My Philips AH-476 Speaker Acquisition

[rotobadger]

So, a buddy of mine restored the surrounds on these Philips AH-476 speakers and insisted I take them home and try them. We worked out a trade so we both got a good deal.

Most of my amplifier stable is tube and is therefore low wattage. I hooked these speakers up (I use Klipsch Heresys as my daily drivers) and was underwhelmed. Disappointed as well, as my friend was raving about these speakers.

There is VERY little info on these speakers online and I can’t find a sensitivity rating for them but I’m guessing it’s pretty low. Maybe 85-86db-ish.

So, I hooked them directly to my most “powerful” amp, a Sansui au555a (25 watts or so) and WOW! These speakers came alive! The imaging is wonderful and I feel like they compete well with my much beloved Heresys. To be fair, the extra bass that the Heresys lack probably gave the Philips a little boost in the “pleasurable speakers” catagory.

But...The mids and highs in these things sparkle. Just superb. I think these are definitely under the radar speaker due to their lack of availability. The 476 are the next to the TOTL (AH-477) but really are fantastic.

My only issue now is that I “need” an amp with the wattage to do these speakers justice.

Lots of fun!

Anyone else have experience with these speakers? Would love to hear impressions.

Here’s a pic sans the grills:

 

[krimney]

Nice speakers. I had a set years ago and thought they sounded good. mid and tweet are pretty popular in a variety of other companies speakers and should be easy to find if you ever need them.

 

[rotobadger]

I’m still in the a/b stage with these and my Heresy. It’s tough because the speakers have very different personalities.

The Klipsch are cleaner, more precise and forward...a pleasure with tubes.

The Philips fill the room more (again, more bass is part of that). Imaging is better too. The sound is more immersive.

I’m still partial to the Klipsch but these Philips are an unexpected surprise for sure.