Bolivar Speaker Works Model 125

I recently acquried these Bolivar 70's vintage speakers in need of some restoration off fleabay. As the seem to have been a relatively obsucre short lived brand I thought I'd post some photos as point of reference.

Manufacturer: Bolivar Speaker Works (Offshoot of JBL\Harmon)
Yr of Manufacture: 1975-1980 (ish)
Model: 125
Type: 2-Way - 8" Woofer - Paper Cone Tweeter
Dimensions: H23"(58.5cm) W12.5"(32cm) D10.5"(26cm)
Weight: 12kgs
Impedence:4ohms
Power Rating: Unknown
UK price when new: Unknown


Grill Badges are wood which is a nice touch
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc023.jpg

Cabinets were foil wrapped to reduce cost
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc017.jpg

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc016.jpg

Cabinet back
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc018.jpg

Flimsy spring loaded binding posts
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc019.jpg

Substantial, well made grille frames
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc024.jpg

Unmasked. The blue foam on the tweeters has had it, but hope it is only cosmetic
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc026.jpg

Woofer cleaned ready for new surround
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc027.jpg

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc028.jpg

Close up of a tweeter, the blue foam removed
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc032.jpg

Inside the cabinet
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc035.jpg

The few references I can find to this model say it was manufactured with no crossover, if so then what's this?
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc006.jpg

Looks like a crossover :D

Decent sized magnet on the bass/mid, that's the expensive bit, i guess these are promising ;)

I had a pair of Bolivar 64s from new in the late 70s. They were the 3 way version with the 10" bass driver. They were actually very good speakers especially if raised off the floor on low stands.
If you get the bass driver re foamed they should be good.
I think the 64s were around the £100 mark back then.
Andy.

The Cabs look in good nic too, get the cones refoamed or do it yourself and you should have a nice pair of rare speakers:)

Never done it before but gonna have a go at the refoam myself. The speakers only cost a few sheckles so if I cock it up I won't lose much.:)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mothman

Never done it before but gonna have a go at the refoam myself. The speakers only cost a few sheckles so if I cock it up I won't lose much.:)

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It's all good fun, when you've done them post a thread on the forum detailing how you did it, take photos too, i for one would like to read about it.:)

the foam rings round the tweeters, maybe tweeter diffractors? read this http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=2113

Well my handywork wouldn't win any prizes in a beauty contest but I've refoamed the woofers and it appears to have been a success

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc040.jpg

I reassembled the speakers and connected them to an old Sanui amp and :wow: these things sound great. There is loads of bass (probably too much for my small listening room) and the mids and highs aren't too shabby either for a two way speaker. Certainly not the last word in detail but then I wasn't expecting that from a pair of budget\mid price 70's speakers.

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d4...Fi/Misc049.jpg

Next I decided to connect them to my Hlly T-20 T-amp without much expectation, as I had assumed the Bolly's would need more juice to drive them than the Hlly could offer. Well what a surprise! these two make a wonderfull pairing, there is of course less bass with the Hlly but what bass there is is more controlled, mids and highs are also improved.

These speakers have exceeded my expectations, I think DSJR described their sound as FUN and that is exactly what they are, a really most enjoyable unfatiquing sound that I would be happy to live with as my main system speakers. Well chuffed:)

Looks like you did a decent job on the Rich :) At least they are actually usable now & apart from actually having learn't something new that may well be handy in the future, you can get them boogying :eyebrows:

Nicely done! I have messed about with speaers for years buy i have never refoamed a driver Attachment 3526


All the best :cool:

Looks like a good job to me Mothman and full credit for having a go at the roll surrounds :)
I remember the first pair I did and I was very nervous :eyebrows:
Did you remove the dustcap and shim between the coil and pole or do it by feel?
It might be worth looking at the spiders. The glue tends to degrade over time and the spiders sag or worse, work their way loose.
If you managed the surround roll you’ll be able to do the spiders if need be ;)

Different dustcap or it's glued on backwards, what do you reckon John? I think he did it the right way at the end of the day - shims ;)

Oh arr, different dustcaps alright :doh:
Dustcaps do effect the sound and its possible that the larger caps are an improvement for these drivers.
Anyway, Mothman will soon know if the coil and pole aren’t aligned properly coz the buggers will buzz something rotten :eek:

very nice job mate, how easy was it to do?

WELL DONE!!!! :)

The dustcaps should be concave on these and hopefully the tweeters should now show you there's nowt wrong with a tweeter cone if done right (I reckon domes are as much for fashion as anything else, as an ideal, apparently, should be a ring radiator).

Did I ever do the scans? If not, I apologise, as I've had massive computer problems recently and only just got the secondary drive up and running right (a RAM stick failing after a few minutes - grrrrr!).

Mordaunt Short used a cone tweeter in the 'Carnival' to good effect.

John, the dustcaps are the original concave ones, the photo was taken with flash which maybe makes it look like I've replaced them with convex ones. Not heard anything buzzing as yet, so fingers crossed all may be well.

Mike, If I can do it anyone can. The scariest part was cutting through the original glue join where the dust cap meets the cone as the glue was quite tough. I didn't cut the dust caps right off but left a small portion still attached to act as a hinge so I could lift the dustcap to expose the voice coil. The replacement foam rings were a good fit as were the coil shims which probably helped make the job easier. I used plenty of glue to reseal the dustcaps as I decided a good seal was probably more imprtant that prettyness. If you want a scan of the step by step instructions just let me know.

Dave, no rush with the scans of the magazine articles whenever you get chance. I'm just glad that you knew what these speakers were and that they were worth fixing;).

Hi Mothman. I have just acquired the very same speakers and they need the very same repair that you have done on yours. I'm struggling to find the correct repair kit. Can you please point me in the right direction? Best regards, Charlie.

Good luck with the refurb - and I hope you can grin smugly from ear to ear when you've done them - not so cheapo Tannoys be damned :lol:

Hi Charles,
As was requested when you carried out the joining procedure, would you mind starting a thread in the Welcome section please? It's the best way of ensuring a warm welcome from the community.
Why not tell us a little about yourself, your system & your taste in music?
Cheers

Sure thing Chris. Thanks for the polite reminder.

I used to live on Cuba and I had a pair of speakers Bolivar model 125 . Now I am on Canada whitby Ontario and I have been looking for those speakers all over the country and nothing found yet. If somebody have those speakers I will buy it I don't care the shape. I just love the sound of those speakers.thank you