Hello

[soundmotor]

I am new to this forum & wanted to introduce myself.

I am a long time vintage audio fan & last year picked up my first set of vintage keepers which I plan to restore. They are S109 Aquarius IV's & Primas. Both were from the same source & original owner's family. Both the 125A & LE8T-2 woofers are in need of re-foaming.

Previously I've had a few items (Ti18 speakers, an early D130 & a pair if D208's). All of those long since traded towards other things I couldn't live without.

I am very happy to have found this forum & look forward to learning more about JBL history.

soundmotor

[Zilch]

Welcome aboard. You've found the right place....

[scott fitlin]

Welcome.

[Titanium Dome]

You'll enjoy it here.

Did you choose "soundmotor" due to your magnetic personality?

In my case, Titanium Dome goes to my preference for the unparalleled sound of JBL inverted titanium dome technology, AND to the fact that I have a shiny bald head.

[soundmotor]

Did you choose "soundmotor" due to your magnetic personality?

It seemed appropriate since nearly every hobby I have; audio, blacksmithing, cars, guns, & metalworking involve some level of noise generation.

I appreciate the welcomes, thank you!

[Don Mascali]

Welcome aboard!

We all seem to share a lot of those hobbies. It's a wonder we can still hear our toys.

[mike]

Aren't you the guy on the other forums that seems to know quite a bit about the older ADS speakers? Nice to see you have an interest in JBL's as well.

Mike

[spkrman57]

You hail from the Northeast. Where exactly are you located?
Ron

[soundmotor]

Aren't you the guy on the other forums that seems to know quite a bit about the older ADS speakers? Nice to see you have an interest in JBL's as well.

Mike

Guilty as charged!



Here is the set of JBL's I am attempting to restore for anyone who didn't see them on AK -

[soundmotor]

You hail from the Northeast. Where exactly are you located?
Ron

I am in Massachusetts.

[soundmotor]

Welcome aboard!

We all seem to share a lot of those hobbies. It's a wonder we can still hear our toys.

Indeed!

Hearing protection was for p*ssies I always thought as I worked my way to the front stage for BOC, AC/DC, Cheap Trick, etc. back in the day. I can still get out past 14K but not much more than that. Now it's all about a great midrange!

[mike]

Great midrange was one of the strong points of the older JBL speakers from the 60's and 70's. Both the Aquarius IV's and the L25 Primas are fairly rare speakers. The L25 Primas likely only need to be refoamed. The Aquarius IV's usually need refoaming and refinishing as the white finish starts to flake off after time. I've heard that underneath the white finish is birch veneer that can be finished itself and look pretty nice. Of course some recommend recapping the crossover networks as well.

I used to have a pair of Aquarius IV's in walnut. They are really unique speakers and they are somewhat desireable to overseas collectors.

Mike

[soundmotor]

Great midrange was one of the strong points of the older JBL speakers from the 60's and 70's. Both the Aquarius IV's and the L25 Primas are fairly rare speakers. The L25 Primas likely only need to be refoamed. The Aquarius IV's usually need refoaming and refinishing as the white finish starts to flake off after time. I've heard that underneath the white finish is birch veneer that can be finished itself and look pretty nice. Of course some recommend recapping the crossover networks as well.

I used to have a pair of Aquarius IV's in walnut. They are really unique speakers and they are somewhat desireable to overseas collectors.

Mike

No doubt on the collector interest. The Primas especially so it seems. Last year when I was looking for more info on them, I got a surprisingly high "as is" offer immediately.

Mine had a hard life. I am going to keep eBay staked out & find a better set of L25-2s than what is in the Primas now as both suffer from "fingerpoken". The 125As appear to only need refoaming. On the S109s, one of the LE20 has been poked & both LE8T-2s need refoaming. Refoaming is probably the easy part of the resto.

The cabs on the S109s are really beat. Complete but beat. I will probably start tackling them this winter at work as we have a large shop assembly area & neg pressure paint booth I can use. I am planning to redo the white lacquer too. I've had, and have enough, wood box speakers.

The Primas though aren't going to be redone in white. The more I look at the blue-painted one, the more I like it. That might even be the orginal color too. I think I will probably redo them in it. In the pic, you'll see there is a 3rd Prima grille on the floor that came with the lot. There may have been another set somewhere along the way but the seller only had these. Perhaps the other set was 1/2 blue, 1/2 white too.

Every year I do the sound for our neighborhood block-party. I usually lug my ADS L980/IIs along for that. The Primas weigh ~1/3 of those beasts & I plan to substitute them for the ADS. I have a ZERO/Halliburtion case that I am building a custom amplifier into and it will also hold my laptop & outboard USB soundcard. It will be a nice portable system when complete. "When complete" though is becoming "Your check is in the mail." as of late..........

[mike]

ADS L980's are too nice to be lugging around to block parties, especially if they are the walnut veneered ones.


Mike

[Robh3606]

Hello soundmotor

Welcome to the site. Primas were my first real speaker. I still have a pair of Charcoal ones but my grilles are long gone . They look to be in decent shape how do you like them??

Rob