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Chance to Acquire HPM-100s

kortex

kortex

Active Member
I've read up on them here a bit here. Would a Yamaha HTR-6060 be enough to let them sing? The person claims they work perfectly and just have a few scratches on the cabinets... I don't have the money for new high quality speakers and these seem to have quite a following sooo... What should I look for if/when I go see them?


receiver details..
http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/av-receivers-amps/htr/htr-6060/?mode=model


EDIT: I meant to put this in the Pioneer forum. My apologies mods.
 
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They can sound good, but work their best in a well treated room. Otherwise they can be perceived as thin and very bright. That's where they got their reputation.
 
What is your Yamaha rated at? Specs would help us to advise you better. It doesn't take a very powerful amp to drive the 100s, but they do like power; that is, they sound noticeably better when a sufficiently powerful amp with plenty of headroom is driving them.

Get the HPMs. They are very "polarizing" speakers, which people seem to either love or hate. Enough people love them, though, that they hold their value well, and you should listen and form your own opinion.

I'm one of the few people who seem "in the middle" about these; while I recognize their shortcomings, I appreciate their strengths. They don't quite have the soundstage qualities I like ("spoiled" ears?) but can do a lot well. If you combine HT and stereo, and don't have "golden ears" that demand genuine theater sound or better, these speakers work great for movie sound tracks. Some of the comments I've heard people make about them sounded like a completely different speaker to me, and made me wonder if the people didn't have defective ones, or were driving them with anti-synergistic gear, or else perhaps I have an unusually blessed pair or something.

Anyway, get them first, and give them a listen. Read up in the archives about crossover updates and other tweaks. Then enjoy them, at least until something better comes along. :music:
 
What kind of price are we talking?

There are also a few threads that talk about recapping the crossovers that make them sound not so bright.
 
They look pretty good to me. For $150 I'd be all over them. If you don't like em, you won't have any trouble getting your money back on resale.
 
I've owned a pair since new and will keep them til I die. Nothing rocks like a pair of HPM-100s. Not the best speaker for critical listening for some types of music, but you can't beat them for good ol rock and roll.
 
I have a pair of 150's and 2 pair of 100's (200w). The neighbors are gonna love me when I get those all hooked up at once and cranking out some AC/DC. :D
 
Tarl Of Gor said:
I have a pair of 150's and 2 pair of 100's (200w). The neighbors are gonna love me when I get those all hooked up at once and cranking out some AC/DC. :D
Click to expand...
I have a floor-to-ceiling pair of triple-stacks, driven by 2 fully restored SPEC-4 power amps. I rarely drive them harder than 1 watt per channel, although I know that peaks are significantly more than that. This is in my main rig, used for home theater and music of all kinds. Positioned and driven correcly, these ar very presentable speakers. I do have a variety of what are concidered to be superb speakers, from AR9s to Magnepans, but the HPMs are in my main rig for good sonic reasons.

$150 is a good price for presentable, fully functional HPM-100s.

Enjoy,
Rich P
 
I've a pair of HPM-100, they need about a 30 to 40watts amp to be driven at comfortable level, although a 200watts amp is also acceptable. I drive mine with a 50 watts and sometime with an 80watts amp.

At 150.00$ and the way they look, is very acceptable, get them and enjoy.
 
Get them and listen. Many people enjoy them. As Rich stated placement is critical but one you find the sweet spot you will be very happy.

The majority of my listening is below 1 watt and they still give me sweet lows and crisp highs. I love 'em. When you turn them up they sound sweet as well. In the past I've run them on a 35 w/ch receiver with very good results.

In the end your ears will decide if they are right for you. That particular pair look really nice in the pictures. I say grab them for $150.
 
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You need an old-school receiver to drive old school classics like the HPM-100's. That Yamaha receiver does not have the nards to drive a pair of 12 inch woofers like those on the HPM-100's. The Yamaha is designed for independently powered subwoofers. The HPM-100 woofers need reserve power to move during deep bass movements (do a google image search on a Pioneer SX-1980, topless; those four important thingies surrounding the big round thingy are not found on your Yamaha).

Buy the HPM-100's, they are one of the greatest speakers ever built, but buy an old-school receiver from the mid to late 1970's (100-300 WPC) to drive them.

Remember that there were two types of HPM-100's, 100W max and 200W max. The ones you have shown are the 100W max pair.
 
I have a pair of the HPM-100s. They really sound the best when paired up with my vintage Pioneer SX-828 receiver. They have a nice character to them. I've been playing a lot of different types of music through them lately and they always sound good!
 
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