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Advice on floor-standing speakers for first "vintage" setup.

I’ve owned HPM-100 and didin’t like them so I’m going to nominate any ADS floorstanding model or Klipsch KG4.
 
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In your range, if you can find them, some of the ADS XX90 towers would be pretty sick. I have L1290s that I got near the low end of your range and spent another couple hundred bucks having them restored (nothing was wrong necessarily, just making sure the usual wear-and-tear is dealt with, treating the woofer surrounds which are rubber rather than foam, and recapping the X-over).

L990, L1090, L1290, all can be potentially found in your price range, and are all great speakers. Some folks say the 1090 is the best-sounding of the bunch; I love my 1290s to death, though.

Depending on where you are, they might pop up on local sales, but they're a lot more common in New England and get less common the further west you go.


Hello. Just saw this... it to hijack but would appreciate any advice/guidance on my ads 1090s. A contractor recently moved my 1090s. When I placed them back, I’m getting very little bass out of one of them. All connections are in proper place so externally all looks good

any idea how I can trouble shoot this....I’m not very handy but if I had to guess maybe something inside was moved out of place. However, I don’t even see how to remove the drivers to take a look

thanks in advance for any suggestions...
 
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Check to make sure the wires didn't get reversed on one speaker, this will kill the bass for sure. If it really is just one speaker, something got damaged.

Otherwise, look for a damaged woofer. Never a good thing to let other people move your speakers, they often have no idea what kind of damage they can do without proper care.
 
Well....I'm still on the prowl for a good set of floorstanding speakers. A lot of folks have recommended the HPM 100s. I don't think that I will see a pair pop up in my local area anytime soon, but I suppose I wouldn't mind biting the bullet and paying $150 to $200 for shipping if I can find a pair online that are in good shape. I still need to look into the ADS floor standing speakers that have been recommended in this thread. Thanks for the help so far guys! I appreciate any advice/suggestions.
 
Hello. Just saw this... it to hijack but would appreciate any advice/guidance on my ads 1090s. A contractor recently moved my 1090s. When I placed them back, I’m getting very little bass out of one of them. All connections are in proper place so externally all looks good

any idea how I can trouble shoot this....I’m not very handy but if I had to guess maybe something inside was moved out of place. However, I don’t even see how to remove the drivers to take a look

thanks in advance for any suggestions...
I don't know if yours are the same, but on my big ads towers there's a biamp switch that could have been flipped. Not sure if the 1090 are the same.
 
@rickb119 I don't recommend the Kef with a Pioneer. They do not dance together well, in my opinion. I am a big Kef fan and had a pair of 104/2s and 105s at the same time. I drove them with a pair of Bose 1801s.

I think the Time Windows are an excellent and very attractive option for the OP. That monolithic look! I think the CV DV7 or 9 are great suggestions, ads are an excellent choice as well, but quite rare around here, KLH 6.
 
I don't recommend the Kef with a Pioneer.

I'm driving my 104/2's with a Pioneer SX-1010 and actually prefer it to my Sansui AU-919. Different strokes, I guess. :dunno:

I agree with you about the ADS being an excellent choice though. (Own a couple myself.)
 
What I meant to say was with the Pioneer that the OP has. I wouldn't hesitate using the Spec 2, and I imagine the 1010 would be good. I had an SA-9500 Mark 1, and it was OK, but my Kef 103/2 were much better with my Sansui AU-9900.

I agree, different strokes, or perhaps uneven playing fields.
 
From my own experience, for vintage speakers:

EPI 100's
KLH (or Cambridge Soundworks) Model Sixes

You should be able to find either at reasonable prices, and they are easy to fix.
 
Ess made/makes some fine sounding speakers. The Heil tweeter is fantastic. I also vote for ADS. Way better than HPM 100's IMO.
 
For vintage speakers I think watch and wait until something local looks interesting. Then check it out in AK and other places on the web. If they then still seems promising go check them in person. There are lesser known vintage speakers out there that will not come up as suggestions. If you go for new you may want to look into the Tekton Mini Lore in addition to the above mentioned JBL 580's.
 
The D series(D-7, D-9) CV's are readily available and nice ones can be had within your budget. You may find some at the lower end of your budget that will need refoaming & recapping($50 - $75) while the upper end of your budget should have new foams and capacitors.

These would be "future proof" a you mentioned.
Good choice but not readily available around these parts.Not the D series anyway.
 
I second the Tektons-you could get the regular Lores for the JBL pricing.
Plain Jane looking-but the have a soul very few modern speakers have.
 
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