frankmarsi

@meta_noia_fot, do your self a favor, pursue them, they're worth the effort. My thinking is at some point the latest manufacturers of replacement tweeters will probably wind-down at some point as they're catering mostly to the vintage market, namely AR owners. They are other outboard tweeters from the past so, some digging around is in order. I find the M.S. strong, excellent sounding and more than a vintage listener could ask for all parameters considered.

Hi-ya DavidR, correct, a couple of their cartridges did receive lofty reviews and are still sort after by some even these days. I'm entrenched enough with modern LOMC cartridges to go backwards in time in that area. In fact my antiquated AR's, PL amps and turntables are complementary to the cartridges I use and the reverse is true also. And believe when I say the ones I use mesh very nicely with the vintage sound of AR's I'm concrete in my opinions. I cherry-picked the phono-cartridges to do just that. I always knew back then the Micro-Acoustics company was a small company and probably unable to compete with the larger concerns out there. Evidently, that was the case. As I recall when their line of speakers came out, the Japanese manufactures were just going into high-gear and the sheer size of Japanese imports at the time overwhelmed the US market, I knew many fell by the wayside because of it. In fact I can recall a number of US manufacturers sort taking a back seat in the industry. And the days when USA manufacturers started have their components made over-seas. Without getting terribly political here, free-enterprise has a way tripping on it's own feet. By the early mid sixties much industry was relocating over-seas, it's led to the US losing much of the market it dominated in many areas. We suffer for it today also. I was around a a child in the '50s but aware enough to hear and learn if a product didn't say Made in the USA it wasn't a quality item in most cases. I could on but, why bother as the world is fragmented to make any sense by just being a citizen. Many aspects of current life are out of control as it is. Being helpless except for being in my own world with my well earned and well put together stereo system keeps me pacified enough. I gladly chose not to be a politician. FM

Has anyone seen this sale of Micro-Statics on the auction site that were sold for $310.00, oh my. For me, through all these years since 1974 they've been my only recourse when it comes to very good to excellent highs and especially with their high power handling ability. One of my initial reasons I bought my AR-3a's in 1971 was their dome tweeters which was making its way in the world of Hi-Fi but, I didn't know how limited AR domes were when it c came to power-handling ability. By '74 I was saved by these little but hardy cone tweeters. In their history, they've served many AR speaker owners way back when there were no other options. Throughout the years they have lasted and performed splendidly with never a problem or burn-out. If you're a recent AR owner or came into the world of vintage after the fact like many have, you may not be familiar with these tweeters. In the early '70s, they were the most economical and fastest way to regain your high frequencies that so many AR owners were forced to do with-out. I purchase my original pair for about $78. which was about the same price I paid for my new Shure V15 Type 3 I bought the same year. Searching for the best price back then was a matter of going from different store to store, week after week as we didn't have the ease of the web. Noting that aspect, I actually preferred learning hands-on, rather I should say ears-on compared to reading the countless personal opinions one is forced to sift through by using the internet. I didn't have to worry about delivery problems as every piece of my equipment I picked up myself from the dealer, put in the car and took them home in very caring fashion. FM https://www.ebay.com/itm/156167601838?mkevt=1&plmtId=1110100101&mesgId=4001&mkpid=0&emsid=enull.m161499.l174139&mkcid=7&ch=osgood&euid&bu=43113236379&trkId=c03f97ea-2c8b-4f25-95e8-3f66eaaef2a5&cnvId=a7fb74a1-c76a-4a5d-81a4-a4efd73d9c0c&osub=-1~1&crd=20240419110203&segname&recoId=156167601838&recoPos=1 P.S. I forgot to mention that once I installed my Micro-Statics on top of my AR-3a's I was finally able to listen at realistic sound levels with my new Phase Linear PL-400 with out worrying about blowing out the little arrays. Finally, not only was there an option of listening at higher levels I didn't have to listen to verify if my tweeters were working or not like I did with the AR high range tweeters, it was such a huge and gratifying difference on all levels. However, the AR-3a's glorious midrange and woofer had no problem absorbing the huge amount of wattage the PL-400 had to offer. FM

@ ReliaBill Engineer , Wow that's quite a noble effort and evidently an excellent physical feat that was accomplished with that tweeter. I obviously don't have it in my hands to see or hear but from what I can see, a wonderful effort in forming the surround, what's it made of? I admire your patience and skill. At this moment it looks so good, I would bet you'll get members inquiries of performing that same operation at a price. Keep us posted, I'm very curious how they sound. I venture a guess RoyC. would be pleased also. I don't use my 4ax's as I purchased them several years ago(2005), when I was more collector driven and just had to have a pair. I was actually inspired by their sound quality back in 1965-66 as my dentist had a pair in his office area. I was so thrilled they sounded so good* to my 16 year old ears I made a promise to myself that a good sounding personal playback system was in my future. That notion was correct because that year in 1966/7, I started building home-made speakers from street found drivers, cabinets and I made a few cabinets myself, all of which my father felt had no room in the house or basement to occupy., Though I camouflaged one cabinet behind stuff, and dismantled the rest when I entered the service 2 yrs. later and came home on leave, it had mysteriously disappeared. To be fair, I was taking up room with my new at the time silver-face, Fender Bassman amp and bass guitar. Though, I guess he redeemed himself by building for me a four-wheel dolly out of angle-iron with heavy-duty 3 inch swivel wheels and that saved my back tremendously later on. You lose some, you gain some. FM P.S. * at that time, 1966, I was already seeking any and all information I could find about the hobby that was on my to-do-list of future hobbies.I was tinkering with found raw speakers, discarded radios, it didn't satisfy enough. Even though I worked at part-time jobs, that small amount of money was only enough to take my girl to the movies, certainly not enough to buy a quality music play-back system. Forgot to mention in later 1967 I built my first electronic kit the Dynaco PAS-3x and ST-35. Evidently, I wasn't kidding myself as decades later I find myself ensconced with vintage turntables, pre-amps, amps, expensive phono-cartridges, and many, many AR speakers. Good-Luck to you ReliaBill Engineer as I've been impressed by your motivation and willingness since you arrived here. A positive virtual shot in the arm for this site. FM 271

@Andre_Db66, That's electronic music isn't it? Maybe, that's too much for these guys to handle as they weren't made with that sort of sound in mind. For me it's like older men wearing skinny-jeans and, that's odd to me pushing the envelope of personal age perceptions. Though perhaps acceptable in music, public display is something else. I still have my 1964 Beatle boots and 1968 bell-bottom hip-hugger jeans but, I wouldn't wear them even to wally's. I at one time noticed my woofers traveling a bit more than they should've but, I hadn't noticed the foam was disintegrating in a dimly lite room. I believe the AR 12" woofer has more travel than a AR-2ax's woofer. To me generally, any speaker should handle any sort of music but, there are exceptions. Ported speakers might do better with electronic music than acoustic-suspension speakers. That's not being judgmental, merely following design parameters. The larger AR-LST's controls only affect the highs and lows. PS, a leak could exist under the basket frame which may have been over looked when re-foaming. It's why I use closed-cell foam speaker mounting tape instead of that confounded putty stuff which is simply not pliable as necessary and presents a world of difficulty when it's needed to be replaced. FM 500

I appreciate the willingness to take on such a task of aligning and putting back together again a whole assembly of a voice-coil and woofer cone but, there are other ways. These speakers are very old, mine more than a half-century so, a number of years ago decided to buy spares, just in case. So, why not consider buying used and in some cases some are ready for a simple drop-in? I would strongly suggest communicating closely with the seller regarding condition, packing and shipping and in the event of shipping damage , the process of refund. These are heavy and can pose problems packing properly. As I mentioned, these are getting older and more rare by the day and having spares is not a bad idea. You could install the newly purchased ones providing they’re ready to go and then take your time repairing what you have and either reinstall or retain as spares. Ultimately, it's your decision so, in any event, good luck. FM 25

“newandold’ has made the point that the newer surrounds hold up better and apparently they do. I too re-foamed my four LST surrounds in around 2010 and thank goodness, they’re still holding up. I read a few years ago that new additives were being incorporated in the foam chemical formulas enabling more longevity. And I might add that’s a relief as I’ve done more than my share of re-foaming AR 12 inch woofers. Attempting to use actual ‘rubber’ surrounds in a speaker designed for use with more compliant foam will not only affect the woofer’s movement but, bring it away from its original sound. A classic case of re-writing, re-explaining over and over regarding the same information, if only viewers would do a ‘search’ on the keywords, topics, it’s all been answered here already. 25

Hi Roy, nice to hear from you. I agree but failed to mention those lugs on the speaker wire, I never saw AR use lugs, simple solder was and is sufficient. Your theory that the previous owner could've built these very easily on his own with as you say; easily acquired drivers from AR direct, I agree with also. I still have the occasional day-dream of mounting two AR 12” woofers in a cabinet as reinforcement however, I also think AR’s woofers as great as they are would be stressing in such use. For several hundred dollars one could find a singular ‘sub-woofer’ that’s powered and it would be enough for most medium size installations. Although I may find like others a more exciting and dimensional sound through the use of a sub as it were, I also feel my speakers are properly set-up in my listening room and afford me more than adequate bass levels and stay within realistic levels. I enjoy a big sounding system but, I could never tolerate a fake, over-done or booming effect. My thinking their use for modern movie sound tracks if that's your thing and to bolster a small system such as one using two-way speakers. Additionally, I have always found the rendition of bass frequencies that AR’s 12 “ woofer willfully projects is enough for realistic-listening levels of bass frequencies. I also feel that any more bass will defeat my speaker’s purpose of emanating un-colored bass-tones. In general, I find the sound of sub-woofers entertaining for short term listening that could possibly become audibly boring with time, not to mention false sounding. I first purchased (in 1971), my AR-3a’s for a number of reasons, realistic and quality bass reproduction was a major buying consideration that hasn’t diminished in the 52+ years of my ownership. So, have we debunked “JeffS’s great find? Perhaps but, if he were dissatisfied with them, he still has costly drivers to either use or sell for a profit and still come out ahead. Or, redesign and incorporate them into something else. Now, let me get back to the ’National Geographic’ channel, showing specials on ancient Roman structures in England. FM

It’s almost exciting too think of this as a one-off . And, not to minimize the excitement factor I’m feeling I need more information. Is it that it could’ve been made by ‘AR’ as a prototype? From appearances, it could’ve been made by an employee after hours. Perhaps it was a special-order though I think AR would’ve done a better job on the cabinet’s finish in terms of grain-direction, wood-corner joining construction and driver placement, etc. Were there mounting brackets on the back that may have been removed at some point? Isn’t the internal cabinet volume supposed to be 1.7 cubic feet for the woofer? In terms of the 755 driver cabinet location, it would normally be mounted higher and inline than the woofer as seen in the AR-1 typically and also used in general speaker design. The mostly missing corners of the back paper label make me wonder if the corners once were stapled, though I've seen labels glued and stapled at different times of construction. Out of AR owner curiosity, a number of years ago I thought of building a cabinet for using AR woofers as additional low-frequency support in a planned system but never got around to it. So, I’m still very curious. In a way, this cabinet you acquired is puzzling at best and I can’t rest until some one more qualified such as RoyC expresses his opinion as he may be the site’s only fully knowledgeable remaining member left here. There may be others but, he is doing the ‘AR-Thing’ I’d guess everyday. “johnieo” or “Ming” and others haven’t been posting for a while (years) so, RoyC. is our leader and all-knowing, all-seeing Magical-Mystic-Guru-Ruler. FM P.S. If my questioning is unnecessary or incorrect, so be it but, I can’t rest until I hear different. If I don’t hear differently, I’ll reluctantly accept this cabinet as being what you have implied or said it is. I generally enjoy ancient history of man and nature so I'll be checking back to read other opinions until we're sure 100%, this is most interesting. FM 58

That's funny Kent as I would make the monthly stop at E.J. Korvettes because living in Staten Island at the time, it was the only big department store we had out there. S.I. at the time only had about 130 thousand in population, today it's over 400 thousand and over crowded. Korvettes was certainly well stocked as they carried many of the popular names of the era. I'd go and always asked to hear the AR-3a's which were newly released. Sadly most of the speakers on display were grouped close together on shelves and the bigger speakers on the floor, even bookshelf models. I also made my first 'hi-fi' purchases there. In late 1967 purchased a Dynaco PAS-3x pre-amp and a Dynaco ST-35 power amp., both tube models in kit form. I couldn't afford them until I started to accumulate cash from my new job working on Wall St. After a few weeks and into 1968 my pre and amp were finished and powering two AR-3a size sealed enclosures I purchased on "Radio-Row" on Cortland St. close to where the first World Trade Towers were being newly built. In 1968 I was juggling hi-fi, playing in a hot local rock band and enjoying women because now, I had a car to afford me to actually get around, just like the old Beach Boys song with the same name "I Get Around", flip-side 'Don't Worry Baby'. It was a 45RPM I bought in late 1964.* By 1968, I was in a band that was into and the newer rock music that was becoming popular like Hendrix, and many others that were the music we went after and played as covers. 'Hard-Rock' was fast becoming the most current rock music at the time. Those 'XAM' speakers Korvettes offered in different sizes I couldn't warm up to as they sounded muted and dull. Did they have E.V. drivers inside, I can't say, just didn't sound good to me. Certainly not after having my mind and heart set on AR's. I went back to Korvettes to buy my exciting at the time, the AR-xa for $69.00 to replace the Garrard 40B I first bought along with the Dyna components. The AR-xa sounded so much better than the entry level Garrard but, that's another story. Mounted my Shure M3D and later a Shure M55, then a Shure 91E. That was 56 years ago and yes I'm dating myself. There were common societal problems in the culture but, everything for an 18 year older was so much better in this country than today. In fact I felt it was GREAT to be alive! Eleven months later I was in boot-camp and serving my country and everything in my life was put on hold. P.S. * I still have that very same Beach Boys 45 RPM single disk. It's worn and the SQ sucks but, I'm happy to say I was there in those years, it was great and I would do it all over again. In factor the younger folks who only discovered vintage hi-fi components of yesteryear with the last twenty or thirty years or so, all I can say it was better in the Classic Era of hi-fi while it was first hand and all brand new, you late-comers missed a lot. However, hope springs eternal and many of those vintage components were built and designed well and have survived so, you can still have some of that original pleasure boomers like me did. I'm glad there are folks that allow it to live on even though it's old. P.S. The appreciator that I am, I can tell you that I still have all of the above mentioned equipment, the original guitar and bass that I played, the pre and amp, and dead Shure cartridges. The hip-hugger, bell-bottom jeans and Nehru shirt and love-beads and elephant hair bracelets are somewhere in a box., but most of the clothes were donated. But wait, from 1964 I still have my "Beatle"-boots in good condition. And yes, if I found a minty pair of AR-5's at a good price I'd snatch them up. They were as far as I could go in cost back then as the AR-2ax just wasn't for me at the time but, this AR-5's are still attractive. When I bought the AR-3a's in 1971 it was a huge financial stretch for me and it took months to make back that money. Yet, they set the pace for me back then and all I did was to make my AR hi-fi system grow bigger and better. FM 491

GH, good to know, now all here have an idea of your history. It'll be much easier to address situations on a common-ground. I for one really didn't know on what level to speak to you with. On the web, all sorts of people exist and all hidden behind the keyboard shield, it's difficult speaking to a ghost. Many use the 'shield' to fool others with a false or fake background and knowledge. There's a few out there who fake it all the way by parroting what they've read from others and present a false impression. Some of that same type of person are posers and aren't recommended as friends or acquaintances but merely insecure individuals who lie. From what little you've just now mentioned, I feel you'll have no problems on this repair of a vintage AR speaker. I still maintain my opinion of using used woofers first and then the complete rebuild of your current woofer in time. FM

Yes, I tend to be verbose but, if you've owned/enjoyed and spoke of these speakers the countless times as I have, my dialog becomes a rant about personal history with them invariably after 50+ years of AR ownership. For a possible newcomer, they might wish they had that same history or, can be put-off by it. I've met others who are just as into-it as I am, some even more so. It'll be interesting to hear more about your set-up and any back story of how you got there as a point of reference. These speakers have been part of my life and, except for the handful of original owners and the newcomers who are reaching to get a touch of that history, it's a select group of folks who are passionate. Actually, if one truly enjoys old AR's in a well set-up system of notable mention, one tends to feel strongly about it. I believe we all consider ourselves fortunate. It goes without saying some of us can border the obsessive. Anyway, take the plunge as the first step, the cost is not life changing and, you'll be able to get a hand hold and tell the forum about your results. Call the vendor, tell them it's the 10" AR woofer frame, not the 12" one to be sure. Hopefully, others here will come forth with their experiences and advice. Obviously, I can't help but feeling buying a pair of used ones first will be your quickest route to listening. Then, you could take your time with re-foaming, installing a new Voice coil and spider. P.S. The 'new' paper cone will no doubt have difference in its construction material. It could be lighter, thinner or even heavier so, be forewarned it would sound slightly different. That to me would definitely steer me towards buying a used unit. Yes, I mentioned my collection of surplus stock also. FM

GH, I suggest you speak to the surround suppliers and discuss the voice-coil replacement process and judge for yourself, get in touch with Roy as he's the 'GUY'. Ask his take on the situation and go from there. If your skill level does not allow you to feel comfortable you will have your alternatives listed, choose one. This is not brain surgery. I was simply stating what I would do and have done and will continue to do. Re-foaming is no great pleasure after the third or fourth time but, like anything else that's worth while, it's worth while! When I first replaced the foam on one set of LST's in '89, my wife at the time and I were so happy. Perhaps maybe too happy because when she got home before I did, she proceeded to blow-out the remaining tweeters and I then had a whole new set of problems. I warned her but, she was just too wild and perhaps of a different sub-species yet unknown to man. "MAKE-WAY, MAKE-WAY," let those Micro-Static little boxes in the door please. *They' re still the best $117. I ever spent on my stereo since 1967. to present. And as Tony the Tiger would say...........they're........... That is; once I took my hamburger-helper Micro-Static tweeters away from my AR-3a's and used them with my LST's all was good again. And to answer your question of, "what if the used ones I buy, have a similar issue"? I answered that in my first post that it is important to communicate with your 'vendor' and state that and or ask if there are any problems that even he may not be aware of, can you return them as you received them for a refund? Check vendor's selling and buying history and ask a couple important questions. View their history also. I use pay-p_l or credit card as additional support. Several years ago I ordered another set of used 3a woofers and I ended up sending them back due to severe damage. The seller had used zip-ties to join the woofers together face to face and placed them in a cardboard box. They ended up floating around in the big box and due to their immense uneven weight, broke the zip-ties and the metal frames ended up gouging each other's cone destroying the paper cone along with a bent metal basket. I was furious and dismayed at the same time. I really enjoy the bass these woofers make and therefore value them greatly. I was disappointed to say the least though I did send them back and got a full refund. Dialog with your vendor is of the upmost importance when dealing with the unknown of shipping and buying more or less blinded because you're not handling them as you would when you buy something in person. Speak up, keep your questions succinct and hope for the best but, protect yourself first. I then went on to buy another 20 or more used 12" AR woofers and all except two that had that infamous white mold on the paper cone I now have a bountiful supply. Tested them all with a 1.5v battery and, no rubbing was noticed. I purchased most of them at $50. each or less in the early 2000's. Now, they're at least twice that. FM videos on VC replacement: https://www.google.com/search?q=replacrng+of++speaker+voice+coils&sca_esv=578947632&biw=1778&bih=888&tbm=vid&ei=4xZEZfmNDNfi5NoP8cmO0Aw&ved=0ahUKEwi5i_Gxo6aCAxVXMVkFHfGkA8oQ4dUDCAw&oq=replacrng+of++speaker+voice+coils&gs_lp=Eg1nd3Mtd2l6LXZpZGVvIiFyZXBsYWNybmcgb2YgIHNwZWFrZXIgdm9pY2UgY29pbHNIAFAAWABwAHgAkAEAmAEAoAEAqgEAuAEMyAEA&sclient=gws-wiz-video Your ? ""What's the process for repairing the voice coil? Do I have to tear up the re-foam I did a few years ago, detach the spider from the frame, disconnect the leads, extract the cone assembly, re-wind the coil and then re-assemble the whole mess with new foam suspensions?"" I believe it's either Simpler-Speakers or Madison Speakers that sell it as a complete kit with V.C., spider and fiber/paper cone. Researching, taking notes, bookmarks, emailed questions and general observation are the best ways to get information. The two links I sent here for you should just about keep you busy and come away a bit better informed. I might add that if this is your first venture off in the world of such things I would suggest practicing on a trashed speaker or try it completely with the back end, last resort knowledge that if it doesn't succeed, you'll have to buy a good pair of used ones anyway. Over all, I think you have most of the information on the topic to get started one way or the other. FM 34

Well, that doesn't sound very inspiring, I thought he'd wanted to attempt to do this on his own. So much for self motivation and determination. When I meet a challenge, I too will panic but, after some time I'll investigate if it's at all possible to do myself. If he's planning on keeping long-term or until the new foam becomes deteriorated he'll be in the same place he's in presently. Once you've re-foamed speakers yourself, you then have even more confidence in these speakers knowing in the event of breakdown, you yourself can turn them around and continue enjoying. Or, and if cost is not a issue, then let some one else do it for you. I'm leaning towards DIY. I came from a family where every meal was made from scratch and of natural ingredients. I myself, did all my own car repairs that didn't call for a 'lift' but even then I did my own brake jobs, plugs and cables, oil changes and suspension lube, shocks, and cleanings, etc. Sadly, car makers took that all away from the masses also and I'm reluctant to even look at my new car's 3.5lt. V6 engine. Although, last month I did repair wires to the 'variable-valve-timing solenoid connectors' on the rear-bank of cylinders that the dealer cut out of malice, and event denied it besides. I saved myself a few hundred rite there. Bought the new plugs and but-connectors and fixed it,I couldn't take the 'check-engine' light any longer nor would it pass inspection like that. The future may just be as we've seen in it movies where we're all dependent on others and we've all become drones. We're mostly there already, sad. But, hey, that's just me as my background was to repair broken things and to continue to use them. That was also the case for the masses for ions. The modern instant- gratification expectation world we've created in the last 50 years has taken that inspiration away from most of us so, I understand And some are just not equipped for doing certain things mechanics, I get that. But, there's the sheer fun of fixing things that's rewarding. And hey, if you've got old AR speakers it's sort of part and parcel. I recall complaining to hi-fi shops in NYC about not being able to play my speakers after 10 years or so and the only answer I got was': "Buy New Ones". Even that was from a person who probably didn't have the wherewithal himself, I did and refused to throw-away my classic two AR-3a's, 2 AR-2ax's and four AR-LST's. This is what I held out for: https://www.google.com/search?q=replacrng+of++speaker+voice+coils&sca_esv=578947632&biw=1778&bih=888&tbm=vid&ei=4xZEZfmNDNfi5NoP8cmO0Aw&ved=0ahUKEwi5i_Gxo6aCAxVXMVkFHfGkA8oQ4dUDCAw&oq=replacrng+of++speaker+voice+coils&gs_lp=Eg1nd3Mtd2l6LXZpZGVvIiFyZXBsYWNybmcgb2YgIHNwZWFrZXIgdm9pY2UgY29pbHNIAFAAWABwAHgAkAEAmAEAoAEAqgEAuAEMyAEA&sclient=gws-wiz-video

@ gahamby, Correct, that coil looks like it had its last word. At times like this, you can either disassemble the cone from its voice coil unsealing the voice from the spider and then glue it all back together and hope and trust your construction abilities. Or, you can install a used woofer purchased where ever you can find, it shouldn't be difficult to find them as the 2Ax was very popular and, you may find a couple of woofer fully re-foamed and ready to go. Some here are fearful of purchasing online though, all I can say to that is: "Yous pay da price, you take your pick and you take your chances". Back in the '70s and '80s regarding my foam problems, I was entirely alone, no such thing as web-sales back then. The many newcomers in the last 20 to 30 years have it easy, although they missed all fun I had in that period also. I mean, geez, I been on this forum going on 20 years already! The auction site has protections in place that will usually take sides with the buyer. Communicate well with the seller and go from there. See link below. If it wasn't for eBay offerings, I don't think I would've been able to keep my AR's going strong 52 years later. As a long term owner of AR speakers (52yrs.), by the mid-eighties I wasn't able to use my AR-3a's because I wasn't able to locate or even ponder a possible option of re-foaming them. I silently became very annoyed at AR for using foam that just simply would deteriorate in the time I owned them. Generally, these days foam-surrounds have much improved quality manufacturing. Same for my LST's up until 1989 when I noticed a small ad for foam surrounds offered for sale, I don't recall if it was in Stereo-Filel magazine or elsewhere. It was a sole proprietor out of the Carolinas somewhere. I was the new owner of 5 AR-LST's that couldn't be used because their surrounds were completely gone, same with my originally purchased in 1971, AR-3a's. I needed a few foam sets but, decided to start working with one set for my LST's first. Back then the foam-surround market was no where as flooded with suppliers as it is presently. In fact seamless, single-piece molded surrounds were not anywhere to found. The surrounds I received had a split in them that had to be joined together once it was applied to the stamped basket edge and woofer's edge. It took more time, as I was uncertain of every step of the installation. Luckily, the first installed set of foam surrounds worked out well and I continued to re-foam the second set. Not long thereafter, many suppliers started to appear with single one-piece surrounds making assembly much easier. To date, I've probably re-foamed over 26 woofers since 1989. I also keep a supply of spare used woofers, tweeters, and midrange drivers all bought used on the auction site as I'm committed and fully dedicated to AR speakers. And, as an admirer of their sound quality practically most of my life, I'll not let the speakers down and more importantly won't let myself down. For me, it was a challenge to buy them, much less afford them and use them properly since I was 20-21 years young. Today, I still strongly hold the course. At the time, older hi-fi guys thought I was a well off kid, what they didn't know was I worked a number of jobs and made certain sacrifices just to buy them. At 20-21 years old, most kids weren't into stereo as much as I was and I still played in a band and had a steady gal, and a car. Friends usually came to me with, "what do think I should get for a stereo Frank" , and "gee, those AR speakers are just too expensive". Of course vinyl was the medium of choice back then. Today, vinyl still is my medium of choice except, there too I've gone the distance to learn how to use vinyl to its best advantage with a regiment of ultra-sonic cleaning for any disk that finds its way to my turntables. Top quality cartridges and excellent care of 'set-up' and record-care top it all off. You're lucky there's such a forum as 'CSP' for all of your AR questions and needs as I am also. FM https://www.ebay.com/itm/155854619477?hash=item2449a8c355:g:8oUAAOSwoQFlPFLl&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA8IKo2%2Fz60pX1f35Ed79dT%2FptgUJfdfAeChufYEcxSF6hLH2d9IHjgyp91cwsHshuXvipn5NZXfWUplKYMFUpU7I33hwmmZ5Fobs99Kwy%2FA%2F6fHCW8ONOOfbFEFlSUydyZcRtUUj1AhMzCOnOyOcRA%2BCBAHQ0Quihyp5dwg1Bm4hR0Gdf2V%2BGMIFrnhdMHfzOiGtiiGWHJPGTtlQGxAwSntpJ69SyTb%2BLw6JaxaDx0M6fufPXhxpcfvaYz05Yp9JolKtCFN2ulLN77BROnLN%2B%2BaX6OEpW53pO3Kw9a0K6yRmTvIPcMn3Bi3mVPU18LXAp2Q%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR57Dv5byYg 11