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ACOUSTIC RESEARCH CLASSIC 5 CHECK?

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Pacinko

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Listing photos are correct. How can you trust Google when it returns
images of guitars, ping-pong paddles, pianos, and Scotch-Brite?

The AR-5 is a different beast from a different era.
 
Just 2 different series of speakers with similar names. There's the early AR-5 and the later model called a Classic 5. The original AR-5 was released in 1968. It's a 3-way speaker, a bit of a scaled down AR-3a, that uses a 10" woofer. The Classic 5 was a much newer design, released in 1993. It's a small 2-way speaker, with a 5" woofer. Both good, but the original AR-5 is the real classic...! :)
 
StimpyWan said:
Just 2 different series of speakers with similar names. There's the early AR-5 and the later model called a Classic 5. The original AR-5 was released in 1968. It's a 3-way speaker, a bit of a scaled down AR-3a, that uses a 10" woofer. The Classic 5 was a much newer design, released in 1993. It's a small 2-way speaker, with a 5" woofer. Both good, but the original AR-5 is the real classic...! :)
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Ahh that's what was confusing me. Thanks for that! How do you think the Classic 5 compares to the AR-6?
 
Pacinko said:
Ahh that's what was confusing me. Thanks for that! How do you think the Classic 5 compares to the AR-6?
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AR-6 or Classic 6...? :biggrin:

Unfortunately, I haven't heard either. The closest I've came, is an AR-18, that I used as a center speaker. That has a relaxed, musical sound. Very mellow, with no fatigue.
 
ARs confusing naming system makes it hard to search for speakers like the Classic series. It doesn't help that this series went under the radar and even the most hard-core AR guys barley know it exists.

I've never heard the Classic 5, but I do own a pair of Classic 18s. They're one of the finest sounding speakers I've listened to. If the 5s react the same as the 18s, placement is important. They will also probably need new caps and possibly new fluid in the tweeter.
 
I think the AR-5 are generally under appreciated, they compare reasonably well to the famous AR-3/AR-3a's. May not have quite the same base punch but for my listening they do very well. If you find a pair at a fair price point I would encourage you to acquire them. As you can see I may be a bit biased towards vintage AR speakers.
 
craggd said:
I think the AR-5 are generally under appreciated, they compare reasonably well to the famous AR-3/AR-3a's. May not have quite the same base punch but for my listening they do very well. If you find a pair at a fair price point I would encourage you to acquire them. As you can see I may be a bit biased towards vintage AR speakers.
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Wrong ARs
 
This "Classic 5" comes from a line of ported AR-branded speakers that most fans of AR's acoustic suspension speakers like to pretend never happened. These are not the same as the Classic/Limited series of 1992, but are much later. You won't find them listed on most online AR timelines.
 
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