicss/restoring_the_ar-3a/restoring_the_ar-3a_full_pd.pdf

Page 5 addresses the spider issue but the whole manual is full of information that will help with your 2ax restoration. Check back here for help with drivers, crossovers etc.

Kent

[Carlspeak]

Spider sag is something you can easily see by looking under the cone at the spider. It should be relatively level.

You mentioned not hearing any scraping when you pushed on the cone. Was that with the woofer horiz. or vert.?

[RoyC]

Hello All,

I am new to this forum as well as vintage speakers to boot although I've done a bit of research since inheriting a pair of beat-up ar 2axs. The serial numbers are AX-82297 and AX-822?? (the sticker is torn). The woofers have the cloth surround. The goal is to get the speakers in working order since what I have now is a pair of lame mid 80s Marantz speakers. The main issues with the ARs as I see it are: 1) slightly water-damaged cabinets; 2) scratchy pots; and 3) a buzz from both woofers. I'm looking at the woofer issue now and would like to see what can be done about it before dealing with 1 and 2. Based on posts I've perused here and at audiokarma I turned the speakers upside down to see if the buzz went away. No luck. Laying the speakers on their backs however causes the buzz to disappear. I have since pulled one of the woofers without cutting any wires and there's a buzz when it is held vertically, but not horizontally, confirming the results of the speaker lay down test. I'm not hearing a scratching voice coil rubbing sound when I push on the woofer. Does this sound like spider sag or maybe something else? What does everyone recommend I do next?

Thanks for your input,

Brennan

Brennan,

The masonite ring to which the cloth surround is attached is notorious for separating from the (aluminum) basket of these woofers. The glue dries out, and the entire cone assembly detaches from the woofer frame causing a buzz. Another trouble spot is the glue holding the spider in place.

Roy

[Yarg]

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.

I had, prior to posting, neglected to mention that I had previously looked at the AR3A restoration guide. I reviewed the woofer troubleshooting section and did the visual inspection for physical damage thing. Nothing obvious (except as noted below). I checked for leaks per the guide as well and recall that the woofer push return time was somewhat less than the 1-1/2 to 2 seconds referred to in the guide for one speaker. That speaker does not adhere to the basket about a third of the way around, however. This is what one poster was getting at. In contrast, the other speaker does adhere all the way around, and since they both have the same buzzing issue, I think it's safe to eliminate that as a cause. All agree? There is also the possibility, I guess, of a leak through the cloth surround itself, which I haven't attempted to remedy by applying the glue or whatever it is that people recommend. Should I just go ahead and do that to eliminate that as a possible cause?

I note that the guide states that the effects of spider sag or voice coil and cone separation don't show up until played loudly. The buzz I'm talking about occurs at low-level volume. Does that mean those should be eliminated as possible causes?

Also, I need to correct my initial post -- there is actually a slight rubbing (not scratching really) sound when I push the cone inward on both speakers when they are at any angle except the horizontal.

As to the one poster's suggestion to examine the spider itself, I tried that, and it looks fairly level, although it's kind of hard to see in there what with the basket and wire mesh in the way.

Now what? Should I just take them to someone who knows about this stuff for a looksie? Can anyone recommend such a person in Austin, TX?

Thanks again.