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Norman Lab Model 9's - Time to start on 'em

avguytx

avguytx

Lunatic Member
After finally getting these out of storage and being in my closet for the last couple of months, it's time to finally start on these pretty beasts. I might as well...I'd already ordered and received the foam surrounds for the six 10" woofers. I've attached some "not so great" pictures taken from my iPhone before getting them out of storage to give you a general idea of their condition. The cabinets are beautiful...finished on the top, sides and front in a stunning walnut veneer, the speaker grills are in great shape (but wll be recovered) and I have the original glass tops for them, too. I've also attached a crappy picture of the crossover (dig that light bulb protection circuit!) and I apologize for it being so hard on the eyes to see. It's a very simple setup and from what I can tell, is either a 6db/oct high pass and low pass or a 12db/oct high pass with the woofers naturally rolling off. (I need to look it over some more) I took the picture with just flash only and (obviously) a dark cabinet. There are (2) 10uf caps paralled together which was hard to find out as the caps in one cabinet were turned where I couldn't see them.

So, this will be an ongoing project that I will update as I go and pictures will definitely be better along the way. I at least wanted to have something as an offering of good faith that I was starting on them! I'll get some pictures of the refoam process of the woofers, too. It might take awhile but what the heck....I have a few weeks off till the next semester of college starts. Plus, there's not much showing within AK of this series of the Model 9's.

Enjoy and sorry for the crappy start for pictures but I promise they will improve. :D

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what the heck is the light bulb in the crossover for i wonder........i got it they are tube speakers!!!

seriously though those look massive and i bet they will sound fantastic when your done replacing the surrounds, cool looking tweeter arrangement on those, is the woofer configuration two active on the front one passive radiator on the back?
 
VINTAGCHRIS said:
what the heck is the light bulb in the crossover for i wonder........i got it they are tube speakers!!!

seriously though those look massive and i bet they will sound fantastic when your done replacing the surrounds, cool looking tweeter arrangement on those, is the woofer configuration two active on the front one passive radiator on the back?
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Lol. That bulb dissipates energy and protects the tweeter. A lot of car audio manufacturers use them in their component speakers. We used to have people come back at the shops I worked at saying, "when I'm jamming late at night, I swear there are lights blinking in the floorboard!!" :D

All 6 woofers are active....no passives. I can't remember if the switch on the back plate actually turns the rear one off or not. I need to call my buddy about that. Seems like it does.

Turborusty said:
Are those Phillips tweeters?

I like the look of those things!


Turborusty
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Yep....those are good ol' Phillips tweeters. They used this version because they could be crossed over lower than other company's tweeters they tried thru various iterations and models. I can't wait to get them rolling again for sure!

Looking at each woofer, 4 of them are stamped with the numbers 1172582 and the other 2 are 1172583. I noticed they were different when I sat them all down and saw that 4 woofers had slightly larget magnets than the other 2. (the rear firing 2 had the smaller magnets) The numbers on the frame would make sense then being that they are different. Although, I'm not sure who used code "117". :scratch2:
 
Them, speakers, NOT!
MONSTERS! yes.

well enough of that. Nice speakers. And with any monster movies they should project a convincing growl? Would be nice to see your impressions of them after you're done with the required work.
 
Good luck with the restoration project. Let us know how they turn out. Model 9's have been on my wish list for quite a whole.
 
Those 9s look fantastic! I gave up my 10s last month and do miss them, but I wasn't going to use them very much. I only have spaces for 3 large format speakers, and my JBLs, Klipsch and Bozaks are occupying them. They certainly sounded excellent! They look really good, too.
 
Noice! Mine are the same generation ( Imho best of the Model 9s), same version of Phillips tweeters, veneered front.
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I went ahead last year and upgraded the caps to a single Soniccap- very simple swap. Kinda hot-glued the crap out of it!
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Then I'll admit, I went a bit ape and built some maple pedestals for them, which is not so dissonant as it would seem since it's tiger stripe maple, which runs vertical like the walnut grain.

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Never bothered to get the color closer....tsk
 
Those look good, John! Aren't they just an outstanding looking pair of speakers? I just finished doing the refoam on the woofers and am now just waiting for the glue to dry. Maybe tomorrow after they are fully cured I'll put them back in. But, then again, I may end up taking them over to my buddy's house tomorrow and lightly refinish the cabinets and put a coat of Howards on them as there isn't much wrong with them at all. What have you used on your veneer?

That's what I'll end up doing on the cap, too. Put one good one on each versus the (1) 10uf cap and (1) 20uf cap that are paralleled. I love the simple crossovers for sure. I'm getting a list together of the caps and resistors I need to finish up some speakers and get them ordered all at once from Parts Express and maybe another place. Plus, new binding post terminals for all of them. It gives me something to do for the next 3 weeks till classes start back up. Then it will be more time for listening versus working on. :D
 
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avguytx said:
Those look good, John! Aren't they just an outstanding looking pair of speakers? I just finished doing the refoam on the woofers and am now just waiting for the glue to dry. Maybe tomorrow after they are fully cured I'll put them back in. But, then again, I may end up taking them over to my buddy's house tomorrow and lightly refinish the cabinets and put a coat of Howards on them as there isn't much wrong with them at all. What have you used on your veneer?
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Well, they lacquered them originally, that's why there'll be discoloration and yellowing over the years. Mine also had some light overspray of white paint specks on one speaker's side- I think the seller was embarrassed to find that out during the sale.
I lightly sanded that out and then blended in some walnut Danish oil. It's an old finisher's trick. Obviously if there's a wax coating you want to remove that first.

You do know that Soniccaps are right there in Arkansas, right? :D They're a bit pricier, but I think those big babies are worth it.
 
Yep, I knew they were here! Kinda handy! I refoamed all the woofers earlier today and should be ready for tomorrow. But, most likely I won't install them until we get the cabinets "shined up" and the new caps in. I also want to clean those switches while it's easily accessible and put new terminals on them. That reminds me....I gotta call my buddy in Tulsa and get some brown grill cloth for these and a pair of Celestion Ditton 44's so I can recover them all at the same time.
 
avguytx said:
Yep, I knew they were here! Kinda handy! I refoamed all the woofers earlier today and should be ready for tomorrow. But, most likely I won't install them until we get the cabinets "shined up" and the new caps in. I also want to clean those switches while it's easily accessible and put new terminals on them. That reminds me....I gotta call my buddy in Tulsa and get some brown grill cloth for these and a pair of Celestion Ditton 44's so I can recover them all at the same time.
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Isn't there a seasonal song about that?

6 Woofers refoamed-
4 terminals swapped out-
2 capacitors upgraded-
2 grills a covered-
....and an awesome vintage setup.

<insert groan/headslap here> :yes:
 
Lol. There just might be a song about that!

All woofers refoamed, both front and back grills are recovered and I am listening to them now. Thank God the new caps will be in tomorrow and I can finally tear into the guts of them to replace those, the terminals, and clean the switches and circuit breakers that have some drop outs still. Actually, I have about $130 worth of Solen caps coming in to I can have them here to do some other speakers...Klipsch Heresy II's, Genesis G10's, Infinity Quantum 3's, RTR Series II F's, Dynaco A25's and I think that's it. :D (for now) I know me...if I have the parts here, I'm more inclined to get the projects done. Might as well...I don't start back to classes till Jan 10th.
 
Time for a couple of picture updates although they aren't overly exciting, I'm sure. My capacitor order came in today so these 20uf Solens and the binding posts just HAD to be replaced today! They've been playing now for a couple of hours and the difference, as most always, was instantly noticeable. They will gett better and better as they are broken in but for now, they have already opened up even more...voices sound better, the harshness is gone, the overal tonal balance is better, and imaging and spacionsness has improved. You just gotta love sinmple single cap crossover replacements.

Edit 2.21.2013. There was actually a 10uf and 20uf cap in parallel and I wrongly assumed the 20 was a 10 as it was turned wrong in both. Once I got in there, I discovered the error and ordered a single 30uf cap for each. Or was it another -0jf in parallel to the 20 that I did. Hmmm.... One day I'll update the pic.

Next on the agenda for tonite....recapping and new terminals on the Genesis G10's while the 9's are playing.

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Don't laugh at the equipment setup....the new rack is being started on this weekend. :D
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Nice!! I can imagine the bass from them. They 10's and a ton one more woofer must kick hard.

OK so replacing the cap got rid of the harshness and added some sparkle? How hard were the speaker terminals to swap out?
 
Hang on, with your 9's can you bi wire them? isn't that the screw terminals on the top? If you are not going to, you might want make a better quality jumper instead of the stock ones.
 
The terminals were easy on mine to swap out. 2 screws hold it down...I'm guessing yours is the same. On mine, the (+) post on the inside had one wire soldered to it and the (-) had 2 wires soldered on. I just nipped them off, added connectors, and they bolted right on. The posts on the new jacks are a little smaller than the existing hole so make sure and use washers for a more snug and sealed hole. I considered using these ClarityCaps instead of the Solen but opted for the $8 cap versus $23 and I have always had great results from the Solens. I also considered the SoniCaps, too, but at about $29 a pop, I decided not to. Plus, my ears just aren't as good as they used to be and having a mild case of tinitus doesn't help either. It sucks, actually. :D
 
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