tweeters, 3a Improved, and the restoration spiral

[TimmyTonga]

Hi fellas,

 

can someone confirm that the only correct tweeters for these are A22 and A24? This somehow got in my head from a post on this board......if so it's a bit of a problem because you just don't see them on the 'Bay, so you'd have to find another pair of Improved with working tweeters. This just starts a restoration spiral, whereby you're then left with another pair of incomplete speakers to restore, and so it goes on.......what you would ideally need is a pair of almost completely trashed Improveds that had good tweeters but you didn't feel bad about throwing the rest of it away.....

tough call...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[lARrybody]

Then there is also the dilemma of picking up a single example. Maybe you will find another single someday that matches. Or maybe if just one driver is good, it makes it well worth the price. Also there is the free FrankenAR speakers. Should I bring it home. Yes it does have correct mid-ranges and crossover parts. Ultimately it was the walnut veneer salvageable for future restores. Into the storage shed they went.

I especially like the tweeters installed with construction adhesive. 

[TimmyTonga]

Larry, you are the embodiment of the Spiral. That adhesive is a classic....

[TimmyTonga]

With regard to the tweeter, I have found the answer to my question;

 

http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/IP.Board/index.php?/topic/4396

 

i think.......

 

[owlsplace]

15 hours ago, larrybody said:

Also there is the free FrankenAR speakers.

Larry,

The cabinets on those 2ax's look almost as bad as my 4x boat speakers .... Just think of the possibilities ... the 4x-Elwyn-1 below ... its mate is still in limbo.

Roger

[tysontom]

On 7/21/2016 at 9:18 AM, larrybody said:

Then there is also the dilemma of picking up a single example. Maybe you will find another single someday that matches. Or maybe if just one driver is good, it makes it well worth the price. Also there is the free FrankenAR speakers. Should I bring it home. Yes it does have correct mid-ranges and crossover parts. Ultimately it was the walnut veneer salvageable for future restores. Into the storage shed they went.

I especially like the tweeters installed with construction adhesive. 

Wow, we've seen it all!  Those "tweeters," more than twice the diameter of the 3.5-inch mid-range drivers, are old WWII University Sound field PM speakers used in jeeps and so forth.  They were mil-spec and environmentally sturdy, but there is scarcely any semblance of "high-fidelity" sound emanating from those phenolic cones.  Those woofers look like Pioneer or Sansui models with probably a very high fs, resulting in no deep bass but lots and lots of boom.  These are the pre-1970 AR-2ax versions that had the 1-3/8-inch tweeter and the six-bolt alnico woofer, but it looks as though a larger hole or recess has been put into play.

Nevertheless, if free,what could you lose?  These could still be rebuilt back to original specs with a lot of work!

[lARrybody]

Thanks for the information Mr. Tyson. At first I was apprehensive about letting anybody know that I brought these home. After reading your post I am glad you saw them. The original documents are still in place.

Serial numbers AX 59447 and AX 59436

I am sure they probably originally looked like these I picked up last fall from a yard sale. 

Serial number AX 87697. I did not dig the mate out, but I sure it is close. One thing I have noticed is that the rheostat pot post on the earlier ones are black and these are red. I don't know if this means they are different or not.

As far as restoring them, even if I could find the correct drivers at a fair price the cabinets are pretty challenged. Even a restoration wizard like GD70 might have second thoughts.