ESS AMT Monitors

fazman

fazman

Active Member
Hey guys, just picked up tonight a pair of ESS AMT monitor speakers.
Don't know much about these speakers other than the Heil Air Transformer is highly praised by a few...:scratch2:

Now, here is where I need a little guidance...
They are a project for sure. Very smoky smelling :thumbsdn: Cabs seem to be ok, a few blemishes here and there but structurally ok. The drivers test fine... that is the tweeter (transformer) and the 12" drivers...
The grills obviously need to be replaced... that's easy for me, but one of the grill structures is badly cracked and it might need to go for surgery! :D
The problem is the passive radiators are pretty much none existant. All of it is pretty much rotted away.
Only one has the metal trim ring but the other speaker doesn't.

Does anyone have experience with these speakers?
Are they worth restoring?
I guess I could always sell off the parts but restoring it interests me a little more.. if it can be done.???

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks guys!
 
They do sell rebuild kits for the passives. They should be very nice sounding speakers once you put the time in to bring them back to their original glory.
 
DENNYDOG said:
They do sell rebuild kits for the passives. They should be very nice sounding speakers once you put the time in to bring them back to their original glory.
Click to expand...

Thanks Dennydog!

Any idea where I might be able to find them?
 
I know they sell them on Ebay if you do a search for ESS speakers. I'm sure there are other places on the net that sell them if you do a little searching around.
 
Rebuild the grill frames out of 1/4" plywood or thicker (1/4" is how thick they were on my AMT4s), don't bother with those old ones, they were a POS from the start.
 
Sir.Byrd said:
Rebuild the grill frames out of 1/4" plywood or thicker (1/4" is how thick they were on my AMT4s), don't bother with those old ones, they were a POS from the start.
Click to expand...


These are a little thicker than 1/4"...
More like an inch thick with some routering.
I might be able to repair the one we'll see. Lots of glue and clamping I think.
 
DENNYDOG said:
I know they sell them on Ebay if you do a search for ESS speakers. I'm sure there are other places on the net that sell them if you do a little searching around.
Click to expand...


Thanks Dennydog...
Did a search but most of what I came up with was the refoam kit... which by the way would be perfect if I had the original steel frame for the other speaker. I have one but not the other one.
I think I'll have to put out a looking for ad or something...

Looked at them again this am.... oh boy...they are going to need some TLC that's for sure! :yes:

Thanks guys... if there is anyone else with some tips for these things keep'm coming...
 
Some pics..

Here are some pics of them sitting in my garage.

I really want to restore these things now. I'm pumped!:banana:

I have one problem... aside from the passive radiators.

I measured the air transformer tweeters and one measures 3.4 ohms and the other 3.3 ohms. But when I test them, one seems way louder than the other.

I'm wondering now if I need to look at getting one of them rebuilt? If that's the case then I'll scrap the whole idea...
 
Last edited:
Crap, I didn't realize they were the Rock Monitors. You will LOVE those once you get them going. Keep an eye out for the passives as they do show up on Ebay fairly often.

It sounds like you might need a new diaphragm for the Heil. You can buy these new also. Just make sure you measure the height as they made two different sizes. :thmbsp:

Denny
 
Ok... so here is what I gather needs to be done...

1) Create new grill frames or at least one. Shouldn't be difficult. Father in law can take care of that one easy enough.

2) Find a new grill cloth that appeals to my wife's taste! :D

3) FIX the one tweeter... Don't know what I'm going to do there? :scratch2:
(any help there is appreciated!) This is the deal breaker for me.

4) Find a second metal frame for the passive radiator.

5) Once the metal frame is found... Purchase replacement passive kit from ePay.

6) Reveneer the cabinets. Should be easy as there are no tricky areas to be concerned about. It's just basically the two side panels. I don't know, maybe a nice dark cherry or something....

7) Recapp the crossovers and replace the resistors and wiring... easily done.

8) Deoxit the presence pot at the back.

9) Replace the shitty damping material in the cabs.

10) Repaint the black portions of the cabinet... again, easy.

11) Get a buddy to help lift them into my basement, crack open a beer and enjoy!


Anyone got anything to add to this list?
 
kfa888 said:
Try a recap of the crossovers first, much cheaper and might fix the level issue on the tweeters.

As for the passives these would work until you find the right ones... http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=295-496

Nice speakers
Click to expand...

Thanks... but I tested the tweeters without the crossover.. speaker wire right to the tweeter leads...(very low volume of course) One was definitely louder than the other. But they measure so close :scratch2:
 
You are right that the differing tweeter sensitivity is a serious problem. I seriously doubt that home repair of the AMT is possible, but it won't hurt to look around. You might need to get a matched pair (if available) to assure equal sensitivity. I was lucky enough to find a N.O.S. pair on Epay for my ESS AMT10B's when an amplifier self oscillation took out one of the originals. (not the same tweeters you have in your rock monitors). I overbid for them, but it was worth it. I am not likely to ever find another N.O.S. pair. As for the passive radiators, you can use plastic or wood for the frame. It doesn't have to be metal. You could trace the outline of the one you have on the chosen material. Good luck.
 
fazman said:
Thanks... but I tested the tweeters without the crossover.. speaker wire right to the tweeter leads...(very low volume of course) One was definitely louder than the other. But they measure so close :scratch2:
Click to expand...

new tweeter diaphragms are available from simplyspeakers.com for $80 each
 
Sir.Byrd said:
new tweeter diaphragms are available from simplyspeakers.com for $80 each
Click to expand...

Yes... thanks sirbyrd I just saw that. $89 to be exact. :D
Hopefully that would be the issue though... I'd hate to spend that for a new diaphragm and have it not be the problem. :sigh:

I'm bringing the Heil's over to me tech to look at them first before I buy anything... we'll see I guess.
 
Last edited:
The AMT diaphragms shown on the simplyspeakers.com web site do not appear to be the one's used in the rock monitors.
 
DENNYDOG said:
Crap, I didn't realize they were the Rock Monitors. You will LOVE those once you get them going. Keep an eye out for the passives as they do show up on Ebay fairly often.

It sounds like you might need a new diaphragm for the Heil. You can buy these new also. Just make sure you measure the height as they made two different sizes. :thmbsp:

Denny
Click to expand...

I don't think those ARE Rock Monitors. Don't Rock Monitors have a 6" mid?

I've had those and one's like those and they do sound grand. Huge sound with highs as clear as light. They weigh a ton too.

Very nice score.
 
simply speaker.com has the daphrams for the heil air motion and the passive radiators. Call them up and they will get everything you need. I have bought lots of surrounds and what not from them. There great to deal with.
 
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