I was thinking about this as well, has anybody done anything to upgrade these guys other than refoaming them? I'd think that upgrading the crossover components would be a good thing since a lot of these are 20 to almost 30 years old now. Anyone done anything?
Boston Acoustics A200 - wow!
- Thread starter simonz
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I was thinking about this as well, has anybody done anything to upgrade these guys other than refoaming them? I'd think that upgrading the crossover components would be a good thing since a lot of these are 20 to almost 30 years old now. Anyone done anything?
Yeah, if you kept the same crossover points, power handling and impedance, perhaps you could improve on the sound quality without messing things up. At the very least you could freshen up the x-overs by rebuilding them to specs with modern transistors, coils and caps.
"How I improved the SQ of my A200's in mere moments this morning"
For the past year or two I've been b1+ching and moaning about the SQ from my BA A200's. They're the oldies with the SEAS tweeters. I'd refoamed them and was fairly disappointed with the bass response... the mids/highs just got out in front of the fairly feeble bass. My A150's all spanked the A200's for bass.
A few months ago I swapped in a pair of BA 10" woofers refoamed by a friend who I know is extremely good at this sort of thing. INSTANT bass improvement, but still the balance of highs to lows just wasn't quite perfect... the high end could almost get shrill compared to the bass output.
For the record, I've been driving the A200's with a Yamaha CR-2040 (I love it!). The amp doesn't really get into its sweet spot until you get the volume past the 9 o'clock position.
My instant SQ improvement was to back the Loudness knob all the way off, dial in some nice beefy volume (about 10:30 to 11 o'clock) and roll the Loudness back in to taste (about 5:30 to 6 0'clock on the dial). This created some huge fat bass (just a 10" sealed up) and a fantastic tonal balance through the A200's I'd never heard before.
So for all the times I dogged these speakers, and the years I've had them- it was a coincidental tweak on the stereo that really kicked the SQ to a whole new level. I think they just stepped out ahead of my Advent Maestros.
And it was FREE!:thmbsp:
I will now consider rebuilding the crossovers cause the A200's rock!
For the past year or two I've been b1+ching and moaning about the SQ from my BA A200's. They're the oldies with the SEAS tweeters. I'd refoamed them and was fairly disappointed with the bass response... the mids/highs just got out in front of the fairly feeble bass. My A150's all spanked the A200's for bass.
A few months ago I swapped in a pair of BA 10" woofers refoamed by a friend who I know is extremely good at this sort of thing. INSTANT bass improvement, but still the balance of highs to lows just wasn't quite perfect... the high end could almost get shrill compared to the bass output.
For the record, I've been driving the A200's with a Yamaha CR-2040 (I love it!). The amp doesn't really get into its sweet spot until you get the volume past the 9 o'clock position.
My instant SQ improvement was to back the Loudness knob all the way off, dial in some nice beefy volume (about 10:30 to 11 o'clock) and roll the Loudness back in to taste (about 5:30 to 6 0'clock on the dial). This created some huge fat bass (just a 10" sealed up) and a fantastic tonal balance through the A200's I'd never heard before.
So for all the times I dogged these speakers, and the years I've had them- it was a coincidental tweak on the stereo that really kicked the SQ to a whole new level. I think they just stepped out ahead of my Advent Maestros.
And it was FREE!:thmbsp:
I will now consider rebuilding the crossovers cause the A200's rock!
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For what it's worth, I really enjoy my A200's that I purchased off CL a year or two ago. When I get my McIntosh 2205 (someday!), I hope that they will be a good pairing. Right now, my Adcom 710 and 535 are doing respectable duty.
The best part is that my wife actually enjoys the way the LOOK.
The best part is that my wife actually enjoys the way the LOOK.
I'm surprised your wife doesn't mind the height and width.... kinda tough to sneak into a room. Do you have walnut or oak cabinets? Regardless, you are a lucky man!
The first Acoustic Suspension speakers I owned, a pair of BA 70 II's seemed to play best with fine-tune teaking of the loudness and tone controls. I would use the loudness control but back off the bass a couple dB's. This seemed to bring the bass up to where I liked it. Trouble was I had under-powered the speakers with a 50 watt per channel Technics SU-V40 and after a few years, the woofers pretty-much blew. I replaced the woofers once.
I think the difference is that the Technics SU-V40 had a low centre frequency for it's bass control something like 20 or 50 hz, as opposed to receivers/amps with 100 hz centre frequencies for bass.
I'm looking for an older Technics amp much like I had before, only a bit more powerful.
I think the difference is that the Technics SU-V40 had a low centre frequency for it's bass control something like 20 or 50 hz, as opposed to receivers/amps with 100 hz centre frequencies for bass.
I'm looking for an older Technics amp much like I had before, only a bit more powerful.
I have had the A400's for a week now and after many hours of listening time I have to say these have found a permanent home in one of my listening rooms. They do everything well as far as I am concerned and are a pleasure to listen to no matter what kind of music I choose. I am driving these with a Adcom GFA555II. This amp has no trouble with their 4 ohm load and drives them effortlessly.
I hope I can $150 for mine, but I doubt it. Don't get me wrong, they sound decent, but I have a few pair of speakers I like better.
I powered them with 150wpc and seems about right, but my room isn't very big.
shortcuttomo
Active Member
Interesting. Are you aware that the CR-2020 is rated for 8 Ohm minimum? I would think the A400s are a fairly difficult load for that receiver. I'm a little surprised it sounds so good - I assume you play at lower volumes?
I ran my A200s primarily through a CR-2020 and enjoyed the sound, but it tended towards brightness. My room was also a little bright, but this Yammy is definitely not a "warm" sounding amp and the A200s accentuated the clinical sound.
Greg
I find Bostons bright in general. My room may add to it though. The A150's aren't too bad, even though they are a little bright, they sound good, but my T830's are WAY too bright, they need to played in a room lined with wool.:yes:
Lwrs10
Super Member
You would be surprised how loud I play it. the 2020 never even hints at getting hot. And I thought the same thing about the clinical Yamaha sound with the A400's. But when I hooked them up I was pleasantly surprised.
shortcuttomo
Active Member
That is surprising.
In fact, I'm scratching my head. It doesn't really make sense. Have you modified the Yammy in some way?
My CR-2020 ran very, very warm when driving my Energy 22 Reference Cons at moderate levels - those are 8Ohm but very low sensitivity (86dB if I recall correctly). The A400s are 4Ohm and 88dB...that's definitely not an easy load. And that receiver isn't even rated for a 4Ohm speaker by Yamaha (they say 8 or 16).
I agree with 89grand that the A series seems to tend towards brightness (at least my 200 and the 150 I've heard). When combining a slightly live room and the Yammy and the A200s, it got to be a little much at times!
Greg
In fact, I'm scratching my head. It doesn't really make sense. Have you modified the Yammy in some way?
My CR-2020 ran very, very warm when driving my Energy 22 Reference Cons at moderate levels - those are 8Ohm but very low sensitivity (86dB if I recall correctly). The A400s are 4Ohm and 88dB...that's definitely not an easy load. And that receiver isn't even rated for a 4Ohm speaker by Yamaha (they say 8 or 16).
I agree with 89grand that the A series seems to tend towards brightness (at least my 200 and the 150 I've heard). When combining a slightly live room and the Yammy and the A200s, it got to be a little much at times!
Greg
Lwrs10
Super Member
Well let me rephrase the "warm" thing.
The power supply runs burning hot in the CR-2020. No matter whats hooked up. The output heatsinks never get hot. The amp side never breaks a sweat.
And my bedroom is fully carpeted, with of course a plush bed. and quilts hanging on the walls. Brightness is not and issue at all in this room.
But now you have me worried about the 4 ohm load. I do not want to kill the 2020. I kinda like it. Alot. I might drag my spare M-70 amp in there with my old Onkyo preamp and see how that combo sounds.
The power supply runs burning hot in the CR-2020. No matter whats hooked up. The output heatsinks never get hot. The amp side never breaks a sweat.
And my bedroom is fully carpeted, with of course a plush bed. and quilts hanging on the walls. Brightness is not and issue at all in this room.
But now you have me worried about the 4 ohm load. I do not want to kill the 2020. I kinda like it. Alot. I might drag my spare M-70 amp in there with my old Onkyo preamp and see how that combo sounds.
P. Shivers
Necessity Conquers Fear
I ran my A-400s with a CR-2020 just fine. It had no problem with the 4ohm load of the speakers. I also bi-amped them with the CR-2020 and a Yamaha M-4 for awhile. I now run the A-400s with a Yamaha CA-2010. I also used the CR-2020 with ADS L-400s, which are also 4ohm speakers, with no problems.