Vintage Asylum

Classic gear from yesteryear; vintage audio standing the test of time.

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RE: What do the original AR-2 speakers sound like?

Posted by nat on May 24, 2007 at 06:08:18:
My first pair of speakers was a 2 and a 2a, used with Radio Shackor Layfayette Electrostatic tweeters. They were old even then (1974), but they sounded much better than most of the posters have suggested. The pots have to be be good or they will sound terrible, but that's true of all old ARs. The angled tweeters don't sound bad, but it is true that they don't have a lot of extension (nor do most other tweeters of the same time). They were made to be used horizontally, and if used vertically, as is the current fashion, they beam horribly, and that may be why people think they don't have much highend. The tweeters are damped with fiberglass, and in some cases it will have pressed against the back of the cones, distorting them, which, if severe, might be a problem -- it wasn't for mine.
Being young, and convinced that newer was better, I got the upgrade kits and put in the single driver panel that made them a 2x and a 2ax. I don't think it sounded any better, but it looked more modern, and I used the tweeters as full range drivers for a couple of pairs of small speakers for impoverished college student friends, and they sounded amazingly good, though they couldn't produce loud volumes or low bass.
If you like rich ponderous velvety sound, you might be very pleased