Apogee Ribbons

[Jflijohn]

So, I have a good system, not great but definitely adequate. The same goes for my 20’ X 21’ X 8’ listening space (a garage, complete with a car at night) I’m currently running Heresy IVs in parallel with a rebuilt set of L-100s. I enjoy it but it doesn’t knock your sox off.

A friend from up the street had a truckload of 25-30 year old top-end equipment that she wanted me to go through and see what was salvageable. The first thing I hooked up were a set of Apogee Stage ribbons. These were Apogee’s lowest end speaker 25 years ago. They are not in pristine shape and I actually had concerns about hooking them up, so I tested their impedance from 20 - 20 kHz which checked in at a nominal 3Ω.

The improvement was amazing, the clarity, accuracy and soundstage was a dramatic improvement over my current setup. I didn’t go into the test with a biased opinion, in fact, just the opposite. I was fully expecting them to sound like crap. So, my question is why isn’t there more on these speakers on this forum? What’s wrong with them? Any opinions?
I tried a search of the forum but, you all probably know how that went

 

[cratz2]

We had a pair of Centaur Majors and I really liked the Stages... LOVED the Duetta IIs.

To sound their best, they really need good power and quite a bit of room behind and beside them. Also,while they had good extension, they didn't really have any visceral 'slam'.

I think many people don't like those aspects. They are also a bit pricey to maintain or repair.

When they did, they did exceptionally well.

 

[jimreeves]

Nothing at all wrong with them, aside from the low impedance with some amps being an issue. I expect that most of us on AK, myself included haven't had the pleasure. They look like a nice size, on top of a pair of sealed subwoofers I'd bet they'd be hard to beat! The big question is, what else does she have in the truckload?

 

[bkatbamna]

www.clarisysaudiousa.com
They have been coming to shows and demonstrating them.

 

[Jflijohn]

Nothing at all wrong with them, aside from the low impedance with some amps being an issue. I expect that most of us on AK, myself included haven't had the pleasure. They look like a nice size, on top of a pair of sealed subwoofers I'd bet they'd be hard to beat! The big question is, what else does she have in the truckload?

The rest of the truck load. DAC and power conditioning, I believe, are throw-aways however, the rest of it seems like pretty good stuff. Im going to start firing up equipment tomorrow.

 

[Jflijohn]

A

I just noticed that the tweeter ribbon is curled on the right speaker. I hear no difference in sound between the two speakers but, it has to make a difference. The cabinet screws are rusted and one of the labels is peeling off, looks to me like they've been stored in a damp atmosphere...they sure sound good though

 

[JB1962]

Do they keep the keys to the truck hidden in the visor? Just kidding

 

[Jflijohn]

Do they keep the keys to the truck hidden in the visor? Just kidding

Ashtray in these parts

 

[StimpyWan]

Some nice gear. I wouldn't discount any of it, since most looked to be very high end, for it's day. Plus, if needed, replacement Apogee ribbons are still available.

Apogee Acoustics

 

[JRhoBurton]

AView attachment 2875519 View attachment 2875520

I just noticed that the tweeter ribbon is curled on the right speaker. I hear no difference in sound between the two speakers but, it has to make a difference. The cabinet screws are rusted and one of the labels is peeling off, looks to me like they've been stored in a damp atmosphere...they sure sound good though

That curled ribbon would bother me. If I had it, I'd be inclined to test the frequency response with Omnimic. I have a pair of those tweeters, and crossovers waiting in the wings for a DIY project, if I ever decide which woofers to use for the low end and how to set it all up. One of the tweeter membranes is mounted with a slight shift to one side, but it sounds fine (same as yours!).

The tweeters are purely resistive except for a big spike at about 20 hz which would have no effect. I think the bass panels were resistive also. The impedance of the system never falls below that of the drivers. So, even at about 3.5 ohms minimum, it's an easier load to drive than many speakers.



Atkinson's test here...

https://www.stereophile.com/content/apogee-stage-mini-grand-loudspeakers-1990-measurements

 

[Jflijohn]

That curled ribbon would bother me. If I had it, I'd be inclined to test the frequency response with Omnimic. I have a pair of those tweeters, and crossovers waiting in the wings for a DIY project, if I ever decide which woofers to use for the low end and how to set it all up. One of the tweeter membranes is mounted with a slight shift to one side, but it sounds fine (same as yours!).

The tweeters are purely resistive except for a big spike at about 20 hz which would have no effect. I think the bass panels were resistive also. The impedance of the system never falls below that of the drivers. So, even at about 3.5 ohms minimum, it's an easier load to drive than many speakers.

View attachment 2875835

Atkinson's test here...
Wow, great article. I don't have an Omnimic... yet. Im u

https://www.stereophile.com/content/apogee-stage-mini-grand-loudspeakers-1990-measurements

That curled ribbon would bother me. If I had it, I'd be inclined to test the frequency response with Omnimic. I have a pair of those tweeters, and crossovers waiting in the wings for a DIY project, if I ever decide which woofers to use for the low end and how to set it all up. One of the tweeter membranes is mounted with a slight shift to one side, but it sounds fine (same as yours!).

The tweeters are purely resistive except for a big spike at about 20 hz which would have no effect. I think the bass panels were resistive also. The impedance of the system never falls below that of the drivers. So, even at about 3.5 ohms minimum, it's an easier load to drive than many speakers.

View attachment 2875835

Atkinson's test here...

https://www.stereophile.com/content/apogee-stage-mini-grand-loudspeakers-1990-measurements

This is the impedance and phase of the bad ribbon which doesn't necessarily mean anything. It would be like tearing a hole in a paper cone, the hole wouldn't affect the impedance.
I don't have an Omnimic (...yet) but, I did the next best thing. I took 20 separate static dB-A readings on each speaker with individual test tones, one at a time from 20 kHz to 20 Hz from 8' away ( I couldn't hear tones from 20 kHz to 14 kHz but the needle moved to expected levels). Both speakers tested very close and actually the undamaged speaker was usually the lowest dB-A reading (could be due to tow-in or just funky room acoustics). This test confirmed what I heard, even though the ribbon is curled, its not "noticeably" affecting the volume at the upper ranges.

Thanks for the Stereophile link above, interesting article.

 

[Jflijohn]

Great

Some nice gear. I wouldn't discount any of it, since most looked to be very high end, for it's day. Plus, if needed, replacement Apogee ribbons are still available.

Apogee Acoustics

Great info, thanks

 

[jazzmans]

So, I have a good system, not great but definitely adequate. The same goes for my 20’ X 21’ X 8’ listening space (a garage, complete with a car at night) I’m currently running Heresy IVs in parallel with a rebuilt set of L-100s. I enjoy it but it doesn’t knock your sox off.

A friend from up the street had a truckload of 25-30 year old top-end equipment that she wanted me to go through and see what was salvageable. The first thing I hooked up were a set of Apogee Stage ribbons. These were Apogee’s lowest end speaker 25 years ago. They are not in pristine shape and I actually had concerns about hooking them up, so I tested their impedance from 20 - 20 kHz which checked in at a nominal 3Ω.

The improvement was amazing, the clarity, accuracy and soundstage was a dramatic improvement over my current setup. I didn’t go into the test with a biased opinion, in fact, just the opposite. I was fully expecting them to sound like crap. So, my question is why isn’t there more on these speakers on this forum? What’s wrong with them? Any opinions?
I tried a search of the forum but, you all probably know how that went

look at the magnepan threads, and the infinity subforum.

Apogee's are world class speakers, not without their difficulties, but amazingballs.
AND, Graz still repairs them/replaces ribbons.
You're ruined now that you've heard what they can do.

welcome to the dark side!

 

[GordonW]

www.clarisysaudiousa.com
They have been coming to shows and demonstrating them.

They're good.

I think the smaller one, is even more impressive than the large ones. Better highs, and no significant loss in lows...

"Smaller" is really only a relative term, in terms of both size and cost. The smaller ones at AXPONA were still $45K a pair or so, IIRC.

Regards,
Gordon.

 

[Jflijohn]

look at the magnepan threads, and the infinity subforum.

Apogee's are world class speakers, not without their difficulties, but amazingballs.
AND, Graz still repairs them/replaces ribbons.
You're ruined now that you've heard what they can do.

welcome to the dark side!

Ha, my buddy across the street just left and he told me the same exact thing, "no looking back now" was his comment... along with "get the wallet out".