Finally finished a Todo
when I got a Round Tuit

Advents were a popular, top-of-the-line stereo speaker in the 1970s produced by Henry Kloss, the inventor of the acoustic suspension loudspeaker. In addition to founding the Advent Corporation in 1967, he also founded Acoustic Research and KLH.

Upon starting internship and residency in 1976 at Riverside Hospital in Newport News, I became interested in them and with my first salary (a whopping $13,000 a year for a 60 to 80-hour workweek) I followed the crowd by buying “stacked Advents”, one on top of the other, four total. Heavy as lead, large (14″ wide and 26″ tall), and veneered to look like solid walnut. Around that time, my brother, Jim, served two-years in the Navy in Japan, and I was able to get great, matching stereo equipment through the PX. 

These are going to sound Great! … Well, not quite.

I lived in a townhouse and couldn’t crank them up like I wanted. Besides I was usually too tired to bother as I was perpetually exhausted for the three years. 

The speakers followed me from one house to another but rarely were they used. They took up too much room. Anyway, now that I am retired, I decided to move the stereo equipment to the Skyloft on the second floor of the detached garage. No close neighbors and the room is well insulated.

No sound problems now, crank these puppies up full!!!   
Ughhh, they sound dreadfull!!!!!!!

Pulled the front covers off and the foam surrounding each woofer had long ago crumbled. So much for acoustic suspension. With my usual slow and constricted thinking, I first thought I would give them away on Craigslist or toss them in the county landfill. Drat, they still look nice and I never really appreciated them.

Enter the all-powerful YouTube!

Numerous videos on YouTube show how to scrape the old foam off (harder than you think) and glue new foam on. Not being the handiest person, I figured I have nothing to lose. But what model and size are they? Depends on if you measure the metal frame or not, so some sites referred to them as 8″ while others called them 10″. Finally found that I have “The New Advent” speaker. Yeah forty years later, the websites still refer to them as “New”.

I bought refoam kits on Amazon and completed the repairs a week later. They sound great now, especially with vinyl LPs. Even cassette tapes sound good. 

So 42 years later, I am enjoying the decision of my 26-year-old self but needed to be retired to get a round tuit.