Help identify my Ohm score

I posted a while back about a pair of Ohm Walshes that I got for $10.
Story here

I'm curious to identify them. They say Ohm Walsh 4, but they don't have the input of a 4 with the crossover selection. From the inputs, I'd think they were a 4, upgraded to a 5. However, they don't have the crossover levels on the dome either, per the 5. Some kind of hybrid?

Also, they have a piece of felt glued to the dome, which seems to be an attempt to make them directional. Wouldn't this be against the point of an omnidirectional speaker?

Do you guys have any thoughts? I'm thinking about taking them to Ohm and seeing what they have to say (not very far away in brooklyn).

Thanks.

Monday bump. Thoughts?

Looks like Gorilla glue to the right of the speaker binding posts. Someone other than a tech has been at them. Ohm's design principle has changed from the era of the Ohm F's, which were true omnidirectional speakers. Controlled dispersion is now the credo, hence the felt. Although it's possible that someone other than Ohm may have installed it.

It looks like someone has been inside these. Remove the perforated covers and see what you have. You should be able to see what was done at the input plate once the driver is removed.

If you have never been inside an Ohm (other than an A or F) you will probably be surprised by what you find. Please post pictures of the guts if you get that far.

eurasian said:

It looks like someone has been inside these. Remove the perforated covers and see what you have. You should be able to see what was done at the input plate once the driver is removed.

If you have never been inside an Ohm (other than an A or F) you will probably be surprised by what you find. Please post pictures of the guts if you get that far.

Click to expand...

Yes and likely not pleasantly surprised, either. Regardless, the speakers do sound good. Whether they are worth their hefty asking price is entirely subjective. Personally, I would give just about anything for an original pair of F's in good working order.

"Yes and likely not pleasantly surprised, either."

I was going to say something like that, but thought jgordon should come to his own conclusions, as he will.

Never heard the F's, but did hear the A's a few times. I liked them on jazz at low to middle listening levels -- which was usually enough to destroy P-L, Crown and Dyna SS amps -- to go beyond would cook speakers and amps.

I have a pair of Ohm Walsh 4s. I bought them on Craigslist last year for $400 and considered them a steal. So, consider yourself lucky. Mine were undamaged one owner speakers always in a climate controlled home that had never been monkeyed with.

Mine do need new top covers, but those are $60 each from Ohm. I'd say these aren't 4s but you haven't included comprehensive enough pictures. Mine flare out toward the bases. Yours may be 3s or 2s. You can identify them here. Click on Older Models at the left and select Walsh Series.
Identifiers are:
Where are the badges - top or bottom.
Yours have been modified and probably improved, because the terminators on mine are a weak point.
Don't think they're junk because they're not like traditional speakers in design or build. Basically, the lower the number, the less controls it'll have.
Though the original Ohm Walsh As and Fs were the legends, the later ones are no slouches either. They're essentially a more conventional driver, using the same principles as the As and Fs, and those drivers get a full range signal. There's also a crossover to a tweeter in each one because these speakers turned out not to be as effective at pushing out high frequencies as the earlier metal drivers. Also, the foam should stay. That is an attempt to control dispersion, but it should not be ignored.
These are not necessarily bad because they're not As or Fs. They're all good in their own way. I love mine because they're not sweet spot oriented at all. I have them in a part of the house where I move around a lot and they're great in that application.

Here's another great link that'll get you up to speed.
http://www.soundadviceblog.com/?p=436

I intended to give a link to Ohm:
http://www.ohmspeakers.com/
Don

I have a pair of walsh 4's and my original cans had that felt glued on the backs of the cans. My upgrades do not have felt on them unless it's on the inside of the can. Your binding posts look exactly like my "upgrade". The originals crossovers had several settings from which you could choose from to make the ohm sound right in your particular room. Maybe the former owner upgraded the crossover and had the surrounds fixed by ohm? That is one fantastic deal you made on those 4's I might add.

The terminators on mine are spring clips. I once read a post on a diy site, that said you can knock this terminal plate in "With a few wacks of a hammer", The post then explained how you can add newer terminals, and glue it back in place.

I agree with the above posts. Looks like this may have happened to yours.


Your terminals look very similar to some radioshaq posts I have used in the past. Please don't take this observation as an insult, I'm actually planning to give mine a knock in, and banana them up my self.

Well, the badge sure says Ohm walsh 4. They're sequentially numbered. The cabinets are a bit beat up, but the sound is good. THere's either a tweeter or a crossover issue on the left speaker, which I'll get to in time. At the moment they're in storage as I don't have space for them or time to focus on them.

As for flaring, they're certainly trapezoidal, in that the base is much larger than the top, but there's no flare per se - just a straight line from top to bottom.

In pictures, the walsh 5 has a black plastic/metal divider between the cloth cover on top and the wood veneer. Mine does not have that.

Here's what's inside - I haven't dug too deeply, but it doesn't look like it came from a factory this way...