Refurbishing a pair of JBL L200Bs, any advice

[RGlenn]

Greetings,
New to the forum, this will be my first post. I am the proud owner of a pair of JBL L200Bs and need to get the woofers refoamed. I bought them new in 1977 and have enjoyed them very much. They are in excellent shape, but the foam has cracked and is falling out. Any idea where I could get it done, possible in the Washington D.C. area? Does JBL do this type of repair? I have contacted a company that will provide new foam grills, found on the forums here, any other things I should look at during the refurbish? Any help will be appreciated. Thanks

[louped garouv]

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=active&rls=com.microsoft%3Aen-us%3AIE-SearchBox&rlz=1I7GGIH_en&q=rick+cobb+refoam&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=


you see a fair amount of reference to "Rick Cobb" refoam kits...
it seems to be worthwile investigation IMO....

it (the refoam) may be something you could try on your own, if you have some
patience and a steady hand...

good luck, folks around here like pictures...
if you are willing to share them...

oh, and welcome aboard!

[macaroonie]

Refoaming proceedure in detail here :

http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?469-Resurround-Step-by-step.

Rick Cobb's foam kits are right on the money. ( No Affil ) and come with a 30 Hz CD to check centering and allow some run in for the new foam.
Its a nice project for a snowy winter's night. :)

[hjames]

Hey, welcome to the forums!

I've been a member here for a while, and my first project was updating a pair of 4320 Studio Monitors. I eventually moved the drivers into L200 cabinets, (better Spouse Acceptance factor - SAF). A bit later I added a 2405 slot supertweeter and built a 3-way crossover to convert them to 3 ways, then even later I swapped out the mid-horns for a pair of wooden "ducklips" ... and tweaked them a bit further.

They are fun speakers and a good basis for experimenting and upgrades, should you decide to go that route ... and I think they look really nice, too!

Here is the second part of the thread showing the L200 cab part - it gets long -
http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?15317-Looky-What-I-just-got-Those-Darned-L200-Cabs-(from-Aberdeen)/page15 (http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?15317-Looky-What-I-just-got-Those-Darned-L200-Cabs-%28from-Aberdeen%29/page15)

The original 4320 thread is here -
http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?9796-4320-Project/page5

Subwoof, Toddalin, Zilch and some other folks have gone other routes with the L200 speakers, and can comment on their vision and success ...

4904049041

[cosmos]

Welcome RGlenn,

While I am not familiar with the Washington DC area, I am sure JBL has a authorized service center there. You may need to look in the yellow pages under Pro Sound or Audio Repair.. etc. As others have commented, it is a fairly easy repair, but not one without intimidation. If you have never done speaker foam repair/replacement, I would not start with 136A woofers in your L200B. I'd pay the $100 or so it would take to have them done right, by an experienced pro.

If the repair service tries to tell you that you need new replacement woofers, I would kindly say "no thanks" and find someone honest.

However, they may tell you that they need to "recone" your woofers, which is really the correct but expensive way to rejuvenate your woofers. This isn't necessarily bad advice, but will cost around $500 as opposed to $100 for just re-foaming..

[Mr. Widget]

However, they may tell you that they need to "recone" your woofers, which is really the correct but expensive way to rejuvenate your woofers. This isn't necessarily bad advice, but will cost around $500 as opposed to $100 for just re-foaming..In general I would always recommend a full recone on any JBL that is over 30 years old, however the 136A is a special case. The only JBL recone kit available is the 2235H kit. While this kit is technically an improved version of the original with lower distortion than the 136A or 136H, it also has a slightly different sound. To keep the L200B sounding like it did when new, a refoam is your only option. That said, if these woofers have been driven hard for a prolonged time it is possible that their spiders have also broken down. If this is the case then a full recone is your best option.


Widget

[rusty jefferson]

Contact 'Oldmics' a member here via private e-mail, or call his shop @ 410-761-1072 (Scavenger Sound) located just south of B'more in Glen Bernie, Hon. Authorized JBL Tech and all around great guy. Super knowledgeable.

[macaroonie]

Contact 'Oldmics' a member here via private e-mail, or call his shop @ 410-761-1072 (Scavenger Sound) located just south of B'more in Glen Bernie, Hon. Authorized JBL Tech and all around great guy. Super knowledgeable.

Now how good is that :applaud::applaud:

[RGlenn]

Thanks for the information, lots to consider and pursue. I'll send some pictures and update my progress. You forum members certainly know how to make a new guy feel welcome.