restoring a pair of Altec 755a

[shadetreehifi]

I recently was given a very battered pair of Acoustic Research AR-1 speakers containing the Altec 755a drivers. These have been in a Mississippi Gulf-Coast basement for several years, if not decades. One cone (installed in the cabinet in the picture) has two radial splits of about 1.5'' each. The other cone also has two such tears as well as a puncture. The interesting bits of debris around the coated edge of the cone are some kind of insectoid chrysalis or egg pod...

I would like to recone at least the one punctured driver, possibly doing an adhesive repair on the other. My question is: where can I source a cone and voice coil, spider, etc, that retain, in your experience, the original character of the driver?

Thanks in advance.

--Birkin

[farleybob]

There are probably folks who know about the 755A much better than I do. However, I'd noticed cones for sale on eBay. I've never used them, so I don't know the quality but here are some aftermarket cones http://www.ebay.com/itm/ALTEC-LANSIN...item4858870a7f

[shadetreehifi]

Good news from the local speaker doc here in East Tennessee. He is able to source a pair of original Altec cones. This is the whole reason I took the drivers to him in the first place, because I could only find Ebay "equivalents." Now, I do not plan to sell these speakers or drivers, but from what I've read about the 755a and its brethren (and sistren) it seems as if the specific composition of its cone has much to do with its sought-after sound.

I don't plan to sell these drivers, for one because the person who gave them to me had in turn been given them when he (early 70's) was beginning to appreciate "real" speakers. To sell them would be akin to stealing from him, in my opinion.

So, BEFORE I hear these refurbished drivers, I would like to hear your subjective listening impressions of the 755 in any of its iterations (A thru E). I know this is backward in terms of scientific method, but then I'm a humanities graduate student. Go figure. In the end these two corrugated organs on the sides of my head will determine how I value these drivers, but the more info I have beforehand the better.

Thanks in advance.