Grill Cloth Found

[elwood127]

Hey all, I have been searching the world for L26 Orange grill cloth. I think that this is as close as we're going get. acoustimac.com sells their "DMD Acoustic Fabric" in 23 different colors. I don't have it in hand yet so not sure of the texture. You guys looking for Blue may get lucky. Found site searching "Acoustically Transparent Fabric". Just a note: the fabrics sold everywhere online cannot be dyed. Enjoy.

[johnaec]

You guys looking for Blue may get lucky. Look up member "Zilch" here. He has actually sourced the original JBL Blue grille cloth used in all its studio monitors, and has a supply readily available.

John

[gsb001]

Please post an update. I'd like to hear your thoughts on the fabric, etc.
Thanks
Steve

[bigyank]

Also, post some pics please, especially if you have a sample of the original left to compare against.

Yank

[ReEdger]

I am also looking for JBL orange grille cloth.

I have absolutely no interest in Zilch blue.

If anyone knows a source please post!

[elwood127]

I had to buy 5 yds. of material as a minimum purchase. I will have 3 extra yds. to sell. Was going to do ebay but if the color is close and you are interested I'd rather sell to a forum type. Am supposed to have cloth by end of week. I'll post the results. I uncovered my L26's today to get ready and found original orange fragments on grills. Will let you know if colors are close. Brian.

[gsb001]

I'm in for your extra.
SB

[elwood127]

You got it man. I'll let you know if color is worthy. Brian.

[mbottz]

Hey all, I have been searching the world for L26 Orange grill cloth. I think that this is as close as we're going get. acoustimac.com sells their "DMD Acoustic Fabric" in 23 different colors. I don't have it in hand yet so not sure of the texture. You guys looking for Blue may get lucky. Found site searching "Acoustically Transparent Fabric". Just a note: the fabrics sold everywhere online cannot be dyed. Enjoy.

I ordered a set of samples of the fabric from acoustimac.com. The colors are very close especially the brown and blue. The camel looks quite nice as well. The down side is the grain is about twice as large as original, it has a one way stretch, but looks quite usable. The acoustic transparency looks almost identical when you hold it to the light as the original. This would make a good replacement in lieu of the original.

http://www.speakerworks.com/speaker_grill_cloth_fabric_s/25.htm (http://www.speakerworks.com/speaker_grill_cloth_fabric_s/25.htm) has a better grain pattern and looks just like original. This has a 2 way stretch which is easier to work with. Thickness is slightly thinner. The black is the only color that is a really good JBL match. The other colors are quite a few shades off. Transparency is excellent probally even more open than original.

In my opinion the best options are: for black use speaker works, for brown use acoustimac, and for blue contact Zilch.

My 2 cents

MB

[Mr. Widget]

My 2 cents:yes:

I have bought the black from Speaker Works and would agree... the Zilch blue is the original JBL Blue, so it is a perfect match.


Widget

[rdgrimes]

I ordered a set of samples of the fabric from acoustimac.com. The colors are very close especially the brown and blue. The camel looks quite nice as well. The down side is the grain is about twice as large as original, it has a one way stretch, but looks quite usable. The acoustic transparency looks almost identical when you hold it to the light as the original. This would make a good replacement in lieu of the original.

http://www.speakerworks.com/speaker_grill_cloth_fabric_s/25.htm (http://www.speakerworks.com/speaker_grill_cloth_fabric_s/25.htm) has a better grain pattern and looks just like original. This has a 2 way stretch which is easier to work with. Thickness is slightly thinner. The black is the only color that is a really good JBL match. The other colors are quite a few shades off. Transparency is excellent probally even more open than original.

In my opinion the best options are: for black use speaker works, for brown use acoustimac, and for blue contact Zilch.

My 2 cents

MB


I got fabric from both Acoustimac and Speakerworks, looking only for brown. The Acoustimac is pretty much an exact match for the L series brown. The grain is perfect, and even the "one-way" stretch is exactly like the original.

[MAXZ28]

Hey all, I have been searching the world for L26 Orange grill cloth. I think that this is as close as we're going get. acoustimac.com sells their "DMD Acoustic Fabric" in 23 different colors. I don't have it in hand yet so not sure of the texture. You guys looking for Blue may get lucky. Found site searching "Acoustically Transparent Fabric". Just a note: the fabrics sold everywhere online cannot be dyed. Enjoy.

Do we have an update on the orange grill cloth consensus from acoustimac.com? I have a pair of L36's in dire need of a recloth and I'd like to keep it the original color.

[brad347]

This is a good thread. I'd also like to hear if there is consensus on the orange. I have a pair of Jubals I'd like to do.

[jdelange]

I nearly finished my L300s from scratch. All that's needed is the beige (camel?) grill cloth that is used on the L300 in the ad with the chello:

http://www.lansingheritage.org/images/jbl/specs/home-speakers/1975-l300/page1a.jpg

Is Mike Botts' suggesion at acoustimac the best option?

Jan

[brad347]

not that it matters, but that is a double-bass, not a 'cello, in that picture. :)

[brad347]

I just thought I'd say, I did my Jubals with the orange from acoustimac.com

It's very nice cloth and looks great on the Jubals. It's not quite the same as the original rust red, I'd bet-- though I've never seen rust red in person. But it looks very nice.

[jdelange]

After receiving their samples I settled for beige from Speakerworks and am very happy with it. Both the color and the fixation on the L-300 frame worked out perfectly.

Still need to make a picture report of the project and post it... but attached the results.

Jan

[Earl K]

After receiving their samples I settled for beige from Speakerworks and am very happy with it. Both the color and the fixation on the L-300 frame worked out perfectly.

Still need to make a picture report of the project and post it... but attached the results.

Jan

Wow Jan,

That's a super nice modern-danish look, that you've got going with your L300s . Is that new veneer ?

http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/attachment.php?attachmentid=45571&stc=1&d=1273174153
http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/attachment.php?attachmentid=45572&stc=1&d=1273174155 http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/attachment.php?attachmentid=45569&stc=1&d=1273174150
Really nice !

>< :)

[grumpy]

That's a really nice look in that environment! :)

[brad347]

The L-300 is just a beautiful design, I think. Very nice work on those.

[jdelange]

Thanks guys.

Earl: yes, that's new veneer. In fact, everything is new. They're built from scratch. The veneer is oak treated with white wash oil. As I wrote, I owe this forum a photo reportage of the building process, but I get distracted by other stuff.

I'll make an effort.

Jan

[jdelange]

I got a request from a member (MCM_Fan) on the white veneer finish of my L300 shown in this tread. Thought I share my info on the forum. The speakers are finished with oak veneer and then oiled with white Danish "Woca" Worktop Oil. The oil is applied with a brush, then given some time to soak in, and then take most it of with a piece of cloth. The instructions are given on the can (pics attached). For me one layer / application was sufficient. I have to dig in my archives to find the L300 pics, but I had the pics of the subwoofer I did later at hand, so I have attached those.

The white finish is quite durable, even after 6-7 years they are still light and haven't turned yellow. Furthermore, since this is an oil finish, I gather it should be quite easy to refresh the finish.

One more note: depending on your painting / oiling sequence, be sure to cover all, because paint will have a hard time to stick to oil, and the oil is very difficult to remove from earlier painted parts once dried. I decided to apply to apply the oil as the last step.

In answer to a question on the color of the frame holding the cloth: since I use the beige cloth I thought a light frame would work better than black, but this is not the case! (I tried it) A black frame is less visible than a lighter (beige) frame, so I made mine black.

71060710617106271063

[MCM_Fan]

Thanks to Jan's inspiration and much appreciated guidance, I finished the restoration of my JBL L36 Decades this morning; Here's a couple photos of how they turned out:

http://i1204.photobucket.com/albums/bb414/kerrythalmann/JBL_L36_Decade_After_1_zps8ds8zbgh.jpg

http://i1204.photobucket.com/albums/bb414/kerrythalmann/JBL_L36_Decade_After_2_zpsgky2fi5u.jpg

Obviously, a much more modest design than Jan's gorgeous L300s, but I'm very pleased with the way they turned out and am now enjoying my first pair of JBL speakers. Thanks for your help Jan!

[grumpy]

Looks very nice! :thmbsup:

[SEAWOLF97]

Thanks to Jan's inspiration and much appreciated guidance, I finished the restoration of my JBL L36 Decades this morning

they look great..esp like the crisp corners on the cloth.

one thing IMHO would make your nice living room pic better is to hide the speaker wires.maybe run along the baseboard/floor line and up the backs of the stands ?

where in PDX are you ?

[MCM_Fan]

they look great..esp like the crisp corners on the cloth.

one thing IMHO would make your nice living room pic better is to hide the speaker wires.maybe run along the baseboard/floor line and up the backs of the stands ?

where in PDX are you ?

Thanks, the grill cloth is the same that Jan purchased from speakerworks.com, right here in Eugene, OR. It's great stuff, easy to work with and for $11.95, I got enough for both grills, plus a spare in case one ever gets damaged.

Those speaker cables aren't long enough to run along the baseboard and up the backs of the stands. The back pole on the stands actually has holes for speaker wires, but they aren't big enough for the banana plugs. Looks like my next project may be some custom DIY speaker cables.

I'm out in the Rock Creek area.

[jdelange]

Very nice indeed!! What a difference from what you started with. Cloth is very well done too. I agree with the comment on the cables. Ah... where would we be if there was no room for improvement somewhere... :)

[audiomagnate]

That cloth looks incredibly good/authentic, and that treatment of the L300 (and the L36) is simply stunning. I always knew the L300 was a work of art, both sonically and visually, but your work really drives home the point. Kudos!

[Sablotny]

Just a latter 2016 update. I've recently ordered brown, blue and orange grille cloth from Huntley Audio via eBay. For the Studio Blue cloth, this is claimed to be the exact same material, from the same manufacturer, as the original.

[MCM_Fan]

Thanks to Jan's inspiration and much appreciated guidance, I finished the restoration of my JBL L36 Decades this morning; Here's a couple photos of how they turned out:

http://i1204.photobucket.com/albums/bb414/kerrythalmann/JBL_L36_Decade_After_1_zps8ds8zbgh.jpg

http://i1204.photobucket.com/albums/bb414/kerrythalmann/JBL_L36_Decade_After_2_zpsgky2fi5u.jpg

Obviously, a much more modest design than Jan's gorgeous L300s, but I'm very pleased with the way they turned out and am now enjoying my first pair of JBL speakers. Thanks for your help Jan!

Ackkkkk!!! I see my photos have been victimized by the PhotoBucket extortion virus.

So, here's a few more of my re-imagined L36 Decades using the same SpeakerWorks beige grill fabric and WOCA countertop oil as Jan's magnificent L300 Summits:

https://s6.postimg.org/ab3t7nxwf/JBL_L36_Decade_After_2.jpg




https://s6.postimg.org/kd8fykzq9/Look_Sharp.jpg

https://s6.postimg.org/dv8rrx141/Boston_BDI.jpg

[Mr. Widget]

Ackkkkk!!! I see my photos have been victimized by the PhotoBucket extortion virus.
Thanks for the update. If you posted directly to the site the images would last as long as this site does. It is so disappointing to run across threads with much of the content missing.

Back on topic, very nice “restoration”... a very nice looking system over all too!


Widget