• The move to the new server is done. There are some software and database maintenance updates in process. This has us passing the hat around to help out. We appreciate any donations. Seriously, even a dollar helps. The payment page may be found here - https://www.audiokarma.org/support.html

Heath SA-2A speaker

justrideit

justrideit

Busy, busy, busy
I got these awhile back. The back of the woofer says AR. Someone told me these were the forerunner to an AR model. I don't remember which model though. These were made in Benton Harbor, Michigan.
There is barely any sound coming from the mid / tweeter. I opened them up and found some pretty old looking caps. I wonder if that's the problem? New ones are on order.
Also noticed the mids are "wavy". Still should make sound. Just maybe not as accurate as when the shape was correct?
I thought the tweeter connection was interesting. Why did they do it that way?
Has anyone got a set of these? If so, how do they sound? What year are they? What's their history and the history of Heath?
 

Attachments

  • Heath AS-2A speaker both caps2.jpg
    Heath AS-2A speaker both caps2.jpg
    143.3 KB · Views: 42
  • Heath AS-2A speaker front view of both.jpg
    Heath AS-2A speaker front view of both.jpg
    130.7 KB · Views: 86
  • Heath AS-2A speaker mid driver2.jpg
    Heath AS-2A speaker mid driver2.jpg
    178 KB · Views: 45
  • Heath AS-2A speaker instruction sheet.jpg
    Heath AS-2A speaker instruction sheet.jpg
    136.9 KB · Views: 42
Register to hide this ad
I've got some Heath AS-10 speakers that I don't know anything about.

Did your's have fronts on them that look like burlap sacks ?

If so how did you get them off and are you able to put them back ?

There's about twenty screws holding the backs of mine on, I haven't taken the time to open them up yet.
 
There are no screws on the back. I had to take the woofer off to get to the inerds.
One speaker had the burlap cloth torn so I peeled the rest of it off. Turns out the cloth is glued to a thin board. The board slips into a groove. See if you can move the grill around as if it is lose. If so, try to move it all the way in one direction, then try to pry the opposite end out of its groove.

To reinstall, you slip the board into the upper groove, bend it slightly and insert it into the bottom groove.

PM me your e-mail and I will take a bunch of pictures so you can see what I'm describing.
 
Those are Heathkit's version of the AR2a, made by Acoustic Research in the early to mid 60s. They replaced the AR-2 and were themselves replaced by the AR2ax.
The double mids are supposed to be wavy, as there is damping insulation directly behind them.
As for the the low output of the mid/tweeter, it could be the caps, but it is also likely that corrosion on the control pots is preventing them from outputing what they are capable of. There is a wealth of information on this site on dealing with this problem.
You may also want to check out the info available on the Classic Speaker site........I did a search for AR2a and came up with this:
http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/...ch_in=posts&result_type=topics&highlite=+ar2a

Good luck........they are definitely worth putting some time and energy into. :D
 
I opened one of the pots and it was squeeky clean. They all feel smooth. I will wait until I install the new caps and give a listen again.
 
ivel said:
I've got some Heath AS-10 speakers that I don't know anything about.

Did your's have fronts on them that look like burlap sacks ?

If so how did you get them off and are you able to put them back ?

There's about twenty screws holding the backs of mine on, I haven't taken the time to open them up yet.
Click to expand...
I did a bit of research and have discovered that it's quite likely the AS-10 is Heath's version of the AR-2, an AR speaker with a 10" woofer and 2 cone tweeters, the same tweeters used as midranges in the AR-2a. Getting the grills off is a tedious and time consuming process, as they are often held on with both staples and glue. Carefully prying around the edges with a stiff 2" putty knife will sometimes cause the grills to loosen a bit so they can be pried off. Hope this helps. :D
 
DaWoofer said:
Is that tweet the famous "fried egg" used in the Advents? Or is that just considered a dome tweet?
Click to expand...
The dome tweeter used in the AR-2a is an 8 ohm version of the 4 ohm tweeter used in the AR-3. It was introduced well over a decade before the introduction of the orange "fried egg" tweeter developed by Henry Kloss for the original Advent loudspeaker. Many people consider the AR tweeter to be the first dome tweeter ever, although there is some controversy regarding that claim. :D
 
joelongwood said:
I did a bit of research and have discovered that it's quite likely the AS-10 is Heath's version of the AR-2, an AR speaker with a 10" woofer and 2 cone tweeters, the same tweeters used as midranges in the AR-2a.
Click to expand...

Is that a good thing ?



joelongwood said:
Getting the grills off is a tedious and time consuming process, as they are often held on with both staples and glue. Carefully prying around the edges with a stiff 2" putty knife will sometimes cause the grills to loosen a bit so they can be pried off. Hope this helps. :D
Click to expand...

Thanks.
 
Are you certain the mids are supposed to be wavy? I have a pair of Heath AR clones and the damping insulation behind the mids had expanded to the point of pushing the voicecoil out of the gap. Somehow I don't think a wavy distorted cone was what they were shooting for...

Way back when I asked GordonW about fixing mine, he suggested ditching the dual mids for a single with better performance. If you hunt around AK you should find the specific driver he suggested.

The orange dome tweeter looks a lot like one in a Fisher speaker I saw at a thrift recently (XP-9 four way I think)
 
gonzothegreat said:
Are you certain the mids are supposed to be wavy? I have a pair of Heath AR clones and the damping insulation behind the mids had expanded to the point of pushing the voicecoil out of the gap. Somehow I don't think a wavy distorted cone was what they were shooting for...

Way back when I asked GordonW about fixing mine, he suggested ditching the dual mids for a single with better performance. If you hunt around AK you should find the specific driver he suggested.

The orange dome tweeter looks a lot like one in a Fisher speaker I saw at a thrift recently (XP-9 four way I think)
Click to expand...
gonzo, I don't disagree with you that you don't think "a wavy distorted cone was what they were shooting for..." However, I think it is inevitable, after all these years of having pie shaped pieces of insulation shoved up against their backs, that these cones have become rippled somewhat. I think someone would be hard pressed to find an example of these speakers that were not wavy or rippled at least a little bit.
As for the suggestion to replace the dual mid, AR did just that, and created the first version of the AR 2ax. They even sold a kit which included a screw-on plate so that the owner of the 2a could convert it into a 2ax.
 
If I had issues with the quad mids on an AR-2a, I'd certainly think about picking up a pair of 2ax midrange drivers (also used as tweeters in the AR-4), cutting adapter boards, and doing the conversion. There's something to be said about historical authenticity, too, though - so it's your call.

There's a couple chaps on ebay selling replacement AR grill cloth, but the AR cognoscenti on the Classic Speaker Pages are now endorsing this as a direct replacement for the original cloth.

Good luck! Restoring ARs seems to be a particular subset of the vintage obsession.
 
joelongwood said:
gonzo, I don't disagree with you that you don't think "a wavy distorted cone was what they were shooting for..." However, I think it is inevitable, after all these years of having pie shaped pieces of insulation shoved up against their backs, that these cones have become rippled somewhat. I think someone would be hard pressed to find an example of these speakers that were not wavy or rippled at least a little bit.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I think this was another case of AR's insulation (rock wool iirc) biting them in the ass. My guess is that the insulation absorbed moisture and expanded.

WRT the midrange mod, I have a pair of the ugly-as-sin AR2ax mids with the metal grill and the dreaded insulation waiting for my Heaths to emerge from the project pile. While the AR mids might be more authentic, I trust Gordon's ear enough to know his take on this would sound at least as good if not better. Gordon's mod doesn't have a big wad of insulaton nor an ugly grill to mess with the dispersion.
 
justrideit, you asked about the "unusual" connection for the tweeter. Well that early AR tweeter had aluminum wires which are tough to solder in a factory let alone in a kit builder's basement.

I'd clean those screw terminals well! Please remember you do have dissimilar metals in contact. Clean the wires also as you could get an oxide build up on them as well.

As for the lack of sound, I'd guess the pots are the problem. Try by-passing and see if this solves the problem. To by-pass, just solder the wiper lead to the top of the pot.



Regards,
Jerry
 
What is the wiper lead?

"just solder the wiper lead to the top of the pot." - You mean solder to the pot housing?

Why can't I just connect a jumper wire accross the pot?
 
Never, never just jumper the wires as this leaves the pot in the circuit. Then if a child were to move the control all the way shorting the speaker AND the pot winding, total output of your amp would be driving a cap!!

You'll soon experience that magic white smoke coming out of your amp.

Instead, remove the wiper lead (this is the lead going only to the speaker - it's usually on the oposite side of the pot from the other two leads) and solder it to the top of the pot.

One of those other two leads on the pot is the input and traces back to the input terminals on the back of the speaker. This is the bottom of the pot, you want to solder that loose lead to the top of the pot, which is the remaining terminal.

This mod is equivalent to setting the pot to it's maximum output position, but by-passes all the corrosion in the pot.

Regard,
Jerry
 
AR-2family1961.jpg


AR-2x1966.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom