Restoring OA-12

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momus
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by momus »

Yeah, that´s the one. It is almost plug-and-play, but Grafpro suggest that you alter the filter, especially if you are going to use the T 22 . I use it without any modification in my OA 50. I can detect a somewhat wobbly frequency curve, but I´m getting used to it. The main difference is the distorsion. I played some old CD:s the other day and they sounded brand new. It was a bit of a chock (by coincidence, it was some old Momus records). Clean, clean, clean! I heard things that I hadn´t noticed before. Owen Pallets last records at last made sense. Some records sounded worse. But that´s just a few ones (I can cope with that).
JoelRiehl
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by JoelRiehl »

Speaker elements have arrived from hifikit.se! Waiting on filters from grafpro. I will start disassembling the speakers and redoing the cabinets this weekend. Momus - I ended up going with the Carlsson speakers. Grafpro said he doesn't build a filter for the Satori. With that, the cost, and the fact that the Carlsson's seem closer to the originals, I decided to go that route this time. Someday, when I find a 2nd pair to restore, perhaps I will try out the Satori - and perhaps do the filter mod myself.
momus
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by momus »

No. he does not.
Yet.
The B65 oa II is a good speaker and, as you say, it´s more like the original. The Satori is quite expensive but much, much better I reckon. But the B 65 oa II is also quite good.
JoelRiehl
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by JoelRiehl »

I got the OA-12s back together with the B65 oa IIs, the Obi T22s, and filters from grafpro (thank you for shipping all the way to the US). Everything is working and sounds great. I have a little more restoration on the cabinets. They had been painted black, and after 4 applications of stripper, I think they may be ready to take a finish. I will post photos as soon as I can load some up.

So - question for the group: When cutting the DIN plugs off the speaker leads, and separating them to hook up, I noticed how incredibly thin they are. Laughably thin compared to the garden hose speaker cables I have them hooked up to. I will probably need to replace them if I want to install binding posts, because they are fairly short now. What is a good gauge and type of wire to replace the main speaker leads with? What is the effect on the sound?
JoelRiehl
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by JoelRiehl »

I would like to upload some images of the completed OA-12s - before, after, and process. Can somebody give me the quick how-to on posting photos from my computer?

The speakers were completed, with help from graphpro and hifikit.se, and they sound amazing, even more so on my 1976 vintage Pioneer SX750 receiver than on my newer Dynaco tube gear.
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STDI!
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by STDI! »

Press "Besvara" (as usual)
Press "Ladda upp en bilaga"
Press "Bläddra" to find the file
Double click on file
Press "Bifoga filen"
Press "Placera inom inlägget"
Start over with "Ladda upp..." if you want more pics.

This will give pics together with the text.
Good luck.
Hope to see lots of pics.
OD-11(T22+B65OAII), 3xOA12(T22+B65OAII), OA52.N, 3xL8, SC6, SC6.2
momus
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by momus »

Interesting. The best sound I´ve got from OA 12 (original) was together with very old tube gear, the Dynaco SCA 35.
Last edited by momus on Wed 21 Oct 2015, 17:36, edited 2 times in total.
JoelRiehl
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by JoelRiehl »

Thanks guys. I'll try to load the photos this week. I took the OA12s to an audio club meeting near Seattle a couple of weeks ago (at the behest of a friend of mine, who is president of Northwest Audio Society, and who became interested in hifi when he heard another friend's pair of OD11s back in the 70s). He hooked the 12s up to some good tube gear in one of the listening rooms that was set up. People would come in, be amazed at the sound coming out of them, then just stay there for awhile enjoying the music, and marveling at the fact that they could sound so good while placed against the wall. They acquitted themselves well, even with all the exotic gear around. They are still in my possession, but I promised them to my younger son. I am starting to regret having done that :-)
JoelRiehl
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by JoelRiehl »

OK - a few weeks longer than I thought, but here are the photos: http://www.carlssonplanet.com/forum/gallery/album/7 . "Ascending order" puts the photos in chronological order. Let me know if I did not do this in a way that let's you view them. The interface is still a bit baffling to me. Thank you to all for the advice and support, and to hifikit.se, grafpro.
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STDI!
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Re: Restoring OA-12

Post by STDI! »

It says: "Du har inte tillgång till denna avdelning." Meaning "You have no access to this section."

If you press tab "Bilagor" when you are in "answer mode" you can add pictures directly in your post. "Lägg till filer" means "Add files". Press that. Choose your file in your computer. Done
OD-11(T22+B65OAII), 3xOA12(T22+B65OAII), OA52.N, 3xL8, SC6, SC6.2
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