Altec Lansing Speakers

[Francis55]

Just got these at a thrift shop for $20. Love their quality.

 

[Francis55]

Small and all black, big sound. Are these considered a quality vintage speaker? I also have some big Advent Legacy speakers, by Jensen, but prefer these little guys.

 

[Goodwill_HiFi]

Small and all black, big sound. Are these considered a quality vintage speaker? I also have some big Advent Legacy speakers, by Jensen, but prefer these little guys.

Probably not...... they look like Milford, PA "Altec" to me. I could be wrong, Though.

Edit: If they look/feel well built they're probably decent, just not in the same league as the original pro-audio/theater speakers that the original Altec made.

 

[wmgwizard]

Altec in name only.

See Yamaha NS series speakers, kissing cousins.
https://www.google.com/search?q=yam...CgC&biw=640&bih=279#tbm=isch&q=yamaha+ns+a636

 

[twiiii]

If they don't have a horn, they are not true Altec.

 

[Goodwill_HiFi]

If they don't have a horn, they are not true Altec.

That is incorrect.

 

[blhagstrom]

If they don't have a horn, they are not true Altec.

Altec Santana.

 

[Nat]

I could be wrong about this since I haven't much experience of Santanas, and always in systems that were not chosen by me. At any rate, I didn't think they sounded that good. But it's hard to argue that they are not true Altecs. But citing them as true Altecs seems to me to cut the legs out from under the claim that true Altecs have horns. Altec made quite a few cone tweeter speakers (and with consumer grade woofers and midranges also) long before they got sold to Sparkomatic, and many of them are fun to listen to (more than the Santanas) and, for whatever it's worth, sound more like 'real Altecs' than you might expect, from all the indignation. (This based on having some Capris and having had some of the number named box speakers, and currently using Valencias.) Tastes vary, as do allegiances.

 

[bowtie427ss]

Model 83, from very near the beginning of Sparko-Altec.

As mentioned, a flattering likeness of Yamaha NS-A635.

If they don't have a horn, they are not true Altec.

I sort of agree.

The 2-way, horn over bass reflex, Iconic speaker system is the Altec love child.

But, there's no escaping a handful of excellent non-horn products that should never go without proper recognition. A couple that quickly come to mind are the 755A and the Segovia speaker system. Then there are the microphones that Altec made. There's no horn in a 639B, and it's all Altec and industry standard all the way.

How can you not love the Segovia before you even hear it?