Ohm Model H Score!

[sysmg]

I'll upload photo's soon. I upgraded them about 10 years ago. I did not buy the SBA. Although I seem to recall that perhaps the SBA was attached to the back of the 8" driver. Also I don't think I have the poly speaker.

A friend was the original owner. I bought them from him in the early 1980s. Had them hooked up to a 200w/ch Pioneer Amp. In the early 90s the amp died, and the speakers sat for about 10 years until I bought a home theater setup. At that point the surrounds were non-existent and I bought the new parts. So I really can't give you a back to back comparison.

The clarity and presence in my Home Theater setup is so obvious that most non-audiophiles can't help but comment on how amazing movies sound.

 

[cpk23]

Here's the SBA and the non-reverse foam job. Who can spot the absent minded mistake??

 

[JazzVinyl]

Haha...Ohm logo running at a 45 degree angle. Easy enough to fix. Thanks for the photos.

Thanks for the SBA photo as well.

Refoam looks good, except the original was reverse roll (as we have already talked about).

 

[sysmg]

Here are the pics of the original OHM factory replacement 8" Woofer and Passive Radiator (Note the unusual surrounds on the passive radiator):

 

[JazzVinyl]

Nice images, sysmg.

I didn't realize the 'Ohm sanctioned' replacement 12" passive had an accordian edge!

Saw one like that on Ebay and thought "that 12 isn't the Ohm speaker".

This thread is turning into quite the compendium of knowledge on the H's.

 

[JazzVinyl]

Wanted to check back in with cpk23...

Do you still have your Ohm H's?

If so, have you sorted things out?

.

 

[bshorey]

Here's the SBA and the non-reverse foam job. Who can spot the absent minded mistake??

So, the 'sub bass activator' is really just a proper crossover coil? Interesting..

bs

 

[JazzVinyl]

SBA: a coil and a cap it looks like. It is probably just limiting the lowest frequency that is presented to the woofer.

I think the Ohm low drivers had huge magnets and lots of excursion, which worked fine in the "Turntable and Cassette as source" days.

But a digital source can send the "bottomless bottom" and this caused problems, maybe?

.

 

[Nat]

I don't think the 8 inch woofer in the OP's pictures is the original woofer. I was curious when he asked whether the surround was the original, and when I looked at the picture, the woofer was completely unlike the ones I remember from the Hs I picked up years ago. My memory is that they had the Ohm labeled dustcap, and they were certainly paper pulp cones (and the ones in the picture look plastic) and they had foam surrounds, which I had to replace, and what a challenge, since the magnetic gap is very small, and the excursion very big. The woofer had a magnet bigger than that on most 12s and even some 15s.
And yes, I know size isn't everything, but the magnet was almost as big as the basket, so it was kind of noticeable.

 

[cdfac]

refurbed (if not all) H's are weak in the bass department. if this isn't a problem with original H's (as i have never heard an original pair), then it may indeed have something to do with the stiff surround on the new drivers. my impression was that the SBA is an LC resonance circuit designed to cancel out the ordinary impedance spike of the woofer/passive combo (a la the Infinity Kappa 9, but tamer). it should extend the bass at least another half octave.

here are what my totally refurbed pair looked like:

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[nissan guy]

I don't think the 8 inch woofer in the OP's pictures is the original woofer. I was curious when he asked whether the surround was the original, and when I looked at the picture, the woofer was completely unlike the ones I remember from the Hs I picked up years ago. My memory is that they had the Ohm labeled dustcap, and they were certainly paper pulp cones (and the ones in the picture look plastic) and they had foam surrounds, which I had to replace, and what a challenge, since the magnetic gap is very small, and the excursion very big. The woofer had a magnet bigger than that on most 12s and even some 15s.
And yes, I know size isn't everything, but the magnet was almost as big as the basket, so it was kind of noticeable.

The 8" in the op's picture is in fact an upgrade directly from ohm. They used that woofer in the later frs series of speakers. So it is not original but it is correct and directly from ohm. I had frs-7's which used that same woofer. I recently sold those and got a set of frs-11. Once i opened one of the cans to take a look i noticed they had the same plastic or poly woofer. I have not had a chance to mess around with mine yet as i want to send them to ohm to have the surrounds done.

I also emailed with John s. the owner of ohm when i got my frs-7's to see if the woofers were original a while back. He confirmed with me that they were original.

 

[Nat]

Makes sense.

 

[JazzVinyl]

It sure would be interesting to compare the original drivers (refoamed) to the Ohm replacements.

I use to have a pair of EPI's with a 6.5" woofer and a 10" passive, and they were definitely "bass light".

.

 

[cpk23]

Sorry for the delay...

I do still have the H's and I'm enjoying them every day. I'm convinced the lack of bass must have been a break in thing. I use them with a Yamaha CA-810, and at first I had the 500Hz switch engaged and the bass knob up and 3-4 depending on the music. Now, if at all, I use the 125Hz switch with the bass knob at 1-2 to put a little extra bottom on a kick drum. They perform beautifully and were recently used (flat EQ) to scrutinize 3 newly mixed and 1 newly mastered album from a well known producer friend of mine. He loves how even the response is.

Again, I hope I don't spoil a score for anyone on getting a pair of OHM H's in the future, but these are truly great speakers.

 

[Sharpstik]

There is a pair of H's at the thrift for 30.00 . I got a chance to listen to them. Everything works and there is no dry rot. Maybe I should have bought them.

 

[Rome]

There is a pair of H's at the thrift for 30.00 . I got a chance to listen to them. Everything works and there is no dry rot. Maybe I should have bought them.

Yea Dave!

If you don't want 'em I'll surely make it worth your while!

Rome

 

[Sharpstik]

Don, if someone wanted them here, I'd pick them up for them.

 

[Rome]

Hi Dave!

That would be a great thing for them. I just never see these speaks around these parts for sale, especially at that ridiculous price.

The shipping would be just too much for me anyway. I do hope you or someone from AK gets to enjoy them.

I'll keep hoping to own a nice pair of H's someday soon!

Rome

 

[mswanson65]

HI all, I just picked up a pair of Hs. Just about done with the re-foam. I reversed the foam on the passives, thanks for the tip. I haven't listened to these yet but I see that my low tweeter in the bottom right corner is not the correct ones. Does anyone know if the same driver can be found on some of the other models? Hard to tell from the Ohm site. thanks!

 

[mswanson65]

Here is a picture. I got them together tonight and they sound surprisingly good. maybe a little on the bright side. The tweeter in the lower right hand corner (the same on each speaker) does not look original. I wonder if that is what is causing them to sound bright because, if I am not mistaken, that is where the low tweeter is supposed to be. These do have the low freq upgrade to the woofer. They sound great, not sure if I should put any more $$ into them. The low tweeter can still be gotten new off the Ohm web site for $45 each.