Epicure Model Fourteen

[Ibemiked]

Anyone have these speakers? Epicure Model Fourteen three way three driver speakers? Sound great! Picked them up last weekend. I'm wondering if the midrange's might be replacements? They aren't blue. But I'm also wondering if they are upgraded.. like I said before they sound great. I was actually really surprised with the overall quality, especially the bass! I'll add pictures when I get a chance. Just wondering if anyone else out there has a pair of these and again are the mids always blue? The mids are black with a shiny dust cap. All 6 drivers are in pristine condition.

 

[RTally]

It would be easier to give an opinion if we knew what they looked like. I have several EPIs and the cone color varies.

 

[Blue Shadow]

Your mids are actually woofers. These speakers have a 6" woofer and an 8" passive radiator.

Interesting that the Epicure 14 MSRP was 398 for a walnut veneer and the similar EPI 140 was a 420 list price product. I don't know what our EPI/Epicure expert has to say about that but I'm still standing by my assertion that the Epicure line was for hi-fi stores and the EPI line was available to whoever wanted it, warehouses and such. With the higher list price, thinking the speakers are basically the same except plastic backed EPI tweeter vs. the metal backed Epicure tweeter that number would allow the warehouse to show a greater discount. Wonder what the dealer cost differences were.

 

[Ibemiked]

It would be easier to give an opinion if we knew what they looked like. I have several EPIs and the cone color varies.

Here's a photo of the Model 14's.. Totally forgot about This post.. was wondering if these were all the original drivers or if they were possibly the Human reproductions. Good sounding speakers! Great for The rear channels of my Home Theatre!

 

[Ibemiked]

Your mids are actually woofers. These speakers have a 6" woofer and an 8" passive radiator.

Interesting that the Epicure 14 MSRP was 398 for a walnut veneer and the similar EPI 140 was a 420 list price product. I don't know what our EPI/Epicure expert has to say about that but I'm still standing by my assertion that the Epicure line was for hi-fi stores and the EPI line was available to whoever wanted it, warehouses and such. With the higher list price, thinking the speakers are basically the same except plastic backed EPI tweeter vs. the metal backed Epicure tweeter that number would allow the warehouse to show a greater discount. Wonder what the dealer cost differences were.

So the 6" is the woofer? What is the purpose of the 8" radiator? I have a pair of Polk audio RTA12c's they have a 12" radiator also. What is the difference between a radiator and a normal speaker?

 

[Blue Shadow]

A radiator does not have a motor (magnet/voice coil assembly) and is not connected to the amplifier.

It used the movement of the woofer in a generally sealed cabinet to make it move to help supply deeper bass response than would happen without the passive radiator.

These usually look like an unfinished driver sometimes with a flat front other times with a regular cone. Wiki knows more, I'm sure: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_radiator_(speaker)

What is the difference between a radiator and a normal speaker?

 

[RTally]

Thanks for posting the pics. The model 14 has the same 6" woofer as the M70, which I have. Your passive radiator and larger cabinet gives you more at the bottom (28 Hz vs. 60 Hz). Picture of my woofer below:



Your woofer has a larger dustcap than mine, but yours may have been replaced when the driver was refoamed. I have a brown/gray colored cone, but the texture of mine looks different. All the EPI drivers I've seen have the tinsel leads in about the same place. Your tinsel penetrations of the cone are covered with the dustcap and seem to be closer to the voice coil. You may have a newer version of the driver or a replacement. I lean towards it being a replacement.

The Human Speakers replacement has a large dustcap (looks smaller than yours, bigger than mine) and hidden tinsel penetrations, but the texture of the cap and cone looks more like my driver and different than yours. Unfortunately, the Human Speakers page for the woofer has poor pictures: http://www.humanspeakers.com/e/parts/007.htm

Pull it out and see if the magnet is stamped with a part number.

Also, not all EPI drivers are blue. Only some of mine are. (I have M100, 20+, and M70) Other than cone color and size, all my woofers are very similar looking.

 

[Nat]

I'm also wondering if the woofer is a replacement.

 

[GordonW]

Those are not the original woofers. I would guess those are GRS or Goldwood drivers. Poly cone (instead of the original paper cones), and rubber surrounds (instead of the original foam surrounds).

They will not have anything near the same response as the original drivers.

Regards,
Gordon.

 

[TriodeLuvr]

Sorry to dredge up this old thread. I just pulled a pair of these out of the closet after nearly 20 years. I originally purchased them at a consignment shop in '98 and had the woofers refoamed at Human Speakers a couple years later. Anyway, today was a real surprise, because these sound much better than I remember. Of course, in the meantime, I've converted from solid state to tubes, and I'm sure that has added to the experience. At the moment, I'm comparing them to a pair of large, ported three-way speakers that I built nearly 20 years ago from a Madisound LEAP design. The big guys are flat to about 20 Hz, so there's slightly more bass with some material. OTOH, the more I listen to these, I'm beginning to think the upper mids of the Epicures are smoother and less harsh. I can't speak to the treble with my degraded hearing, but I'll ask the wife when she gets home. LOL, she's gonna love seeing four speakers in the living room.

Anyway, if the OP is still around, Human Speakers has replacement drivers and crossovers for these. Assuming you still have them, it's probably worth the investment to install original type woofers. Like the Genesis speakers and others, there's no electrical low pass for the woofers. It's critical to have the originals before pronouncing judgement.

Jack