AVID thread
- Thread starter mhardy6647
- Start date
Acoustic suspension speakers, of which the Avid is an example, are supposed to filled with damping material. Fiberglass is a very common choice. There are arguments about how exactly the damping material damps but it seems to be through absorbing energy by moving the fibers, and slowing down the speed of sound though interaction with the fibers.
If you take the fiberglass out, the speaker will be louder and less uniform in frequency response since you will have various resonances significantly louder.
If you take the fiberglass out, the speaker will be louder and less uniform in frequency response since you will have various resonances significantly louder.
tomrich22
Well-Known Member
Well where was this Avid thread 6 months ago....LOL I bought a pair of 103's with the stands earlier this year in mint condition for $40 on ebay...They were local and were 1 mile from where I use to live....Not to bad sounding. The highs and midrange are great but I was disappointed in the bass....Maybe the need to have the caps replaced....But then a set of Pioneer HPM 100's came along on the local CL and I bought them. No comparison.....Being a bass fan I am using the HMP 100 in my system, and the Avids are in the closet. I may use them in the garage next summer or sell them, not sure yet.
DonQuixote99
just give me some truth
Well, I've been spending the evening digging up what bits I can about the Avid 101s, having just scored a pair at a thrift here. Mine are apparently a bit different than the ones Saint Johnny was describing in this thread back in '07. He reported the 'ambience' tweeters on both sides and on the back; I've only got them on the sides. His speakers date to over a year later than mine, though. Avid apparently made a change.
In this evening's listening I found myself liking them a lot, but there was less high-end clarity and beauty than with my Boston A-60s. But there is an intriging point made in a 1977 review that's now online, a Popular Mechanics "Mid-Price" speaker roundup (There's great info on a number on vintage speakers in this). Anyway, regarding the 101, they say you have to place it just right. If you do, you get "spacious sound;" if you don't, you get phase interference and a lack of clarity on the high end.
So I wonder how the heck one is supposed to place it?
In this evening's listening I found myself liking them a lot, but there was less high-end clarity and beauty than with my Boston A-60s. But there is an intriging point made in a 1977 review that's now online, a Popular Mechanics "Mid-Price" speaker roundup (There's great info on a number on vintage speakers in this). Anyway, regarding the 101, they say you have to place it just right. If you do, you get "spacious sound;" if you don't, you get phase interference and a lack of clarity on the high end.
So I wonder how the heck one is supposed to place it?
DonQuixote99
just give me some truth
I also wonder why that PM article praises Hegeman speakers (of which I know nothing) but does not include any EPI units....
Mine are a little different, too. Black and not brown. But no tweeter on the rear, which is what I suspect all 101's are like. I think the poster meant tweeters on three sides (front, left and right.) I could be wrong though. I can say that they still sound fantastic and the surrounds are still solid after 30+ years!
JoeDotCom
Super Member
Avid 103s From July 12 1977
Hi AK, (this is my first post here)
Just thought I would jump in here and post my couple of initial (cameraphone) pics of my new Avid 103's and ask a question...
When i got these they had blown 2A fuses in them, should I replace w/ 2A again? I cant seem to find any documentation to show what fuses belong in there. Any advice?
I am hoping to take some better pics once I get them working/tested.
-Joe
Hi AK, (this is my first post here)
Just thought I would jump in here and post my couple of initial (cameraphone) pics of my new Avid 103's and ask a question...
When i got these they had blown 2A fuses in them, should I replace w/ 2A again? I cant seem to find any documentation to show what fuses belong in there. Any advice?
I am hoping to take some better pics once I get them working/tested.
-Joe
Attachments
DonQuixote99
just give me some truth
Welcome to AK, JoeDotCom.
Hope someone responds to your querry. But if not, find someone who said they have 103s and who is currently active, and try a private message to them. I've gotten excellent helpful results with that approach.
Hope someone responds to your querry. But if not, find someone who said they have 103s and who is currently active, and try a private message to them. I've gotten excellent helpful results with that approach.
JoeDotCom
Super Member
Thanks Don, I will wait a bit, then stalk some other 103 owners.
thanks!
JoeDotCom
Super Member
2A 250/ fuse in my set of 103's:yes::thmbsp:..My 102's have 5A 32v in them:scratch2: Be sure to set
them up with tweets on the inside while listening so that they connect 'Sonically.( Tweets).
a) thanks for checking!
b) tweets on the inside, i will try that.
(is that a standard thing or 103 specific?)+:thmbsp:
kydog
Super Member
a) thanks for checking!
b) tweets on the inside, i will try that.
I read an article on speaker placement from this link www.soundfountain.com/amb/speaker.html given to me on a recent tread I started on Altec 887a Capri speakers. The longer sound waves from the Mid/Low mid drivers interfere with the shorter waves of the tweeters if they are asymmetrical (off centered)in design. By placing them on the inside they connect sonically for a better sound stage.Symmetrical (centered drivers) Don't have this problem.From what I gathered it's a standard thing. You want the tweets " Connected" as the sound moves through space with no interference. Interesting article:yes:
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DonQuixote99
just give me some truth
This would seem to mean there's going to issues with the Avid 101's, since they have side-firing tweets on both sides of each box. I've never had them in places where I've had a lot of freedom to experiment, but my guess is you want the outside tweets to NOT find a nearby hard surface to reflect-from. The old Popular Mechanics article I refer to above says that placement for the 101s is critical, but offers no clues as to how to place them....
kydog
Super Member
There is a reference to side firing woofers and the need for them to be placed inside. The point of the tweets is to not allow Mid/Low waves to blur them by crossing paths. I assume dampening panels would work to absorb and not reflect the "outside" tweets".Of the 101's:scratch2:
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JoeDotCom
Super Member
2A 250/ fuse in my set of 103's:yes::thmbsp:
them up with tweets on the inside while listening so that they connect 'Sonically.( Tweets).
My choices on hand were 4A and 1A, so I had my 'technician" install the 1A's and we rocked out. I posted some more pics of the 103's in action along with some of my other gear in the member system thread: http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=373951
I tried to observe tweeter placement, however the 103's i have are not mirrored (is that the right term?), so i was stuck having the tweets on the right for both sides.
thanks again for the help! :thmbsp:
:thmbsp:
JamesDean59
Well-Known Member
Hey everyone just thought I'd chime in with my 103's
You'll have to excuse the wire mess and other miscellaneous low-end electronics. Theres some other hi-fi stuff hiding in the pics too and off in other cabinets.
Woooo post #100!
My dad was telling me that when you'd stack 103's like that they would then be "called" 206's. He was telling me when I got my black set I'd have a set of 309's lol.
You'll have to excuse the wire mess and other miscellaneous low-end electronics. Theres some other hi-fi stuff hiding in the pics too and off in other cabinets.
Woooo post #100!
My dad was telling me that when you'd stack 103's like that they would then be "called" 206's. He was telling me when I got my black set I'd have a set of 309's lol.
