Advice on Speakers for a Vintage Setup
- Thread starter ZapBrannigan
- Start date
ZapBrannigan
New Member
Hi Guys,
I've happened upon some Tannoy Mercury M2s. I've seen rave reviews and they're slap bang in my price range (even a little cheap...). They even have a decent bass response which is unusual for a bookshelf speaker.
Only issue is they're quoted at 88dB efficiency (and being over 20 years old that has probably dropped a little over the years). Would my little amp be enough to power them or would I end up clipping? The manufacturer's suggested power range is 10W-80W so at 30-35ishWPC I'm well within the range, albeit a little at the low end.
The B&W DM5s are still available but I'm struggling to find any info on them online, and the lack of bass is making me nervous. there is, however, a TON of Wharfdales online that look gorgeous and also get rave reviews. So if these aren't right I'm okay to keep looking.
I've happened upon some Tannoy Mercury M2s. I've seen rave reviews and they're slap bang in my price range (even a little cheap...). They even have a decent bass response which is unusual for a bookshelf speaker.
Only issue is they're quoted at 88dB efficiency (and being over 20 years old that has probably dropped a little over the years). Would my little amp be enough to power them or would I end up clipping? The manufacturer's suggested power range is 10W-80W so at 30-35ishWPC I'm well within the range, albeit a little at the low end.
The B&W DM5s are still available but I'm struggling to find any info on them online, and the lack of bass is making me nervous. there is, however, a TON of Wharfdales online that look gorgeous and also get rave reviews. So if these aren't right I'm okay to keep looking.
Blue Shadow
Waiting for Vintage Gear from this century
The Pioneer will drive the Tannoys just fine to a nice listening level. No rock concert recreations, though. 100db will be the limit roughly. More than most would need. We listen at 60-90db and 90 is loud.
xero-D-hero
Super Member
Agree,the Tannoy should be fine.
JM2¢
Bret P.
JM2¢
Bret P.
Ibemiked
Active Member
I see you go by buckeye56.. guessing you may be in Ohio? I know a guy in Canton who can refoam woofers professionally for good prices. Orban Audio is the company the guys name is Mike check out his website he has his prices listed online. His prices are fair and he does great work.
Ibemiked
Active Member
Being that you’re in the UK you could probably have easy access to a lot of great British speakers. Wharfedale vintage and new are solid I have w35d’s they sound good. also TDL.. I have the TDL RTL3’s they’re awesome speakers, I got mine for way under your budget. Mission, Tannoy make great speakers. Paradigm out of Canada make a ton of great speakers too! For 150 pounds you could probably score I nice pair of Paradigm Studio Reference 20 v.2’s they are small and sound incredible! Especially for their size! They’re pretty much exactly what you described in your initial post. Great bass and highs, biampable can handle a lot of power but don’t need a lot of power, they would be a perfect fit.
OutlawSun
Well-Known Member
Yeah good question. Honestly I've always been curious what American brands made it across during that time period. Native brands like Wharfendale would be a lot more doable. There's actually a pair of nice looking Realistic Optimus 2Bs on the UK Ebay though which are more or less the Radio Shack's copy of a KLH or AR speaker.
buckeye56
Active Member
Thanks for the referral, but I am in NYC. For me, Buckeye = Ohio State University.
Ibemiked
Active Member
No problem! My uncle played for OSU 1978-1981 he was on Woody Hayes’s last team. They’re looking pretty good this year!
buckeye56
Active Member
Wow! Woody was certainly a force of nature. So your uncle played with Art Schlichter. Yep, fingers crossed for a great season. #Buckeyeforlife
Ibemiked
Active Member
Yes, Art Schlichter was at my house playing poker (true story) with my dad around 1980.. I’ve heard a lot of crazy stories about him.. I used to work with Luther Henson as well.. He was class of 1980 and played for the NE Patriots. Tomorrow night will show us what kind of team we really have. Schedules been pretty easy so far. Like you said fingers crossed!
Final_Baton
Well-Known Member
Do you like a lively sound better, or a laidback sound better, OP?
I was in the same situation as you and found some small vintage JBL L-19 speakers here and I'm over the moon with them (but I do prefer a livelier sound myself. although this model seems to be slightly more balanced than other vintage JBL with the typical "west coast" sound).
They have a very detailed sound and great instrument separation and good imaging too, and well balanced across the spectrum. The bass is what surprised me the most : it goes quite low for such a small speaker and has tons of depth and dynamics. I was flabbergasted first time I heard them(and still am) at how powerful(yet controlled) the bass is on these. I run mine on 24 inch stands and the bass is nothing short of thunderous. Yet it doesn't bother downstair neighbours since they're lifted from the floor. I'm running them through a 1975 Pioneer integrated (SA-7500) btw. The Pioneer is a great match for those little JBL.
If you like that type of sound, I say definitely audition the JBL Decade line(L-16, L-26, L-36) or the L-19 or L-50 or L-46. Though I don't know if vintage JBL bookshelf speakers are rare in the UK or not.
I had some super solid Mission speakers at one point (751 mkI) and while I recognised their greatness, I didn't bond with them. Maybe it was my gear(didn't try them on a lot of amps) or my preferences, probs the later. They definitely didn't have great LF extension. They had very nice construction quality though, man those cabinets were heavy! And that tweeter was agile, clear and extended pretty high. Very articulate for sure. I remember the mids were pretty recessed in one area(can't remember if it was low mids or high mids). You are in the Land of Mission so it could be good to audition some, I imagine they're plentyful over there and probably some close to you.
I'll second what another poster said regarding Paradigm : good bang for the buck. I heard a "lower" series (5se) and though they sounded very decent. balanced and clear. nothing outstanding to my ear but nothing offensive either. Would love to hear a higher quality one from them. The "se" series I mentionned is very cheaply had.
And I'll second what another poster said : definitely audition some Braun speakers if you have the chance. I haven't heard ADS/Braun stuff but would love to, considering all the praise I see on here. They seem on the laidback side. Braun should be available for sure in Europe.
I was in the same situation as you and found some small vintage JBL L-19 speakers here and I'm over the moon with them (but I do prefer a livelier sound myself. although this model seems to be slightly more balanced than other vintage JBL with the typical "west coast" sound).
They have a very detailed sound and great instrument separation and good imaging too, and well balanced across the spectrum. The bass is what surprised me the most : it goes quite low for such a small speaker and has tons of depth and dynamics. I was flabbergasted first time I heard them(and still am) at how powerful(yet controlled) the bass is on these. I run mine on 24 inch stands and the bass is nothing short of thunderous. Yet it doesn't bother downstair neighbours since they're lifted from the floor. I'm running them through a 1975 Pioneer integrated (SA-7500) btw. The Pioneer is a great match for those little JBL.
If you like that type of sound, I say definitely audition the JBL Decade line(L-16, L-26, L-36) or the L-19 or L-50 or L-46. Though I don't know if vintage JBL bookshelf speakers are rare in the UK or not.
I had some super solid Mission speakers at one point (751 mkI) and while I recognised their greatness, I didn't bond with them. Maybe it was my gear(didn't try them on a lot of amps) or my preferences, probs the later. They definitely didn't have great LF extension. They had very nice construction quality though, man those cabinets were heavy! And that tweeter was agile, clear and extended pretty high. Very articulate for sure. I remember the mids were pretty recessed in one area(can't remember if it was low mids or high mids). You are in the Land of Mission so it could be good to audition some, I imagine they're plentyful over there and probably some close to you.
I'll second what another poster said regarding Paradigm : good bang for the buck. I heard a "lower" series (5se) and though they sounded very decent. balanced and clear. nothing outstanding to my ear but nothing offensive either. Would love to hear a higher quality one from them. The "se" series I mentionned is very cheaply had.
And I'll second what another poster said : definitely audition some Braun speakers if you have the chance. I haven't heard ADS/Braun stuff but would love to, considering all the praise I see on here. They seem on the laidback side. Braun should be available for sure in Europe.
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