11 replies to this topic

[Mystery]

Just got a pair of used AR9 Hi-Res speakers.
These look and sound good.
Does anyone have these?
Appreciate any comment.
Thanks

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[michiganpat]

I have their older cousins, the 312HO's, which are in the same sized cabinets, but have 12" side firing woofers and a slightly different tweeter. I love mine, great sound, quite efficient, get very loud without a lot of power.

[Mystery]

Thanks for comment.
I agree they do get loud and are very punchy.
I'm powering them with Pioneer SA-1050 in stereo mode and sound very good.
They have 10" woofers but more than enough for my room size.

[Rat44]

I have never seen these before.
When were they made ?
USA or overseas market ?

[Mystery]

These are a different design from the early days.
The Hi-Res series was the flagship line of Acoustic Research when AR and NHT were under the same roof. The parent company (Recoton) ran into financial problems and sold NHT to try an save them. They filed bankruptcy then AR was sold to Audiovox who took on all of AR's debt, the cable division was sold (GE) seperatly as well.

Timeline around 1992-1998, I think. Can't find exact manufacturing date.

These are supposed to be refined (mainly improvement on bass) version of 310 HO model.
These models kinda got lost due to the problems with company acquisition and such and never got media attention as other AR's models did.

Here is link to the product site...

http://www.digital.c.../hi_res/ar9.htm

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AR9
3-Way Tower

SIMPLY STATED, THE HI-RES SERIES LOUDSPEAKERS ARE THE ULTIMATE IN SOUND REPRODUCTION, COMPETING WITH SPEAKERS TWICE THEIR PRICE

Leave it to the company that forged the history of home audio to add a whole new element to the mix. Introducing the Hi-RES Series loudspeakers from Acoustic Research -- an unprecedented combination of classic looks, innovative features, and revolutionary metal alloy components. From plasma-transferred diamond hardened titanium dome tweeters, and our exclusive MagAlloy™ midranges, to Bob Carver/Sunfire high efficiency amplifiers in our powered tower and subwoofers. The result is solid sonic precision and unyielding tonal accuracy in any home theater or stereo configuration. This is the new standard for high-output, higher-fidelity performance. This is Hi-RES.

Precision requires exacting standards. Given the demands of today's digital sources, there is simply no way to accurately reproduce the quality of these recordings without due consideration of the components that must sustain it. The new Hi-RES tower loudspeakers from Acoustic Research were conceived as a defining statement of sound reproduction and dynamic response. Each internal component has been specially designed and fitted together to faithfully reproduce all of the dynamics of the original oudio experience, consistently and on demand. And, thanks to side-firing low frequency drivers, these sleek, elegant towers fit perfectly into any room decor and complement any architectural taste.
Dimensions (HxWxD): 37" x 9 5/16" x 17"
Driver colement: Plasma Transferred Diamond Hardened 1" Titanium Dome Tweeter
Dual 5 1/4" MagAlloy Monocoque Mid-Range
10" Side-firing High Excursion Woofer
All transducers are Magnetically Shielded
Frequency response: 32Hz-23KHz ±2dB
Crossover frequency: 100Hz and 3.2KHz
Sensitivity: 92dB @ 2.83 Volts/Meter
System impedance: 8 Ohms Nominal
Recommended amp. power: 20 Watts~250 Watts
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[Rat44]

Thanks for that info.
If I see a pair in the wild they are worth a look.
Didn't realize they had reused the model numbers.
At first glance I thought it was a 'White Van' version.
Would be interesting to compare to the original AR 9.

[Mystery]

I'd like a comparison as well but there is no one I know that has original AR9's close by.
These are Acoustic Research's version for home theater application; AR9's for fronts, AR2C, AR4C for center and AR15, AR17 for surrounds.
So far, these are the best speakers I have for my fronts specially for watching action scenes.

[michiganpat]

the TOTL for the hi-res series was the AR1, which had a 500W carver sunfire amp powering the side firing 15" woofer, and the same mid/tweet as the 9's...

the hi-res series came out in '99 or '00, I bought my 312HO's in 1998.

yeah, it's annoying they re-used model numbers, as I came across a craigslist ad for some AR11's for $250 and I was giddy, until I opened it up and they are the smaller brother of the hi-res AR9, with a single mid, same tweet, and a side firing 8" woofer....

[Mystery]

the hi-res series came out in '99 or '00, I bought my 312HO's in 1998.

I see. Thanks for information.
I read somewhere that the HO series had issues on the bass department (lacking) and some mentioned upgrading the crossover (or adding a resistor on the terminals externally) to fix that.
Found that link from Pete B: http://www.classicsp...?showtopic=1243

The Hi-Res series supposedly had those issues fixed.
It'd be interesting to compare 310HO with the AR9's. Hmmm...

[michiganpat]

my 312HO's are defintiely NOT lacking in the bass department. curious as to Pete's placement after reading the linked thread. I have mine about 4"-6" from the rear wall, and the side firing woofer about 2-3' from the side wall, so I may be getting some boundary reinforcement in the bass department, smoothing things out. there's a guy last year who bought some 312HO's over on audiokarma.org and measured them in room, and found them very flat, save a ~3db dip in the 250-300hz range....

[volvo245ls]

The only part of the HO series I've been exposed to is the AR4C center channel speaker.

I had a series of the cheaper soft dome tweeter/polypropylene mids AR center channels before getting this one. While the 2 different 5 1/4 mid-woofs put out better bass than the AR MC-1 Holographic imaging center channel I had before, began to notice how congested the sound was, the loss of fine inner details liked plucked strings on guitars and violins and cellos, breathing noises by singers, acoustic ambiance, etc.

Made my previously clear and transparent M-5 and M-4 system sound thick and unrefined.

Immediately after installing the 4C I bought on craiglist, the transparency and refinement was back along with the best bass response of all the previous AR center channels. It has palpably added to the quality and richness of the overall system bass response.
At $98 dollars, it was well-worth the investment.

Liked it so much, I am now bidding on 2C with the downward-firing 6 1/2 woofer on eBay. My goal is to have a system with all the extension, clarity  and transparency of refined speakers like electrostats, planars and ribbons, and the power and dynamism of the largest cone systems, like Wilson and YG.Like a poor man's Magico Q5 or Dynaudio Utopia.

My Marantz SR 7200 is a 6.1 system, so there is room for both. 4C as rear center, 2C as front center.
Just missed out on a set of freshly restored M6's on eBay by $30.
Once I have those, I am done forever.

I am attaching fantastic article regarding speaker design that has really helped me understand and evolve my system intelligently by a guy named Lynn Olson. I have reread its 25 pages at least 6 times in the last 3 weeks. Absolutely fascinating!

Attached Files

•  The Art of Speaker Design-Lynn Olson 2001.doc   159.5K   104 downloads

[Gerry S]

I just read the Lynn Olson artical. Excellent, IMO. For those who haven't read it it, please do so. Even when "money is no object". It truly illustrates the designer's predicament when "designing from scratch". It boils down to "tradeoffs" and "compromises" regardless of who makes it!