Sound difference between and AS-200 and AS-300 speakers?

FINALLY found a pair of nice AS-300s, cabs looked wonderful. They sounded outstanding... for a week until the voice coil broke on one of the woofers.

Anyway, boxed them up, put them in the closet for 8 years or however long it was looking for a replacement woofer - NOTHING, NADA, on any eBay in any country. NONE to be found.

These speakers are just TOOOOO rare.

Finally... I just gave up, sold them dirt cheap to get them 'out of the closet'... & about 2 months later up pops the speaker on eBay USA... Go figure. Ain't that the way it works.

Anyway...
The AS-300s did sound wonderful, AlNiCo magnets. I liked them big time.

Still have a pair of minty looking AS-100s with one extra AS-100 speaker (works perfect) for spare parts if needed. Fantastic 23" high box speakers with the big box sound & with a super sensitive adjustable tweet! Nice!!
That's such a shame about the voice coil. Was there any possibility of rebuilding it? Doesn't look like a job that I could handle, but I know it can be done.
There is a guy on eBay auctioning a single set of drivers and crossover from an AS-200, in perfect working order for around $80.00 shipped. I'm considering purchasing it as an insurance policy.

Did you or @bryana ever replace your crossover caps? (this is the SA-200's crossover)
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I did the same, sold the drivers super cheap & kept the crossovers too.
 
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I would love to get my hands on a pair of AS-300. I owned the AS-200 and loved them but ultimately sold them because of the lack of detail/treble. I'm the type of guy who likes really laid back sound and typically even roll-off treble a bit but with the AS-200 it was too much. That said, the AS-200 really 'disappear'... and I'm a fan of acoustically sealed designs in general (my favourite speakers are Allison (Roy Allison, formerly of Acoustic Research). A great speaker that I do regret selling. That said, I think the SP-2000 is superior in many, but not all, ways.

Would love to hear the AS-300 though, especially if they have better bass and are less laid back than the AS-200
 
I would love to get my hands on a pair of AS-300. I owned the AS-200 and loved them but ultimately sold them because of the lack of detail/treble. I'm the type of guy who likes really laid back sound and typically even roll-off treble a bit but with the AS-200 it was too much. That said, the AS-200 really 'disappear'... and I'm a fan of acoustically sealed designs in general (my favourite speakers are Allison (Roy Allison, formerly of Acoustic Research). A great speaker that I do regret selling. That said, I think the SP-2000 is superior in many, but not all, ways.

Would love to hear the AS-300 though, especially if they have better bass and are less laid back than the AS-200
Hi, new guy here. Looking for info on the AS-300 I picked up and found this thread. Boy, info on these are rarer than hens teeth. If where not for me finding out about the AS-100/200's I wouldn't have any info on the 300's.

Anyway, I picked up a pair of AS-300 weeks ago. They are in pretty nice shape and cleaned up nice. 12in woofers. The mid and tweeter are covered by a welded on steel screen. Very heavy. You ask about the bass? Well, they do have decent base and sound really nice and has level control adjusters. One of mine has a slight scratch/static (coil rubbing?) in the woofer at low volume but it wakes up when I turn up the volume. I cranked them up to about 5 on my 40w Onkyo amp and they took it no problem. I hate to push it to hard as I might try to get it repaired if possible. I'm kind of new to this but I have re-foamed a couple pair of speakers but I'm unsure if a coil can be repaired without tearing down the whole thing. Plus, they have some kind of sticky black treatment on the surrounds that i don't think I could replace. This is my first post here so I'm going to attempt to put up some pics.
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I had a chance to read through the post here on this thread and thought I'd answer some questions that where asked about the AS-300.....if anyone still cares.

Someone was curious about removing the divers/woofer. I removed one of mine and it popped right out clean as can be. On the AS-300's they are not glued in. It just has a foam rubber gasket, and like I said it came off clean with no damage at all. It does appear there is some kind of black sealant around the surround and lip of the frame but it was just painted around the outside (see my pics). None was under the seal. I think it was more to keep rust from forming on exposed metal parts. I did not remove the mid or tweeter. Screws are fine threaded machined and screw into nuts pressed into the back of the opening. No cheap wood screws here.

The crossover looks a lot like the one from a pictures here. They look to be sealed with no way to get cleaner in them.

The cabinet is stuffed with what looks like a pillow. Inside the pillow feels like some kind of dense foam that when squeezed does not fully return to it's original fluffiness (maybe due to age?). I did not want to mess with it to much as I don't want to effect the dampening of the material.

The grill material is very similar, almost identical, to a pair of Onkyo model 20 (an absolutely mesmerizing speaker. Yes, they do exist) grills I also stumbled a week before the Sansui's. Same fabric and wood frame which I scrubbed with dish detergent and paper towels and it did not affect the material in any way. I don't think it's an organic fiber.....most likely nylon-look burlap. I would imagine you could wash the AS grills without a problem. One of mine has a tiny stain from where the black gunk ran down but it is not even noticeable so I didn't bother washing.

I searched and searched for replacement woofer to have as a backup when/if mine fails and like someone said they don't seem to exist. So, I packed them away and will watch and wait for one to pop up. If a dummy like me can find a pair of 300's without even looking they are obviously out there somewhere. I'll find one sooner or later. Or, I'll loose interest in this hobby like I have many others and part them out or sell them.
 
Congratulations on the AS-300's.
Yes the AS line is very scarce and info is even more scarce.
Keep your eyes open for a replacement woofer. It's possible that something will pop up. When I bought my 200's a month ago there was a complete set of drivers and a crossover on ebay. I should have grabbed them for insurance.
 
Greetings folks, new to this forum - and joined just to pipe up on the AS-300s!

I have a pair of like-new AS-300s I bought in Charlotte, NC for a great deal ($50). Consecutive serial #s, the works.

I kept them in a closet for the past four years and now am setting up a "real" listening room in my house. lol, about time!

Perhaps a newbie question, but as they are difficult to service / re-cap - should I treat these vintage models carefully? IE: not hit them with too much volume?

I'm tech savvy and can re-cap all day long - but with a sealed cabinet it's not easy to access the crossovers. doh!

My set up is exclusively vinyl -> Schiit Mani Preamp -> Primaluna EVO 300 tube amp -> Speakers

I can post pics... but it looks the same as every other AS-300.

*if* I do re-cap I will document it with photos for you all. If anyone has info on re-capping / guides / options on the cap choices - please add here to this thread :)

Best regards,
~Robin
 
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