Acoustic Research 310HO (1997–1998)
Surviving documentation on the Acoustic Research 310HO is thinner than it should be for a speaker this size. The record doesn't even agree on when it was sold. One source dates it to 1982, another to around 1997, and a third to 1998. The 1997-98 dating is the one the specs support. The original Japanese price is quoted as ¥180,000 per pair around 1997, and the design language (Aeroform tweeter, mirror-image subwoofers, magnetic shielding) is late-1990s AR. Treat the 1982 date as an error.
The 310HO is a 3-way, 4-speaker tall-boy floorstander, and the lower sibling of the 312HO in AR's HO series. A long-stroke 25 cm cone woofer handles the low end, two 13 cm cone midranges cover the middle, and a 2.5 cm dome tweeter sits on top. That tweeter is AR's Aeroform unit. AR's own literature lists the crossover points at 180 Hz and 2.5 kHz, frequency response at 35 Hz to 20 kHz ±2 dB, sensitivity at 95 dB/2.83V/m, and nominal impedance at 8 ohms. Those figures are broadly consistent with the contemporary period coverage in HiFI-Stereo (February 1997, p.96), which reviewed the larger 312 HO in the same series. Recommended amplifier power is quoted as 25-200 watts RMS. Cabinets measure 250 × 925 × 425 mm and weigh 25 kg each. The finish options were black and maple. AR added a few house technologies: Focused Array Configuration, an Energy Control Contour Baffle, and Voice Balanced Tone Matching. There is also magnetic shielding, which counted in the late '90s if you parked a speaker beside a CRT television. The cabinet is described as slim for its height, with the mirror-image subwoofers built in to keep the profile narrow.
Two things about the record are unresolved. Country of manufacture is one of them. One listing says the United Kingdom, another says the USA. A separate seller listing also gives dimensions and weight that don't match AR's own figures at all. Where sources disagree, the manufacturer-quoted numbers above are the ones to trust. Original U.S. retail is quoted at $900, though the year that price applied isn't confirmed.
Owner reports agree on two points. The 310HO is efficient and detailed with tight, deep bass, and the foam surrounds on the front drivers rot. Refurbishment projects almost always involve refoaming the two 5-inch midranges. A seller listing for a spare 10-inch woofer (part D02-0060, 4 ohms) shows up on the used market for around $155. Complete pairs surface occasionally in the low four figures.
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