Inkel Speakers?

[mvsjcl]

Anyone ever see or hear of these Inkel speakers? As best as I can make out, they're early 80's Korean, model CS-6500E. Thrift store buy. Well made, heavy suckers, and sound remarkably good. Surprising, in fact. A touch bright, but easily compensated for.

 

[canuckaudiog]

Very interesting. I own a stack of Inkel-made LXI branded separates (pre, power and tuner) and I find them to be of good quality and sound great. I wonder if these are the matching speakers?


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[davidro]

Some of their Pro series are pretty well received in Korea.
Dunno much about your particular example though. Enjoy!

 

[mvsjcl]

This is the only representation I can find of them on the web (except for one Kiwi auction). It does appear as if they're part of some package deal, but I can't read Korean to see if your LXI's might be included.

 

[mvsjcl]

In small print around the mid and tweeter it says "Inkel Pro Speaker System." So it appears as if they are indeed part of their "Pro" series. Thanks.

 

[mvsjcl]

And with that clue from davidro, with some additional help from Google Translate, I've identified the speakers as Inkel PRO 8 speakers. Or, if you can read Korean, 인켈 PRO 8. It appears as if they tried to mimic Winston Burhoe's acoustic design with this line of speakers.

http://dvdprime.donga.com/bbs/view.asp?bbslist_id=1720878&master_id=40

 

[davidro]

My friend, that Pro 8 is the well regarded stuff. Congratulations!

 

[mvsjcl]

Thank-you. And I agree with those who regard them as being several steps above mediocre.

 

[davidro]

http://www.audioht.co.kr/atl/view.asp?a_id=3360

This article talks about how the Pro 8 resembles the later AR speakers in many ways.
Best bang for money, it says.
Looks like yours may have been part of a setup called CS1234 in the 80s.

 

[mvsjcl]

Excellent information! Thank-you!

 

[Octaven]

Inkel manufactured Sherwood receivers in Korea beginning in the late 70's, when Sherwood stopped making them in the US. (Sherwood also had a couple of top-of-the-line models that came from Japan, but only for one generation.)

 

[musician2358]

Actually, the Korean company Shinbang Electronics manufactured Sherwood amps in the late 70's and then purchased the rights to use the Sherwood brand in 1980. They were an OEM who produced lots of audio equipment for many other companies, including well known audio brands often discussed on this site, and even was the manufacturer of the famous SAE System 02. I think the Inkel brand has largely been used in Korea, and maybe some other Asian markets, but they've used the Sherwood brand for the US and European markets. This company, which has also used the name Haitai Electronics and Etronics at different points in time, either created or purchased the Inkel brand in 1996, as shown in the history on their website:

http://www.etronics.co.kr/english/newcompany/history.asp

In my experience, this company has produced some excellent products. I use a Shinbang-made, Sherwood AD-260B in my living room system. It is well made, and has equaled or bested a number of vintage amps from collectible and/or sought after brands in A/B tests I've done. Sound is very neutral, similar to, say, an NAD C350.

 

[dc270]

They look remarkably like "Burhoe Blue" types...........one of my favorites
DC

 

[davidro]

The AD series is still pretty well-received in Korea.
They look sorta tacky but

 

[musician2358]

The AD series is still pretty well-received in Korea.
They look sorta tacky but

The tacky look just contributes to them being available at a cheaper price on the used market.

But they have the form factor of modern equipment, so makes a nice form fit stacked on top of a CD/SACD player.

M2358

 

[Tone Duff]

They look remarkably like "Burhoe Blue" types...........one of my favorites
DC