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Salvation Army Thrift Store Find

rushfan

rushfan

Super Member
Hi all,

I finally took the opportunity to check out a local SA thrift store that I have driven past at least half a dozen times since becoming an AK member a little over one year ago. I was late for a family BBQ but couldn't bear driving by one more time without stopping in. I'm glad that I did!

I was in too much of a hurry to really dig around for electronics and saw precious little other than a couple pairs of really cheap speakers, but on my way out I spotted a sturdy looking pair of light coloured speakers. As soon as I got close to them I knew that I had found something worthwhile. I had found a pair of Rega branded two-way speakers, made just a few miles away from here in Gatineau, Quebec.

The Rega Model 3 speakers that I found feature dome tweeters and 6.5" woofers in fairly large ported enclosures. The drivers are in very good condition but the veneer and grilles will need a little bit of work. One cabinet shows some signs of water staining on top and the grille fabric has lifted away from the frames in a couple of places but these minor cosmetic problems should be easy to fix.

I wasn't able to learn much about the Model 3's other than they were Canadian designed and manufactured and that they licensed the Rega name exclusively for the Canadian market. I believe that they changed the name to Camber for export. I saw one quote of a $700 list price but that strikes me as a little steep. Perhaps Bolly can fill in some details? :D

You're probably wondering how much I paid for them. They weren't stickered so I flagged down a staffer and asked their price. He gave a very attractive answer - $20 for the pair! Just for the heck of it, I offered $15 - and they accepted! But it gets better. As the cashier rang up the sale, she mentioned that I was entitled to a 25% discount so I snagged these babies for $12.14, taxes included! I nearly did a jig when an employee offered to help carry them to the car for me.

I have neither cleaned these up nor listened to them yet, but here are a few pictures for your consideration. Perhaps a fellow Canuck has encounted these speakers before and can offer some commentary?

Thanks for looking!
 

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You're just going to have to hit her with, "But dear, I got a pair of $600.00 speakers for 12 bucks!" :banana:

If there's anything a woman understands, it's a bargain and she may even be proud of you. :D

Doug
 
And tell her with a little work you can make money if SHE does not like the sound. She'll bite and get into it. She'll help sort out the keepers and tell all her friends how she came to understand a bit of her honeys hobby. Just play some music she likes :)
 
Sometimes you can just tell by looking at a speaker that it's going to sound great. Not that you shouldn't hook them up or anything. The guys at Rega have good ears if my more recent pair are anything to go by, even if they contracted these out. Man, I just love the beautiful simplicity of these. Congratulations.
 
And don't you just love rubber surrounds? I hardly ever find rubber surrounds at the thrifts, as shot surrounds seems to be the #1 reason people donate speakers in the first place.

With that in mind, maybe we should also praise rotted foam surrounds for supplying us with our audio-crack.
 
Update

The Regas sound great!

I'm relieved that all of the drivers are working. I don't care for the puny binding posts - they're made for much thinner wire than I like to use. I'd like to upgrade them if possible. I was happy to see rubber surrounds when I pulled off the grilles - I have had some negative experience with decayed surrounds as described in the thread about a pair of JBL L26's that I picked up recently.

The Regas sound a little darker, a wee bit warmer than my Clements 108's, probably due in part to the larger enclosures. The bass isn't quite as deep but for a 6.5" woofer, it strikes me as pretty good. The speakers are keepers, for sure. I might pair them up with a brighter sounding receiver, like one of my Pioneers (SX-780 or SX-880), which might also reinforce the low end a little. It will be interesting to hear them on something not quite as laid back as a Yamaha.

The next phase will be to restore them. There are a couple of chips in the veneer and signs of water staining on the tops of the cabinets. The grille fabric, while undamaged, will have to be reattached in a couple of places. I think that the veneer is walnut. Can anybody confirm or refute that from the photos? I can post close-ups, if that will help.

I'll try to post some before and after pics once the work is done.

I regret it if I made my wife out to sound like the "bad guy" earlier. She's actually a remarkable woman. It's rarely the expense that bothers her since I have a knack for finding fantastic bargains, like this one. It's the time away from her, the house and the kids that causes the most friction. I have been known to let faucets leak for days when caught up in detailing some new piece of equipment or chasing down a ground loop! :tongue: She probably longs for the days when all I used to leave lying around was discarded clothes. Now it's stacks of speakers, components and nests of wires!
 
These Rega speakers had not a thing to do with Rega UK. It was built by Edon Acoustics (Ed and Don, whose names I forgot) in Ottawa. Edon was canadian importer for Rega, Meridian and a few other makes. They also owned a store in Ottawa called "Studio Sound". They used the Rega name with Rega's blessings.

They had intended (with Roy Gandy's permission) to penetrate the US market under the Rega name. Only one problem, the american distributor for Rega objected vehemently and won his case against Edon Acoustics.

Therefore, Edon baptised it Camber and dropped the Rega name from their speaker line. Iirc, the date would be late 1983, early 1984 when the change over happened. They eventually sold Camber to a Montreal businessman and the company went belly up.

This Rega speaker you've just shown brings back a lot of memories. It is the speaker I sold the most. Our Montreal list price (which was inflated of course because of greedy owners) was 500$/pr whereas stores across Canada sold them for a retail of around 350$ if my memory doesn't fail me. I'm happy to say I never, ever sold a pair of those for more than 300$/pr.

They actually offered outstanding performance for the price. They were that good back then and they could go head to head with anything on the market at 2, 3 or 4 times it's price. Sure, you could prefer another maker but they competed. In their time, they were a top contender for an entry level quality system.

A very nice find for such a low price. The tweeter I recall is an Audax (model # escapes me) and I can't recall the mid/bass driver's origin.

I hope you enjoy them, they've brought back fond memories :)!
 
dogscanskate said:
This Rega speaker you've just shown brings back a lot of memories. It is the speaker I sold the most. Our Montreal list price (which was inflated of course because of greedy owners) was 500$/pr whereas stores across Canada sold them for a retail of around 350$ if my memory doesn't fail me. I'm happy to say I never, ever sold a pair of those for more than 300$/pr.

They actually offered outstanding performance for the price. They were that good back then and they could go head to head with anything on the market at 2, 3 or 4 times it's price. Sure, you could prefer another maker but they competed. In their time, they were a top contender for an entry level quality system.

A very nice find for such a low price. The tweeter I recall is an Audax (model # escapes me) and I can't recall the mid/bass driver's origin.

I hope you enjoy them, they've brought back fond memories :)!
Click to expand...

These speakers bear an uncanny resemblance to a DIY design from the late 70's published in a British HiFi magazine (HiFi Answers?). The design was called the "Tabor" and used a 2 cubic foot ported box, Audax HD12x9D25 silk dome tweeter and Audax HD17B25 bextrene woofer (8 inch frame but 6.5 inch cone). It was actually copied and used for a number of commercial variants including Audiomaster and Tangent UK among others. The original design can be credited back to Barry Streets of Badger Sound Services and Malcom Jones of Falcon Acoustics who supplied the crossovers. I built a pair in 1979 while I was in Berkeley and they stayed with me till 2002.

Your speakers look like another commercial variation on that design and it was a very good sounding design although ultimately lacking in any deep bass.

I suspect if you removed the drivers you will find the above in there or a minor variation. The crossover likely includes some Elcap electrolytic caps which by now should be replaced.

Let us know what you find and any pics of the drivers, front and back.

Bart
 
mech986 said:
The crossover likely includes some Elcap electrolytic caps which by now should be replaced.
Click to expand...

I was going to suggest replacing the caps when I read the comment that they sound a little "dark". I bet the old electrolytics are done and some new ones would be a cheap way to put these beauties back in top form. From the looks of them, they're well worth the $5.00 and hour of time it would take.

Take care,

Ed
 
dogscanskate said:
These Rega speakers had not a thing to do with Rega UK. It was built by Edon Acoustics (Ed and Don, whose names I forgot) in Ottawa. Edon was canadian importer for Rega, Meridian and a few other makes. They also owned a store in Ottawa called "Studio Sound". They used the Rega name with Rega's blessings.

They had intended (with Roy Gandy's permission) to penetrate the US market under the Rega name. Only one problem, the american distributor for Rega objected vehemently and won his case against Edon Acoustics.

Therefore, Edon baptised it Camber and dropped the Rega name from their speaker line. Iirc, the date would be late 1983, early 1984 when the change over happened. They eventually sold Camber to a Montreal businessman and the company went belly up.

This Rega speaker you've just shown brings back a lot of memories. It is the speaker I sold the most. Our Montreal list price (which was inflated of course because of greedy owners) was 500$/pr whereas stores across Canada sold them for a retail of around 350$ if my memory doesn't fail me. I'm happy to say I never, ever sold a pair of those for more than 300$/pr.

They actually offered outstanding performance for the price. They were that good back then and they could go head to head with anything on the market at 2, 3 or 4 times it's price. Sure, you could prefer another maker but they competed. In their time, they were a top contender for an entry level quality system.

A very nice find for such a low price. The tweeter I recall is an Audax (model # escapes me) and I can't recall the mid/bass driver's origin.

I hope you enjoy them, they've brought back fond memories :)!
Click to expand...

Now THIS is what I love about AK!

Thanks for filling in some of the details for me. I knew about the "Canada Only" angle from a Google search - in fact, it might have been your reply in another forum that supplied that information.

The Model 3's sound very good. If I hadn't heard the Clements first, I might have been blown away by them, that's how good they are. This pair doesn't look abused, just 25 years old, that's all. I might drill out the binding posts a little to allow for a heavier speaker wire. Is that unadvisable, or OK if not overdone?

Can you tell me if that veneer is walnut? I have a can of Howard Restor-A-Finish in walnut that I would like to try. It sounds like just the thing for this kind of project. http://www.howardproducts.com/restora.htm

Thanks all, for your comments and suggestions. More photos to come.
 
Fast_Eddie said:
I was going to suggest replacing the caps when I read the comment that they sound a little "dark". I bet the old electrolytics are done and some new ones would be a cheap way to put these beauties back in top form. From the looks of them, they're well worth the $5.00 and hour of time it would take.

Take care,

Ed
Click to expand...

Good call, Ed.

I recapped my HPM-100's and the difference was amazing. It was like they were different speakers altogether. These enclosures look pretty accessible so it shouldn't be too difficult a job.

As far as bass extension goes, I swallowed my ego and brought in a subwoofer to help out the HPM's and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. Why bother stressing the woofers when a simple subwoofer can do the job better and more easily?
 
The only finish we ever had was of course "walnut".

Changing the binding posts would be a good idea. Iirc, to remove the drivers, i believe you have to remove the back panel. If you ever get the itch to do this, you can check the crossover capacitors and replace the electrolytic capacitors if they aren't up to spec anymore.

Another area where they improved the Camber 3.5 was by gluing a 2"x4" onto the woofer's magnet and have it rest on the back panel. It looked ugly at the assembly plant (where I saw this) but they said it dampened vibrations. If you ever feel for tweaks as this one is reversible (though tedious) if you don't like the outcome.
 
dogscanskate said:
The only finish we ever had was of course "walnut".

Changing the binding posts would be a good idea. Iirc, to remove the drivers, i believe you have to remove the back panel. If you ever get the itch to do this, you can check the crossover capacitors and replace the electrolytic capacitors if they aren't up to spec anymore.

Another area where they improved the Camber 3.5 was by gluing a 2"x4" onto the woofer's magnet and have it rest on the back panel. It looked ugly at the assembly plant (where I saw this) but they said it dampened vibrations. If you ever feel for tweaks as this one is reversible (though tedious) if you don't like the outcome.
Click to expand...

I can take a pic of that if you like, no biggie opening mine up to show you that.

It looks funny imho.

Also the tweeter looks different in the 3.5, looks more like a vifa than an audax.
and the binding posts on mine are 3 way binding posts.
 
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