Lonelobo

I don't know if these are original or custom builds, but if they are real, why buy plans when you can buy the cabinets? These will be for sale ASAP if anyone is interested. See the thread above for pics.

Here's the poop straight from the pooper. I saw a pile of speakers in the entrance way, but not just regular speakers. Kind of like seeing a pile of volkswagons with their wheels scattered and seats under the pile. I was very tempted, but didn't have room and more importantly, knowledge. So, you win some and you lose some. When I got back to the sale the 2nd time, I saw the speakers out of the jumble for the first time and they looked better than I thought. Now, I have to tell you the prices and get ready to weep. See the pics below and grab some hankies. The VOT's were sold for $250 for the pair and the EV's went for $600...at least that's the price he quoted me in the morning. My guess is that the guy dealt for both pairs and got more of a discount. I had to remove the woofers myself to get the cabinets. Original Altec-Lansings that looked pristine and felt like they were special. Had some kind of blue domed fibrous/cushy hi-tech looking padding on the back of the drivers and reeked of class. He had the EV's already loaded and for some stupid reason I didn't go to the truck and snap some pics. I think I'll just use depression as an excuse. I have the cabinets as you can see from below.

I'm back from my edit session and boy were you little devils busy while I was gone. First things first, Craig...you have been most helpful and generous with your time and knowledge and I am truly grateful. I will give you first shot at the Mark III's when I decide what to do, but that is the problem. I just don't know what I'm going to do. It's like my dear old grandmother used to say, "If you had a really big johnson and someone offered you a million dollars for it, would you cut it off? She insisted this was an old philosophical riddle she was taught in Catholic school way back when by Father Damien, but I think she just made it up to embarass my mother. So, my advice would be to bid on your ebay prospect. I won't be selling anything till my head stops swimming and it's in a deep pool right now. My options are driven by unique circumstances and I am still in analysis. But that is another story...

Here are some pix of my Heresy's. Can anyone tell me the dates of manufacture. They are not matched as you can see...any guesses. Came out of an estate.

These are photos from a scrapbook I found at an "audiophile" estate sale. Guy said his dad had this system in the early 70's. I couldn't resist taking some pix. You can find a more thorough account of the sale under 2 channel audio. Those are built in Voice of the Theatre speakers in the wall. Little TV cracks me up...

I told Dave that I was going to tell this tale so that you all could hate me more. His response was that was not possible at this moment. But I digress... Yesterday I fortold of an ad in the paper touting "Audiophile Estate Sale". It didn't start till noon, and I usually start out between 6-7am going to estate and garage sales when I'm not working on Thursdays and Fridays. First sale turned up a very nice laminated steel Japanese pruning shear designed to use on Bonsai trees. Really...I'm into old tools ya know. Killer...IOB with instructions in Japanese. My journey took me to 2 more sales and the time was approaching 9:30 am. To get close to the front of the line at estate sales here you have to arrive an hour early and talk to blue haired ladies about depression glass. But I didn't want to be even 2nd in line at the "Audiophile" estate sale, so I decided to head on over, set up my lawn chair and pull out my books and have a read and wait for the wait for the wait. So I pull up to the address in the paper, but it's not a house at all but a lawyer's office. Weird, it's actually an old house with a lawyer's sign up outside. The door is open and people are milling about. Dammmmmmmmmmmm!!!!!!!!!!!!! Those audiophile bastages had beat me to the punch.....thought I. So I go up to the door and there's an elderly woman coming down the stairs with her arms full of videotapes. Sh%#$$T!!! Beat by an old lady, no less! She stops and looks at me like a deer caught in the headlights, when I realize she is a worker bee, not a raping and pillaging bee. "Are you open yet, young lady...and may I say that's a lovely shade of red on you....you got a boyyyyyyyyyfriend? Never hurts to grease the pump.... No, we're not open till 12 but if you want to take a quick look around, come on in...wink, wink, nod, nod. know what I mean. So I entered said house, or should I say tried to enter said house. In the entryway were a pair of Voice of the Theatre speakers in unknown partially dissassembled condition, a pair of EV Cornerhorns, and a giant JBL sub-woofer. I look over my shoulder....nobody pulling up, my poor little minivan alone on the street ready to blow a gasket. I try to close the door and put up a sign that reads "Sale cancelled by large gnarly gay biker gang inside. Go away!". "Could ya keep that door open...it's awfully hot in here." "Well of course, and did I mention what lovely eyes you have?" Into the first room....vcr's. Stacked and all playing beta tapes. A huge screen TV and tons of electronic boxes. No furniture, no beanie babies, no clothes...just audio and video stuff in piles...I mean piles. I see the first treasure, a Marantz 10B tuner...and a new character enters the room...The original owners son. "How much ya askin for that old tuner?" "Why that's a Marantz 10B. One of the best tuners ever made. They pull $2500 on ebay but I'll let you have it for $1500 if you got cash. See here, I got all the Ebay printouts." Heart sinks and then stops....a hopeless feeling comes over me and I consider leaving right then. I look to the door, but that old lady is staring at me and smiling at me in an unnatural way and I think I could take her, but you never know. She is looking pretty tough and she's between me and the van. I turn away and start inventoring the stacks. Let's see, 6 early Mac amps stacked like phonebooks, lots of AR speakers (some 2's, 3's, and others) stacks of reel to reel (Akai, Sony, Teac), Bose preamps, stacks of audio and video signal processing boxes. And they all have ebay prices on them, some of them have ebay printout taped to them. My god, why has thou forsaken me? I am in estate sale hell. Yeah, though I walk through the valley of ebay, I fear no evil. I repeat...kinda like shampoo... Then, on the floor, next to a Rat shack tuner, a couple of odd looking boxes. Hey, those aren't boxes, they got little holes all over em. I approach to find 2 Dynaco Mark IV's. Cool! But what's the price tag say? There's no ebay printout on em. Holy sh*#&%t! $3 ea. They are in my hands in seconds...and I remember to hold them like a football so nobody can strip'em when I'm not lookin. The guy returns to the room and extols the Macs, the Bose SS stuff, and glances at the monoblocks in my hands. "You want those?" Uh...yeah, I guess...most of these need a lot of work...I might be able to get them to work". "How about this other stuff? See any thing ya want?" "Well, I'm really more into older tube stuff". He looks at me a little crooked, pauses, then..."Well, I have a couple of old tube amps up stairs that I haven't put out yet" You want to see?" "Sure" We go upstairs and on the table are 2 amps. More monoblocks. Exposed tubes...Texas T...Kinfolks said, Jed, ya get outta there... Yep, Marantz Model 5's in great shape. A little white paint drip on one. But remember, I have no idea what they're really worth. So, I whip out my handy cel phone and call Dave. What the hell is a Marantz Model 5 worth? Don't know? Do a search! I'll wait. No hits but he gives his advice. What's the guy asking? $50 ea. cause he could'nt find any on ebay. That's a lot of money where I come from, do ya think they're worth it? Sure, anything that's early Marantz has got to be worth $50 bucks. So I gets em. So, for $106 I get 2 almost pristine Marantz Model 5's and 2 Dynaco Mark IV's. More than I usually spend, but worth a chance. Ask Dave about the speakers and he's less sure considering the price of KHorns. Guy wants $600 for the EV Corners and I don't even ask (doh slap inserted here) about the Voice of the Theatre cause I assume they're trashed. I leave by 10:30, a full hour and a half BEFORE the sale begins, pretty happy, drive 40 miles to Dave's where he gives me "that" look when I lay 4 monoblocks out on his porch. As we examine them I discover that one of the Marantz's doesn't have the bottom grill on it. The nerve of that guy!!!! I go home and get my camera and head back to the sale in progress. It's 1:30pm by the time I get there and the Macs are all gone to one guy and there's another guy loading up the EV speakers and the Voice of the Theatre's are on the porch and he's telling the owner that all he wants are the drivers out of them really. I offer to take the cabinets off his hands.......and he agrees...I do not understand what the F*&Y*&K he could be thinking. Plus I find out that the drivers are all in perfect shape cause I removed them...and they sold for $250 for the pair. God DOES work in mysterious ways. So I got lucky and screwed up both on the same day in the same place for all the right AND wrong reasons. If I could have strapped that old lady on top of my minivan with one of the speakers tied on with a 100' extension cord, I could've changed my name to Clampet. The second cabinet completely filled the back of the van. Dave and I unload them and we simultaneously realize that $250 for them would have been theft...but a little too late. So now I've got a week to sell the cabinets or they become very classy plywood. If someone will give me a clue how to include multiple pix in my message I will post them here. Oh, by the way, I found the missing bottom grill for the Marantz. PS/ In my last message, I asked if anyone was looking for anything in particular I would keep an eye out for them. Nobody said nuthin about monoblocks.....so I guess I'll keepem. Stay tuned for the further audio scavenging aventures of "Ignorant lucky audio novice bastud".

Ok, I'm testing a pix in this message. It is part of the 1970's era stereo system of the estate that I raided today. http://www.loneloboproductions.com/Audiophile/70stereophile.jpg

Here are a couple of other pics of the beast. How do I get these to show up in my message? Any help is appreciated. www.loneloboproductions.com/audiophile/eicost70inside.jpg www.loneloboproductions.com/audiophile/eicost70back.jpg

Ok, so here's a pix of the ugly little beast. I happen to like 57 chevys so it is fine with me. Now I'm going to have to learn how to upload more than one image.

I will put this ugly child on the Variac this weekend and see if I can start a fire. Tomorrow I'm off to the, and I Quote, "Audiophile Estate Sale". My guess is massive quantities of beanie babies and Rat Shack Headphones. Only time will tell. If anyone is looking for something in particular, I can keep an eye out for you. If you think I get deals on audio stuff (which I know almost nothing about) you should see my garage (stuffed with so many vintage woodworking tools I can't walk in it). I just unloaded a nice Craftsman 10" table saw that set me back $50. Not a great saw, but it's an old one made when they were MUCH better than today. Did I mention I found a Atwater Kent E Series speaker last week for $35? Unemployment does have it's advantages. My current goal is a pair of corner horns for under $100 and a Millers Falls #7 bench plane for under $10. I think Craig's idea about the listening test will end up being the final test for the amps. But right now, tube amps are like chocolate to me...it's all good and I don't turn any down. On the other hand, can you have too many tube amps? Or Klipsch speakers? I am currently researching this. Previously, I have confirmed that you can never have too many woodworking tools...and that is an undisputable fact.

Thanks to Craig, I'm closing in on finishing up the restore of my $5 Scott 222C. Today I found a pristine Eico ST-70 for $40. I know, I know...I'm slipping cause I never pay that much. Anyway, my intuition is that the Eico is fully functional because I had to take it out of a working(according to the woman at the estate sale) stereo system. So I'm looking for opinions as to which to use. I have a $20 pair of Cornwalls that are nearing restoration completion and a set of $175 Heresy's in good shape. What to do, what to do? Interesting thing about the Heresy's is that the serial numbers are not sequential, one has the old logo plate and a flat black back while the other has the newer logo plate and the back is painted gloss brown. Dave seems to think that the previous owner used the older speaker on a mono system and bought the 2nd speaker when he upgraded to stereo. They came out of an estate sale too, so it seems plausible. One feature of the ST-70 seems to be an adjustable center channel. The Scott center channel is not adjustable, so I had originally planned on sending it to my Dynaco SCA 35. So I'm a bit confused as to my best options. And I know how hard it is to pull opinions out of this group...he he he....

Gotta test the new Avitar function.

Is this site well known, or did I stumble onto something new? http://community-2.webtv.net/KerrB/VINTAGETUBEAMPHORN/page4.htm ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

All you have to do to find the change in Cornwalls is shake them real hard over your head. Pennies from heaven! ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned the definative reference headphone, Beyer's DT-48. These are used by audiologists to test hearing and are VERY accurate. They are also the standard for sound guys who record audio for film. They don't always sound pretty, but they are always accurate. You can get them in a variety of impedences as well. Mine are 8 ohm and I find I get a little more volume out of most devices. They are not open and look like they were built to be used in a tank. Give em a listen and you'll discover every problem in your system not associated with your speakers. ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

I guess you've got money to spare. I paid $20 for my 70's era Cornwalls. That's $10/per speaker minus the pennies I found inside. So from my experience you paid 4 times too much....wink, wink, nod, nod...Just picked up a pair of Heresys in great shape for $175 and it made me sick. No speaker should ever cost more than $10. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. For those who followed the original thread, I'm making progress on the restoration. Only have one corner left to touch up, then on to ebonizing and shellacing. Congrats on your purchase. But I believe your wife is right and you should send those monstrosities to the Cornwall Disposal Facility in Argyle, Texas. Email me for the address. ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

Well, I had to look really hard but I think I can see a few of the puttied nail holes. But I would have sworn they were not nailed if you had asked me. Size of finish nails must be pretty small. Also, what kind of glue was used? My assumption is yellow wood glue. Is that correct? I'm trying to see if I can dissasemble the speaker bottom to restore. Let me let everyone know before you respond, I have much more time than money and doing the repair is half the fun for me. Also, considering the cost of black laquer, now I'm considering scraping the cabinets down and ebonizing them. To do this you drop a steel wool pad into some vinegar and let it set for a few days. Then wipe on and there is a chemical reaction that blackens the wood, depending on how much tanin the wood contains. Repeat if necessary. Doesn't obscure the grain. Then apply a coat of shellac with some secret analine dyes to give it that black with a wine undertone look, buff with synthetic steel wool and floor wax and viola, a black ebonized finish with depth and luster. Then staple some burlap over it and your done! I'm also thinking about my options for grills. I'd love to hear some ideas. Since these are "designer" models am I wrong in assuming I have more freedom before the purists start spitting at my efforts? ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

Forgot to mention, I plan to restore the emblems via the old bakelite restoration routine, ie. cleaner/polish/repaint. If they are too dinged up, I can always make molds and reproduce them like the old radio guys do. It might be a fun project just for kicks anyway, and they can be made in any color combination. ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

Jim, The pix are of the "bad speaker". The other is in much better shape, with only staple holes to fill before refinishing. I guess I have failed to mention that my true passion is not audio, but vintage woodworking hand tools. My plans are thus. I am going to try to find some birch ply with similar grain. Then I will remove the damaged areas of veneer ply following grain lines, replace with good veneer ply, plane these down to match and scrape the entire cabinet with a nice old cabinet scraper (Stanley No. 80 to be exact), then sand the entire surface to 400/600 grit with wet/dry paper using Naphtha as a lubricant, but only if necessary. A good cabinet scraper will leave a very polished surface without further work necessary, depending on the wood. A steam iron will be used to raise the dents and dings as much as possible, but some marks may be left to serve as "patina". Wash off the entire surface with an oil/wax/silicone remover (PreClean-O is one name brand I'm familiar with) to remove fingerprints, oils and other contaminates, then tack off any acquired (or remaining) dust just prior to spraying on a new finish coat with a HPLV spray gun (that's good ole High Pressure, Low Volume, for you young whippersnappers! The existing ply that's lifted and expanded will be split, glued and clamped one half at a time, trimming the excess and filling the small voids with a shellac/birch sawdust mixture prior to scraping. Apparently black laquer is getting hard to find because of EPA pressure and what is out there is pricey, but I've been told Constantine's (a specialty refinishing supplier) still carries it. My other option is to fix the damage to level the surface and veneer over the top and sides, relaquer the front and build grills. Really good veneers are pricey too, so I have some choices to make. They are, after all, $20 speakers...but the idea of walnut or mesquite burl Cornwalls appeals to me. Of course, to restore them to original condition, I can just restaple some old burlap on them and be done with it. ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

Air and Fabreeze are doing a fabulous job. Another day or so and they will be sweet smelling and ready for restoration. See my pics in the Updating forum. ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

A few more pix. I'm still learning how to upload and all I found was 3 slots for uploaded pix. ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

Ok, so here are some pix. The distortion of the sides is due to my widea$$ angle lense. The cabinet is indeed square, errr, rectangle... Smell is almost gone thanks to Fabreeze (heavy duty variety). An interesting side note is that Fabreeze expands the paper on contact like shaving cream out of a can. ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

Ok, I'll add my deal to the list. 1974 Cornwalls for $19.96 I gave $20 for them and found 4 pennies in one speaker. That same speaker needs a new woofer. Black Designer Birch with a little bit of damage, but easy to overlook. One had brown burlap stapled to it and both were covered with dog hair. Same day I found a HH Scott 220-C tube amp for $5 at another estate sale. Thank God the power lamps on old tube amps seem to go before anything else. Everyone thinks they're broken if they don't come on immediately or the power light doesn't light. You can use this to your advantage....all is fair in love and system aquisition! ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

Ok, pix will be done tomorrow so you guys can see the extent of the damage...it's not as great as you might expect, but it ain't perfect. As to the rodent in a Klipsch theory, I doubt it because the speaker smells exactly like the entire house did. It was awful. Dog hair everywhere and the stench of a pooch gone bad to the bone. Remember, however, that the owner was dead and very probably not in good shape toward the end of his life. Or he had other priorities. Or he liked his dog more than his speakers. Or he had no sense of smell, sight, or taste. I do believe that a combo of Fabreeze, baking soda, scented christmas trees, and some mountain cedar incense will remove or cover most of the smell eventually. It seems to be limited to the inside of the cabinet.A lot of the smell is emanating from the blown speaker cone itself which is now removed and awaiting replacement. Another interesting phenom is that the bottom of the speaker is not seperating, just the inside bottom of the port and the inside of the port divider column. Like something was spilt or sprayed into the opening and then left there repeatedly. The more interesting question is why did a machinist and auto mechanic in a rural area have Cornwalls in the 1st place. Please note they were connected to a very cheap Technics amp/tuner/turntable. There is the 2nd largest Jazz education program in the United States only 10 miles away so there may be some connection there. I am just puzzled by it.....ahahahahahahha...!!!! ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!

Well, my $20 Cornwalls have continued to entertain. One is acting as temporarty center channel for a friend's K-horn setup and the other was smelling awful and making my truck smell awful too. So I removed said speaker, took off the back, removed the 1)bad woofer 2)dead spider 3)2 round globs that I pray are old peanuts 4)about a cup and a half of old dog hair and 5) 4 pennies. Technically, my current cost of acquisition has dropped to $19.96 for the pair. Just thought you'ld like to know. PS. The smell of old dog hair and possibly urine will be my greatest challenge. Currently, this speaker is being aired out, but it's gonna take a lot of air... ------------------ If it don't rust or glow, I don't trust it!