Vintage Speakers are back in style

[Old_School_Brad]

I have the crescendo 3006 books....they are in general very similar to those you have (mids are different & different type emit ).. they sound very good , they'd compete easily against most 2 ways under $1000.... very smooth and pretty transparent

The Crescendos are great too. If I recall correctly, they were around during the same time as the Kappa .1 and .2 models. They also feature the EMIT-R tweeter and the carbon-polymer cone technology.

Crescendos are really rare to see for sale IME.

 

[jhaider]

These are still being sold. 2, 15” woofs.
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@DSJR states there are old and new versions, but the OG was designed by the late Bill Bush, whose name also graces the crossover schematic for the venerable NHT 3.3. I’ve read they are pretty good out of the box and Mr. Bush made some suggestions on a forum to improve them. Never heard them though.

Does anyone recognize the speaker on the latest DWR flyer? Aside from the deranged positioning, I think it’s hilarious that the woofer dust cap is damaged. But interesting that old and cheap looking speakers are used to sell Eames chaise lounges and the like.

 

[Old_School_Brad]

@DSJR states there are old and new versions, but the OG was designed by the late Bill Bush, whose name also graces the crossover schematic for the venerable NHT 3.3. I’ve read they are pretty good out of the box and Mr. Bush made some suggestions on a forum to improve them. Never heard them though.

Does anyone recognize the speaker on the latest DWR flyer? Aside from the deranged positioning, I think it’s hilarious that the woofer dust cap is damaged. But interesting that old and cheap looking speakers are used to sell Eames chaise lounges and the like.

View attachment 446577

That's funny!

 

[Waxx]

Some of my favorites are the Goodman Mezzo SL, Dynaco A26, Warfdale Triton XP3. JBL 4333, JBL 4340, B&W DM-70, many old 1970's Kef speakers... All these have been in my house, some I owned, others I only restored.

Altec is often to big for EU houses, but in a big living room it can work, in a small space it won't work right in my experience. Kiplisch is way to bright (at least for me), Tannoy is very coloured (i like it, but it's not for everyone).

 

[DanielT]

Sometimes well-built kits or DIYs appear on the Hifi market that can be had at a good price. These for example. Gives classic vibes, or is it a timeless look that has always been more or less popular?

Cornscala was developed by Crites Speakers in the USA ( https://critesspeakers.com/ ) as a
cross between Klipsch La Scala and Cornwall (deeper bass than La Scala and
bigger horns than Cornwall ). Available as complete speakers, building kits or just
elements. These have cabinets ordered and built at a carpentry shop in Sweden, with Baltic
birch plywood and really nice oak veneer. Speaker elements/drivers are from Faital Pro, horns from
18Sound, sensitivity 98 dB.

Price $1600. Whether that makes sense or not I don't know. Also, I don't know about the construction, the design itself is good, but I think the appearance makes them fit into this thread.In any case, I just took them to exemplify.

Cornscala Lättdrivna Högtalare

Ett par Cornscala Style D , stora lättdrivna horn högtalare .Dessa ersatte mina Cornwall IV och låter minst lika bra om inte bättre, fast till 1/5 av Cornwalls kostnad. Inget saknas ljudmässi

hifitorget.se

 

[DSJR]

Now this is an interesting speaker for sure. A bit surprising in fact for an unassuming speaker. I almost thought those were VU's on these things! Now that would be a quest for sure. These things sound pretty dang solid too Vintage on Vintage

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The MK III version ('Improved' or not) were a bit sloppy in the bass, which stepped up 5dB below 90Hz or so and went down measurably to 17Hz or so, which set doors rattling even if the fundamental couldn't be 'heard,' the mid-bass cancellation level above, being the level the midrange and top was basically pulled down to. The MK IV had stands as pictured, the bass was re-tuned to roll off a little higher (30Hz or so from memory) and there was extra lf filtering and response tilt controls available behind the bottom trim plates. In a UK room, these speakers weren't at all 'unassuming' I can tell you, but they did so much 'right' back then, the character exhibiting a hint of 'sparkle' up top (the HF1300 had a natural slight peak at 13khz or so. I'd love to hear these again on a modern digital and even modern vinyl source, as I feel they'd come into their own these days. A few years in, the bass and mid-drivers were changed to TDL made ones (there's a lengthy story as to how TDL made drivers, then speakers when IMF went under, the running of both companies basically by the same man eventually, John Wright, who'd designed the 1960s Goldring cartridges - G800 era) I gather.

I should stop reminiscing like this - it's painful how long ago it all was and these were genuinely fun times, with all this new music coming along that really was 'new' and audio gear coming on in many small but varies leaps and bounds...

I may have included the JBL L200s in my list as I have such good memories of their scale and general dynamics (nothing like as coloured as the 4310s we also had), but we only had these huge (for UK rooms) speakers for a short while…

One final make before I shuffle off and shut the memory floodgates - and it's another US design although made in the UK - the AR LST which was awesome as I recall and less response-coloured than the AR3a Improved we had. The AR3-descended 10Pi was an odd looking thing, with the wooden trim/flap covering the controls on top rather than underneath. rare as hens teeth, but a seriously good 'tone' as I remember, which again should do justice to modern sources.

 

[DanielT]

These speakers Rondo designed by Olle Mirsch ooze the stylistic spirit that existed about half a century ago. Pretty cool speakers I must say.
Good FR. Drops in the higher frequencies though.

Despite their appearance, these were designed, if I remember correctly, in the late 1980s.

In simulated free-field measurement from straight ahead,the Rondo exhibits a very straight and softly falling frequency response.
The treble drop is a conscious choice to compensate for the treble rise that Rondo, due to its construction, gives in the listening room. 60° from the side,
the curve looks almost identical!

Edit:
Where do you live @BigVU's ? What's the used speaker market like for , where you live? Some brands, vintage models that were popular back then should pop up every now and then on the used hifi market where you live.
In Sweden, Stig Carlsson was incredibly popular so you see his different models popping up daily. Every other week in the city where I live. Carlsson speakers that are between sixty to thirty years old.
(many in dire need of renovation, new drivers and so on, but that's another matter)

Random different Stig Carlsson OA models:

 

[vrobec]

I can recommend the JBL 4311, L19A and the L110A. I have them and they sounding realy good with vintage receivers, amps and new D Class amps too. I had KS Kücke Tertia D70's and they are killers, so nice sounding speakers. I plans are vintage Braun speakers, and to try some newly released ELAC and KEF.

 

[jkasch]

Keep an eye out for these gems.

 

[mhardy6647]

Keep an eye out for these gems.
View attachment 446629

"Mistake plus"!

 

[tw 2022]

The Crescendos are great too. If I recall correctly, they were around during the same time as the Kappa .1 and .2 models. They also feature the EMIT-R tweeter and the carbon-polymer cone technology.

Crescendos are really rare to see for sale IME.

i rarely see them for sale... i actually found these out on a sidewalk... talk about my best audio deal ... they were built in the early '90s, they were going to be circuit city "house" speakers, but it didn't work out long term.. they were discontinued after 2-3 years.. iirc it was about the same time harman took over...

 

[Digital_Thor]

KEF...

That Was Then… KEF Reference 104/2 (1984)

A hugely ambitious landmark in speaker design

www.whathifi.com

And MOFI 888 gives me a bit of vintage vibe too..

MoFi Electronics SourcePoint 888 Floorstanding Speakers [Pair]

Step up to MoFi's SourcePoint 888: Precision-engineered by Andrew Jones for audiophiles. These speakers deliver depth, detail, and a captivating soundstage in a sleek design.

www.mofielectronics.com

Or.... Really vintage, and ahead of it's time....

Revisiting the Acoustic Research AR9 4-Way Legendary Loudspeaker

In 1978, Acoustic Research introduced the AR9, a brand-new, four-way loudspeaker system. Read on to see how the AR9 was conceived and why it is considered to be the most influential speaker ever.

www.audioholics.com

 

[DanielT]

Has the classic Quad ESL 57 been brought up in the thread?

Even associated with classic Hifi advertising images:

Illustration / art / advertisement - Quad ESL 57 world

All you wanted to know about Quad ESL 57, and even more

esl.drakkapps.com

https://www.hifiengine.com/manual_library/quad/esl-57.shtml

Walker's "Little Wonder" (Quad ESL 57) - Your Opinions/Experience?

Hey folks, I'm curious about your opinions on Peter Walker's ESLs - from the original ESL 57 to the Quad ESL 63. Not much needs to be said by way of introduction to those speakers. Quad's Peter Walker was known as a no-nonsense engineer, and the ESL 57 was, as I understand it, the first...

audiosciencereview.com

Then you should think about whether and what kind of service and refreshing perhaps even renovation of such old electrostatics would entail.
Given that, it might make more sense to choose a newer Quad electrostatic model?
In any case, in appearance all models of Quad electrostatics look quite similar so it will in a way have a vintage look no matter which model you choose.

 

[Jaxjax]

I got a pair of these in 1992 and only recently got rid of them. They were great speakers for me and held up to a lot of use/abuse for a long time.

View attachment 446325

I've had the 150's & wish I still had them.

 

[Snarfie]

Vandersteen Model 1B & IMF Compact II monitors before but for sure after DSP room correction it sounds great. Imaging staging Vandersteen almost liquid using a good recording. Only the Vandersteen a close to perfect placement is neccecary.

 

[617]

Oh - I have another good one. PSB Stratus Gold.

Vifa polycone drivers, good designer.

 

[ahofer]

These things are monsters! Yeah! I know Utube vids are not memorex but they sound great in this one Dun Duns. I think my issue is the thrifty project wont fit them in the budget. But I will keep an eye out. Thanks for the lead.

View attachment 446304

I’ve heard Duntech Sovereigns with those same Threshold Amps (in the video linked)…in like 1985-7. Tweeter Etc. On Whitney Avenue in New Haven, CT.

PS - I remember they used Graceland (Paul Simon) to demo, so it must have been 1986/7.

 

[BigVU's]

I have the crescendo 3006 books....they are in general very similar to those you have (mids are different & different type emit ).. they sound very good , they'd compete easily against most 2 ways under $1000.... very smooth and pretty transparent

Yeah these boxes are straight forward and sound good on the vid Kappa 7 which I assume doesn't do them justice and from what I am seeing they are in the thrifty price range too.

 

[Ropeburn]

A pair of Infinity Kappa 7? They have great sound and an look good.

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The original 7? They aren't as bad as the 9, but still eat amplifiers for breakfast. If you like some volume, your amp better be 2 Ohm stable... and then some. But yes, they do look terrific.

 

[tw 2022]

The original 7? They aren't as bad as the 9, but still eat amplifiers for breakfast. If you like some volume, your amp better be 2 Ohm stable... and then some. But yes, they do look terrific.

i was worried about that too at first (with the crescendo's) , but they turned out to be easy to drive, they're something like 90 db sensitive and are 8 ohm.. so some of the good infinity's defy the reputation...