Altec 886A project

[nicholas2381]

Picked up a pair of Altec 886A speakers for cheap. Cabs are in beautiful shape with the stock grilles and badges present.

I popped off the grilles and found that one of the 10" woofers needs to be re-foamed. No big deal. But I also discovered that the woofer is non-original. What is that non-original speaker you ask? I have no idea.

I'll post some pictures of everything soon, but I'm hoping somebody can provide some insight on what 10" woofers were used originally, the odds of finding one (there's a pair of passive radiators on the auction site right now) and whether the replacement on hand would be a decent substitute (assuming I can figure out what it is).

So, kindly experts, I ask that you bestow some knowledge on this Altec plebe.

 

[nicholas2381]

Crossover:


Non-original woofer:




Non-original woofer vs. passive radiator:


Both sets:

 

[nicholas2381]

Original woofer:

 

[bowtie427ss]

It is a correct replacement. It reflects a transition from alnico to ferrite.

It is also the correct woofer for the model 893C Corona.

The earlier 893A and 893B models used the same 30684 woofer that your 886A's came with.

 

[nicholas2381]

Fantastic - thank you!

I’ll never know how y’all manage to collect and retain all this info. But I’m grateful you’re willing to share it!

 

[nicholas2381]

It appears I've got a dead tweeter. Resistance measured on DMM is OL. There is the tiniest wisp of a copper wire soldered to the positive terminal but it is not attached to anything. This is the 30685 HF referenced in the chart above.

 

[bowtie427ss]

The phenolic ring tweeters from Parts Express are a satisfactory drop-in replacement. 20 bucks a pop.

If a fella really wanted to splurge, i think the JBL LE-25 clones that Simply Speakers sells could be a big upgrade.

Inexpensive, they are not. They may also require slight modification to the tweeter opening in the baffle.

 

[nicholas2381]

This is good info - thanks!

 

[nicholas2381]

Since I was only replacing one, I went with the phenolic ring tweeter from Parts Express. Figure I should determine if I even want to keep these speakers before I go about expensive upgrades.

thanks again for the info!

 

[nicholas2381]

Finishing touches as I wrap these up.

Had to cut a notch for the terminals in the new tweeter. Filled the old screw holes and drilled new ones.

Refoamed woofer on the left.

Glued and supported cracks in the grille frame and reinstalled.

 

[nicholas2381]

Both play and sound decent! Will be using as tears in my new quad setup.