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Hi, New With New To Me AR-2ax Pair


sarals

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Hi everyone!  I'm new to the forum.  I'm also new to vintage AR speakers, not having owned the brand since 1972-1973 when I had a pair of AR-4x's in college. They weren't "vintage" then!  I am a woman of a certain age, and as of late I've been nostalgically resurrecting the things that gave me great joy in my youth.  I still have most of one of the stereo systems I had in college, save for my beloved Larger Advents, which I regrettably sold ages ago.  I do have a restored pair of Smaller Advents, connected to my Harmon Kardon 630.  I've decided to expand the nostalgia trip, and go for that "New England Sound" by acquiring some vintage AR speakers.  Ideally, I'd prefer AR3a's or AR-5's, but I decided to start with an affordable pair of AR-2ax's, this pair:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Acoustic-Research-AR-2ax-Acoustic-Suspension-Loudspeaker-System-Two-Speakers/222633422990?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649

Dedicated forums are a wonderful place to glean advice, learn, make friends, and muse.  My first question to you fine folks about these speakers is the obvious - which refoam kit do I need to buy for the woofers?  I plan to check the capacitors, and they'll probably need replacing.  Hopefully the tweeters work.  I'm sure those robust midranges are okay, but if they aren't, there's a plethora of them available out there in the wild.

I know I'm not going to have the level of detail or imaging that the 3a's or 5's would offer, but for now, the 2ax's are a good place to start, I think.

Thank you in advance, and it's nice to say hi to you all!

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59 minutes ago, sarals said:

Thank you in advance, and it's nice to say hi to you all!

Very nice specimens to start with.  They can be restored to an original look based what we can see and there of is a lot of classic AR knowledge here but while you wait for answers you might download the AR3a restoration guide from the library, which covers much of what you will need in restoring most classic ARs, of which the 2ax is an example.

Adams

 

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9 hours ago, Aadams said:

Very nice specimens to start with.  They can be restored to an original look based what we can see and there of is a lot of classic AR knowledge here but while you wait for answers you might download the AR3a restoration guide from the library, which covers much of what you will need in restoring most classic ARs, of which the 2ax is an example.

Adams

 

Hi Adams!  Thank you!  I have downloaded the AR3a restoration guide.  I've not read it through, yet, but it certainly seems thorough.

Thank you very much for the vote of confidence in my purchase!

One of the reasons I decided on the particular pair of AR2ax's that I bought, other than the price, was that the cabinets appeared to be very good, the grills looked great, and the documentation on the back of the speakers was there.  They had hallmarks of being well taken care of, and perhaps even one owner.  I'll never know for sure.

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31 minutes ago, sarals said:

I've not read it through, yet, but it certainly seems thorough.

Assuming all of your drivers are in working order, the guide has everything you need to know except the latest advice on 10" surrounds.  I think the current preference is for a 10" Boston Acoustics Roll with plan b being JBL 10".  The Aleenes Tacky glue is popular and easy to work with when gluing foam surrounds but there is a strong argument for using a solvent based glue.  You probably have a waxed block capacitor set which is notorious for being out of spec and so easy to replace you might as will get new capacitors.  And, finally but importantly the pots: They will be a judgement call but, being a 2ax, if it were a decision I had to make these days, I would be looking for excuses to replace with Lpads.  The pots would have to be pretty darn clean and pit-free for me to keep them.

Pictures and threads discussing all these issues specific to the 2ax are abundant on this forum.  I am not familiar will all the current sources but someone here will jump in when you get to your first decision point and have a question or maybe even before.

Adams

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2 minutes ago, Aadams said:

Assuming all of your drivers are in working order, the guide has everything you need to know except the latest advice on 10" surrounds.  I think the current preference is for a 10" Boston Acoustics Roll with plan b being JBL 10".  The Aleenes Tacky glue is popular and easy to work with when gluing foam surrounds but there is a strong argument for using a solvent based glue.  You probably have a waxed block capacitor set which is notorious for being out of spec and so easy to replace you might as will get new capacitors.  And, finally but importantly the pots: They will be a judgement call but, being a 2ax, if it were a decision I had to make these days, I would be looking for excuses to replace with Lpads.  The pots would have to be pretty darn clean and pit-free for me to keep them.

Pictures and threads discussing all these issues specific to the 2ax are abundant on this forum.  I am not familiar will all the current sources but someone here will jump in when you get to your first decision point and have a question or maybe even before.

Adams

Great advice, Adams!  Very much appreciated.  Thank you!

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Hello to the group,   I am jumping on here with my own new excitement.  I just picked up a nice pair of AR-2ax's as well.  mine are an early model with cloth surrounds and the bronze colored tweeter.  hopefully I can attach a few pics.  Paid $250 locally from a craigslist ad. the cabinets are near mint with no scratches or nicks.  They need new grill cloth. and the pots are shot,  I can fiddle with them to get the mids and tweeters to come to life, but they will need attention soon.  I have used Vintage AR in the past, so once he is back from vacation I will be throwing more money his way!

I am doing a lot of research reading here on the forum. So no specific questions, yet!    I just wanted to share with a group I know will appreciate this find more than my wife who says "yah, those are nice" without even looking at them.

My current speakers are AR-4ax's that were my fathers back in the 70's,  I over-restored them 30 years ago before I appreciated what I had.  so they arent really AR-4's any more, if ya know what I mean.. I replaced the drivers with madisound components way back in the day.  They sound great and I spent a lot of time calculating the proper driver to box etc.

But now I want the real deal, so I was looking for another pair of 4's when I thought, why not try a different model. These came up locally and I couldnt pass them up.  The price seems very fair for the condition. I havent cracked the seal yet, but I am hoping the internals are as original and nice as the rest seems.   

anyway..   just silly happy in my little vintage speaker world.. 

 

Bob F

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Those ARE pretty!  I hope mine are half that nice.  And I hope they work.

I have some memory of the AR4x's I had in college.  I drove them with a pair of Southwest Technical Products Universal Tiger monoblocks, WAY too much power for them.  I had trouble with the tweeter level controls going bad on them (they got hot and melted...), but the drivers themselves were very robust and worked and worked and worked.  They sounded quite good, as I recall, and had prodigious bass response.  I remember the highs sounding a bit rough, but I am sure those (questionable) monoblocks I had contributed to that artifact in a big way.  I sold them and bought my Larger Advents (OLA).

I'll let everyone know what I find when my AR2ax's arrive. 

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45 minutes ago, sarals said:

I'll let everyone know what I find when my AR2ax's arrive. 

Can't wait !!! and this will be fun,  these are very nice, but one of them isnt really anything but a woofer at the moment.  both pots in both speakers are wasted. not sure yet if they just need a clean or replacements. Right now I have them on a separate Adcom amp running in tandem with the AR4's , so I have a great soundstage.  But as soon as you get yours and start tearing into them I will be doing the same. This time I plan to restore them the right way. Meanwhile I am reading everything I can.

Bob

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Bob, you mentioned you replaced the original drivers in your AR4x's with Madisound components?  Just for a point of interest, the studio monitors I use in my editing suite are 2 way monitors, with a Scan Speak 18W/8545 woofer and D2905 tweeter, and to say I am happy with them would be an understatement.  Of course they don't have a "vintage" sound, they are modern speakers and are very nuanced and neutral.  I use them in the near field, and they've played happily for years.  Oh, those drivers are in Madisound cabinets, sturdy, well made - just lovely.

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10 hours ago, sarals said:

 Just for a point of interest, the studio monitors I use in my editing suite are 2 way monitors, with a Scan Speak 18W/8545 woofer and D2905 tweeter, and to say I am happy with them would be an understatement. 

Those are very nice drivers - how do you like the low-frequency response of your monitors? 

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I am not really new to the AR2ax scene like sarals and bfastr. I have examples of all three versions of the 2ax speakers.  Speaker on the left is the large woofer frame transitional model made only around the 1970-71 time frame. In the middle is a early version with the cloth surround alanco woofer. On the right is the most common later version with the smaller woofer frame. I wholeheartedly agree with Aadams insights, for both refoamed woofers have the filled fillet surrounds. Also agree about those problematic pots, which will be discussed as this thread progresses.

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About three weeks ago I found another pair of early 2ax's. What makes these different to me is they are untouched and completely original. The grills are still factory attached with the little staples still in place. I will be watching this thread as I decide what to do. I don't want to disturb them any more than I have too.

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You can see that these were hung on a wall for many years. Looking forward to you guys getting your 2ax's restored and possibly catching the classic speaker bug.

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4 hours ago, ar_pro said:

Those are very nice drivers - how do you like the low-frequency response of your monitors? 

Hi!  They're decent by themselves, probably good to 50Hz.  I have them paired with an (original) Velodyne ULD-15, so I have the bottom octaves well covered.  :)  

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@larrybody, that's an impressive collection of AR-2ax's!  Your new pair certainly is pretty.

I'll be sure to post pictures of mine when they arrive, as well as impressions.  It seems you and others are interested in how I treat them, and I'll be happy to post a blow by blow.

I do hope at some point down the road to start a thread on my very own AR-5's.  I have my eyes open for a decent, affordable pair.  There are a few on eBay right now, and my interest is piqued.  However, I am a patient person, and I want to get acquainted with the AR-2ax's first and get them up to snuff.  I'm sure there will be AR-5's out there when I decide to acquire a pair.

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On 2/14/2018 at 9:18 AM, sarals said:

Bob, you mentioned you replaced the original drivers in your AR4x's with Madisound components? 

Yes,  but I couldnt tell you which units.  I am very OCD about keeping my engineering notebooks and I had all my notes and details in one. and somewhere during life, moving , getting older.  It got lost or thrown out.. and I am bummed out!!!  I think I even sourced crossover parts from them.  this would have been in the early to mid 80's I think.  either way, I have always been very happy with my Franken-4's.   They have been my primary stereo speaker ( excluding HT stuff ) the whole time.

But now I am excited to restore these 2's.   I would love a set of 3's,  or 5's , or even more 4's !  I will be watching CL a lot closer now to see if any more gems appear in my area.

Sarals :  seems you and I will be embarking on the same task at the same time. if you want to drop me an email offline with comments,  my email is same as my "handle" here at yahoo .  I would love to chat about your thoughts or plans as I am really waiting for you to get yours before I even start doing anything as it will be nice to bounce ideas.

maybe we should also start a new topic when we do begin to post our progress and decisions for others to follow as well.

 

Larrybody :  I Love the collection!  I can see myself with more than a pair of these soon.!  Question, you seem a lot more knowledgable than I am , Do you know the time frame the middle ones were made?  the early version? I have been reading and searching, but I cant find, or have missed a simple graph relating to manufacture dates to serial numbers. sadly only one of my speakers still has the serial number, it is AX103602.  

 

Bob

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bfastr             The early AR2ax's with the alanco woofers and the orange hard dome tweeters were made from 1964 to 1970 and had serial numbers up to 125,000. The tweeters are the same ones used in the AR3 and the AR2a. The woofers are slightly different from the ones used in the AR2 and the AR2. The 3 had a 12 in alanco woofer. My first set came from Goodwill and has serial numbers 81500 and 87697. They probably did not originally come together because of 6000 difference in serials. The new set came to me from St Paul MN craigslist and have serial numbers 38728 and 40611. I would guess yours are from around 1968 or 1969. When you open them up you may find drivers with date stamps. Some members here prefer the early models, but to tell you the truth my foam surround examples sound equally fantastic. 

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On 2/12/2018 at 10:42 PM, sarals said:

Hi everyone!  I'm new to the forum.  I'm also new to vintage AR speakers, not having owned the brand since 1972-1973 when I had a pair of AR-4x's in college. They weren't "vintage" then!  I am a woman of a certain age, and as of late I've been nostalgically resurrecting the things that gave me great joy in my youth.  I still have most of one of the stereo systems I had in college, save for my beloved Larger Advents, which I regrettably sold ages ago.  I do have a restored pair of Smaller Advents, connected to my Harmon Kardon 630.  I've decided to expand the nostalgia trip, and go for that "New England Sound" by acquiring some vintage AR speakers.  Ideally, I'd prefer AR3a's or AR-5's, but I decided to start with an affordable pair of AR-2ax's, this pair:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Acoustic-Research-AR-2ax-Acoustic-Suspension-Loudspeaker-System-Two-Speakers/222633422990?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649

Dedicated forums are a wonderful place to glean advice, learn, make friends, and muse.  My first question to you fine folks about these speakers is the obvious - which refoam kit do I need to buy for the woofers?  I plan to check the capacitors, and they'll probably need replacing.  Hopefully the tweeters work.  I'm sure those robust midranges are okay, but if they aren't, there's a plethora of them available out there in the wild.

I know I'm not going to have the level of detail or imaging that the 3a's or 5's would offer, but for now, the 2ax's are a good place to start, I think.

Thank you in advance, and it's nice to say hi to you all!

Sara,

First, welcome to the website!

Your pair of AR-2ax speakers actually looks good and fairly "unmolested," from the pictures.  Do you have both serial numbers?  Are they close together?  It's always best to find early AR speakers that have not been altered or modified in some half-hearted restoration effort.  Your pair looks untouched. 

Basically, your pair was among the early 1970-vintage versions with the new 8-ohm ¾-inch dome tweeter (first used in the 1968 AR-5) and the last of the "6-bolt" 10-inch woofers, but the newer-style stamped frame and foam surround.  These are not rare particularly, but the 6-bolt frame versions are less common.  AR soon changed the thick baffle board on the front to the standard 10-inch diameter, ¾-inch version with four machine screws.  These perform identically.  Your speakers have the updated 3½-inch midrange that was introduced in the AR-2a series during 1965, and the woofers in your speakers have the stamped-steel, 6-bolt 11-inch frame, the same size frame as the original AR-2 and AR-2a-series models with the aluminum frame and Alnico magnet.  Your speakers actually have Alnico magnets, but they are in a "yoke" configuration.  The oiled-walnut cabinets actually look very original and are completely capable of being refurbished to like-new appearance if done accordance with AR's original cabinet recommendations.

The sound from the AR-2ax in this configuration is simply superb!  These speakers have excellent bass response, but of course not equal to the likes of the AR-3a, yet the bass response is very solid down to around 50 Hz with very low distortion—much less than most competing speakers of this era—down to the limits of its low-frequency output.  There is actually usable response down to nearly 30 Hz if at lower output.  The sound is very smooth and natural with low coloration. The 3½-inch treated midrange is extremely smooth and uniform, and the AR-2ax will "image" better than either the AR-3a or the AR-5 because of this midrange driver!  In the far field, the AR-3a and the AR-5, with their dome midrange and tweeter, are more spacious-sounding, but neither image as well as the AR-2ax!  The ¾-inch dome tweeter is, of course, a classic and probably unsurpassed in off-axis response and smooth power response into a typical listening room!  Perhaps the Allison tweeter, also designed by Roy Allison, is capable of such wide-dispersion output, but that tweeter is not smoother in output.

 So, what do you do with your pair?  Here are a few suggestions:

·         Remove both grill panels, but do it very carefully so as to not damage the walnut wood molding or the grill panel and grill cloth.  Use a small paint spatula and carefully go around the perimeter of the grill and gently try to lift upward.  There may be staples in addition to USM hot glue holding the grills in place, so be on the lookout for that, but they are removable with a patient effort to do it slowly and carefully.  First unscrew the AR-2ax brass logo plates and set them aside until you are finished.

·         Once opened, you can touch wires from a small flashlight battery (for testing, probably a AA cell would work fine, and you can solder two small wires to the top and bottom terminals) to the two terminals of the tweeters and listen for a "crackling" or static-like output to verify that they are working.  Make only brief contact and never hold the battery contact to the tweeters.

·         The midrange drivers are very likely to be fine, but you will have to remove the drivers to test them individually.

·         Do not simply assume that the Chicago Industrial encapsulated crossover capacitors are bad; many are but not all, and I have tested many of this vintage AR crossovers and found the values to be well within the roughly 10-15% tolerance range.  If suspect, you will have to disconnect each capacitor lead on the crossover to properly test its value if you do this, but first check the speaker's sound (after you have verified each driver to see if the speaker sounds okay).  The coils are nearly always okay, of course, unless someone applied hugely excessive long-term power the speakers during some drunken revel or something.  This is unlikely, of course.  The big problem is always the level controls—more on them next.

·         The level controls on the back are very likely to have oxidized and tarnished contacts—causing intermittent "dropouts" in the sound from the mids/tweeters; but before you unsolder the complete works, try rotating the level control knobs back and forth (back and forth, over and over) with low amplifier power applied to the speaker terminals and listen to each driver for the midrange and tweeter to make sound.  Disconnect the woofer to keep them from "rubbing" with bad surounds.  With the speaker on its front surface, you can spray contact cleaner down the shafts to help when checking for "contact."  Many times you can get all drivers working with a little patience doing this, but ultimately you will probably want to remove them and clean and reinstall them.

·         You will need to re-foam the woofers, but this process is very straight-forward.  Contact Roy on this forum for the best-recommended surround kits to use on the AR-2ax.  You will want a very pliable, resilient foam material to insure that the woofers retain their original low "free-air" resonance; i.e., don't apply surrounds that cause the woofers to lose compliance.  Roy has rebuilt many AR woofers of all descriptions, and he probably knows the best sources of supply.

·         As for the oiled-cabinets, sand (with the grain) the cabinets lightly with 400-600 grit sandpaper, clean and apply either Watco Satin oil or boiled linseed oil or equivalent.  Let dry overnight and repeat the process a couple more times.  That is usually all you have to do and you will have beautiful cabinets.  Your cabinets look good but just need some attention.  Dispose of the oil-soaked rags carefully to avoid spontaneous combustion.

—Tom Tyson

AR_AR-Classic-Style-Spkr-Connection_Tyson2011.pdf 

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Hello, Tom!  It's nice to meet you.  Thank you for the information.  You had some VERY encouraging things to say about the speakers.  One was a surprise, that in your opinion they will sound better than the AR-5's, you like the midrange driver better for near field listening.  I am positively anxious to hear them after reading that! :)

I don't have the serial numbers.  I could read one from the seller's photos, and the other was a bit of a guess - AX158489 and the guess was AX158(672)?  They may be close in pairing, I hope they are.

I have one concern vis a vis the grill cloth.  I hope the seller didn't damage the frame when she "pried off" the grill!  It looks to be a bit bent in the photos, I do hope it isn't broken.

I will report the arrival as soon as it happens.  I suspect it's about a week off.

@bfastr, yes!  I'll send you an email.  And thank you!

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hi Sarals,

 

       Like you, I am new to this forum, and wow, it sounds like we are so similar, my being a lady of a 'wiser age' who loves the New England sound and all. While I also enjoy my pair of Original Large Advents, a pair of AR-4x showed me how very, very nice AR's can be. They were found forlorn and abandoned but after some work they enchanted me for years with their wonderful vocal reproduction. Now they have been replaced by a pair of AR 2ax which are near twins of yours (my 4 bolt woofers, rather than your 6).

        The AR2ax's can be just stunning, as you will hopefully find. They certainly always bring a smile for me! Mine also need the woofers re-foamed, but it was reasonably easy for me to do . I used the Boston Acoustic filleted surrounds and I think they work very well.  

     The forum members here have been terrifically helpful and definitely made doing repairs so much easier.

    Please feel free to write me directly and I would be pleased to help with anything I can.   I'm an electronic technician, btw.    J

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Hi jessiAV, my name is Frank and although I've been here since 2004 and have re-foamed at least 20+ speakers, I have never heard of the term 'filleted- surrounds'.  Perhaps you could enlighten me? Does it simply mean that the inner edge is slightly larger as it appears in fotos?

I own two pairs of AR-2ax's, one has a little story, the other pair I inherited in 2007.

The little story is;  I am an owner of AR-3a's since 1972.  In that same year I was already out of the military however, I had a close friend who was stationed in Thailand, (we both felt we had to do our duty) and had a few more months to serve. He also knew that I had already become a dedicated stereo person prior to entering the service and that I had 3a's.

He knew I was home after being discharged and contacted me by long-distance phone call and asked me which speakers he should buy as he was due to get a substantial discount by being in the service at his base 'PX'.

Well, I suggested the 3a's but, he felt the price was too high and decided to buy the 2ax's instead. When he was finally home for good in mid '72, he set-up his equipment using these same two 2ax's in his living room. Mind you, he carted them back to the US in original boxes when he left over seas. He also had a DeKorder 10 inch tape deck and a Sansui receiver, along with a new Garrard Lab95 turntable which he gave me and I still have but don't use. I didn't want his receiver as I was solely into separates.

 From 1972 till around 1977 he and our mutual group of friends listened late at night to Floyd, The Firesign-Theater, etc, etc. along with anything else that was current in those days using those same 2ax's. 

In 1979 this same friend sold the 2ax's to me for $100. This pair I used for rear-channel speakers '79 to '93 on again, off again in a 'discrete-four-channel' set-up. I still have them but, simply haven't gotten to them for repair as I presently enjoy other AR speakers and I'm actually overwhelmed with stereo stuff. Honestly, I prefer to listen more than tinker or repair and I'm overly entrenched in the enjoyment of vintage tonearms, turntables and current phono cartridges which I find to be more fun to play with and use. I use them almost everyday and besides once you've repaired your speakers, they just sit there and stare back at you. Tonearms, tables and cartridges must be handled in use and therefore are more interactive.

Enjoy your time here, and the same to you "sarals".

FM

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On ‎2‎/‎15‎/‎2018 at 1:36 PM, larrybody said:

bfastr             The early AR2ax's with the alanco woofers and the orange hard dome tweeters were made from 1964 to 1970 and had serial numbers up to 125,000. The tweeters are the same ones used in the AR3 and the AR2a. The woofers are slightly different from the ones used in the AR2 and the AR2. The 3 had a 12 in alanco woofer. My first set came from Goodwill and has serial numbers 81500 and 87697. They probably did not originally come together because of 6000 difference in serials. The new set came to me from St Paul MN craigslist and have serial numbers 38728 and 40611. I would guess yours are from around 1968 or 1969. When you open them up you may find drivers with date stamps. Some members here prefer the early models, but to tell you the truth my foam surround examples sound equally fantastic. 

I gots to tell ya Larry that this early untouched pair of 2ax's that I have really surprised me with their sound. What mystifies me is the original caps are in these.....and they floored me with their sound when I got them home. I have several pairs of the later models and fixed them up like new....then sold them. Sounded really good....but not like these. I want to remove grills and update them....but afraid too!...lol. Best part....they were free....:)

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7 minutes ago, lakecat said:

Nick Danger..Private Third Eye and still have the album around here somewhere. 

Me Too !!   I always loved the used car skit,  something about Factory air conditioned air from our fully air conditioned factory..  I will have to put it on the TT tomorrow.

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20 hours ago, lakecat said:

 (From 1972 till around 1977 he and our mutual group of friends listened late at night to Floyd, The Firesign-Theater)

Frank....I chuckled when I read that as I forgot all about Nick Danger..Private Third Eye and still have the album around here somewhere. 

Yes, they were my group of friend's favorites for a time back then. I have five of their albums, please. I occasionally will see one or two while flipping through used record bins and always pass them by for obvious reasons. Truth be told,  the last time I heard them, was back then. Often times the humor was too far out and if thought of or even referred to would put me in another state. Every once in a while, while driving "Antelope Freeway" pops up when driving  in unfamiliar areas. Betty-Joe Beolouski, I think We're all Bozos on this bus, Waiting For The Electrician or Some One Just Like Him, please my head is spinning already............

I did really enjoy them in those years though. Uh-oh, now you made me think of them again and I have an idea in which vast area/debris field that is the vinyl swamp they're sitting in.

No, I refuse, I can't do that to myself again, that swamp is too big.

 

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A belated welcome Sara and Jessi! Nice to have some women here--I thought we were all a bunch of (old) guys ;)

Sara--you have received a lot of quality information from Tom. The only thing I would add is this: If the cabinets have no obvious damage you may be able to clean them up with some Howard Restor-a-Finish. It comes in different colors (Walnut, Neutral, Mahogany, others). Some of us like to use the Mahogany because it makes the wood tone warmer looking. You can then use either wax or Watco Oil over the R-a-F. If you do decide to lightly sand instead as Tom suggested be VERY careful along the edges. Veneer is thin. Also, I would clean the cabinets thoroughly before sanding Spray Nine (similar to 409 or Fantastick) works well or you can clean the surfaces with solvent such as lacquer thinner.

I think when you are finished you will be very happy. IMHO the 2ax is superior to the Advent OLA. I had some OLAs, did a complete crossover rebuild but when finished they could not hold a candle to the 2ax's. I now have a pair of AR-3a's but I miss the 2ax's (and the KLH Fives).

Jessi--maybe Frank has been around for a long time but I assure you that most of us who have been re-foaming AR speakers know exactly what the "Boston" or "filled fillet" surrounds are!

And welcome to Bob F too (even if you are just another guy :lol:). Like your father, I had AR-4x's back in the '70s but I still have mine. They were my first restoration project and my introduction to this forum. Regarding your AR-2ax's grilles, check out the AR-3a restoration booklet. The "lambswool" color linen from 123 Stitch referenced in that guide is also appropriate for the 2ax.

-Kent

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Okay, so how are they different from any other surround? And, kent thanks for the endearing mention. 

In all of my re-foam-capades and purchasing and installation of surrounds, I've never heard that term used before. I guess I'm not like "most of us" here?  It's a blessing.

Sarals and jessiAV, of course he was speaking of himself when he inferred age. Ya see, gals, I do the heavy lifting here, the LST's the 9's so, one has to be in shape to listen to my speakers.
 

FM

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