Altec 604E ... going to be buying them in 2 days...

No rush :)
In total seriousness, those docs are new (to me, that is) and well worth the wait.
You're no slower than I, I can tell you that.

:p
I also don't know where to go to upload them on the heritage site... I have an email in to them.
 
I also don't know where to go to upload them on the heritage site... I have an email in to them.

I emailed them with the scans. The emails came back two days later as "undeliverable" . Checked the address, all was correct.
Is the Lansing heritage site still alive?
 
Is the Lansing heritage site still alive?
Key players in it's creation, moderation, and maintenance are not. The library is excellent. The forum ain't what it once was, and that's partly due to mortality.

I'm sure Todd White, Altec Best, and most of the rest of us at the Altec User's Board would appreciate being able to add the scans to the AUB archive/library.

If you felt so inclined, you could contact either of the two aforementioned fellas and offer them up. I believe they both are members here under those names.
 
Finally got around to flipping them 180 in the cabs.
IMG_0432.JPG

I think I figured out why the two sound different from one another. One has the crossover mounted upside down, so when I fiddle with the knob, I'm doing the opposite of the other. Lol. I'll fix this soon.
I'm hoping that the crossovers are fine, I've tried messing with potted x-overs before, not fun.
 
I'd oil those boxes everyday for a week, then every week for a month and finally every month for a year and all the while be listening to those icons as received before I stared in on 'upgrading' anything
that's just me
they're only original once
 
I'd oil those boxes everyday for a week, then every week for a month and finally every month for a year and all the while be listening to those icons as received before I stared in on 'upgrading' anything
that's just me
they're only original once

My intentions exactly. For me, original means in spec caps and a crossover doing what it was designed to do.... 50 year old crossovers can not be expected to perform as new...
 
My intentions exactly. For me, original means in spec caps and a crossover doing what it was designed to do.... 50 year old crossovers can not be expected to perform as new...
but many times they do at least the few times it's happened to me!
enjoy
 
but many times they do at least the few times it's happened to me!
enjoy
I won't do it Willy-nillly. I test to see drift. If they are within 5%, I won't touch. Problem with these potted jobbers, is it takes a lot of effort just to test...
take care!
 
I doubt they were even 5% when they were new
I have never had a cardboard type in tar be bad, yet, I've only been doing this for a little while
I think potting is your friend
 
These are my cabinets, 21 cu ft.

Picture706.jpg
Holy ISKABIBBLE! Those giant cabs make the sizable 604s look like mere midranges. The bass response must be unusually impressive...
 
I must tell all to not heed lightly, the flammability warnings on Linseed Oil... we had a 92f degree day on Sunday, I left the wadded rag I used on the concrete floor. In about 4 hours I smelt a funny smell and picked up the rag. It was HOT, the center of the rag was black, flaky ash. I never saw flames , but spontaneous combustion is real. The garage was about 105f . I now keep those rags on metal outside away from everything :no:.
That's crazy, as I was catching up with this thread I was thinking about saying something about it's incredible propensity to heat up as it dries, just in case you were not aware. Glad nothing terrible happened. I knew they would look great when oiled but man total transformation!! Looking awesome, good work...
 
I doubt they were even 5% when they were new
I have never had a cardboard type in tar be bad, yet, I've only been doing this for a little while
I think potting is your friend
DC leakage is usually a bigger issue than capacitance drift. Additionally, static testing of old caps doesn't always give you an accurate picture of how the cap is performing in circuit under a load. While it can certainly show faults, static testing cannot guarantee a good working, healthy cap.

Then there is the reality that the vintage(70's and back) factory 604 networks fall well short of ideal for their intended drivers.

IMO, effort and expense is far better spent on a scratch build of a network specifically improved for the 604. Jeff Markwart's Corner is an excellent starting place.

Also, the stock networks left original and untouched will yield the highest resale down the road.
 
DC leakage is usually a bigger issue than capacitance drift. Additionally, static testing of old caps doesn't always give you an accurate picture of how the cap is performing in circuit under a load. While it can certainly show faults, static testing cannot guarantee a good working, healthy cap.

Then there is the reality that the vintage(70's and back) factory 604 networks fall well short of ideal for their intended drivers.

IMO, effort and expense is far better spent on a scratch build of a network specifically improved for the 604. Jeff Markwart's Corner is an excellent starting place.

Also, the stock networks left original and untouched will yield the highest resale down the road.

Thanks 427!
I'll look deeper into Markwart x-overs. You make many a good point!
 
DC leakage is usually a bigger issue than capacitance drift. Additionally, static testing of old caps doesn't always give you an accurate picture of how the cap is performing in circuit under a load. While it can certainly show faults, static testing cannot guarantee a good working, healthy cap.

Then there is the reality that the vintage(70's and back) factory 604 networks fall well short of ideal for their intended drivers.

IMO, effort and expense is far better spent on a scratch build of a network specifically improved for the 604. Jeff Markwart's Corner is an excellent starting place.

Also, the stock networks left original and untouched will yield the highest resale down the road.

I was reading Jeff's write up on the 604e pair he played with a while ago... and this was his conclusion:

"The N-1500A filter is hard to equal, much less beat, when using competing parallel type designs with the 604E. An N-1500A filter with upgraded components and an MF EQ circuit added is probably the most cost effective crossover improvement one can make for this classic duplex. "

-Jeff Markwart 4/26/2008; update 1/27/2012 & 6/14/2018

What if I just scratch built an N-1500a replica?
I can't imagine them costing more than 75 bucks each...
then the original crossover can be flipped on the bay...
 
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