Acoustic Research · Bookshelf · 1967–1976
AR called the AR-3a the best home speaker system it knew how to make, and its catalog pictured Herbert von Karajan listening on a pair at home. Launched in 1967, it put a 12-inch acoustic suspension woofer under two small hemispherical domes AR developed itself, a 1.5-inch midrange and a 3/4-inch tweeter chosen for wide dispersion, in a sealed walnut box about 25 inches tall. It changed as it went. Until 1969 the woofer was the AR-3's Alnico unit with a treated cloth surround, then a ceramic-magnet woofer with a foam surround and a reddish Masonite ring took over, and from 1974 the domes used push-on tabs instead of front wiring. One owner recalled that in early-1970s Southeast Asia, owning a pair was like owning a Corvette. The AR-11 and AR-10π replaced it in 1977.
With the grille off
Ask for a photo of every driver with the grilles off, on both speakers. They should match each other and this list.
The level controls corrode with age, which makes the midrange or tweeter crackle or cut out as you turn them, and tweeter voice coils open up after hard use or a clipping amplifier. Look-alike replacement tweeters turn up often and sound wrong on a stock AR-3a crossover.
New to old speakers? How to check a used pair walks through every driver, the crossover and the cabinet.
We haven’t been through this model’s listings yet. Search eBay and run every listing through the checklist above. Ask for photos of both speakers with the grilles off and the serial labels on the back, and pass on any seller who won’t send them.
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Acoustic Research · 3-way
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Acoustic Research · 3-way
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Advent · 2-way
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