2000th post...What have I done?

[HomerJSimpson]

I have this "problem" you see....:nono

Ya' think....

Not that I have any room to talk...

The speakers are very sweet, I saw them briefly late last night. Can't wait to hear them...:thmbsp:

 

[saltwater]

You should of at least put that pink helmet on to protect you ears! Safety first! lol, nice speaks. Glad they arrived in one piece!

 

[bowtie427ss]

Anyone able to tell if these are 515's or 515b's???

515's............ the "B" version will have the doped treated cloth surround. Those are collector's items and have a huge following overseas, probably produce some of the best midrange to be had from a paper cone driver, with the later 515's following very close behind.

I'd be tempted to flip them all and replace with new GPA alnico 515-LF's, you'd get better LF from the simplex cab as a stand alone system that way, have brand spanking new woofers, and probably come out well ahead in the financial dept................ or, get some really really stout subs to go with them.

One question Allan, and i know you've not had any serious listening time with them, but do you feel/sense that they are going to be everything we've led you to expect?

 

[analog addict]

Were those the ones that you were having shipped from my hometown state of Nebraska? :scratch2:

Scott

YEP....:thmbsp:

 

[bakes]

I've seen that grin before... :thmbsp:

NICE setup, Allan - congratulations on finally bringing home the Holy Grail! I'll be down to hear them soon. You're going to need a big, big room to let those puppies breathe. A 30x40 walkout basement with a 12 foot ceiling would be a start. Until then a 36 x 20 garage with a 12 foot ceiling does NOT suck...

Bowtie, I'm already working on ideas for a sub for these puppies. He has these bass bins and if I can get the T/S parameters for the drivers I can come up with something serious, as in 16 Hz serious. I want thump like the setup you have in your listening room thump. :thmbsp: The beauty of those speakers - well, there's a lot to love, but - is that because of their efficiency it'll be pretty easy to figure out a sub that will match up. My guess is 250 watts of MOSFET will overcome any subwoofer efficiency issues.

Hmm... Virgil Fox organ recording on that sort of setup... :scratch2:

 

[JimJ[VT]]

Bowtie, I'm already working on ideas for a sub for these puppies. He has these bass bins and if I can get the T/S parameters for the drivers I can come up with something serious, as in 16 Hz serious.

These beg for a 4 15" IB setup

Or barring that, something like Nelson Pass's El-Pipe-O's...14' Sonotube TL's...

 

[similost]

eh.. those are just big boxes with little 15s in them.. SO WHAT!!!

Damn Allan.. a LOT nicer that I was imagining them to be... sooooo... how long until your neighbors get tired of listening to them? when you gonna get started on that pole barn for them?

I think I am gonna have to try making a ride down for a weekend this year before long...

Pretty damn impressive!!!

 

[bowtie427ss]

Bowtie, I'm already working on ideas for a sub for these puppies. He has these bass bins and if I can get the T/S parameters for the drivers I can come up with something serious, as in 16 Hz serious.

Did you ever see the single 515 loaded horn that Steve Schell built, there's a thread with a pic on the LH website. I think he gets 16hz at better than 120db, the compromise being that the box occupies 128 cubic feet of space, however if one has the room :scratch2:.........................................

 

[cableguy]

I find that I like them best on a 15" stands slightly toe'd in and the HF angled to just above ear level, say around 12 degrees to create a "sweet spot"....
Awesome Alan...:thmbsp:




Bill

 

[spartanmanor]

Amazing! I am glad to see you finally got them home.

 

[SPL db]

YEP....:thmbsp:

And to think, those could've been mine!

Glad you got them home safely! :yes: :thmbsp:

Scott

 

[analog addict]

Hard to tell yet

515's............ the "B" version will have the doped treated cloth surround. Those are collector's items and have a huge following overseas, probably produce some of the best midrange to be had from a paper cone driver, with the later 515's following very close behind.

I'd be tempted to flip them all and replace with new GPA alnico 515-LF's, you'd get better LF from the simplex cab as a stand alone system that way, have brand spanking new woofers, and probably come out well ahead in the financial dept................ or, get some really really stout subs to go with them.

One question Allan, and i know you've not had any serious listening time with them, but do you feel/sense that they are going to be everything we've led you to expect?

I'll tell you what, they create a sound stage unlike anything I've heard yet. JimVT is fairly convinced that they do audibly roll off the high freq's, but it is less noticable to my aged ears. I do hear less shimmer in the upper range though. We put some acoustic guitar on through a nondiscript CD player, and it really sounded like a live concert. Some female vocals also shone. I'm looking forward to hearing some high quality vinyl on them soon...

And so you're thinking the woofers are 515's? How about the compression drivers? The horns are definitely 1005's? I'll post more pix shortly. I'm on a remote terminal at the moment....

 

[bakes]

These beg for a 4 15" IB setup

Or barring that, something like Nelson Pass's El-Pipe-O's...14' Sonotube TL's...

Did you ever see the single 515 loaded horn that Steve Schell built, there's a thread with a pic on the LH website. I think he gets 16hz at better than 120db, the compromise being that the box occupies 128 cubic feet of space, however if one has the room :scratch2:.........................................

Great minds think alike... :thmbsp:

An IB design would be the easiest way to go construction wise, depending on what the speaker parameters are. If the drivers don't take kindly to IB, then a big horn-coupled or transmission line design would work, with available space the only limiting factor. Hmmm, maybe a symmetrically loaded box that covers 16-70 Hz with a horn-loaded port into the listening room... :scratch2:

 

[bowtie427ss]

And so you're thinking the woofers are 515's?

Yes i think so, appears there might be a recone or short span of years between some of the cones from the differing cone numbers...................... but i'm certainly no expert with these, Dave Wojo could probably shed some more definitive light.

Can you reach in with your camera and snap a pic looking in on the spider/damper and area where the VC meets the cone?

Lotta folks have never seen a spider/damper that's not the typical accordian style....................... vintage Altecs are very cool works of art too!

 

[dbALE]

Excellent
Glad to see they are up and running .

Bryan

 

[analog addict]

more pix...

Pix of the first horn/throat/driver combo....This one did not carry a IPC badge, but the other two did...

Sorry to draw this out, but I just don't have a long enough period of time to sit and get all these up at once. My job is kinda up and down all day long....:thumbsdn:

 

[bowtie427ss]

288, maybe 288B, Hollywood(most likely) grey krinkle are best!, bronze throats, on nearly mint tar FILLED(not coated like the later ones), probably the most prized and coveted Altec horn/driver combination second only to the early field coil predecessors.

Looks like a phillips head screw and newer nail polish holding that cover on?

Maybe an HF diaphragm replacement at some point?

The "rope like" gasket between the cover and front plate(i know it's really the back of the driver) is both correct and original looking.

I think at your current admission price, you'd have gotten a good deal if you only got the three HF horns/throats/drivers.

From the serious Altec/WE collector's POV, you have some of the best of the best. Not just a pair, but a pair and a spare!

 

[analog addict]

A little bit of a downer...

We heard some distortion from the 288 on the third set....:thumbsdn:

I'm guessing it's either the diaphragm or perhaps the crossover. Any guesses on what's most likely?

If it's a diaphragm issue, I suppose a visit to GPA is in order???:scratch2:

 

[bowtie427ss]

I'm guessing it's either the diaphragm or perhaps the crossover. Any guesses on what's most likely?

A thorough cleaning and inspection including carefully removing the phragm and cleaning the gap is in order.

What you're hearing could be anything from a loose mounting screw, to crud in the gap. I'm not ruling out a fractured phragm, 60 years at 500hz does fatigue aluminum that's only a couple thousandths thick, but eliminate all the simple and cheap possibilities first.

Inspect the inside of the phragm and the surface of the phase plug it faces, clearance there is minimal and the tiniest piece of crud wiill contact the phragm and make sounds you don't wanna hear, that can also wear a hole in the phragm if left unattended.

I'm inclined to think you'll find dirt/debris to be the culprit............ fingers crossed.

EDIT: Also, be sure the gaskets between the driver and throat are in place and doing the job they're supposed to, new ones are available, and it's a worthy but time consuming venture to fit the driver to the throat first, ensuring the smoothest possible transition between the driver and throat in the seam/gasket area just like you'd do with the intake runners on a high performance engine.

Lastly, test your xovers to be sure things are where they're supposed to be.

If it's a diaphragm issue, I suppose a visit to GPA is in order???

Just my personal take on this, do a full assessment of what you have. If you indeed need to replace a phragm, pick the two best drivers, send both drivers to GPA for full inspection and testing after magnetic re-charge and new phragms in both. Keep them matched, and consider that those extra services are included with the purchase of new phragms at no extra charge beyond the shipping. Keep any good working phragms, don't send them with the drivers.

 

[Scorpion8]

I've come a long way Baby, 2000 posts and counting...

The trouble with "My xxxxth post" threads is you can never post again. When Analog Addict made that 2,000th post, the post counter in the top right corner said "2,000". But once you reply to anything else, it carries thru and changes the counter everytime a post with your username is called up. Right now his counter is at 2,010. Kinda ruins it foreverafter.....