ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
I've just become the owner (to my wife's displeasure due to their size!) of a pair of teak Beovox 3800 speakers. I'm planning to give them some TLC and thought I'd document my adventures in case anyone's interested or can offer any advice if I come unstuck!
I did as much research on them as I could before taking the leap and was interested by the fact they were a UK only product and the tax-related story behind it. I read through Snoopy / Peter's listening comparison here and so thought that for a few quid I couldn't go wrong!
I've restored a pair of 2702s previously - replacing the surrounds and capacitors and these are now connected to my non-B&O AV amp and sound and look great. Being a designer myself (and the son of an engineer) the look and thinking behind Bang and Olufsen products is what attracted me to them as well as the build quality and performance.
I know it's heresy but I don't really like the design of the later uni-phase speakers such as the MS150 and the like even though they are by all accounts much better speakers
My 2702s (BTW can you tell I like single malt whisky )
Anyway here are the beauties that I picked up this weekend
The magnetic frets are much easier to remove than the glued 2702s!
The separated black cone coating
I've given them a once-over clean but nothing more than that so far!
I hooked them up to my Beolab 5000 and Beogram 1202 and they seem to work adequately in their current state but I'm planning to re-cap them and cosmetically give them a good seeing to.
Now here's a question for anyone that can answer - I know the Goodman's 12" driver doesn't have a foam surround but a plasticised coating (it's more like a thick sticky black cling film!!) but on both of my woofers it appears to have separated from the cone itself in the centre (see my pics) and the dust caps have come free. What's the best way to deal with this just reglue the dust caps? It doesn't appear to be affecting the sound (or maybe I can't tell?). It's fairly taught and I don't want to jigger anything up by doing anything I don't need to.
Nice!
Hey, what are those British-made amazing woofers?
Jacques
Time-out, unfortunate second click
Awesome speakers and an awesome bar cabinet you've got there, too. Congratulations!
Vinyl records, cassettes, open reel, valve amplifiers and film photography.
@ chartz - they're Goodman's 30.5cm drivers see here big blighters! The biggest drivers B&O ever used if I'm correct!
@ Søren Hammer - thanks! Hopefully the bar will support the weight of the 3800s without buckling
MrRoast: @ chartz - they're Goodman's 30.5cm drivers see here big blighters! The biggest drivers B&O ever used if I'm correct! @ Søren Hammer - thanks! Hopefully the bar will support the weight of the 3800s without buckling
Save for the massive 15 incher in the BL5, I think that is correct. Certainly in the passives the Goodmans would even have surpassed the later MS150.
The cabinet looks sturdy
I'm a bit envious, the 3800 is quite rare in Denmark.
From the product list
Were it not for the arcane British Tax system, this speaker would never have existed. As it was , the presence of a 12" Goodmans woofer signified that this was a professional class loudspeaker, and hence one paid reduced purchase tax. It replaced the Beovox 4700 in the range in the UK for this reason.
Collecting Vintage B&O is not a hobby, its a lifestyle.
MrRoast:@ Søren Hammer - I read that they were quite difficult to get hold of outside of the UK, I assume that the size and weight of them creates a hefty shipping cost! Ironically there was another pair on eBay.co.uk that sold for less than €20!
And if these are the ones I think you beat me to, from Chippenham ?, they weren't too expensive either !.
There seem to be an awful lot of S45-2's and S60's going through on Ebay UK at the moment
Growing old is inevitable, Growing up is Optional
Beomaster 3000-2, BM 4400, Beocenter 3500, Beogram 1200, BG 4002, Beovox P45, BV 1802, BV 3702
I am proud to have a pair of these in my collection, came from a wellknown gentleman & UK Beoworlder .One of the woofers had the exact same problem and I was able to simply glue thesurround lip back onto the basket using the circumference and continuity of the surroundas the only guide.My woofer did not have the lose dustcap. This should be a fairly easy fix but wait with this untilyou have confirmed correct operation after glueing the surround. It may provide a good access forshimming, should the need arise.
Martin
You say diesel, eh? What car do you drive?
If the BeoVirus really get to you, you will need a LORRY
Or a van!
Peter
Update -
As I've got this week off work I thought I'd get on with the 3800s - so this morning they've been stripped down so I can start on fettling the cabinets.
on the workbench (i.e kitchen table ) ready for action
there she blows - the giant Goodmans driver in a sea of wadding
a multicoloured surprise under the midrange drivers!
drivers all unsoldered and wadding removed so I can get to the crossover
ready for cleaning and more!
using the wife's hairdryer on hot was enough to let the cone covering to become flexible enough to stick back onto the cone (hopefully this will stay put!)
a pair of crossovers waiting for re-capping
...and capacitors ordered from Audiocap
I've re-glued the felt rings round the front of the big drivers and they're sat drying as I type. Tomorrow should see me start the cabinet cleaning, sanding and waxing! Has anyone got any tips for the aluminium detailing - I was thinking of just rubbing this with fine steel wool? Any suggestions would be good.
Nice project. Good luck with the refinish.
I had to use a "green" paint thinner replacement on a pair of P45s last weekend to remove some splashes of paint (put there by a previous owner). I noticed the paint thinner did a fair job of cleaning the metal, but it certainly didn't polish it. Other things I've done in the past have sometimes done more harm than good.
In use, a scratch or blemish or two isn't even noticed. My advice is don't worry about the metal too much.
@ Rich - cheers, think I'll just try some fine steel wool/ wet and dry on a tiny part to see if it has any unwanted results. I learned the hard way about doing things to B&O metal finishes, I washed my BeoTime clock platter in the sink and it went cloudy under the surface finish :(
Only ordered yesterday afternoon and the caps have already arrived - top work www.audiocap.co.uk!
action shot
first one done
out with the old...
...and in with the new - arty shot of the finished crossovers
update -
sanding and steel-woolin'
white spirit rubbin'
waxin'
gluein' and chillin'
frettin'
all done - knocking their little brother off the perch.
I have to say they sound great - so much more bottom end than the 2702s! So glad I chanced an arm on eBay for these big-boys.
Very good job, looks very good too, but to get a more durable finish, use boiled linseed oil. (Danish oil)
Are you replacing 37uF with 82uF ?I would have paralleled 22uF with 15uF.
I will try beeswax on my next set of speakers, the linseed oil stinks
Hi, what is the procedure for refurbishment of the external woodwork? What materials do you use, for example, the wax? And what glue did you use on the speakers?
Thanks for any help
Nick
Many thanks. Can you buy the glue separately or is it similar to a known glue, like PVA paper glue?
cheers
Awesome speakers.. The wife wouldn't have them in the house as too big, so off to the office they went..great bookshelf units :) Running off a 4000 Beocenter and mainly listening to CDs off a CDX2. Very nice indeed..
Regards
J