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Realistic Electrostat 2 what do you think?

Rats! I rebuilt the defective power supply, got about 110volts DC bias, still no output from the stats. They are most likely smoked. When I get a chance I'll jumper around the tweeter L-pad just to make sure it isn't also a problem.

BTW, I would recommend based upon what looks like selenium diode rectifiers used, that all 2A owners replace the 2 power supply diodes in their speakers. Selenium rectifiers do not age well and when they go defective they tend to go up in toxic smoke. It is standard practice on any vintage tube amp to replace the selenium bias rectifier with a silicon diode. Guess I'll look on the auction site for set of stats.
 
Susurus said:
The teak cabs (not Teac...) are truly lush...
Click to expand...
Hmm, my 2a's are walnut. It must have been pretty impressive for RS to offer a teak veneer. I have a pair of Rogers LS3/5A in teak and they're pretty sharp.

I hope you get your 2's up 'n' running.
 
ya know . . . I have a pair of these . . . haven't messed with them yet, asd there's no tweeter output. I assume it's the power supply . . is it possible to test the E-stat tweets with the ol' AA battery trick just to see if they are functional ?
 
I wouldn't do that. The power supplies in these are very simple. The output is usually higher than most meters can read. Using a VTVM you can read them. But first check the output of the HV transformer.
 
Set your ear close, you'll hear the tweeters if they're working. From the ad in post #13 it seems the teak cabs cost 5 dollars extra... over the stock mahogany...

No wonder I like vintage!
 
I got one set of em recently.

Mine seem to be Electrostat 2's not 2 A's. Mine has the grill logo right side up if you put it like a floor stander, not norizontal like a bookshelf.
Now mine is working well, though I guess if 2-3 of the tweeters are working and not all 4 I probably couldn't tell. I had to refoam the woofer though, and its the hardest foam job I ever did. I had to do it in the cabinet to avoid desoldering it.
Anyway - I was playing it yesterday, and it all seemed to play just fine, and ~10 mins in, it let out a nice pop, and continued playing. Its not happened since but has anyone else known these to do that ? I have not had another speaker do that - ever. I've run a dozen different ones in my house.
Thanks in advance.
Cool.
Srinath.
 
Just picked up a pair of 2a's at a rummage sale today for $10.
One of the power cords has been cut, will fix today and give a listen.
 
I was always curious and wanted a pair of these after seeing them in a RS catalog as a youngster. I had the opportunity to pick up a pair several years ago.
The best thing about them are the cabinets. They are absolutely beautiful. Personally, I don't think they sound all that good.
 
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Cleaned them added replacement power cord and hooked them to my $2 Shewood s7210s... Sounds great so far. Must clearer than my klh model 6's.
 
When the rubber meets the road, noone can honestly label a Realistic speaker as a 'Bad' Speaker.
NoOne...
I'm super-envious over those Electrostats.
 
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srinath---- Big ticking noises are an electrostat thing. Bias too high or a transient slap. E-stats are for those who can live with very high-maintenance and strangeness--for the clearest soaring highs outside of plasma, as mhardy6647 said.

But you need to go up to double-ended...like the Infinity 2000A. But careful those sometimes ignited. :sigh: :nono:
 
I used a variety of e'stst speakers over 5 decades and found them to be very reliable provided they were not abused. More reliable than those drivers with foam surrounds. Like a dynamic driver overdriving them is their weakness. They have a more limited ultimate spl for the most part but can produce more ynamic range generally requiring the average listening level to be lower than many would like, especially with rock. This lower level is one of the challenges when using them in a hybrid configuration.
 
I'm working on the ones in my Avatar as we speak. They are 4a's If you can replace the wooofer in them that was the weak point.

Man those tweeter's reproduce great. It's usally the power supply that goes bad. The power cords had a push thru toggle switch for on or off. Don't know why cus mine have a sperate mid and high L-Pad.

They were not rated that high for watts, but they love power.

Opening up the cabs and getting them back together is a PNTA.
 
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Mining an old thread. I ran across a pair of the 2-A's at a thrift shop today. They looked a little rough but not in bad shape. Both had their power cords. Didn't try to test them. They wanted just $10 for the pair. But I passed. I assume they are still there now. I've already got too many speakers and have two pair up for sale, to clear out space.
 
They are fun speakers to play with. I have a pair of 2's and a pair of 2A's. Had to do a little work on both sets. The 2's had the power cord dyked-off. Replaced both cords and they popped to life. The 2A's had blown diodes in the power supplies - 2 diodes per cabinet. They were a breeze to fix with generic Radio Shack diodes. Had a chance to sell both pairs and make a little change but elected to keep them. I listen to them every once in a while and am still amazed at the highs. Like I say, neat little speakers.

btw: what area of the country are you in?
 
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