AK Speaker Favorites

Infinity RS 2.5's are my personal favs, would love to hear the big brothers the RS 4.5's or any of the other high end Infinities :thmbsp:
 
If size is not an issue, I would like to nominate my little Polk R15s. I'm driving them with a Spec-1/4 combo (yup, I sure am)), and they are blowing my mind...

Rich P
 
Billfort said:
Since you are limiting this to vintage I'll say Altec 604 co-ax based designs or Altec 19's. If I can circumvent your vintage rule just a touch I'd say Edgar Titans using vintage JBL alnico drivers are the top of the heap.

The best part about these hi-efficiency speakers besides outright performance is the kind of systems you can build around them - truly lets you take audio to a whole different level.

For strictly low level listening (not for I :) ), I'd agree with mrh and say Quad ESL57's.
Whoa!...some beautiful looking gear there in your system Bill. :thmbsp: :yes:
 
Yep, its clear I don't fit in with the vintage-vintage (kinda like right now right now?)speaker crowd. Cone tweeters and mids just don't do it for me.
 
Damage said:
Yep, its clear I don't fit in with the vintage-vintage (kinda like right now right now?)speaker crowd. Cone tweeters and mids just don't do it for me.

My Maggies are vintage :D

No cones, no mids :D
 
REMEMBER: It's not about the "best" speaker, it's about the most widely respected and owned speakers. Example: JP loves the Infinity IRS-V, and while I believe they're a better speaker than anything mentioned, I don't know any AKer that owns one. Thus, disqualified.

It's getting hard to keep track, so let's narrow things a little:

Vandersteen - let's go with Model 2c*, and forget the variations.
Maggies? Hmmm... I like the MGIIb, but what are the most popular amongst AKers? Same question for Altec: 604 or 19, and Klipsch. See "xx" below.

To do a poll, I think we have to narrow it down to maybe 10 or 12. Here's an oversized start, based only on this thread, and my impressions of how often I see a model mentioned:

HPM100
AR9
Vandersteen 2c*
Dahlquist DQ10
Altec xx
JBL Lxx
ADSL810
Magneplanar xx
Infinity RS xx
Large Advents
Klipsch xx
DCM Timewindows xx


Keep those cards and letter coming...and start sending money, while you're at it!
 
Well there not wildly popular and well known, but the Utah WD66s which are a not too large 3 way speaker from the late 60's ealy 70's (Not exactly sure) Are perhaps the 3rd best sounding speakers to come through my house since I started this maddness. :D

They just about keep up with the Snell type II and IIIe's which arent vintage, and the SP89 wharfes which arent even remotely vintage. but for them to sound as good as they do, all things concidered, I'd put them in the running if it were my list. (BTW they beat the Advents, all 4 different sets, handily)
 
i vote for klipschorns. have em. love em :tresbon: not to the excusion of other wonderful speakers i havent heard :D
 
Most of the posters here actually earn their livings, or have, and are now retired, so the truly cost no object speakers don't seem to get mentioned much. So I think that we should acknowledge that what ever speaker we dote on, part of its appeal is its price/performance ratio. Sometimes this is a fairly reliable thing, and sometimes demand drives up the price. So a speaker like the Large Advent, the Dynaco A25, the AR3a or 2ax, or the EPI 100, which were made by the thousands and tens of thousands, do, and ought to, show up more than lesser known, and therefore rarer, fine speakers.
But I'd like to figure out some way of factoring in quality and rareity. It seems to me that the original Quad ESL deserves some sort of recognition for the astonishing purity of its midrange, which is still close to non pareil, and in my opinion, and that of many others, makes it the greatest speaker of all time. Similar kudos, though for differing qualities ought to go the Altec Voice of the Theater, the big Bozaks, the DCM Time Window, and maybe the KEF 105. And maybe the Fried Beta, and even the Burhoe Crimson (if you can stand the complete absence of real low bass).
And I notice no one has mentioned the LS3/5a...
 
RussinOhio said:
Some of the most popular vintage speakers with AK members seem to be:

Radio Shack Mach one's
Pioneer HPM-100's
AR-9's
Altec 19's seem to have only a few fans (I'm one)
& Everything Advent.

I've owned HPM-100's and those DO deserve their reputation! I've never owned AR-9's but those are fantastic speakers as well.

Mach One guys, please take no offense but I also owned these popular speakers and I just did'nt like them.

Russ

Ok...I'll agree
Altec 19
Pioneer HPM 100
EPI 100
AR 3a :thmbsp:
 
Well, I'd have to say the most widely owned & respected would have to be the Pioneer HPM-100. There are at least 5 active threads going on about them right now (NOT including this one).

Russ
 
RussinOhio said:
Well, I'd have to say the most widely owned & respected would have to be the Pioneer HPM-100. There are at least 5 active threads going on about them right now (NOT including this one).

Russ

That might be worth a poll. There are often many threads going about the Advents. I've not heard the HPM 100s, but I'm looking forward to doing the foam job on my HPM 40s for a little taste of what they must be like.

Take care,

Ed
 
Fast_Eddie said:
I've not heard the HPM 100s, but I'm looking forward to doing the foam job on my HPM 40s for a little taste of what they must be like.
I've had a pair of HPM-100s run stacked with a pair of HPM-40s Series II for a while in my bedroom system. The 40s are more than a little taste of the big 100s lacking only a bit in body and low end. While the 40s don't stand out as spectacular speakers as the 100s do for some people, they have a more balanced sound that will appeal to more people and are very representative of the HPM sound.

- JP
 
No preference implied.

Large Advent
AR9
DQ-10
HPM 100
Dynaco A25
Timewindow
Polk Monitor 10
JBL L100
Vandersteen 2C

cubdog
 
I think cubdog has the correct list for AK favorites. Though I think I would add five more to the poll that come up often and would round it out.

Infinity Kappa (RS)
KLH whichever... they are pretty much the same
EPI whichever... I don't own any
A/D/S L520-L710 whichever
ESS - used to be popular...

Only 1 vote per person and they must have owned either that model or a very similar one. Then after that we can all stand back in awe at what we have created.

In the meantime back to my CARVER AMAZINGS! :beatnik:
 
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