Guest Posted April 16, 2003 Report Share Posted April 16, 2003 Hi!I have a pair of AR-10 Pi speakers which I don't use any longer and want to sell. My father bought them together with a Kenwood stereo sometimes back in 1979. Are the speakers worth anything?The problem is, which I think is quite common after browsing the Internet for information, that the outer foam of the membrane on the subwoofers are drying out and starts to fall apart. I don't have the time and/or knowledge to fix them so...Besides the subwoofer problem, I reckon that the speakers are quite nice since they are built in dark oak (I guess) and with 3-way switches for adjusting the subwoofer/midrange/highrange.Anyone out there who could give me a hint on a possible value for the pair of speakers? I guess that there are collectors out there but I will probably not find one in my city (:Regards,Rally Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bret Posted April 16, 2003 Report Share Posted April 16, 2003 I want them and will pay you a fair price for them.Now the hard part. What's "fair?"There was a functioning pair on Audiogon that fetched $300 but lacked the foam grills (that cost $78 to replace) and that was in upstate New York which meant I was looking at a total expenditure of $500 and I wasn't willing to make that.But if your cabinets are good and the drivers are good except for the rot, and they have the grills, I'd love to have those and would pay you $350 for them without blinking or maybe a little more with a little blinking if they are really pristine.Yeah, I know, I'm not much of a poker-player.Contact me at tbret@yahoo.com when you get a range in mind and we'll haggle (or not) but I would really like to have them. I promise them a good home for the next 25 years.Describe the condition the cabinets are in for me.Bret Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 16, 2003 Report Share Posted April 16, 2003 Hi!Ok, I live in Sweden so I guess that upstate NY seems pretty nearby in comparision? (:But, could you help me out and perhaps explain the value of the speakers anyway?I have very little knowledge on this topic so to me it's just a pair of speakers. I understand that they are well-built and I think that the sound was pretty good but I have no idea how the compare to today's speakers.The brand (Acoustic Research/Pi) seems to be populare. Are the AR-10 speakers primarily of interest to "collectors", or?- The cabinets are in good condition, 1-2 rather small bruises only.- The foam grilles are unfortunately gone (they started to fall apart).- One of the midrange or highrange (can't remeber which one) elements has been replace a couple of years ago (thanks to my brother having a party an turning up the volym too much :-)- The outer parts of the subwoofers' membrane are disintegrating but I have fixed that *very* temporarely using some tape (uuuh!)Regards,Rally Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bret Posted April 16, 2003 Report Share Posted April 16, 2003 >Ok, I live in Sweden so I guess that upstate NY seems pretty nearby in comparision? ( :<Oh, you're kidding me ! ! Gosh. I wonder what shipping from Sweden would be?The value - totally subjective of course. The 10pi is a "fancy" next-generation version of the classic AR3a. They have appeal on several levels; their relative scarcity, that crossover that makes them uniquely suited to difficult placement problems and changes the speaker's impedence with the flip of a switch, and the way they sound -specifically a wide dispersion with extended deep, controlled bass response not unique but certainly rare for speakers of their size.Also, they were the top-of-the-line of the Truth In Listening series of AR speakers which makes them collector's items all by itself.You need more than a Kenwood receiver to properly drive them, though. I used to drive a pair of AR-9's (big things) with a KR-9600 (160w/channel into 8 ohms) but I never heard them until I put a 250w/channel (8-ohms) amplifier on them which could handle the low impedence of AR speakers and provide lots and lots of current. That was a sad thing about AR speakers of that and previous eras; you needed more amplifier than was really affordable.The value of the sound is completely subjective. You've found a forum where *that* sound is appreciated for its merits, but there would be other people who might argue that a "new" set of smaller speakers sound better.Bret Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bret Posted April 16, 2003 Report Share Posted April 16, 2003 >- The outer parts of the subwoofers' membrane are disintegrating but I have fixed that *very* temporarely using some tape (uuuh!)<That's not a good thing. I wouldn't play them like that. If they are fixable, in the US it might cost you $50.00 at the most. If you ruin them you will have to replace them. In the U.S. you can anticipate $125.00 or $130.00 each plus shipping to replace them.I can't tell you what they are worth. If you want to subscribe to an audio used price book there is one available at Audiogon.com. I can only tell you what I'd be willing to pay for them and I really, really want a pair.If the cabinets were "perfect" and the grills were there and all the drivers worked and were original, I might be willing to pay $550.00 for a pair, but they would have to be perfect. I mean museum quality. Some people would call me insane for being willing to pay that much. With some cabinet bruises and no grills and woofers that need re-surrounding, I would probably not pay more than $250 for them and might not pay that much after inspection.So why would I waste my $500 on a pair of "old" speakers? I really, really like the way they sound and doubt I could find anything new for under $2,500 that I would like almost as much.Bret Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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