C'est arrivé, AR 2ax

[cwh]

A pair of 1970s project Acoustic Research 2ax speakers have joined the fray. Although I'm working on three other speaker projects, adding the ARs into the mix should be doable.

Their overall condition is pretty good given they were headed for the dump. Cabinets are structurally sound and the defects are superficial. Edges and corners have fared well with only one corner crush. I'll repair however, if positioned vertically that corner would sit on the bottom rear. 90% of the veneer will only need a simple refinish with the rest requiring finicky touch up. One speaker came with the grill partially removed via a finger hole in the cloth. The other is hole free. I'm encouraged to put a little time into saving the linen.

I'll get into the drivers and electronics once I remove the woofers and stuffing.

Once nice aha moment came when I realized I have a pair of Rick Cobb's filleted 10" surrounds waiting for a BA project that's missing a woofer. I believe that's the one I want for the ARs, right? I'd be so lucky to have crossover caps too but I'm pretty sure I just depleted my 2ufs and 4ufs on another project.

Thanks for checking in

 

[cwh]

Few more pics from my crowed space

 

[stupidhead]

congrats, good looking set for starters, rehab will be rewarding!

 

[cwh]

congrats, good lucking set for starters, rehab will be rewarding!

Thanks. I've never experienced the 2ax so it'll be fun to mess around with it.

That's if I can get it sorted....

 

[cwh]

AS @drbiggles commented, my roll has slowed. Soon after discovering that I in fact had both the necessary foam and capacitors to get the ARs functioning, Murphy's Law stepped in.

Wait this is too easy....


I got right on removing the woofers and prepping for new surrounds. Not sure how it slipped by me during all the hands on time but not until I was gluing the second woofer's foam on did I notice that the VC was damaged. I even ohm'd both drivers...At least I avoid the contact cement type adhesive so the surround was saved.

 

[drbiggles]

Holy crap man, I think that voice coil is fecked. Okay, so a replacement woofer is in order. I'm really sorry mang, this sucks.

Biggles

 

[cwh]

Holy crap man, I think that voice coil is fecked. Okay, so a replacement woofer is in order. I'm really sorry mang, this sucks.

Biggles

Yeah I wonder what happened? Someone was bumping the beats hard by the looks of it. The coil's sleeve is smashed up. Maybe we know why the 2ax was put away.

 

[sax6]

Sorry about that !

 

[sberger]

That's a tough one, but once you get it sorted and get those 2ax's up and running I'm sure you'll agree that it was worth the pain. One of the best speakers I've ever heard. I like them better then the 3's and 3a's I once owned, and I tend to favor them over my Cornwall's these days. Sound especially nice with vintage tubes.

Good luck to you.

 

[drbiggles]

The semi obvious reason would be that the owners played them for a while as the foam surrounds were rotting away. Dammit.

Biggles

 

[cwh]

That's a tough one, but once you get it sorted and get those 2ax's up and running I'm sure you'll agree that it was worth the pain. One of the best speakers I've ever heard. I like them better then the 3's and 3a's I once owned, and I tend to favor them over my Cornwall's these days. Sound especially nice with vintage tubes.

Good luck to you.

Hey sberger, thanks for the positive thoughts. Wonder how it'd sound with a Scott LK-72? Think you recently commented somewhere that the 500c wasn't the best match. It's a cat and mouse here between project speakers and amplifiers but oh the possibilities.

 

[cwh]

The semi obvious reason would be that the owners played them for a while as the foam surrounds were rotting away. Dammit.

Biggles

Rotted surrounds and bumpin' beats don't mix. Please play responsibly.

 

[drbiggles]

Rotted surrounds and bumpin' beats don't mix. Please play responsibly.

Which is exactly what the new owner of those POS Sony APM's I dropped off over the weekend had been doing. He had a pair of White Van speakers, non-original woofers with completely rotted out surrounds. He said he'd been playing them, but the bass sucked and he wasn't impressed. But he kept at it.

Biggles

 

[sberger]

Hey sberger, thanks for the positive thoughts. Wonder how it'd sound with a Scott LK-72? Think you recently commented somewhere that the 500c wasn't the best match. It's a cat and mouse here between project speakers and amplifiers but oh the possibilities.

I don't think I said that about the LK72, since I don't own one, but hey, getting old is no fun

In any event, I would think that would be an excellent match. The 2ax's are pretty easy to drive, and sound great with vintage tube gear(haven't tried them with new gear). I have had great results not only with the 500C, but my Fisher X101-B, which is only about the mid 20's in watts. No problems at all, but then again I don't listen super loudly, and my room ain't that big. Definitely worth a try, imo.

 

[cwh]

Man those square woofers are a bitch to refoam!

The term/scam "White Van Speakers" is new to me. I'm informed, thanks DB and AK. I took another look at the ARs. Akustik Leserck; that's not right. No wonder they were tossed.

 

[sberger]

Man those square woofers are a bitch to refoam!

The term/scam "White Van Speakers" is new to me. I'm informed, thanks DB and AK. I took another look at the ARs. Akustik Leserck; that's not right. No wonder they were tossed.

You're kidding, I hope.

 

[cwh]

I don't think I said that about the LK72, since I don't own one, but hey, getting old is no fun

In any event, I would think that would be an excellent match. The 2ax's are pretty easy to drive, and sound great with vintage tube gear(haven't tried them with new gear). I have had great results not only with the 500C, but my Fisher X101-B, which is only about the mid 20's in watts. No problems at all, but then again I don't listen super loudly, and my room ain't that big. Definitely worth a try, imo.

Ha, no fun at any age. Well, expect turning 21 maybe. I looked up the the thread...You said the 500 was more analytical than your X101, "not the best match" was my backwards brain filtering. The integrated made me think on pairing my Scott with the 2ax.

Now time to find a woofer and move forward. Meantime I'll de-fiberglass the cabs and get into the electronics.

 

[sberger]

Ha, no fun at any age. Well, expect turning 21 maybe. I looked up the the thread...You said the 500 was more analytical than your X101, "not the best match" was my backwards brain filtering. The integrated made me think on pairing my Scott with the 2ax.

Now time to find a woofer and move forward. Meantime I'll de-fiberglass the cabs and get into the electronics.

Ah ok. Well that's just my personal take on what I'm hearing. I should've been clearer. The 500C is an excellent match with the 2ax's. I just prefer the X100-B for the very reason that somebody else(you maybe) might not. It's very warm, very tubey. I like that, but others prefer "accuracy" and that's probably a better term to describe what the 500C sounds like. But I've been listening to it for a couple days with the 2ax's perched horizontally on my Cornwalls, and I'm not hurrying to rotate it out and the X100-B in. I would bet you'll find the same results with the LK72.

 

[cwh]

Ah ok. Well that's just my personal take on what I'm hearing. I should've been clearer.

You were and I didn't mean to mix up your thoughts.

Fingers crossed both the 500c and LK-72 get working soon. Sounds like they'll offer an interesting contrast.

2ax's perched horizontally

What's your experience with placement? I've heard positives towards the 2ax standing vertically.

 

[sberger]

You were and I didn't mean to mix up your thoughts.

Fingers crossed both the 500c and LK-72 get working soon. Sounds like they'll offer an interesting contrast.


What's your experience with placement? I've heard positives towards the 2ax standing vertically.

I've had them on AR 3 stands, which gets them about 11" up, and now horizontally on top of the Cornwalls, which places them about 3 feet. I like the latter better. Just a tiny less bass, but better imaging and tweeter just above ear level. Experiment is the best advice I can give.