> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.skyestereo.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Pioneer CS-88a Speakers: My first vintage project! - URL: https://www.skyestereo.com/pioneer-cs-88a-speakers-my-first-vintage-project/ - Published: 2026-10-28T00:34:45.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-28T00:34:45.000Z - Author: Ava Skye - Tags: Speakers, Restoration, Pioneer And technically, my first vintage piece (even though I said that about the Yamaha CR-820). Having recently acquired the 1990s Yamaha system, I was on the lookout for vintage gear. Living, more or less, in the middle of nowhere, I didn't think I'd have much luck sourcing vintage gear locally, but I love me a good estate sale so I started paying attention to the listings. I saw them. They were in a photo taken from a distance, placed high on an entertainment cabinet of some sort. The lattice grills made them unmistakeable. I made it my mission to be there right as the sale opened so I could get to the speakers first. Estate sale day and I was there. Walked straight into the house to find the speakers. They were too high to pull the grills and check condition, but I didn't care. Walked right back out to the sales table to claim them... and get help getting them down. Good thing too. Another person was looking them over as I came back with one of the sale helpers. With them on the floor, I was able to pull the grills. So many drivers! And the midranges on each speaker (2 each) were in desperate need of new foam. I didn't care. They were vintage. They were in otherwise excellent condition, and I wanted them. I would see about fixing them later. It had to be possible, right? With the speakers successfully claimed, it was time to look around the rest of the sale. I'm still kicking myself over this one - they had a cassette deck and one or two other components priced super cheap. I talked myself out of them and I shouldn't have. The good news is, having gone back in, I was able to score a Technics SL-QL5 turntable for $10\. It was with some other speakers, but I couldn't figure out how to remove the grills and being fairly new to vintage, I passed on those too. Anyway. Vintage Pioneer speakers with lattice grills in excellent cosmetic shape. $40\. As I drove away with the biggest grin on my face, I felt like I had won a prize. ![Vintage early 1970s Pioneer CS-88a Speakers](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_7957-2-1.jpeg) Vintage early 1970s Pioneer CS-88a Speakers Did they need work? Yes. Are they pretty? Also yes. ![A closeup of the mid-range drivers on one speaker and their expired foam.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8043.jpeg) A closeup of the mid-range drivers on one speaker and their expired foam. With them home, it was time to look up how to re-foam them. I also found, in my research, that they could probably do with replacing capacitors on the crossover (me, learning about the insides of quality speaker cabinets). It's a good thing I learned to solder in 8th grade - and hadn't really done it since. With new foam in-hand, and some capacitor kits from eBay for the crossovers, it was time to get to work bringing these back to life. Starting with the 4 mid-range drivers, I carefully pulled them out of the cabinet. Thankfully, they were wired with female spade ends - no desoldering required! Following a couple YouTube videos from Simply Speakers (and others) I set about carefully removing the remaining foam and any old glue residue. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8042.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8063.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8064.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8066.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8067.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8068.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8069.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8070.jpeg) Photos from my attempt at re-foaming the midrange drivers. Successful, I think! The glue from Simply Speakers was very messy and hard to work with. Especially at altitude. It wanted to empty itself. But I managed, and for my first re-foaming job, I think it went very well. With the mid-drivers re-foamed, I could finally hear them. Not too bad for my first vintage set of speakers. Of course, the adjustment knobs on back didn't do anything to the sound. It was time to dive in and figure out how to recap a crossover. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8502.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8456.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8461.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8460.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8459.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8462.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8463.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8464.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8465.jpeg) Pulling and cleaning the crossovers. It was easy enough to get it out of the cabinet. The switches were crazy dirty. At this point, I didn't have a way to test the original capacitors, but it didn't matter. I was replacing them with film capacitors anyway. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8502-1.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8503.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8496.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8509.jpeg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/39/b8/39b89c6b-b91e-4744-b442-209c28dfea82/content/images/2026/10/IMG_8510.jpeg) Finished crossovers, re-foamed drivers, and set up to enjoy. Considering I did this with a generic soldering iron and experience dating back to 8th grade, I think I did great! Uses a little hot glue to hold the larger film capacitors in place. Didn't mess anything up, and got it all back together. My first listen was fantastic. They didn't have as much bass as I was expecting, given the size of the woofer, but they sounded good. Until I got a different pair. More on that later. What do you think? Are you a fan of the "Kabuki" style of speaker? Meaning - speakers with far too many drivers per cabinet. LOL.