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Art speakers...

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Posted on May 31, 2017 at 14:31:27
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 A friend gave me her audio system and some LPs. Pictured are the speakers which she says she has had since new. They have been re-foamed at least once. She said I was doing her a favor and knew I would appreciate them The receiver is a Marantz MR1155 and the turntable is a Dennon DP 51. This turntable works and sounds very nice and I think it's a keeper. I have some older Marantz receivers that are built way better than the MR1155.

She is an artist and painted the speakers. Are they possibly worth restoring for the sound? In person the cabinets are quite unique as original art.

What do they mean by "plug into 117 Volts AC????

Thank you for any helpful comments.












Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

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electrostatic drivers (tweeters), posted on May 31, 2017 at 14:54:58
mhardy6647
Audiophile

Posts: 16016
Location: New England
Joined: October 12, 1999
Contributor
  Since: October 23, 2016
 they need AC mains voltage supply to drive their high voltage, low current (electrostatic) power supplies.


all the best,
mrh

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on May 31, 2017 at 15:03:43
David Yost
Audiophile

Posts: 959
Location: Atlanta
Joined: May 12, 2006
 Looks like someone "cut the cord" on these. See the link -- should be old style lamp cords sprouting from the back of these.

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on May 31, 2017 at 15:53:34
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 Thanks for your response. Pictured is one of the cables. She had them hooked up to the receiver. I'm puzzled how to connect these and troubled that they might take out my amp. is that possible? I'm trying to find a manual on line now that explains the connection process.

Thanks again,






Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

Like so much art, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, posted on May 31, 2017 at 15:57:12
M3 lover
Audiophile

Posts: 6601
Location: SW Mich
Joined: May 29, 2005
Contributor
  Since: July 4, 2007
 Her artistic endeavors don't appeal to me but that's OK.

I'm not familiar with the Z-700 but I fondly remember auditioning a pair of Janszens in the mid-70s. They were about the size enclosure of the Advent or AR-2. What I remembered most was hearing an LP by the Modern Jazz Quartet and being able to differentiate the various cymbals in the drum kit. I hadn't experienced that level of detail before, and still they were musical.

Page forward a few decades and that recollection influenced me to audition a pair of the current Janszens. Big surprise -- I bought them!

"The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing, if you can fake that you've got it made." Groucho

 

RE: electrostatic drivers (tweeters), posted on May 31, 2017 at 15:57:33
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 Thanks for posting. The back of each speaker has only 2 posts for connection. Is there a separate step/up/down amplifier needed to power them? I can't use a regular stereo amp?

Tx,

Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on May 31, 2017 at 17:59:51
DavidJanszen
Manufacturer

Posts: 61
Location: Central Ohio
Joined: June 30, 2005
 Ashra -- those are the best of the series of large bookshelf speakers made by Neshaminy under license. Nice paint! They do require a connection to the wall AC, but it's missing from the one you show the back of. The speakers will not have any treble without this.

The cables in your picture are for connecting the speaker terminals to the receiver. Make sure you are consistent about which color goes to which post, e.g., red goes to +, black to -.

Someone has apparently clipped away the power cord. There may be enough of the original cord sticking out to splice in a new one. If not, someone will have to do a little surgery on them. At any rate, if you take these to a repair shop, it will not be hard to fix this aspect.

 

JansZens are absolutely worth restoring. You can probably..., posted on May 31, 2017 at 18:04:22
viridian
 pull the woofers and see where the line cords went into the transformers for the electrostatic elements. Just replace the line cord and, while you are in there, replace any electrolytic caps. A little sanding of the box - or leave it as is, I kinda like it - and you will have a stone classic speaker there. Very good fortune.

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on May 31, 2017 at 18:53:48
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 DavidJanszen - Thanks for the info. It was not at all clear when viewing the backs what the proper connection would be with 117 volts. Looks like I have a bit of a project on my hands. I'm looking forward to completion.
Thanks again!

Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

the power supply, crossover & transformer should all be "in the box", posted on May 31, 2017 at 19:18:42
mhardy6647
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Posts: 16016
Location: New England
Joined: October 12, 1999
Contributor
  Since: October 23, 2016
 In other words, they're built to take a normal amplifier output (like the Quad ESLs, e.g.).

As others have said, well worth some investigation, time & effort. Not junk. Not at all. :-)


all the best,
mrh

 

Two thoughts and a question ... , posted on May 31, 2017 at 19:29:25
J. S. Bach
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  Since: June 29, 2004
 ...One, leave the cabinets alone as a tribute/"thank you" to your friend. Plus, I kind of like the artistic look.

Two, there is a possibility that at sometime the electrostatics were replaced with regular drivers so no line cords.

What dose the yellow sticker say?



Later Gator,
Dave
Find more about Weather in Chester, SC

 

This label..., posted on May 31, 2017 at 20:28:26
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 ...fell off one of the speakers. You pose a good question. I did not see the remnants of an electrical cord or where one would have gone. I'll take a closer look in the AM.

The friend who gave me the speakers is a fantastic artist. After getting her to sign the cabinets I would not think of touching them. It'll be a challenge to figure out how to get into the cabinets for any restoration without damaging them though.

Thanks!






Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

+1.......... , posted on May 31, 2017 at 20:34:14
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 Maybe I should approach someone who can tell me.

Thanks!

 

RE: Two thoughts and a question ... , posted on June 1, 2017 at 03:37:54
Uncle Mike
 Millersound is still in business and doing quite well. I live not far from them and can vouch for their work as they did the surrounds on my AR9s.
The Marantz looks to be a later "Superscope" era model and you are probably correct on the build. I'm kinda jealous of your gift.

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on June 1, 2017 at 06:56:49
mgbpuff
Audiophile

Posts: 307
Location: Georgia
Joined: June 13, 2009
Contributor
  Since: October 4, 2009
 This add shows good pictures of how the terminations should look for both the speaker and the 117v connections.

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on June 1, 2017 at 08:30:52
David Yost
Audiophile

Posts: 959
Location: Atlanta
Joined: May 12, 2006
 Those are the cables to connect the speaker inputs to an amplifier. The cords that are missing in the photo connect to a 110V household socket. Each speaker needs its own to power up the built-in electrostatic bias circuits.

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on June 1, 2017 at 08:35:49
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 That's helpful. Thank you!

Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on June 1, 2017 at 08:42:03
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 Thanks!

Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

yeah, unfortunately I am not expert on those :-( , posted on June 1, 2017 at 09:00:41
mhardy6647
Audiophile

Posts: 16016
Location: New England
Joined: October 12, 1999
Contributor
  Since: October 23, 2016
 or much of anything for that matter.
all the best,
mrh

 

BINGO..., posted on June 1, 2017 at 11:23:22
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 J. S. Bach (A) was correct when he said sometimes the electroscatic speakers were replaced. Apparently that's what was done with these. I was curious that my friend had been using them without plugging into the wall so I popped the grill. Pics below. I was hoping otherwise but now I know. Cones look a bit dried out with some damage. Looks like the turntable (Dennon DP51) and LPs will get the most use from this gift.

A big thanks to all who responded with comments and suggestions.










Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

A bit sad..., posted on June 1, 2017 at 12:07:36
E-Stat
Audiophile

Posts: 37607
Joined: May 12, 2000
Contributor
  Since: April 5, 2002
 Very the much the case Green Lanern mentioned about another set of vintage speakers.

Naturally, I'm biased when it comes to stats. :)

 

RE: Art speakers... put back the janszen es panels, posted on June 2, 2017 at 06:25:22
Iain42
Reviewer

Posts: 895
Location: Arcansaw
Joined: February 10, 2004
 The Janszen speakers are cool. I love her painting.

I rather like the Janszen speakers. There is a pair I have my eye on. Do not plug into power outlet unless you have the panels. The electrocstatic speakers have been removed and replaced with two crappy speakers. Maybe find some on ebay. Just my 2 cents



High sensitivity, wide dynamic range, low distortion, and smooth frequency response. Pwk

http://www.itishifi.com

 

Answer, posted on June 2, 2017 at 10:41:33
E-Stat
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 Is there a separate step/up/down amplifier needed to power them?

Step up transformers are used to generate the high voltage bias.

Electrostats tend to pose a more demanding load than most, but regular amps work just fine.

I use an Emotiva amp in the HT driving Acoustats and VTL tube amps in the main system driving the Sound Labs.

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on June 2, 2017 at 12:39:35
DavidJanszen
Manufacturer

Posts: 61
Location: Central Ohio
Joined: June 30, 2005
 Oh -- now I see in the grill-off photo -- those aren't really Z-700's, since someone replaced the electrostatic elements with ordinary cone tweeters whose urethane foam surrounds long ago rotted. Sorry to say, they were fully converted into art pieces, and there's no reason to bother trying to use them as speakers.

 

:-( (nt), posted on June 2, 2017 at 15:05:26
mhardy6647
Audiophile

Posts: 16016
Location: New England
Joined: October 12, 1999
Contributor
  Since: October 23, 2016
 nt
all the best,
mrh

 

Thanks!..., posted on June 2, 2017 at 18:05:26
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 I was starting to get excited about efforts to restore.

Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on June 2, 2017 at 19:39:07
Eli Duttman
Audiophile

Posts: 10455
Location: Monroe Township, NJ
Joined: March 31, 2000
 While those small cone drivers are complete guano, could something be cobbled together with dome and/or horn drivers that will function reasonably well? What sort of sensitivity is needed in the device(s) mated to the woofer?

Obviously, woodworking (to get a mirror imaged pair) and crossover engineering are going to be required. I haven't the foggiest notion about cost justifying such an effort. The quality of the cabinet and woofer have much to say about that subject.


Eli D.

 

RE: Art speakers... restore!!, posted on June 3, 2017 at 06:21:48
Iain42
Reviewer

Posts: 895
Location: Arcansaw
Joined: February 10, 2004
 Keep an eye out on ebay for a pair of the electrostatic panels. Be patient a pair will pop up eventually. At least that is what I would do. Well worth it.




High sensitivity, wide dynamic range, low distortion, and smooth frequency response. Pwk

http://www.itishifi.com

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on June 11, 2017 at 08:30:53
DavidJanszen
Manufacturer

Posts: 61
Location: Central Ohio
Joined: June 30, 2005
 Get these

 

RE: Art speakers..., posted on June 14, 2017 at 08:29:44
Bold Eagle
Audiophile

Posts: 6936
Location: America's Heartland
Joined: May 27, 2001
 For what it's worth, those two little tweeters look like Peerless cones. Pretty good in their day which was late 60's early 70's. They got used in things like the Rectilinear III and Infinity 2001.

Good electrostatic panels need a polarizing voltage, hence the line cord and power supply. If the power supply has been removed, good luck.

Jerry

 

+!.......nt, posted on June 16, 2017 at 13:49:40
ASHRA
Audiophile

Posts: 4141
Location: Philly
Joined: March 28, 2004
 nt

Still spinnin'...

;^)

 

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