JBL C50 Olympus Serial Numbers

[saeman]

Well, I'll be jiggered (Tennessee Talk) - Can you believe that a pair of Olympus just like yours has just popped up on ebay? What's the chances of that?

[henflet]

Well I'll be jiggered,too!! Sure is a small world sometimes!!

[glen]

... woofer model LE15 or 15A. If I discover a LE15 then that means the Olympus' I have were vintage 1960 or 1961 since Olympus not made in 1959, and LE15A commenced in 1962. Do I have that correct?

Not exactly, it still may be the case that the Olympus was only introduced in 1962 and that an older LE15 driver was installed at that time.

It is just possible that my Olympus, containing the older LE15 woofer which was presumably available before the LE15A introduction, is evidence that the Olympus might have been available before 1962.

It is impossible for the Olympus to be older than 1959 since it does not appear in the JBL literature for that year.

[henflet]

I removed the woofer today and discovered that the 375 is painted black, while its horn and the LE15a (not LE15) are painted blue. So in accordance with what's been discussed above, my speakers are vintage 1962-1964.

I've been reading the serial number registry thread with interest, and think that is a great idea . . . and I believe we may come up with something here - but its a longshot and will require a few of you to check your serial numbers.

Here it is: Since I believe the original owner of my speakers and equipment cabinet purchased them as a set, and since the equipment cabinet (Delphi C-58) debuted in 1964, that suggests to me likelihood that the speakers are also 1964. With that in mind, when I ponder the speaker serial numbers 46499 and 46500, I see the 499th and 500th speakers made in the year 1964, if the first two digits are the year reversed. I stated that in an earlier post and I'm sure it got some chuckles.

But we can easily test this theory - those of you with early Olympus speakers - - - check and see if the first two digits of your serial numbers are 26, 36, 46, 56, 66, 76, 86, or 96 - that would be the 60's. This could also work for other decades and speaker models. But such conventions don't necessarily last for decades - I know Klipsch changed their serial number codes several times over the last half century (and some of theirs are lost, also).

Please reply even if it invalidates this theory - we still will have made a contribution via the process of elimination. Thanks and, also, if someone knows how to make a link to this post in the serial number registry thread, that might be helpful. Thanks

[Zilch]

Did you actually remove the MF driver to verify from the foilcal on the rear that it is a 375?

Alternatively, just measure the length of the horn, from the front of the driver to the rear of the baffle. That'll verify which driver it is....

[henflet]

Zilch, no I didn't remove the MF driver. Based simply on its enormity I assumed this must the the famous 375. Here's a shot of the driver with four of my fingers for size reference. If the 085 is also this massive then I must do this again, more carefully. (White speckles are flash reflection.) Also the lens is plastic, thanks. Here's also a shot of the LE15A, in case any of you gurus notice anything out of the ordinary. If you have Olympus", PLEASE post the first two digits of your serial numbers.

Glen, and others, if you have Olympus', PLEASE post the first two digits of your serial numbers. This newbie promises to quit bothering you all with this when his theory is debunked! TIA

[Zilch]

It's 375, Id say. Four mounting bolts. LE 85 is three.

No serial numbers on my older S7 Olympus, alas....

[glen]

I'm fascinated that there's a black driver on a blue horn.
Is there a well established progression of colors?
blue to black to gray?
I would think that this kind color mis-match would only happen for a short period of time and be useful for determining when the switch in colors took place.

[SUPERBEE]

I would like to see a pic of everything? Especially the Delphi.

[saeman]

Hello Henflet - Your idea on the serial numbering for the Oylmpus is not correct, although I can see how you might make such a connection between the serial on your Olympus and the approx. date of manufacture. Besides, why would JBL make the effort encode their serial numbers? During the height of the Cold War I'm sure the Russians had more important things to do than counterfeit the Olympus.

I have several Olympus systems in my data base along with a bunch of Sovereign's that I have owned or seen. Almost all of the Olympus had 4x,xxx serial on the cabinet rear plates. I have seen them as low as 44,xxx and as high as 50,xxx. It would appear to me that they started at 40,001 (possible) and ran consecutive from there to the end of production. Each number I have on file has higher numbered internal components as the cabinet number increases. The last pair that I owned was 50207 and 50208 and from the component serials and characteristics I would date them as mid/late 74 production. This was likely one of the last pairs made since they were dropped after the 1974 catalog. For a period of time after the Olympus and Sovereign were dropped from the catalog lineup, they were still available on a special order basis. When the cabinets were gone, they were gone. If your numbering theory was correct these would have been made in 2005 !!! ???

I also have quite a few Sovereign systems in my files. Their serial numbers are in the 1x,xxx range so it's easy to believe that the Sovereigns were numbered 10,001 thru ???? When you overlay the serial numbers of the drivers seen in the Olympus with those seen in the Sovereign, it's easy to determine a close date of manufacture for these systems, since they used the same components, taken off the line/shelf and put into cabinets as they were ordered and shipped. My Sovereigns are 12532 and 12533 and were assembled in early 75. They are untouched original and are one of the last pairs made. If my numbering theory is right then approx 1250 pairs were made and that seems reasonable to me since their life span was much shorter (67-75) than the Olympus (62?-75).

Since your Olympus has a blue horn on a black 375 driver I would peg them as 63 or early 64 manufature. It's well known that JBL ran the blue drivers in 1962, for whatever reason!! I have seen 1962 vintage Olympus with ALL blue components installed. It would not have been important to JBL to make sure all drivers in a given cabinet were the same color. When they ran out of blue, they would use black. My Sovereigns were built during the transition between painting LE15A's and PR15's black instead of gray. I have two black LE15A's, one black PR15 and one gray PR15. After saying all that I have to remember that there are NO ABSOLUTES, only approximations I've made from the many systems that I have observed over the years.

Rick

[henflet]

Thanks for the replies, men!! As promised, I won't beat this dead horse anymore.
Riessen, given the data you've compiled over the years, your conclusions regarding JBL serial numbering conventions seem appropriate. If you folks start sharing info like that, I believe the mystery will get solved, but it's gonna take a lot of effort. Too bad my little hunch was based on coincidence only.
In my recent efforts to date my speakers, I determined that the Olympus was first introduced in 1960 and informed another forum member of that. He was surprised and suggested I post that documentation - so here 'tis: Go into Library, open the Library Site Map, and scroll almost to the bottom and you'll find a section devoted to Distributor Pricelists. The C-50(-2) first appears in 1960 (absent in 1959).
Also a member asked where the Olympus serial number is located (apparently his tags are missing). On rear of speaker and here's a pic.
My system isn't yet listed on Ebay. I've been hoping that new SN dating info would surface. Also, after socializing with you JBL guys I didn't want to stick my foot in my mouth and misstate things in the Ebay ad. Now that you've educated me, I will list them - THANKS!!! The Delphi and the Olympus are going to be auctioned separately. Someone asked me to post pics of everything. That seems redundant since it'll all be on Ebay by tomorrow nite; but, I'll post some here if you want. Let me know.

[Phil H]

Well, I'll be jiggered (Tennessee Talk) - Can you believe that a pair of Olympus just like yours has just popped up on ebay? What's the chances of that?

Can you believe there are two sets of Olympus on eBay? Both have S8 systems with a lens over the 075.

[henflet]

Phil H, the second set is mine (notice the 15 years of dust - I guess I should have taken more time, but it was dark and no room to maneuver).
I hadn't noticed that the other S8 system also had a lens over the ring radiator. I recall pelly3s commented about mine. Since two have surfaced, seems likely that JBL must have done that in the early days. Riessen has seen many Olympus', including a vintage 1962 pair; will be interesting to hear his observatiuons.