Monitor IIa's Up Roused from Deep Sleep

M

MrThrash

New Member
With Refoamed woofers AND Walsh Supertweeters.

Sound mostly like I remember in college. A little more etched on the high end.

Bass is better than I remember. Maybe its the ST416 rather than the ST400.

Goes well with Concept 16.5 as well.

Anybody else running a set?

Think about recapping and modification for biamp (see tube amp in picture).
 

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Very cool! Never seen those (except the Infinity Classics website).

What do you think of the Walsh tweeter? When you say "etched", is that a good thing or a term of opprobrium? Be interested how it sounds compared to EMITs.

David
 
Mr Thrash,
Very kewl. I have a pair that I picked up at a local fair for a song. I have not done anything with them so far, but one woofer is missing. Not having heard a pair before, it is good to hear that you like yours.
Vito
 
"Etched?"

Means the top end isn't as smooth as I remember.

This is my second time around with IIa's. I had a pair in the 70's, went on to design and build a number of my own speakers with those as my reference.

My designs, some including pricey Dynaudio drivers, never matched my recollection of the IIa's performance.

Its thirty years on now (wow) and these just arent as smooth as I remember. A little more SS sounding. Surprising, since my recollections were more based upon the highs than the bass. The bass is astounding.

I suspect the caps have aged, and I am getting some doubling between the Walsh supertweeter and the dome tweeter. They are also in a room with pretty hard acoustics.

My recollection is that the Walsh tweeter gave them an open quality that I have only heard from the likes of Martin Logan, Acoustats, and some Magnepans.

My plan is to overhaul the crossovers, and modify for biamping with the tube amp for mids and highs. This is because that 20 watt tube amp trying to drive full range is pathetic. But I know it does well with high efficiency drivers.

As they are, I rate them a 7-8 out of 10.

Havent had much experience with the EMIT/EMIM Infinities, but I think they are similar: demanding on amplification. You've got to have gobs of clean power or don't bother!
 
I had 2000AXTs with walsh tweeters, and they do have a sound of their own. The radiation pattern does make the speaker sound interesting, but there was a coloration that better tweeters do not have. No special opinions about what causes the coloration, but it does sound slender, delicate, and a bit light. Emits could render cymbal crashes while the walsh emphasized the ride rivets, if that makes sense.
 
2000AXT & tubes

Nakdoc- the 2000AXT was a 3 way, wasn't it? I dont know how well the Walsh work at lower frequencies, I seem to remember they tended to burn out on the earlier, 3 way Monitors. The IIa's are four way, with the Walsh coming in at 10k hz.

They should be sounding smooth but very extended. They were a revelation to me back in the day. I am hoping my recollection isnt wrong, and a little work will get them back to as good or better performance than original.

Given that I am 30 years older, its unlikely I am hearing high frequencies any better.

Grainger49- I tried the tube amp (20W 6l6 variant), but it is incapable of driving the speakers full range. Almost laughable. Its a good sounding amp, though. That's why I plan the biamp mod. Active crossover from the woofer at 450hz (stock freq), run the mid/tweet/Walsh on tubes above 450hz.

Jim
 
Sounds like Bi-Amp is a good idea. I really loved the sound of the Walsh tweeter. Imaging and soundstage was awesome in the speakers using it.
 
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