Your Favorite Vintage Sealed Box Bookshelf Speaker?

[savatage1973]

IMO, a lot of the old Advents should be on your "short list"--just depends on what size limits you put on the category of "bookshelf" speaker. Also, there are a lot of older Infinities that are outstanding sealed box designs of varying sizes--again, depends on your definition of "bookshelf".

 

[peerson]

You might like the KLH Model Seventeen. Re-Capped and woofers resealed make these a real nice speaker.

 

[alteclipsch]

You might like the KLH Model Seventeen. Re-Capped and woofers resealed make these a real nice speaker.

Listening to my Seventeens as I write this. They're just so pleasing, they do everything I need them to do in my sunporch. And they have that classic look that a boomer like me loves.

 

[VieuxRimbaud]

Here is a great thread by a person who restored a pair of KLH 17s:
http://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/renovation-of-my-klh-17s-is-complete-long.102176/
Strangely, someone in my building had put one of these out on the street just a few weeks ago, but only one... I recognized it immediately in the pictures from the above thread. One problem of living in NYC is that there is absolutely NO place to put these things when you find them. Storage lockers are prohibitively expensive here.

 

[Dagis]

I`d go for Bang&Olufsen Cx100;


Comes with Din-connection in the rear.
Sealed alu cabinet with two 4" mid/bass woofers
and a dome tweeter in the center.
Plays very well,provided good upstream components.
B&O`s last passive speaker design.

Woofers will need new surrounds-if not already replaced by previous owner.

 

[Dagis]

If vintage may be pushed a bit,
the Beolab 2500`s from B&O.


These deliver a music reproduction that would do it for 90% of the population,
the last 10% needing more bass-or that 300B midrange magic.

Separate built in amps for bass and treble,
containing one 10cm woofer and a dome tweeter.

Downside is they can only be used together with B&O systems,
as they are switched on/off via the Din-connection powerlink.

Upside?
They play astonishingly well,
and can be had for next to nothing on the used market.

 

[VieuxRimbaud]

LOL, these are VERY B&O!

If vintage may be pushed a bit,
the Beolab 2500`s from B&O.
View attachment 1033837

These deliver a music reproduction that would do it for 90% of the population,
the last 10% needing more bass-or that 300B midrange magic.

Separate built in amps for bass and treble,
containing one 10cm woofer and a dome tweeter.

Downside is they can only be used together with B&O systems,
as they are switched on/off via the Din-connection powerlink.

Upside?
They play astonishingly well,
and can be had for next to nothing on the used market.

 

[pl50]

To my ears, Dynaco a25 beats anything mentioned so far, hands down. Also the prettiest in the bunch.

 

[markshan]

Sadly I've never heard an a25, but I would be stunned if it beats an L710 hands down.

 

[Hawkeye83]

Only ones I've owned or even heard, but I find them quite good - KEF 103.2

 

[pl50]

Sadly I've never heard an a25, but I would be stunned if it beats an L710 hands down.

Different speakers, but comparable. Like almost everything else in life, comes down to personal taste.

http://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/so-ads-l710s-or-dynaco-a25s.528190/

Give them a listen some time. Who knows, you might just be stunned.

 

[markshan]

Different speakers, but comparable. Like almost everything else in life, comes down to personal taste.

http://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/so-ads-l710s-or-dynaco-a25s.528190/

Give them a listen some time. Who knows, you might just be stunned.

I would love to, I just haven't come across a pair yet.

"Comes down to personal taste" is in my estimation much different than "hands down".

 

[pl50]

I would love to, I just haven't come across a pair yet.

"Comes down to personal taste" is in my estimation much different than "hands down".

"To my ears" is in my estimation identical to "my personal taste", which is what I said in the original post.

 

[Bob]

I'd go for any speaker with the KEF T27s. LS3/5A, JR149, and most of the then-era
KEFs themselves.

and when the woofers explode you can sell the T27s on UK AND US ebays for a complete
recovery of costs.

 

[fishondwan]

I really enjoyed the AR 4x that I had for a few months. Nice smooth laid back "east coast" sound.

 

[Poultrygeist]

ADS 710's unless I can count the Aerial Acoustic Model 5 as vintage.

 

[VieuxRimbaud]

I really enjoyed the AR 4x that I had for a few months. Nice smooth laid back "east coast" sound.

Those are remarkably similar to the KLH Seventeens (at least cosmetically)... most of them in the pictures I'm seeing now look like zombies freshly risen from the earth.

 

[Montycat]

To my ears, Dynaco a25 beats anything mentioned so far, hands down. Also the prettiest in the bunch.

Yes, great speakers but not a "sealed box" as in the thread title.

 

[Poultrygeist]

Sadly I've never heard an a25, but I would be stunned if it beats an L710 hands down.

I've had both and you wouldn't be stunned.

 

[StimpyWan]

I have a pair AR TSW 210s that I purchased in 1990 and recently refoamed. I absolutely loved them then and I still do. I find it difficult to imagine a better sound at that size, but I notice that the AR TSW series is not that highly regarded on Audiokarma... I guess it's a very subjective thing, and also largely dependent on the type of music people play. I don't know if these speakers would necessarily excel at pumping out Pink Floyd at high volumes. I listen mostly to both classical and folk acoustic instrumental, piano, jazz combo, and vocal, and they excel at all... I was wondering what vintage 2-way and 3-way bookshelf speakers other people like.

There's nothing wrong with the AR TSW series. Great speakers, from the models I've heard; TSW 210's daily at work, and 410's that I used to own.

The main deterrent, concerning the TSW's, is their voicing. Most long time Acoustic Research fans love the original AR laid-back, rolled-off treble balance. Non-fatiguing and easy on the ears. Easy to listen to, all day, a more natural balance. Which is nice, if you like a rolled-off balance? I don't. And the TSW's didn't sound rolled-off either, compared to the Classic AR's. So, they weren't well liked when released.

As to favorite vintage sealed boxes, again AR. My AR90's and my newly acquired AR58s speakers. Both well balanced, not rolled-off. Great bass and imaging. Easy to place. My new AR58s speakers are awesome so far, a 12" 3-way, with the 12" woofer, 1.5" dome mid, and a 3/4" tweeter. Very dynamic speaker. Maybe more so than my 90's. Usually cheap too, as most AR Fan's are looking for AR-3's and AR-3a's, and paying $1000 more than I paid for my 58s's, when they're basically the same speaker. Though the 58's do have that more modern voicing. Any of AR "Vertical Series"would be great to own. AR9, AR90, AR91, AR92, and the AR58s all share the same dome mids and tweeters. Except the AR92 has a 10" woofer. And I guess the 58's and 92's could qualify as bookshelves? They do to me!