anyone have both vintage and modern speakers?

[yaya97]

Hi All,
First or all, to clarify, I do wish to recreate-start up the eternal debate between vintage and modern speakers and which is better…….
I was wondering if some of you have kept your vintage speakers for a reason but also have a pair of modern for a reason.
I have not been able to do an a-b test but have noticed that the bass in my “coffin” speakers ( speakerlabs from the 70`s) are fantastic whereas I found the detail in smaller modern speakers was fantastic ( I went to magnolia high fi in Torrance where they have great speakers hooked up to McIntosh tube gear).
I wish I could have a pair of both ! ( not much chance to get Wife Approval )

 

[canuckaudiog]

Hi All,
First or all, to clarify, I do wish to recreate-start up the eternal debate between vintage and modern speakers and which is better…….
I was wondering if some of you have kept your vintage speakers for a reason but also have a pair of modern for a reason.
I have not been able to do an a-b test but have noticed that the bass in my “coffin” speakers ( speakerlabs from the 70`s) are fantastic whereas I found the detail in smaller modern speakers was fantastic ( I went to magnolia high fi in Torrance where they have great speakers hooked up to McIntosh tube gear).
I wish I could have a pair of both ! ( not much chance to get Wife Approval )

OK.. here is my humble opinion about vintage vs. modern.

First of all yes, I do own one set of modern and one set of vintage, both high end. One is my IMF RSPM Mk IVs and the other my Kef LS50s.

The main difference in vintage vs. modern is in the style of the cabinetry, crossover design and tweeters. I think these are where the biggest differences lie when comparing the two. As a result of this modern speakers can tend to have what some might call a "modern" sound and vintage speakers can have what tends to be called a "vintage" sound.

However beyond that, the quality of engineering varies as much as it did then as it does now, and to me the engineering is what matters most. Yes, today engineers and designers have better and more precise tools to work with to design and create loudspeakers with, but there were some geniuses around that even today some engineers are challenged with matching or bettering. A good example is the Quad ESL which was introduced in 1957 - a revolutionary product for its time and which the likes of took many, many years to be improved upon.

There is no reason to prefer one over the other. It's just like music - there is great and crappy music then and now. Yes, the technology and tools that were available are different today, and certainly the voicing would likely be catered to the era it was introduced in (and possibly even designed around), that still doesn't change that there are still some vintage speakers that can compete with modern.

In other words there is no better.. due to subjectivity one could prefer the vintage sound, or maybe the music listened to sounds best on a vintage system. Same with modern. At the end of the day it's not about what technically measures best or which one is the most technologically advanced, it's what you like and what you prefer to hear.

Finally, comparing the two is somewhat a useless exercise, especially in my case because I would be comparing mini monitor to a large transmission line behemoth. Not really apples to oranges.. and like I mentioned above your personal subjective taste plays a role so again.. there's no real way to fairly compare speakers when that is introduced, unless you want to start pulling out frequency response graphs and things like that.

Just my $0.02. This is a rocky road this thread is calling to go down.. tread carefully!

 

[Dukiedook]

Would Altec A7s be considered vintage? Would Klipsch Chorus IIs be considered modern?
I know my Martin Logans are considered modern.
I like them all.

 

[rotelrx503]

I like all equally.

 

[lunchmeat]

Yes, I have both. I enjoy both as well. I have Martin Logans, Klipsch Forte 1s, and Infinite Slope Model 1s.

 

[yaya97]

great stuff. Actually the modern speakers I listened to at Magnolia were Martin Logans. Loved them, very detailed and I had the impression the band was playing infront of me . Yet, IMHO , I missed the deep bass that my speakerlabs have ( maybe due to the 12 inch woofer).

 

[njcanuck]

I have both as well. Modern = Hornshoppe Horns - single driver full rangers that present fantastic detail with good sources. Mid = Klipsch Chorus and Heresys - nice well rounded speakers for general listening and parties etc. Vintage = Altec Segovias - there's something very satisfying about listening to vintage rock & roll on vintage speaks with great bass.

 

[yaya97]

OK.. here is my humble opinion about vintage vs. modern.

Finally, comparing the two is somewhat a useless exercise, especially in my case because I would be comparing mini monitor to a large transmission line behemoth. Not really apples to oranges.. and like I mentioned above your personal subjective taste plays a role so again.. there's no real way to fairly compare speakers when that is introduced, unless you want to start pulling out frequency response graphs and things like that.

Just my $0.02. This is a rocky road this thread is calling to go down.. tread carefully!

Great post Canuckdog. Again I do NOT want to compare just get the best elements from each!

 

[daveshel]

In 1972 I bought a pair of AR-7s. They were modern at that time and were all I wanted or needed for nearly a decade.

In 1980 I bought some New Large Advents. They were also modern at that time,. I loved them and still use them.

In 1984 I bought some AR-90s because they were too cheap to pass up. I sold them a few years later because they didn't sound that much better than the Advents and were huge at a time I had smaller rooms.

I used the Advents exclusively until around 2004, when I heard about stacking them. I bought 2 more pairs. By that time they were vintage. A few years later I got into tubes and didn't think the Advents sounded as good with the tube rig as they did with my SS rig. For a couple years I used some Polk Monitor Series II 4.6s. They sounded pretty good and may be the most recent speakers I have owned.

Last year I got a pair of Polk Monitor 10s with the Peerless tweeters. I was pretty happy with them until last month when I got a pair of Dynaco A-25s. These supplanted the Polks on the tube rig.

I'm not strictly opposed to modern speakers, but I know that I'll have st spend a lot to get something better than the vintage speakers I have. And before I'll spend a lot, I'd have to hear them in my room with my electronics, and the logistics of doing so has pretty much kept me happy with what I have.

 

[pognoot]

To these ears, I prefer modern designs in almost every way, except for one.

As a general trend, starting in the mid 90s, the industry has moved way from larger transducer configurations into thinner towers with multiple smaller transducers. I understand why, but there are times when I miss the solid bottom end punch produced by a 12" woofer.

 

[yaya97]

To these ears, I prefer modern designs in almost every way, except for one.

As a general trend, starting in the mid 90s, the industry has moved way from larger transducer configurations into thinner towers with multiple smaller transducers. I understand why, but there are times when I miss the solid bottom end punch produced by a 12" woofer.

Yes the 12 inch woofer has a unique..thump.
Also as mentioned above the fact that I listen to 70`s rock maybe makes the old stuff sound better.Yet if I take a recent recording, the presence of the martin logans was awesome!

 

[Copa1934]

And the money does the talking...

...but I know that I'll have to spend a lot to get something better than the vintage speakers I have. And before I'll spend a lot, I'd have to hear them in my room with my electronics, and the logistics of doing so has pretty much kept me happy with what I have.

I'd say I'm like many here. My modern speakers are around 10 years old. My vintage range from 30 to almost 50 years old.

The problem with "new" is you have MSRP, "Street Price", etc. There are other factors that can play in as well, like Bose 901 "trade up".

That said, I believe (like Dave) that you more often than not will have to spend significantly more for new vs old (vintage if you will). Heck, I got two pair of AR3a speakers free from two different parties. Tell me how to top that "buying" new? For the record, one pair was semi working needing mostly a tune-up, the other pair needed one mid and both tweeters. Matching the bass response of those buggers with a modern system won't come cheap.

However, I do love my modern speakers, and they're worth every penny I invested. But I do go back and forth with them. All.