Speaker frame colors, Tan?

[Mike Caldwell]

Way back when I bought some of the very first JBL 2225 speakers available I could find and they had a tan colored frame. I also bought some JBL 2425 drivers when they first came out and they were also tan'ish in color. They also had the throat "collar" that was actually bolted on to the driver body. I also heard that some of the very first 2225 speakers used the left over alnico baskets from 2205's ect.
I have since seen a couple of the tan 2425 drivers in the past couple of years. Just wondering if JBL color coded the first run of a new product for some reason. Got to thinking about this after reading another post on speaker frames. Anyone else seen or had any of these.

Mike Caldwell

[edgewound]

That's interesting Mike. I've never seen tan drivers...only grey, blue and black.

I wonder if those might have been a special run for an OEM mfr or a specific customer/end user like an amusement park, etc.?

[Mr. Widget]

I had a single tan colored 2220H I picked up on eBay... I wondered about the color. I doubt there was a scientific reason behind it... JBL has been fairly careless with that part of their branding.


Widget

[edgewound]

I had a single tan colored 2220H I picked up on eBay... I wondered about the color. I doubt there was a scientific reason behind it... JBL has been fairly careless with that part of their branding.


Widget

It was probably an accounting and inventory decision..."We have plenty of that tan paint leftover...just use that!"

Sooner or later they will show up on eBay as the "ultra-rare, tan colored one's that JBL discovered improves power handling and sound quality."...and will command premium collector prices.

[Mike Caldwell]

There were all purchased from the same dealer and were fully
dressed, name badged and packaged as a full retail speaker and drivers.


Mike Caldwell

[johnaec]

Don't forget the sick pea-soup green color they used for supplying Heathkit...

John

[toddalin]

Orange too.

That's interesting Mike. I've never seen tan drivers...only grey, blue and black.

I wonder if those might have been a special run for an OEM mfr or a specific customer/end user like an amusement park, etc.?

[edgewound]

Orange too.

I understand, Todd....but those were specifically for Fender. I was refering to the colors I've seen for just JBL labeled.

[John]

Sooner or later they will show up on eBay as the "ultra-rare, tan colored one's that JBL discovered improves power handling and sound quality."

Are you saying this is not true?

[Don McRitchie]

I can speculate an answer. The 2225 and 2425 were part of the first "clean sheet of paper" ferrite designs. The first ferrites (2231H, 2220H etc.) were simply a ferrite motor bolted on to the identical baskets and moving parts as their Alnico predecessors. JBL may have wanted to differentiate these products with a different paint scheme only to later reconsider. They did this with the LE series of drivers when they were introduced around 1960 with their blue paint scheme, only to fall back to their standard grey and black after a couple of years.