A pair late of 1950's -- early 1960's JansZen speakers -- electrostic panels, a little known and irresistible cutting edge technology at the peak of HiFi in the late 1950s!  So good, they're owned by many modern day audiophiles where they see use daily. Electrostatic technology, born in these early days of HiFi -- hasn't changend as much as one might think. Still one of the best ways to produce stunningly realistic mids and highs (within limits) -- these 1st generation JansZen panels were cleverly and quite ruggedly constructed as modular panels --  method you don't see much these days. These units (when restored and working) are known by many to sound great -- both as an add-on -- and in the case of Janzen usable stand alone with a woofer! As an acessory they give allot of air and detail to your system. You don't see these smaller, super neat Model 65's very much. Intended to upgrade the Acoustic Research Model 1 and AR1W ) and the early KLH  1960's and even the original Advent! Pretty much any midsize bookshelf works well with a set of early JansZens like these. With two panels per box they're the perfect (not overpowering add-on).  They'll make almost any small bookshelf system from this timeframe sound brighter, clearer and overall more realistic. 

Real hardwood cabinets are a treat! They add both a bit of form and function to any nice mid-century bookshelf -- most notably AR and KLH. These Model 65's were the smaller brother to the larger Model 130. The Model 65's were rated at 700 c/s all the way to 30,000 c/s ! Cool looking 2-element design, space-y, mid century atomic, "googie" look. Very Handsome on top of otherwise plain looking bookshelfs of the era!  Made of nice real wood, with handsome chrome plated back covers, hosusing the network filters and power supply.

  Study all of the Exhibit photos, the original literature. Read below for more details. They are great to add to most any 1950s / 60s or 70s era bookshelf. Keep in mind, these  Janzens when up and running are some of the finest  tweeters (and a bit of midrange) that your could ever add to your existing setup.  JansZen was the pioneer in Electrostic speaker design in the USA, leading and refining the earliest designs alongside QUAD of England. Later in the 60s, JansZen contributed the the graoudbreaking Acoustat systems. They have builtin HF crossovers, so just straight wire, bi wire or parallel them right in. a very cool, clean upgrade for your vintage audio setup

As you can see, these are a terribly rare find, and will need total restoration. They are complete, and untested. With a few repairs and some cleaning, you should have a complete nice working set of a rare JansZen model!  

Condition: Both units are well matched for their age .. solid and poor to fair condition.  One cabinet corner has a split splt, both are otherwise nice looking and good original hardwood is solid. The rear chrome plates have a bit of pitting from the past 55 years, and are still bright and shiny. Inside, you'll see the lots of wiring and connections have to be reattached, and you will probably need to clean the panels (lots of Diy info online, search google, you can clean the panels yourself -- they are well made and otherwise rugged) Only purchase these if you're serarching for rare Model 65's and your're looking for a very worthwhile project. These will  indeed sell fast, as you just can no longer find them. Lots of world-wide need and collector interest in them now. Perfect for cramped and medium sized audiophile setups. 

These are directly from the original owner's estate -- he once used them and considered them essential additions to his AR's. They are from a non smoking home, very important plus, as electrostatic panels attract dirt and dust over time.  

By the time Stereo became must-have technology -- demanded by spoiled, cutting edge audiophiles -- market interest grew in shrinking the then mammoth bass reflex and horn loaded systems -- these 1940s systems sounded nice but were huge. Amps were getting more powerful by the early 1950's which allowed experimentation with sealed cabinets, high compliance woofers and domed mids -- a radically new idea at the time. 

For the self aware and educated, scientifically minded 1950's post war consumer, no speaker choice was ever more sensible or more essential thant the new Acoustic Research speaker line. The AR-1, shown at the Brussels World's Fair in 1957 -- was the foot in the door for the realization of a reasonably sized speaker capable of full range + effective bass. It improperly used the phenonominal 755A -- in a an unfairly small sealed box -- punished into the role of both Mid and Tweeter -- it didn't work as well as it could have.

Collectors and audiophiles alike should seek the better versions  -- maybe the early  AR2, and especially the great AR3 and AR3A. AR's 3 way  finally realized that inital promise. Sealing the deal- a truly good sounding bookshelf  with  significant and fairly realistc LF. Largely thanks to AR's in-house, self built terrific world class woofer, mid and tweeter -- heavy magnets and quality diaphragms. These will go down in history as some of the best post 1940s compontetized drivers -- ever. The early ALINICO and Ferrite versions made between the 50s-60s are in the top tier of USA made reproducers.  

The AR bookshelfs ( at early products from KLH) were ambitous products, and as with so many, many great sounding speakers -- benefits and enchanced clarity can come from adding more UHF.  More so the AR2 but the AR3 benefit innensely from set top additions like JansZen solutions. The AR line was tough to improve on. They were flat, had lots of accentuated bass within reason -- reasonably efficent ( near field, I play nice AR-3A's at only 1-2 watts!). Like any speaker system -- at medium low and low volumes (thanks to the F-M curve) they don't always have enough prescence or highs. Room for a suitably modern, 1950's style accessory became evident. The thick grilles of the early AR's, along with room acoustics and other problems like dark amps, swiftly starved all of the conservative HF these speakers delivered. 

By the late 1950s, for the AR-1 , AR-1W woofer, Bozak, and early KLH .... JansZen had in the ready these -- as accessories -- and suggested even standalone use with LF systtems like the AR-1W.They were already producing their own line of  the interesting  2 and 3 way electrostatc speakers -- JansZen was quick to market with this killer space age -- cabinet top design. Ultra modern multi-faceted electrostatic tweeter panels -- self contained, attractive, the heirloom quality of real wood -- these quickly became a hit with HF starved owners of  all the AR bookshelfs ... seeking even more realism in a small space -- Janzen's delevered this -- but in the long run they were not terribly reliable -- needing cleaning once in a while, and the occasional power supply repair. Not bad to upkeep, and well worth the DiYer's Audiophile time. These Janzen units are really cool. They are larger, and heavier built with quality materials -- compared to cheaper, early 1950s european and Japanese electrostat technology.  These designs were heavier, and more capable of midrange and highs -- the crucial boost that really harmonizes with the early 1950s bookshelf systems! They were handbuilt. JansZen panels were far and away the costliest to build -- and this was great, because they last and last -- through the several cleaning cycles in their long lifetime.  The horizontal and vertical rods the JansZen panels boast, give the extra detail and efficiency that makes them a serious speaker accessory. 

Collectors and needful AR owners have driven these rare tweeter sets to stellar values. Janzens are finicky and fragile -- best for advanced audiophiles with patience ready to tackle restoration. 

  Again, keep in mind electrostatic units like these make mids and highs  that aren't "loud" or nasty -- it's not going to grate on you or shear your ears away  --- HF twinkle or "breath" and a smooth refined -- vocal prescence from these is very subtle and really adds a new sense of spirit ... a new type of "alertness"  the speaker didn't have before -- and that's all.  It's not going to give radical highs that would blow your top off -- or drastically alter the sound of your nice speakers. They are a cool 1950's experimental --  a nice idea to make already natural sounding speakers sound more natural.  These are 2 panel cabinets, so not as large as the biggest Janzens of the mid 1950s...Still, JansZens go lower than other early tweeters, so they're a big enhancement... They're in my opinion best as an addition to AR, KLH, Advent, Wharfedale, Bozak and ElectroVoice 1 way and 2 way systems ... pretty much  or any speaker lacking a powerful midrange and tweeter that might benefit from a little more twinkly prescence.  Easy to add to any system, as they've got the high-pass filter built right in. You really can't blow these like other nice convential tweets (famously fragile to use are the Altec 3000A, Stephens Tru-Sonic, T35, T350, or the RP302 by Jensen). Unlike some, they're are not as aggressive, and they're much more rugged in application. .  

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The documents and test reports for each tweeter are included. 

 The AR-3a in photo is not included.