barryg4522 Posted January 28, 2017 Report Share Posted January 28, 2017 Hi all, does anyone know why AR did not finish painting below the woofer area on the 2ax. Also I am doing a restore on a pair that are in good shape. What color and texture is the grill material, and is there somewhere that has replacement material? thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted January 29, 2017 Report Share Posted January 29, 2017 Welcome Barry Thje grille material should be 18 count linen. Internet seller 1-2-3 Stitch sells the appropriate material: Wichelt 18 ct linen in "lambswool" color. See the AR-3a restoration guide http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/library/acoustic_research/original_models_1954-1974/original_models_schematicss/restoring_the_ar-3a/ -Kent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lARrybody Posted January 30, 2017 Report Share Posted January 30, 2017 On 1/28/2017 at 6:46 PM, barryg4522 said: Hi all, does anyone know why AR did not finish painting below the woofer area on the 2ax. I have always wondered if there was a reason for not painting below the woofer. Just like the strip of cabinet sealer draped over the adjustment pots. Why was this done? The 18 count Wichelt lambswool is a very good match. The linen sold by Vintage AR is also very nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barryg4522 Posted January 30, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2017 Hi Larry, I thought maybe my pair were maybe the only ones like that, but seems they had some reasoning (save paint?). My woofers are shot, and the trimpots in my cabinets are corroded excessively. Looks like you have had your woofers re-coned or you bought replacements if so were? Vintage AR on Ebay has what they claim a drop in replacement (even have a 6 hole adapter) and have trimpots other than speaker grills are you familiar with them. My alternative is sending my woofer baskets to Miller sound for re-cone as I have not been able to find a recone kit and do them myself. What do you think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted January 30, 2017 Report Share Posted January 30, 2017 In what way are your woofers shot? If it's the foam surrounds you do not need a re-cone, just a re-foam. Vintage-AR is a reputable (but expensive) ebay seller many of us have used. I would not replace the woofers if it's a re-foam job. Please let us know what the issue is. -Kent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barryg4522 Posted January 30, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2017 When I attempted to remove the woofers from the cabinets, the entire diaphragm, spider voice coil all popped loose as the adhesive was dried out. The paper diaphragms were rotted through also. The did make getting the woofer baskets out of the cabinets as the were plumbers putted in. So I did not think salvaging the diaphragms was an option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dxho Posted January 30, 2017 Report Share Posted January 30, 2017 Pictures would be useful in determining if they might be saved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyC Posted January 30, 2017 Report Share Posted January 30, 2017 2 hours ago, barryg4522 said: When I attempted to remove the woofers from the cabinets, the entire diaphragm, spider voice coil all popped loose as the adhesive was dried out. The paper diaphragms were rotted through also. The did make getting the woofer baskets out of the cabinets as the were plumbers putted in. So I did not think salvaging the diaphragms was an option. I'm guessing your woofers were the same as the one installed in the center speaker in Larry's photo above. If so, the issues you described are common to this woofer, and are usually repairable. The Vintage AR replacement woofer requires an adapter to fit the cabinet, and does not have the same response as the original woofer. The Wichelt cloth pictured above is also more authentic, if that is a goal. Roy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barryg4522 Posted January 30, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 30, 2017 I will try to post pics again, but got an error when i tried earlier. Looking at my diaphragms, maybe i can salvage them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barryg4522 Posted January 31, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 Speaker Diaphragm.I keep getting an error when i upload a pic. less than 5m jpeg? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barryg4522 Posted January 31, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 what do i need to post pics guys? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lARrybody Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 Try using a photo hosting site such as Photobucket. Upload you pictures there and then copy the image address and insert that into your post using the insert other media button. We really would like to see some photos of those woofers, so we offer our opinions. Do they have cloth or foam surrounds? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 46 minutes ago, barryg4522 said: Speaker Diaphragm.I keep getting an error when i upload a pic. less than 5m jpeg? Way too big. About 100KB is the right size. I use PhotoShop Elements to resize the pics but any editing program should work. Also--try sending RoyC a PM. He wouldn't drum up business here but he does all of Vintage AR's speaker work. And of course, Millersound as you mentioned is top notch. But Roy specialized in AR and should be able to help. -Kent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ra.ra Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 I agree with Kent - - if you can re-size and save your photo to a much smaller file size, then just drag and drop the file to the little paper clip icon in the lower left corner of your post. Try again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barryg4522 Posted February 1, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 ROYC. Contact info? My AR'S have cloth surrounds and I would like to them re coned as they are in bad shape.There was a post on Ebay for AR reconing in Tenneessee anyone familiar with them? I will resize photos and get some on. Thanks for all your support. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyC Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 3 hours ago, barryg4522 said: ROYC. Contact info? My AR'S have cloth surrounds and I would like to them re coned as they are in bad shape.There was a post on Ebay for AR reconing in Tenneessee anyone familiar with them? I will resize photos and get some on. Thanks for all your support. Barry, I don't re-cone these woofers, but it is very unusual for these woofers to require "re-coning". Re-gluing of the original parts is the typical repair. If you really need cones, your choice of Bill at Millersound is a good one, and the only person I would recommend discussing this possibility with. The cones (and baskets) are very unique, and I am not aware of a modern equivalent. Used original AR woofers are still out there, and is the way I would go if my woofers were completely shot. If you would like to discuss this privately, send me a PM through the forum, but a photo is still going to be needed if you wish better guidance. Roy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xmas111 Posted February 2, 2017 Report Share Posted February 2, 2017 On 1/28/2017 at 6:46 PM, barryg4522 said: Hi all, does anyone know why AR did not finish painting below the woofer area on the 2ax. It's only a guess on my part..... the cut out in the grill for the woofer covers everything but the woofer itself. But the cut out in the grill for the mid and tweet is much bigger than the speakers themselves and you'd see the different in color between the wood and the speakers through the grill cloth. So I'm guessing that's why they only paint that area of the speaker face board. Like I say, it's only a guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lARrybody Posted February 3, 2017 Report Share Posted February 3, 2017 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barryg4522 Posted February 3, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 3, 2017 Make sense on the paint, probably saved on paint too. I think I am going to recone my AR-2ax. I am going to bite the bullet and have Miller sound do the work. I was going to possible glue my diaphram (voice coil spider diaphram came apart in one piece when trying to remove woofer), but one of them looks like there was some burning arcing around the the voice coil. I also am going to replace my tone controls as I openend one up and it was corroded to a point the conacts fell apart. Have caps on order and can't wait to get them back together. When I attempted to remove the woofers from the cabinets, the entire diaphragm, spider voice coil all popped loose as the adhesive was dried out. The paper diaphragms were rotted through also. The did make getting the woofer baskets out of the cabinets as the were plumbers putted in. So I did not think salvaging the diaphragms was an option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lARrybody Posted February 3, 2017 Report Share Posted February 3, 2017 Would really like to see some pictures of those woofers. At some point I might be more cost effective to find another set. Maybe like these. http://www.ebay.com/itm/PAIR-Acoustic-Research-AR-2ax-Woofer-speakers-/132084259357?hash=item1ec0d5da1d:g:qwMAAOSwa~BYdYP- Have them re-foamed with some Boston Filled Fillet type surrounds. If you are not sure how to proceed maybe one of us could do it for you. Forget about those old potentiometers and get some 15 watt L-pads. http://www.parts-express.com/speaker-l-pad-attenuator-15w-mono-3-8-shaft-8-ohm--260-248 Just my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barryg4522 Posted February 8, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 8, 2017 Id love to post pic, when I figure out how to do it. I want these speakers to look and perform as if they were new. I do antique radio repair and sometimes staying original sometimes limits performance. It also looks like i purchased some l-pads from a AR restoration website and paid 3 times what i could have paid doing my homework. Thanks for the update Larry, i will get some pics on soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted February 8, 2017 Report Share Posted February 8, 2017 To post pics, resize them to about 100KB, maybe 6 - 8" wide. On the bottom of the "Reply" box is a paper clip and the words "Drag files here to attach, or choose files" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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