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Best Speakers for EICO HF 81?

M

mikey5967

Active Member
Guys, I need your input.

I LOVE my restored EICO HF 81, but need to find a pair of speakers that will mate the best with them. The speakers i'm using now dont cut it, as they are not very efficient.

What I'm after is a wide, deep soundstage, with as much "3D" sound as possible.

I'm leaning toward a full range speaker, something like an Audio Nirvana 10 inch. Or, perhaps a set of Tannoy Saturns (10 inch)

The EICO, is only 14 wpc. What do you recommend speaker wise that will sound incredible with them? I've never used horns and I'm afraid I wont like the "honky" sound.

I play old Rock and Roll most of the time, Elvis, Roy Orbison, The Beatles, Stones, etc.

Many thanks for any help.
 
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Hey Mikey,I had that "Musical" little amp till I got my Altec Model 19's,then moved to Eico ST-70(35 watts),for a bit more ooomphhh for the 15 inch woofers for when son was playing 'His' music..For what thats worth I am going back to a lower watt Eico ST-40(20 watts) as I miss the liquid mids of the HF-81.The 19's are very efficient Horn speakers but 20 watts seems to be a minimum watts and inmhop,a happy compromise,unfortunately,the 14 watts or less my old HF-81 was putting out was just too stressful for the pretty well stock little guy I owned.The HF-81's run hot anyways,no worries,but with todays higher voltages,I was concerned it might get pushed a little too far when Son had his friends over,and didn't want to replace compression driver diaphragms.So to answer your question.I actually liked my HF-81 used with either Bugle Boy & Sovetek EL-84 output tubes,used with some little British Mission Model 70MKII's or Mission 760i's.Both had surprising very decent detail,beautiful mids & acceptable bass,were lively and easy to listen to,paired with an older Cambridge cd player or Linn Axis TT for vinyl,played at low to reasonable volume.Both those model Missions should be pretty easy to come by as Mission sold many pairs.They used to audition the 70 MKII's with a high end Integrated amp like Naim Nait along with a high end TT,like a Rega,and people would walk away shaking their heads.The little speakers were more than up to the task. I think pretty much any older Mission you could get your hands on would be a great combo,the 760i might be more to your liking with the Music you listen too.Just watch(check) the foam woofer surrounds as some are on the way out.I think the earlier Missions had rubber surrounds but don't quote me on that.I would "NOT" recommend the new HT Missions as they were voiced differently and in my opinion "sucked".I also used Dynaco A-25's,recapped,rewired that sounded good too,not as much detail as the British Missions inmhop,but they had more bass.Speakers are always a compromise of some sort.Just find the compromises you can live with and you will be happy.Good luck with your quest.Let us know what you end up with,I'm sure there are many others on Audiokarma with the same tube integrated.Altec Concert Kenny...Enjoy Your Music!
 
I've heard Dynaco A25s on an HF81 and they sounded wonderful. They actually sounded very 'modern', but with a deeper bass that I expected. A stunning little combination.

For what it's worth,
john
 
Dynaco A-25's are a really nice small speaker and would probably match pretty well. I have a pair that I play with a small EL84 amp.

OTOH, have you actually heard horn speakers and not liked them or are you going by some people's descriptions? It's nice to hear from other people what they like but folks can hear and evaluate things quite differently.
E.G. from the post above - I have Altec 19's and run them on 45 powered amps...about 1.8wpc...and I never turn it up more than about a quarter of the way and it gets LOUD....but that's my opinion.

If you can go floorstander then I'd think you could be very happy with a Klipsch Forte/II. The Forte/II doesn't have a large floor footprint but has well balanced sound and is efficient. I think it does a lot of music well but really excels at Rock 'N Roll.
 
Altec Voice of the Theatre family will not disappoint on an HF-81. I use a pair of Valencias with mine probably 90% of the time now. The don't honk.

Other speakers that have acquitted themselves well on the HF-81 in my not particularly humble opinion:

DCM timewindows (original series)
ads L-710 (and its relatives, I am sure)
Quad ESL-57
DIY mass loaded TQWTs stuffed with Radio Shack 40-1354 fullrange twincone drivers (Bob Brines design)
 
"OTOH, have you actually heard horn speakers and not liked them or are you going by some people's descriptions?"
I wonder the same as jcmjrt because tubes go great with horns. Until you have heard the combo never dismiss the great possibilities. And they are usually very efficient.
 
Eico

Hey Guys, thanks a million for the suggestions, that is all good information. I really appreciate your comments.

A few more thoughts:

1) I've decided NOT to "Go Vintage". Speaker technology has improved so much in the last quarter century that I feel a modern pair of speakers is mandantory to get the sound i want. I own a pair of Vintage Large Advents (restored) and I'm very dissapointed in them. Harsh, cloudy midbass, no thank you!


2) And no, I've never heard horns. but I have done alot of research, and i just dont know if the harshness of horns is right for me,. For one thing, my listening space is small, and the speakers will go flush up against a wall.
Also, i'm after that "3D" quality and i dont know if horns would do it.
Altho.....I considered buying a pair of new Klipsch Heresys but cant seem to pull the triggger. Anybody here have 'em? What would be your thoughts on the new Heresys?

3) I'm still pretty curious if the 14 wpc could drive the Tannoy Saturns. From what I hear that is one great sounding speaker. I love the idea of Dual Concentrics, with the "space" you get in the soundstage.

4) There seems to be a Full range driver called "Audio Nirvana" thats supposed to sound awesome with Tube amps. Problem is there is very little in terms of reviews to read. These might be interesting.
 
mhardy6647 said:
Altec Voice of the Theatre family will not disappoint on an HF-81. I use a pair of Valencias with mine probably 90% of the time now. The don't honk.

Quad ESL-57
Click to expand...

Ah, yes. Seriously nice horns and electrostatic speakers. Being a Quad ESL-57 owner myself though, I wouldn't characterize those as rock speakers. Now, the Valencias could rock. And if you consider those, then look at the Altec 19s but now we're getting into more money and more space than the Forte/II...although a budget nor space constraints were provided....
 
ads l710's and similar. These are new enough to be considered modern technology. Sound great with my Eico HF-12 12-watter.
 
Hi Mikey,

Well Sir, I have to agree with Mark, jcmjrt & DaWoofer. That is to say, I run my little Pilot (EL84) AA-903B MONO Integrated Console Amp mated with my (single) Custom Eames Stephens (E-3'ish) Tru-Sonic Horn Speaker and that lil' Pilot with it's (what ? perhaps 14-15 Watts) will make the Stephens
CRANK clean and clear at volumes MUCH louder than I ever care to listen.
That being said, my Stephens is VERY efficient. I'm not sure how efficient but, I suspect at least 100 db or more. I mostly listen to Classic Jazz, Blues and light Classical. I agree a nice pair of KLIPSCH (or ALTEC's) would be a good bet! I personally am now SPOILED since I have a HORN system. Oooh, I also plan to add a little 45 Tube Mono Integrated SET Amp for use with my Stephens (hopefully) in the not too distant future. Best of luck to you Mikey with what ever you chose. IMHO, the more efficient, the better!

Regards,
SixCats!
 
Mikey,

You might also want to consider a used pair of KLIPSCH Kg4's.
Not quite as efficient as larger Klipsch however, the Kg4's can be bought on the used market for (under the Radar) prices. In fact, as I type this, I am listening to my Kg4's with my (overhauled by AK member Craig) SCOTT 222D Integrated Amp which I THINK is about 18 Watts per channel and it sounds
BEAUTIFUL. The Kg4's are a smallish Klipsch Horn which can be placed within a foot to six inches from the rear wall and sound fine. I believe the Kg4's are about 94 db efficient. Find a pair of the Kg4's before spending five or six time the money on a new pair of Klipsch Heresy. Ooh btw, the very first speakers I ever bought new were a pair of Heresy in the mid 70's which I did enjoy very much. That being said, if you want a INexpensive intro to the Horn sound, find a pair of Kg4's on the used market. If you do not like them, you could sell them and not loose money. Me thinks I'm keeping my Kg4's.
Oooh yes, with a bit more power, the Kg4's will CRANK!

Regards,
SixCats!
 
Please, my friend, do not judge all vintage speakers based on using Large Advents with your HF81 - especially since those speakers were built in the 70s to be used with the amplifiers and receivers of that era - i.e. high powered solid state. They sound lousy with low powered tubes, yes. That doesn't mean that designs from the 50s-60s, which were built to be used with amps such as your Eico, which was built in the same era, are going to sound lousy too. In fact, they will sound great, in the opinion of me and many others here.

That said, if you don't want to go vintage, by all means don't. But if I were you I wouldn't discount all old designs just because 70s acoustic suspension doesn't work with low powered tubes.
 
I just remembered I used my HF-81 for one Summer,listening mostly outdoors on the Pond Patio,with some very tall(over 6 feet) solid pine homemade Voight Pipes using some rare vintage Technics(National speakers,if I remember correctly,pics were on Full Range Driver Museum Website if the site is up again) full range drivers with twin cones(whizzer for highs) and round phase plugs.Very open fast sound,good bass & mids,highs were lacking.In my opinion I somehow don't think full range will suit your musical listening tastes which sounds pretty close to mine.I like seventy's Music,I mostly watch,listen to dvd concerts with tubes and horns,and listen to older vinyl.I liked full range best range with Jazz,acoustic guitar,vocals...your tastes may differ though?....I too don't really comprehend/understand your...'Honky' comment,I don't think my Altecs are 'Honky' Man???...by the way,what the Hey does "Honky Mean"???,anyways,don't take it personally,cause I really laughed my ass off when I read that comment!!!!.Too Funny!!.. back to your question....I see you mentioned Tannoy's.Good company,been around for over 75 years,must have done something right once or twice.If you have a chance to try the HF-81 with some Tannoy's,before buying, that may be a good place to start narrowing your your speaker choices to find out what "you" like...In fact try and audition any speaker you might like to try "before" buying,the Hf-81 is not heavy to cart around with a cd player,and then form your own opinions,use cd's you are used too and just "LISTEN,"don't be in a rush,don't read too much hype,and especially don't believe any of it till you form your "own listening opinions",use other's opinions only as a guide to speakers you would like to try,because we all hear differently,and listen to music differently.Maybe there are some members in your area that can help you narrow your choices...Have Fun,Enjoy Your Music...Kenny
 
Guys, I've been checking out the Klipsch stuff, including the Kg4s, and the upshot is that those would be too big for my space.

I actually use a pair of 1980s era Tannoy C-10s with the EICO right now, and they sound fine, but the C-10s were the bargain basement model of the Tannoy line and are not Dual Concentric. But I DO love the "sound" that Tannoys give you, with that punchy and full midrange. At once time I had a pair of Paradigms and I hated them....they were the complete opposite of the Tannoy sound. So i guess I'm leaning toward a new pair of Tannoy Dcs.
 
All vintage speakers aren't Advents (I don't like them either). Amplifier technology has matured 40 years since your Eico..and you're using that, right? In addition to the A25 reco, I'll also toss in a modern speaker: Spendor. Anything in their current line, bookshelf on up.
 
Sounds like you are on the right track,and have decided on a speaker to start with,plus already having listened to the Tannoy C-10's,you "roughly know" the lower end of their "Family" sound.I have only heard one Paradigm speaker I liked,as much as I wanted to buy Canadian.It was a small Studio Monitor in a beautiful wood veneer,they were from the late ninety's,the rest of the line did absolutely nothing for me.Flat,totally Blah to my ears," in my opinion!."..My Son's Tannoy Reveals in our living room by the fireplace,will always have a place in our home.I used my Eico HF-81's with some vintage Tannoys,can't remember the model...They used them as playback monitors in Tannoy Mobile Recording Studiosin the sixty's and early seventy's I believe.I remember they had a wild crossoverand had what was called the salt-n-pepper shaker tweeter right in the center.They sounded very,very good with the Eico but,the only problem was they were close to needing new surrounds and the only guy that had the proper surrounds for them was in Australia,so I sold them quickly when somebody offered me $600.00 for them "as is". I still think at that point I was only "slightly" leaning towards Altecs,but they sounded so very "uncannily similar",for that vintage that I have always wondered what they would have sounded like if I had the funds to re-do the surrounds properly???? I 'Know' I would have been happy with them as a final speaker if it wasn't such a hassle to get 'New' surrounds.Keep us posted..Enjoy Your Music...Altec Concert Kenny
 
I prefer older Klipsch Heritage and extended Heritage (Heresys and Quartets)...I have tried newer Klipsch Reference (RB-5s) and not been as satisfied...Good Luck!
Bill
 
Mikey: I recommend you consider a pair of Klipsch Heresy III's. I own a pair that I power with my EICO ST-70. They are very efficient (99dB @ 1watt/1meter - 8 ohms) and you should have no trouble driving them with your amp. They will not sound "honky" as you put it either. The Heresy III's, in my opinion, are a huge advance in sound quality over the orginal Heresy I's and the intermediate Heresy II's, neither of which I cared for. Best of luck! -Glenn
 
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