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Altec 605a

M

mcheinstein

AK Subscriber
Subscriber
Hi team,

I just finished building a 2a3 SET that is amazing, and I have it paired with Cornwalls. Great pairing. Love it.

But, looking on CL, saw a pair of Altec 605a's for $750. One hf diaphragm needs to be replaced, and one of the woofer cones looks fine, but not in perfect condition. Resistance across the terminals look good otherwise. No crossovers come with the pair.

Is this reasonable? Given crazy E-pay prices, it seems like this is about as good as things get price wise. Plus a pair of coax altec's likely will pair pretty well with the 2a3.

Any insight would be super helpful!
 
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mcheinstein said:
Is this reasonable?
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All day long.

mcheinstein said:
Plus a pair of coax altec's likely will pair pretty well with the 2a3.
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Depends on your listening preferences, and the size of your listening area. They could be your endgame speakers.

605 gives up about 4db of sensitivity vs 604, the compromise is that the 605 offers audibly(to some) better phase coherence as it's driven elements are closer to being on the same acoustic center.

IMO, the 605 is better paired with a bit more power like the 8 to 12 watts of a 300B SET, and the higher sensitivity 604 better pairs with the 2 or 3 watts of a 2A3.

But, that's just my .02. I'm sure there are no shortage of perfectly happy folks out there running 2A3 SET's on speakers less sensitive than even 605's. Listening preference and space are significant factors.
 
bowtie427ss said:
All day long.

Depends on your listening preferences, and the size of your listening area. They could be your endgame speakers.

605 gives up about 4db of sensitivity vs 604, the compromise is that the 605 offers audibly(to some) better phase coherence as it's driven elements are closer to being on the same acoustic center.

IMO, the 605 is better paired with a bit more power like the 8 to 12 watts of a 300B SET, and the higher sensitivity 604 better pairs with the 2 or 3 watts of a 2A3.

But, that's just my .02. I'm sure there are no shortage of perfectly happy folks out there running 2A3 SET's on speakers less sensitive than even 605's. Listening preference and space are significant factors.
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Thanks for chiming in. I'm a little apprehensive of losing 3-4db because it's a 605, and then potentially an addition 2-3db because I don't have a 16 ohm tap off my amp. And then I may get the bug to mod my 2a3 for 300b... and then I'm down the rabbit hole again :dunno:
 
mcheinstein said:
Thanks for chiming in. I'm a little apprehensive of losing 3-4db because it's a 605, and then potentially an addition 2-3db because I don't have a 16 ohm tap off my amp. And then I may get the bug to mod my 2a3 for 300b... and then I'm down the rabbit hole again :dunno:
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rabbit holes are fun.ive been going down them for the last 30 years.
 
I own a 605b pair (16ohm) and have been happily using them with an EL84 SE amp on 8ohm tap for five years, until recently when I built a JE Labs Simple 45/2A3 again off a 5K/8ohm OPT, and I am happier now :)

Happy Listening
-sann
 
I did end up getting the altec 605a's for 450. Sunbeam was a real champ. Then I built 620 cabs with markwart phase aligned cross overs. These are driven by a custom 2a3 amp, driven by single d3a per channel, electraprint opt's 3k/8ohm.

They get plenty loud :)
20200815_144402.jpg
 
Wow, excellent setup you have, I had also built 620 cabs for my 605's first, but my EL84 amp couldn't drive them along with the Markwart XO in 612 cab, then I built another cab which is little smaller than 612, I should try the 620's again with the 2A3.
Could you please share more details about your amp?

-sann'
 
Oh, I just noticed your thread about the 2A3 build, you have documented the build very well, I will go through that.
Thank you!
 
sann said:
Oh, I just noticed your thread about the 2A3 build, you have documented the build very well, I will go through that.
Thank you!
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Nice you saved me a few button clicks. You should try the 620s again!

Note; because your 2a3 amp has 5k opt, you will probably develop less power with your amp than mine.
 
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