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Thread: JBL LE14A and LE 175 Home made cabinets

  1. #1
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    JBL LE14A and LE 175 Home made cabinets

    i recently aquired (well, maybe a year ago) a pair of home made speakers. These speakers were built by a doctor in the early 70s who didnt want to pay full price for a pair of L-101 cabinets. The port is a square hole. and the cabinet is bulky, not the right size, and fairly ugly. I was curious if anyone had designs for a cabinet to fit just the Le14a as i want to have a horn on top speaker.. I know i read somewhere saying they needed about 3.2-3.4 cubic feet. I dont know much about tuning cabinets, so if anyone had designs for a cabinet that they have used, including port size, it would be greatly appreciated.

    The woofers have already been refoamed within the last 6 months
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    Not What You Asked For , but ;

    Well ,,, I suspect those Apollo cabinets might be original . They look to be the variant shipped with the woven cloth grills . They do seem to have different detail in the top molding , from what I can gather .

    LHF member "2string" has provided us with some pics of his restored C51 Apollos .

    Check out the frontal detail on his C51(s) vs yours .





    Here's a shot of one of his in the process of being refurbished .



    Now, with the top "finished" .



    Here's a look see, with his optional "modernized" grills . Very, very sharp ( IMHO ) with those grills .
    - LHF member , "saman" sells authentic JBL grill cloth / I'm unsure what colors he is currently stocking ( send him a pm / though he may be on vacation ) .



    Here's his pair using the more commonly seen, classically "fretted" grills ( after he picked up a second grill ) .



    Here are 2 pics from LHF member , "JBL-Canuck" , which shows a grill type virtually identical to yours .



    Here's yours,



    Maybe yours are homemade / & then again / maybe they're original Apollos .

    No matter really, if those were mine ( & the veneer was restorable ) , I'd simply modernize the look to something more like this ( & maybe retune them ) ;



    Do a site search for threads started by 2string . I think he's pretty happy that he kept his Apollos .

    <> cheers

  3. #3
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    well, ill be damned.

    Thanks for the info!
    looks like you learn something new every day

    he told me he had bought "plans" to build the JBL speakers back sometime during the 70s, i just assumed he made this cabinet design up.

    Either way, they look identical to all the photos of the JBL C51 that i have looked at
    (ill admit i must not have done enough research in the past year if i havnt at least come across images of it before today)

    I still think that they are not JBL built cabinets, and were built based on plans bought from JBL, or just copied from a friends cabinets. The build quality is fantastic, super solid cabinets. But that port does worry me. Is it supposed to be just a rectangular hole like that? or is there supposed to be some depth to the port.

    What i will do, if anyone is interested, is get measurements, and more detailed photographs if anyone is interested in finding out if these are actually C51 cabinets, or a clone.


    and once again, thanks for the info. Ill definately just refurb these. They basically were used as endtables for the past 30 years ( says the previous owner) and to play some high volume polka here and there( his music of choice)

  4. #4
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    Your ports look exactly like the ports shown in the first 2 pictures Earl posted. Take another look at them. Those cabinets look pretty good. They may only need mild restoration. Post more pictures as you go along. Nice find.

  5. #5
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    Photos

    Heres a few more photos, the veneer looks to be walnut? and in pretty decent shape.

    when refurbishing them, what would you all recommend doing

    refinish the veneer? repaint the baffles? any and all help is more than appreciated.

    the reason i came across these speakers in the first place was because of a doctor who was cleaning out his living room. he gave them to me along with a bunch of other older audio stuff, although nothing else to write home about.
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  6. #6
    Senior Member SMKSoundPro's Avatar
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    Black wires, I believe and will check, go on pushbuttons 2&3. They are commonly tied internally.
    One step above: "Two Tin Cans and a String!"
    Longtime Alaskan Low-Fi Guy - E=MC² ±3db

  7. #7
    Senior Member SMKSoundPro's Avatar
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    Name:  C51%20Apollo.jpg
Views: 8074
Size:  67.8 KB

    Found this on another thread. I don't see the option of the LE14 and potato masher horn.

    Scotty.
    One step above: "Two Tin Cans and a String!"
    Longtime Alaskan Low-Fi Guy - E=MC² ±3db

  8. #8
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    so this is a home made apollo clone?

  9. #9
    Senior Member SMKSoundPro's Avatar
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    http://www.audioheritage.org/vbullet...Manual&p=37573

    http://lansingheritage.org/html/jbl/.../1976-comp.htm

    Your combo looks as if it is a LE14a and LE175 on a HL87(potato masher horn) which shows a LX-10 crossover in the charts, at 1500hz.

    In the top link, use illustration D for the wiring.

    Scotty.
    One step above: "Two Tin Cans and a String!"
    Longtime Alaskan Low-Fi Guy - E=MC² ±3db

  10. #10
    Senior Member SMKSoundPro's Avatar
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    I personally don't believe home-made from the pics, but reserve judgement until others with more experience jump in.

    Scotty.

    Great find!!!!

    Please show pics of the insides. That will answer some questions.
    One step above: "Two Tin Cans and a String!"
    Longtime Alaskan Low-Fi Guy - E=MC² ±3db

  11. #11
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    I, too, bought a plan for C51/Apollo from JBL and tried to construct the cabinets in the mid 70s.
    I cut various size of plywood following the plan except the solid wood for top panel where it required making round edges. The plan required two different ‘R’ for upper and lower portion and I did not have the tool to do it. – Something like the first picture from EARL K’s posting above.
    Also the plan showed the baffle cut out sizes for different drivers and horns.

    I was planning to install either D130+075 or LE14A+LE175+1217-1290 horn but they were too expensive for my income then.

    I put every thing in the corner of basement without baffle cut out.

    My interest has shifted to JBL monitor speakers since. I constructed and completed a few but I still have those panels ready to assemble.

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by SMKSoundPro View Post
    I personally don't believe home-made from the pics, but reserve judgement until others with more experience jump in.

    Scotty.

    Great find!!!!

    Please show pics of the insides. That will answer some questions.

    can do, will have some photos in a few minutes

  13. #13
    Senior Member SMKSoundPro's Avatar
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    From this corner picture of the detailed joinery, I would bet these are not a clone. That's a pro joint, unless... I could be wrong. Please post more pics of the insides.
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    One step above: "Two Tin Cans and a String!"
    Longtime Alaskan Low-Fi Guy - E=MC² ±3db

  14. #14
    Senior Member louped garouv's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by SMKSoundPro View Post
    I personally don't believe home-made from the pics, but reserve judgement until others with more experience jump in.

    Scotty.

    Great find!!!!

    Please show pics of the insides. That will answer some questions.
    pretty advanced level of woodworking went into those joints, IMO at least...
    if they are homebrew 'twas someone who knew his or her way around a workshop.....

  15. #15
    Senior Member SMKSoundPro's Avatar
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    Hello Mr. Keith!
    One step above: "Two Tin Cans and a String!"
    Longtime Alaskan Low-Fi Guy - E=MC² ±3db

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