PIONEER CS-R300 speakers ???

Does anyone here on AK has heard about these "monitor" speakers ?

Look at them with their bi-coloured front panel ?

They are now on ebay.fr. Are they of some interest ?

http://cgi.ebay.fr/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5806126166&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MEWA:IT&rd=1

bluebook says

PIONEER SPK, CS-R300 (PAIR)
Description: BASS REFLEX, 10" WOOFER, HORN TWEETER
Manufacture Years: 1973 - 1975
Additional Information:
Power: 40w
Retail
MSRP: $240.00
USED: $35.00

Probably a good sounding speaker. Haven't heard them, though I have heard the TOTL CS-R700 and it was a very nice speaker system.
If the price is right, I'd pick them up.

Thank you very much for these informations, but if they are only 40W it is may be dangerous to connect them to my SX 1010 which is much more powerful.
JPA

just don't crank that monster SX-1010 and you'll be OK. :yes:

There is a pair near me, in Washington DC for $20. However, I am forcing myself to abide by my own rules and not get them simply to get them! I found some info in an ad on ePay, so take it with a grain of salt - though it seems like he knows what he was talkin' about:

These speakers are 8-Ohms nominally, with the power rating of 40W.

They are ported 2-way speakers with seperate (black cloth) upper and (burnt orange cloth) lower grills. The upper part has Philips round solid-state horn tweeter, and the lower part houses a 10-inch woofer.

The woofer has a cloth surround, which does not require service like the foam surrounds.

The back of each speaker has the heavy-duty push-type terminals and a level control for the tweeter.

The CS-R300, CS-R500, and CS-R700 were all in the same series.

In the early 1970's, the price was $119.95.

The CS-R series were considered to be surprisingly good in their time, especially as ported Japanese designs go. There were considerably more efficient than AS units of similar prices of the day - the sound was smooth and relatively uncolored.

Their high efficiency makes them a good match for a Pioneer SX-525 or -626, and other mid-power Pioneer receivers and others.

They also have a very good build quality to the cabinets.

The dimensions are 22.5"x13"x11" (HxWxD) and each speaker weights about 40lbs.

saw a pair of these today for 30 at a thrift store.

very solid build quality, looked like JBL for a second, but I remembered the dual colored (independent) front grills from my youth.

looked like a dome tweeter with a horn type dispersion fitting on it to me. the diaphragm was very close to the face of the speaker.

also, both woofer surrounds were gone, so at least at some point they were producing them with foam.

I currently own four of the bigger brother CS-R500's that I bought new in 1972, if I recall correctly. Mine are a very nice 3-way ported design that is very much in the West Coast Sound school of thought. The smaller CS-R300's were a 2-way design that used the same metal-diaphram horn tweeter that my '500s used, but a slightly smaller base driver. The TOTL CS-R700's had a different horn-loaded tweeter and midrange and really seemed to be a completely different speaker than the '300 or '500.

For most of their life, I have driven my CS-R500's with my Pioneer SX-626 and sometimes my QL-600a. They were a very good match for my Pioneer electronics and really excel on Rock, Jazz, Blues, etc. They definitely aren't at their best with Classical music, but this is really typical with the West Coast Sound type of speaker. The only complaint I ever had with my SX-626 driving the '500's was that at moderately high volume the '626 would just run out of steam driving them. I suspect the CS-R300's might have been a little better match for the '626 than the '500's were.

When driving my CS-R500's with modern electronics, I have found that they can be painfully bright if matched with the wrong equipment. This was especially true with the Sony and Yamaha Integrated amps I have owned. However, I got a very pleasant surprise when I drove them with my McIntosh MC-30 tube amps. They sounded GREAT! Truely an excellent match! They also sound very good on my Mc 7270 or my 2600.

In summary, the CS-R300s are a very nice 2-way West Coast Sound speaker system. I would think that you could be very happy with them, depending upon your music preferences. Happy Listening!

I own a pair of the CS- R700's and they sound great They are matched up with my SX 3700; PD-70 (cdp) And CT F900. I did hear that matching this and the CS- R500's with a tube amp really opens them up:yes:

Those CS-R700s are a very nice speaker! :thmbsp: Back when I bought my '500s, I really wanted to stretch my budget to buy either the CS-R700s or the JBL L-100s, but it just wouldn't stretch that far. I was getting into quadraphonic sound at the time and needed four of them. Of course I was also a poor college student at the time with neither a pot nor a window, but I had just quit my summer construction job to go back to school and had a little spare(?) cash burning a hole in my pocket.

IMHO the CS-R700s were right in the same class as the JBLs. Both were a very very good speaker and almost a dead-heat in overall sound quality, but horn loading of the '700s really kicked up the mid-range presence a notch above the JBL or the '500s and made them a much better balanced speaker. I bet they would sound wonderful on tubes! Naturally they ALL sound good on McIntosh equipment! I'm really surprised that we don't hear more about them here. They seem to be one of those hidden jems!