Vintage Speakers Worth Owning Today?

[Hipster Doofus]

ok now just stop it...who are you Kendrick sound

 

[Hipster Doofus]

Hmmm here’s a blast from the past and the best speaker I have ever heard…included in each speaker are STD -373 amplifers (sometimes they came with LEAK AMPS) the amps were matched ( contoured or equalized )to each speaker at the factory.

in 1960 British society, only elites had access to such equipment until a few years later when mass marketing came to the rescue and they were available in the U.S. for a mere $600. For reference in 1964 I was 10 and I lived in an apartment in Brooklyn with my parents and 5 siblings, the rent was $30 a month in soon to become trendy Greenpoint.

oh yeah they are the1960 ish ( with a relative sitting behind Ringo) EMI DLS-1 tower monitors.

I think the word monitor is brandied about sometimes…. but do they qualify if they are use in the same place where the london philharmonic records?

With bloodlines to Redd and EMI and Abby Road.

GEC 1852 tweeters…yes General Electric Company…when science ruled design.

Read the bbc 1958 white paper on the Gec 1852tweeter which are discussed as being …

“The G.E.C. type 1852 unit is at the present time the best available direct-radiator system for use in high-quality loudspeakers. In the range 1500 c/s to 12 kc/s, the axial frequency characteristic is but little inferior to that of the Ionophone: the latter device, while free from the shortcomings usually associated with the use of diaphragms, seems likely to remain a laboratory curiosity.”

They also contain a new design concept…the oval woofer….which are now adopted by Genelec…what goes around come around..

enjoy the music…

 

[Joe Smith]

ADS. 'Nuff said.

 

[mhardy6647]

EMI DLS...
"The Dangerous Loudspeaker"

I had a pair of one of the DLS models for a while (not that I remember precisely which one). I wasn't at all impressed (FWIW).

PS Note that George H. is sittin' in front of one of the Altec Duplex monitors
Those I quite fancy.

 

[Hipster Doofus]

EMI DLS...
"The Dangerous Loudspeaker"

View attachment 267798

I had a pair of one of the DLS models for a while (not that I remember precisely which one). I wasn't at all impressed (FWIW).

PS Note that George H. is sittin' in front of one of the Altec Duplex monitors
Those I quite fancy.

I agree the 529 and others were not wonderful

 

[mhardy6647]

I agree the 529 and others were not wonderful

Yeah, I do wish I remembered exactly which DLS variant I had. I am not even sure I took any photos of them. Couldn't resist a relatively inexpensive opportunity to try a pair, but they were just... not great.

 

[Cote Dazur]

Old 'speakers if well maintained and restored as necessary are well worth pursuing.

Totally agree, what you did with those 801 is impressive,

 

[gnarly]

I'd call these circa 1976 Acoustat-X vintage.
I still use them as one of the sets of reference speakers, that I make comparisons against.

 

[EJ3]

I'd call these circa 1976 Acoustat-X vintage.
I still use them as one of the sets of reference speakers, that I make comparisons against.
View attachment 267976

I have always thought that they were excellent! It would be interesting to get a set. I have friends who had them. These days, it seems those that have them don't want to let them go.

 

[amicusterrae]

I am really enjoying a pair of Infinity RSa speakers in my office that I recently picked up on craigslist for $50. Here's a pic from the web:

They were made from 1978 to 1983, with an MSRP of $450 ($1,600 in 2023 dollars, FWIW). It's a 10" woofer, acoustic suspension design. Rated to 45Hz (+/- 3dB), I am getting generous bass in my small office, with the speakers on short floor stands and close to the back wall. Can't decide about the midrange as it seems a little forward with a slight resonance. I do like the Emit ribbon tweeters, which I've always wanted to hear and was why I bought the speakers, so could be confirmation bias As a bonus, the cabinets are in really nice condition, and there are midrange and treble attenation dials on the back.

I was listening to a pair of Spica TC-50 speakers that my friend had stored in his attic for years. Here's an internet pic of that unusual wedge design:

My office is not ideal to evaluate these speakers, which are supposed to be all-time great at imaging and soundstaging. I found them to be very bright unless the woofer is at ear level, which in my room meant mounted fairly high on four foot+ stands. Tonality seemed decent then, though a little thin. With what seems to be unforgiving placement, they are not a good fit for my office. I presume they were designed for the old school two channel dedicated listening room, and they definitely need a dedicated sub.

Lastly, it is amazing to me how many vintage speakers are still in use, some even in decent condition.

 

[JSmith]

JSmith

 

[MAB]

Here are a few I like...

JBL XPL-200A:

Paradigm Studio Monitor (Original):

NHT 3.3:

A/D/S L910:

Rauna Freja:

 

[DavidMcRoy]

I rescued my c. 1990s Acoustat SPECTRA 1100s from a few decades of garage storage and they're my "daily drivers." They're "genuinely" biamped using DSP for active crossovers. EQ, etc. (The factory high-pass crossovers feeding the electrostatic panels remains part of the circuit.)

I bought my Tannoy System 12 DMTs new and bring them out of mothballs for a spin from time to time. I've also converted them for biamping. They benefit from modern DSP for crossovers and EQ, too.

 

[Mr. Widget]

Here are a few I like...
A/D/S L910:

I used to have a pair of L910s. I literally picked them up from the sidewalk near my home. They were sitting by the curb with a sheet of paper with the word: FREE written on them. I recognized them from down the block even with their grilles on them.

I dusted them off, bought a pair of their pivoting stands on eBay for $150 and enjoyed them for a while. Surprisingly neutral sounding with decent extension. I probably would have kept them if I had room for more than one system in my home, but at that time I didn't so I passed them on to a friend. He got an even better deal. He didn't have to buy the stands.

 

[goryu]

Like my Magnepan Tympani IVa's.....

 

[jhaider]

I bought my Tannoy System 12 DMTs new and bring them out of mothballs for a spin from time to time. I've also converted them for biamping. They benefit from modern DSP for crossovers and EQ, too.
View attachment 268115View attachment 268116

Those are getting on a bit. Have you replaced the ferrofluid in the tweeters?

 

[DavidMcRoy]

Those are getting on a bit. Have you replaced the ferrofluid in the tweeters?

Thanks for the tip. I re-read the manuals and found out how I missed that it even has any: Tannoy used the term "magnetic air gap coolant" instead of ferrofluid. How does one go about checking this? The manual only refers to HF driver replacement procedures.

 

[jhaider]

Thanks for the tip. I re-read the manuals and found out how I missed that it even has any: Tannoy used the term "magnetic air gap coolant" instead of ferrofluid. How does one go about checking this? The manual only refers to HF driver replacement procedures.

Measure the impedance of the tweeters. I don’t remember what it’s supposed to look like but it should be online somewhere. If yours match spec reasonably well you’re fine. If they’re off it’s likely dried up ferrofluid.

I had a triplet of those for some time. Fun speakers!

 

[thecheapseats]

well well... this thread was a memory lane read with pics... many speakers I've no familiarity with at all... a few pairs I did purchase and still own - and they still function... used in various parts of a home that is far too large for me at this time in my life - but probably why I still have them hanging around...

right up front - the la scalas have endured remarkably for forty-seven years so far (with small amounts of painless repairs)... some monster 4355 jbls inherited from an uncle (nutty size/money in their day), paired with a single, dual-18 sub cab from the late 90s - it will imitate a seismic event if you'd like... as well, a few tannoy pairs have held up rather well (far more maint required) - kept them working only for nostalgic reasons...

 

[Hipster Doofus]

well well... this thread was a memory lane read with pics... many speakers I've no familiarity with at all... a few pairs I did purchase and still own - and they still function... used in various parts of a home that is far too large for me at this time in my life - but probably why I still have them hanging around...

right up front - the la scalas have endured remarkably for forty-seven years so far (with small amounts of painless repairs)... some monster 4355 jbls inherited from an uncle (nutty size/money in their day), paired with a single, dual-18 sub cab from the late 90s - it will imitate a seismic event if you'd like... as well, a few tannoy pairs have held up rather well (far more maint required) - kept them working only for nostalgic reasons...

Ahhh… no pics?.