LE14 / LE20 Speaker Rebuild Options

[G Dudds]

Hi all,

I got a hold of a pair of Heathkit AS-48s.
They're made from the following JBL components:

1. LE14 woofer
2. LE20 tweeter
3. LX8 crossover

The woofers were in great shape other than foam.
I re-foamed one and tried it. It did not sound good. Major dead spots in a frequency sweep and poor bass.

The box of the AS-48s seems small.
I found some info saying that a box of ~3.4 ft3 is ideal.
The current box is only 1.4 ft3.

I'm thinking of building a new box but don't know how to determine ideal specs.
Can anyone recommend a nice sounding implementation of these components I can model after?

C56 Dorian?
C53 Libra?
Other better ones?

I've been told 3/4" MDF is a great material to use. Sound about right?

thanks!

Also, here are a few pictures:

 

[toddalin]

I think that the Heathkit speakers/equipment had the coolest shade of green uncopied in the industry.

 

[G Dudds]

Ya they have a really nice look to them.
I thought there'd be some JBL passionists with some cool ideas on this one.

 

[elitopus]

As much as you probably don’t want to hear it, if those were mine I would refinish the cabs, recap the crossovers, and leave them original. They seem to be fairly uncommon.

You could always use a subwoofer with them if they lack bass. Or cheat and use the loudness button

 

[Drugolf]

Read this.
https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/c36-viscount-le14a-ewaves.428160/

 

[elitopus]

Those are pretty sweet ^

 

[donprice]

I was going to suggest the LE14 ewave adventure but Drugolf beat me to it.