AR3A
- Thread starter Ryanj52
- Start date
Ryanj52
Active Member
Thanks for the advice I will leave the tweeter be. I just hooked them up and they sound great, the pots need to be cleaned at first the speaker without the pushed in tweeter only the woofer played, I tried the adjusting the pots and nothing but after turning them back and forth a few times they came on.
I will be reading the restoration thread to figure out what I need to do. The dented tweeter sounds great so it is hands off until I know more.
I will be reading the restoration thread to figure out what I need to do. The dented tweeter sounds great so it is hands off until I know more.
Ryanj52
Active Member
I had been eyeing them for a few weeks on LetGo but they were over 3 hours from me and he only had negotiable on them. We happed to go out of town for weekend and drove through where they were located. This is the second time we go out of town and I come home with a souvenir, my wife and kids are getting use to it. Kindof, it helps when ypur the driver.
SiliconTi
Super Member
I did this too and am very happy with the results.
I bought the grilles from that eBay link and they are great too.
Very nice and perfect candidates for a full restoration! You got a great deal on those.
I've repaired and restored many cabs in similar condition, and far worse!
Let me know if you need any help. Here's the link to a recent 3a full restoration i did for a client with lots of pics.
http://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/new-ar-3a-restoration-project.795357/
Cheers, Glenn
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Ryanj52
Active Member
Thanks guys I like a project and have been wanting to try a pair of AR speakers. I think I am going to order the new grills instead of making them. I will take a look at your restoration pictures, I noticed Vintage AR sells new pots, is better to clean the original or just to replace them?
I'd open up the pots before making any purchase decisions. You can pop the pot tops without having to remove them. If corroded, you'll need to pull them and clean them. If pretty clean, then just an easy light sanding of the disk surfaces may be all that's needed, then apply dielectric grease to the disk surface and coils.
I replaced the pots with L-pads on my AR3a and AR2a, gave four of the pots away to someone on AK that wanted a factory-level restoration.
I think I still have one or two laying around, so if you have a broken coil or bad wiper let me know and I'll see if I can dig them out.
Veneer is easier than you think if you have or can borrow a router. I just sanded and live with the bad corners.
Buying Vintage AR's grills are way easier than making your own...
Enjoy and welcome to the AR club
Crunched corners can be repaired fairly easily. You will need some vintage walnut veneer though for the correct aged patina to splice in for patching.I replaced the pots with L-pads on my AR3a and AR2a, gave four of the pots away to someone on AK that wanted a factory-level restoration.
I think I still have one or two laying around, so if you have a broken coil or bad wiper let me know and I'll see if I can dig them out.
Veneer is easier than you think if you have or can borrow a router. I just sanded and live with the bad corners.
Buying Vintage AR's grills are way easier than making your own...
Enjoy and welcome to the AR club
Ryanj52
Active Member
Update:
The pots on the speakers were so bad I decided not to play them until I had time to work on them. I finally took the speakers apart the pots were fairly rusted and corroded so I ended up ordering new pots, caps and putty from vintage ar. I just finished fixing my fist speaker, is there a way to date these? I didn't see any date on the woofer. If there is some place to look before I button up the second speaker I would love to look.
Thanka
The pots on the speakers were so bad I decided not to play them until I had time to work on them. I finally took the speakers apart the pots were fairly rusted and corroded so I ended up ordering new pots, caps and putty from vintage ar. I just finished fixing my fist speaker, is there a way to date these? I didn't see any date on the woofer. If there is some place to look before I button up the second speaker I would love to look.
Thanka
3a’s with alnico woofers are early production, usually 1967 maybe 68. Look on the mids and tweeters for date stamps.
hifitommy
Super Member
the pushed in tweeter dome is easily fixed. scotch tape applied to it with as much adhesive contact you can muster, leaving excess tape on either side of the dome so you can grasp a tab on both sides and pull straight out quickly. usually, this results in the dome popping out into shape.
the dome looks like paper so it should be very possible. i have done this numerous times successfully.
the dome looks like paper so it should be very possible. i have done this numerous times successfully.
Ryanj52
Active Member
These speakers really came alive with the new parts. I tried them with a Sansui 2000a and a Yamaha R-2000, which the speakers really liked the power of the yamaha, I am not sure about the 4 ohm load on it yet. I am really glad I picked these up and changed all of the parts out, it is amazing what they sound like for their age.
I did give the tape trick a try on the pushed in tweeter and it is so pushed in I couldn't get it. It does bug me, but it plays so I am leaving it alone for now. I guess a set of grills from vintage-ar is next and maybe a new amp to pair them to. I really like the yamaha r-2000 with the AR speakers it is rated at 150 wpc at 8 ohms, it doesn't give any specs for 4 ohms.
I am going to wait to pull the tweeter to look for the date until I can order more sealing putting. I used 1 entire package from vintage-ar per woofer and don't have any left.
I did give the tape trick a try on the pushed in tweeter and it is so pushed in I couldn't get it. It does bug me, but it plays so I am leaving it alone for now. I guess a set of grills from vintage-ar is next and maybe a new amp to pair them to. I really like the yamaha r-2000 with the AR speakers it is rated at 150 wpc at 8 ohms, it doesn't give any specs for 4 ohms.
I am going to wait to pull the tweeter to look for the date until I can order more sealing putting. I used 1 entire package from vintage-ar per woofer and don't have any left.
