What do you guys think about these AR 4x's ?
- Thread starter MrSparklez
- Start date
MrSparklez
Active Member
Sorry about that, I edited out the price. Anyways that's great news ! I'm 90% sure that I'm buying them so I will post better pictures later.
Pretty decent speakers, IMO much better tone and clarity than the larger ARs of the time. I've no knowledge of or interest in their value.
I scored a pair of unexceptional examples at a flea mkt for $12. They'll probably stay as they are pretty good entry level early line AR speakers, good clean sound with suprizingly low end extension. Classic acoustic suspension boxes that fit nicely almost anywhere, recommended.
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MrSparklez
Active Member
So I just got them home, I haven't hooked them up yet but I'm not expecting the tweeters to work, pots sound really bad when you turn them.
How do I connect them though ? I only see a 1 and 2 no - and + or black and red. I don't want to connect them in the wrong way and damage something.
How do I connect them though ? I only see a 1 and 2 no - and + or black and red. I don't want to connect them in the wrong way and damage something.
JohnMac
Addicted Member
If you look at the card on the back I think it will say "Connect the 0 and 8 ohm terminals on the amplifier to the speaker inputs marked 1 & 2."
Maybe you'll get lucky and your pots will work. It might take some turning back and forth to get them to work and you may find some dead spots. I thought they sounded best all the way up so I bypassed the pots.
Maybe you'll get lucky and your pots will work. It might take some turning back and forth to get them to work and you may find some dead spots. I thought they sounded best all the way up so I bypassed the pots.
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WaynerN
Addicted Member
I have a pair in oiled walnut, that I have completely restored. They have the original AR badges and original, unstained and almost perfect grill cloth. They are a nice speaker for the time period and they are one of only a couple of ARs that did not have the foam surround speaker foam, so the woofers will be good. The level control on the back should be serviced. It can be taken apart (without damaging it), cleaned and reassembled without any problem. You might need a can of Deoxit 5 to use as a cleaner/preservative.
Also the cap on mine changed values due to age, and needed to be replaced. I normally try to leave them alone, but these were way out of spec....
Also the cap on mine changed values due to age, and needed to be replaced. I normally try to leave them alone, but these were way out of spec....
MrSparklez
Active Member
Just hooked them up and WOW, they goe effortlessly through Kind of Blue by Miles Davis and also Fearless by Pink Floyd.
Wonderful, amazing how they are still working flawlessly after not being touched in almost 50 years.
Now the work begins, I want to check the condition on the woofers, and do a re-cap soon.
The last thing I want to do is damage them so what is the safest way of taking the grills off ?
Wonderful, amazing how they are still working flawlessly after not being touched in almost 50 years.
Now the work begins, I want to check the condition on the woofers, and do a re-cap soon.
The last thing I want to do is damage them so what is the safest way of taking the grills off ?
JohnMac
Addicted Member
Here are some tips from another thread.
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=330134
I think there are as many as 36 staples that need to be removed.
In one case, there was so much glue that I pried one corner loose, then very carefully peeled the grill cloth back so that I could get a small putty knife between the grill frame and the box from the inside. A little tricky and care must be taken not to stretch the cloth.
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=330134
I think there are as many as 36 staples that need to be removed.
In one case, there was so much glue that I pried one corner loose, then very carefully peeled the grill cloth back so that I could get a small putty knife between the grill frame and the box from the inside. A little tricky and care must be taken not to stretch the cloth.
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pete1729
Super Member
You will never be sorry to have these. I have overhauled a couple of pairs and they both sound very good. I believe I used Solen caps on one pair and Daytons on the other. Both pairs went to people I am close with, my sister and my fiancee. My fiancee runs them with a Lafayette 236 EL84 integrated amp that I restored for her. They do nearly everything well and they do nothing badly. Follow the overhaul guide mentioned above, you can do it in an evening. I would suggest plugging the original driver mounting screw holes in the baffle an boring new ones. The original ones were done without pilot holes and that leads to some splintering.
