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Mismatched Pair - ADS 710

Robie

Robie

Live it or live with it.
Subscriber
Just picked up a mismatched pair off Craigslist for $50.

Impressive build quality. They are 38 lbs. each. Three way design with two 7" woofers, one 2" dome mid and a dome tweeter per speaker.

Both are designated "Model 710" in the text next to the binding posts. One is serial # 13907 with knurled thumbscrew nuts on threaded speaker posts (similar to "Large Advents"). The other one is serial # 17389 with spring clip terminals.

The woofers on the earlier model had foam surrounds that are both rotten. The later woofers have rubber surrounds that are in good shape.

The cabs look slightly different too. When viewing the front of each speaker, the cabinet walls appear to be of different thicknesses. While the actual walls of each cabinet are the same thickness, the forwardmost part of the cabinet walls (the small extension of the walls that frame the front panel) are different in each speaker. One speaker has a veneered "front lip" that appears to be twice as thick as the other speaker.

The speaker with the narrower front lip also has an additional front panel glued onto its front panel. This additional panel has cutouts for each driver so they are flush mounted.

The other speaker doesn't have the additional front panel. The driver plates are simply screwed on the front panel of the cabinet (i.e. they are not flush mounted).

The cabinets are in pretty good shape except one speaker has 2 smashed front corners. I can probably recreate the missing portions of the front lips with "plastic wood." Both grills are long gone but the seller made some that work.

GordonW and I are working on a woofer exchange that will result in 4 matching woofers. I am also trying to determine if the cross overs are the same to determine recapping needs. They appear similar.

More later (including pics) as this project progresses.
 
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Robie,

If you can, post up a pic of the backsides of the cabinets, showing the terminals and nameplates. I'll see if either of your crossovers matches the one I have here. Might be able to side-step the whole difference issue, with new woofers and one crossover replacement...

Regards,
Gordon.
 
I was just there this weekend looking at those speakers. I should have thought to compare the XOs. I can tell you that the newer looking of the 2 cabs had a 2.5mH inductor and 90MFD cap for the woofer LP.

Ray
 
Congrats on a nice score, my old friend.

I expect you to get them up to spec quickly. :D

Snade
 
RayW: Thanks for weighing in. Weren't there also 3 white rectangular caps mounted on the crossover board too? I thought you called them "oil filled electrolytics?"

Snade, I'm really excited by these as they seem to be very efficient (93db from what I can find). Might be a good match with the Super T.

Thanks for the input from all.
 
Nice, nice speakers IMNSHO. Very smooth and musical.
A couple of generations of L-710's here, in case you didn't know:
http://sportsbil.com/ads/

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=111687

P1020547.jpg
 
Thanks, mhardy6647.



Nice photo and yours appear to be in very good condition.

Glad to hear they are "smooth and musical." That seems to be where my ears are going these days.

I perused the sticky and pics but didn't see my speakers.

Your speaker is similar to one of the speakers I have. The one that I described as having "flush mounted" drivers.

However, the sidewall top and bottom junctions on your speaker looks "radiussed/rounded" whereas mine are perpendicular/90 degrees (sharp edges).

Also, there is a depressed channel around the perimeter of the front panel on mine with velcro in the channel corners to hold the grills.

What kind of binding posts do yours have?

I will post some pics as soon as I can get home with a few spare minutes.
 
Robie said:
RayW: Thanks for weighing in. Weren't there also 3 white rectangular caps mounted on the crossover board too? I thought you called them "oil filled electrolytics?"
Click to expand...

I think I said that before I started digging in there (at least I hope so). According to the ADS website referenced up there somewhere ^ they use mylar film caps. I could only see the numbers on one of them and it was 4.7 (I assume uF). There were 2 there side-by-side and I would guess they're paralleled but I couldn't see the second value.

Ray
 
Pictures of the speaker cabinets and schematic info are on the ADS Reference Website. Yours are the early first version with foam surrounds and early second version. The ones with the metal grills were the last version. I think there is a fair amount of difference between the two. The foam surrounds are challenging to find and if anybody can it's Gordon. I have mine reconed with later factory ADS cones and butyl rubber surrounds by Richard So. Worth fixing up for sure. I'm sure you will enjoy your new speakers once they are functional. :thmbsp:
 
Hey Duffinator,

Can you shed any light on the XO issue? Are they the same?

Ray
 
RayW said:
Hey Duffinator,

Can you shed any light on the XO issue? Are they the same?

Ray
Click to expand...
I have no idea as I've never seen one. The second version of the speakers had fuses introduced sometime in the production run and I'm not 100% sure is was when the model changed. The second version and later second version are probably very similar. The cabinets were the biggest change with the later models. Also a smaller 3/4" tweeter was introduced in the second generation. Soundmotor will know if he jumps in here.
 
Mine do have the radiused walnut corners, and a channel into which the metal grilles fit. The speaker connectors are spring-loaded.

BTW (and not to gloat), I found mine at the dump... they are in quite good condition (grilles, too).
 
mhardy6647 said:
I found mine at the dump... they are in quite good condition (grilles, too).
Click to expand...

Geez, I had to pay for two that don't match, have homemade grills and are in much worse condition. Wish ADS had located a dump in the Midwest. :D

Now that I'm home from a late night work assignment, I'll try to take and post some pics.

Thanks for all the input, assistance and encouragement.

BTW, neither of mine have fuses.
 
Sorry the pics in the garage are so dark.

As you can see they do not match. I also just noticed that the mid and tweeter are separated on one speaker but right next to each other on the other. The screws around the dome tweeter are slightly different. One has hex heads while the other is phillips head.

The previous owner had moved one of the intact rubber woofers from the speaker that had them to the other speaker with the rotten foam surrounds. The rotten foam woofers were left/installed in the bottom position of each speaker.

The higher serial # speaker has the damaged corners, the screw type terminals, thinner "sidewall lips/edges," "surface mounted drivers" and more separation between mid and tweeter. It is on the left in the 4th pic that shows both speakers.

Not sure which had both rubber surrounded woofers but presume it is the one with the higher serial #.
 

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Man, I almost hate saying that I picked up a pair of L810's at a yard sale this past weekend for $10 complete from the original owner. This must have been speaker weekend from hell for me! Another sale I bought a pair of Pioneer CS-99a's for $10, and at the last sale, a pair of Large Advents with the steel frame that need foam because he said they were "busted". They also had a pair of B&O cabinet speakers for $5 but I passed. I have too darn many as it is and some are about to go!

Good luck on getting yours figured out!
 
avguytx said:
Man, I almost hate saying that I picked up a pair of L810's at a yard sale this past weekend for $10 complete from the original owner. This must have been speaker weekend from hell for me!
Click to expand...

Yeah don't you hate finding good deals like that? It always amazes me what you can find. I did get some Genesis Model 10s for $5 with rotten woofs last spring so some of the "Karma" has been my way too.

Yard sales have kind of dried up here. "All the leaves are brown, and the.........!"

I would love a pair of B&Os. I remember them from the early 80's but can't remember which models I liked.

Thanks for the encouragement.

Tonight I'll get some pics of the crossovers.
 
I REALLY DOUBT that those crossovers are functionally different. Looks like the same series, just different year models. If one were a "II", or had the later different ADS logo, I'd be more worried... but those are definitely the same generation...

Regards,
Gordon.
 
Update

Thanks to GordonW, two new rubber surround ADS woofers arrived yesterday. I installed the one new woofer in each cabinet and left one old good woofer in each cabinet so at least the drivers are the same in each speaker.

I was afraid to play them with rotten foam surruounds given there was no acoustic suspension/sealed cabinet.

IMO, 710s are pretty darn nice, even paired to a lowly 5W Super T Amp. All of my speakers are two-ways so it is fun to have a three way design. Female vocals seem to benefit in particular. More of the complexity of the vocals comes through. For example, on Holly Cole's "Take Me Home" her voice is deeper. In other words, better mids.

In addition to great midrange and highs, the 710s sound very refined and sophisticated. They are revealing but not fatiguing. Nice balanced presentation, with solid, tight bass but certainly not the deepest bass. The lack of bass may be the lack of power though. Have to try them with a more powerful amp.

As others have noted, the side by side tweeter/mid-range dome arrangement introduces two alignment axises and imaging suffers. They do image pretty well but not nearly as well as the slightly larger Genesis Model 10s I've been listening to lately.

If they are only the little brother of the 810, I can only imagine how nice the 810 sounds. I'm more familiar with the 200s, 300s and 2002 powered speakers but remember being impressed with the larger ADS in the shops.

If y'all get a chance to hear some 710s, give 'em a listen and share your impressions.
 
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