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AR9's in the house, 2018

BobHol

BobHol

Old fart
Just couldn't wait anymore before starting this thread. Sunday afternoon. Chores done for the day after silent worship with local Quaker group. Chilling, listening to some Zappa with more than enough alcohol. A great family from the Quaker meeting are moving back south(Florida). They've got some HiFi stuff that hasn't been used since moving to Fort Wayne maybe 6 years ago. Would I like: Pair of AR-9's, Hafler DH-500, Rotel Pre-amp.(Free!)
OMG yes.
This started three weeks ago and I've spent a lot of free time reading about AR9's and Hafler amps.
I'll be the third owner of the speakers. One re-foam in their past. Probably no re-cap. They may be here tomorrow. The Hafler amp may have issues.
I'm a student of Eastern Philosophy, so I have a narrow definition of Karma compared to how the word is used here. .But this is really messing me up.Like as if Zappa and Whiskey can't play with a mind.
More to follow . I promise. Does this forum have a policy about about posting under the influence? (Thank you spell check! )
 
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I don't drink, but I'd find a way to celebrate too, if that system fell in my lap! Even if it wasn't free! Awesome, and I look forward to pictures and updates. orangeyes (1).gif
 
They have arrived. Did initial inspection. The AR-9's are in very nice shape. The boxes are sound. No water damage. The Veneer is all there. A few nicks, scratches and faded areas. Tweeters look good. Upper-Mids have one partial pushed in dome. Lower-Mid(8 incher) need refoaming though only one is falling apart. No signs of abuse. The woofers(2 per box) had been re-foamed. But then the next question is were they the correct surrounds. The Masonite rings are in place for all woofers, but the outer diameter of the surround is 1/4 bigger per side. So it looks a bit sloppy. But the woofers are sealed as far as I can tell. I gently pushed in a woofer on the one unit with a good mid and it was slower in returning than the other unit. Serial numbers are K 111991 and 111911. I had to look at the number a few times cause I thought they were the same. I'm going to start a separate thread for the Hafler DH-500 that came with the speakers. It may have a few issues.
 

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Those decent enough for free...! :D

And that "Upper-Mids have one partial pushed in dust cap" issue needs to be resolved. That is the actual dome diaphragm, and not a dust cap. Try to pop it back out, if you feel comfortable enough to try? A paper towel cardboard tube works, if placed over the dome, to "suck it out". A low powered vacuum can work too. Just be careful, as it's not hard to pull the dome from the voice coil gap. Even warming the dome, before and after, with a blow dryer, can help reshape it back to stock. It's actually more cosmetic, as the dome will probably sound fine as-is. Only dispersion might suffer?

A good save, and I hope you enjoy the speakers and equipment! :thumbsup:
 
A few more details. I will not try to use the Hafler at first. I have a Adcom GFA-6000 that does 150 wps@4 ohm. But I won't assume that it will be powerful enough. I'll farm out the lower-mid refoam. I'm eager to see the internal condition and expect I'll swap out the Callins or/or other small caps for Murdorf E-caps since that seems to be the current favorite. I'll leave the large caps and rsisters unless I have to change them. But I will play them for awhile(after re-foam) before I start swapping out caps.
 
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I have friends that own AR9's and AR90's, and they both liked the sound of the Mundorf E-Caps. They should be a good choice, without breaking the bank.

Also, of all the capacitors in the 9's, the 4uF, 6uF, 24uF, and 80uF are (to me) most important. They are the high pass series capacitors, directly in line with the drivers. I'd at least upgrade those to new.

Good luck.
 
StimpyWan said:
Those decent enough for free...! :D

And that "Upper-Mids have one partial pushed in dust cap" issue needs to be resolved. That is the actual dome diaphragm, and not a dust cap. Try to pop it back out, if you feel comfortable enough to try? A paper towel cardboard tube works, if placed over the dome, to "suck it out". A low powered vacuum can work too. Just be careful, as it's not hard to pull the dome from the voice coil gap. Even warming the dome, before and after, with a blow dryer, can help reshape it back to stock. It's actually more cosmetic, as the dome will probably sound fine as-is. Only dispersion might suffer?

A good save, and I hope you enjoy the speakers and equipment! :thumbsup:
Click to expand...
I will have all foam work done before hooking these up to an amp
Thanks for the info on the upper-mid. I have never had much luck with sucking out dust caps or domes. The trick seems to be finding the right size tube or hose and then getting that to seal around the cone so that the suction can do its work. I will be careful. And I may take it along when I drop off the lower-mid to be re-foamed.
 
What a score! Holy maguffies.

Man those woofer surrounds look hinky but just around the outside edge. They look darn close to the right size of roll from here though.

Unless the speakers have been played very recently, I would recap the upper crossovers before playing. Mine had at least one of the black caps with red ends LEAKING when I went in.

150 wpc at 4 ohms is probably OK for moderate listening but you'll probably want to get the Hafler fixed and then biamp them. Tweeters cost $75 from Midwest if you underpower them. Ask me how I know. :biggrin:
 
The switches in those go bad. They are available from mouser (exact replacement )
Sometimes cleaning doesn t get them right.
 
Holy maguiffies?? But yeah I haven't been so nervous, worried, anxious about material objects since I was a kid waiting for Christmas. But I know that there has to be some "opposite and equal" action to balance things out. I'm not saying that something "bad" has to happen. But as an example I have some other stereo equipment that has value but I may never get around to getting it in shape to use it. If I can find someone who wants it I'd be better off. Three years ago I had a local rummage sale that went very well as far as clearing out stuff. I could do that. Bartertown may work also.
The definition of Karma that I have from Eastern Philosophy is that Karma is the rope that ties you to the fruit of your actions. This rope needs to be severed so that we can truly enjoy what life has to offer. I do enjoy the fruits. I do like having great stuff but I can't let it turn me into a nervous wreck. And no I am not going to unload the AR9's. Not until I am too old and feeble to move them.
 
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nj pheonix said:
The switches in those go bad. They are available from mouser (exact replacement )
Sometimes cleaning doesn t get them right.
Click to expand...

Thanks
Do the switches get so bad they don't pass current/sound? Or just create extra resistance. I've seen articles here on AK about changing them. I believe I saw that the switch mounting board is screwed on instead of glue and nails.

If I put "AR9" in the AK search box I get 20 pages of discussion. Plus links to other forums. Plus the huge manual from AR.
 
The AR9 is well worth the effort of reconditioning/restoration.

Congratulations on your good fortune.:beerchug:
 
BobHol said:
Thanks
Do the switches get so bad they don't pass current/sound? Or just create extra resistance. I've seen articles here on AK about changing them. I believe I saw that the switch mounting board is screwed on instead of glue and nails.

If I put "AR9" in the AK search box I get 20 pages of discussion. Plus links to other forums. Plus the huge manual from AR.
Click to expand...

In certain positions driver/s could be off
 
Actually it should have been "Holy McGuffies!" which is an alternative to "Holy fargin' balloofies!" which is my regular go-to when trying to put into words this: :yikes: or this: :eek2:

:biggrin:

Speaking of karma, I ended up at AK after finding a Pioneer SX-1250, broken and free, in 2005. AK helped me get it fixed and right now it's actually powering the top half of my AR9's. Turned out to be quite a find, because it brought me to AK, and I've always thought of that event as related in some way to karma or destiny. :bigok: I do understand your desire not to get too attached to objects; it is a tension between enjoying beautiful things and materialism that we struggle with our entire lives. Price of being human I guess. As one of AK's finest repair technicians said to me after fixing the 1250, when I was fretting about keeping it cool and preventing breakdowns: "Don't worry about it, just play the damn thing!" :banana:
 
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The switches in my AR90s have seemed to have held up well. Though more robust than the 9 switches, they aren't as pretty.

The 9 switch panel is easy to remove. The black trim inserts, around each switch, pops off. The mounting screws are under them.
 
Oh, that DH500 should make for a good match. I have one too, but it needs a recap. I'll more than likely completely rebuild the boards, since they're PC-10's. One of my many projects. :p
 
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