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pioneer CS series speakers

parman

parman

Music Junkie
Subscriber
i've seen some early & mid 70's pioneer cs series speakers selling pretty cheap on CL and wondered what the general feeling was on these CS series. i know most people don't care for the Sansui speakers so what about pioneers, remember i'm talking about CS not HPM. :scratch2:
 
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Unless they are CS-R series.

CS-Rseries.jpg
 
They are from the 1974 time period (approximately).

They were the product of the transition from the traditional Japanese-design CS series to the eventual design of the HPM series.

They were the first Pioneer speakers to be designed specifically for the U.S. market.

Later, Pioneer would hire a former JBL employee to design the HPM-100.
 
A lot of speakers have passed through here, including, Wharfedale W90s, Heresey IIs , Thiels, Marantz, and others but my CS-63DXs remain in my main system.
 
I have a pair of cs-a700's. Ehhh..okay. A little weak on the bass side and you can't hookup an overly powerful amp to them or they get fussy. Nice to look at though and the wood lattice grilles add effect.
 
I found a pair of Pioneer CS-77s about a month ago.....most people do not like them and I can understand why...I think the horn tweeter is very bright. I hooked them up to my Jolida 102b when I got them and my reaction was man these are harsh BUT....they have really grown on me....there is sound to them that really makes some (not all) of my favorite cds come alive. The mid-range places the voice very up front and center while at the same time you can hear the instruments with great detail....they are not strong on bass but I can get over that for now....I would not pass up any Pioneer CS-77s 88s or 99s if you can get them for cheap and are open minded. I have not removed them since I got them but of course it is not like I have a pair of Cornwalls in my closet lol
 
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Well, I have to say that I am keeping my CS-63DX's along with my Belles, but selling my Cornwalls (then buying another pair that match the Belles). Just me, but I love the lattice work and I have fond memories of the early Pioneers and parties, at least, I think I do..... According to the serial number mine where made in '67. Earlier than I thought. They were bought in Japan, then brought into the States after a tour of duty.
 
The early CS stuff like the CS-50A is not bad. Mainly my biggest complaint was the lack of deep bass because the woofer was just to large for the small cabinets. Later CS stuff like the CS-88 seems to have more bass.

Generally I would say that like Boston Acoustics or midline Infinities, you would never know you were missing anything until upgrading to more expensive speakers.
 
I have a pair of CS-99A's & a 12" pair of Sansui 3-ways as my mains right now. They sound decent, although I could use a bit bigger amp/receiver on them. I'm working on getting a couple big Pioneers (SX-1250 & SX-1050) & a Sansui 8080DB re-capped to power them.
 
I got a pair of mint looking CS-88's last year. I love the look. They sound good, though I find them not great. But I will be recapping them and giving them another try shortly :yes:
 
I used to have a pair of the CS 801's with midrange and tweeter horns hooked up to my Pioneer 828 --- What a killer sound back in the day.
 
i bought those cs-66g's. they are alright with a small receiver, that's what i wanted a small vintage rig. they are what you expect from a smaller 3 way from the early 70's. not gonna blow the walls out.
 
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I own a pair of Pioneer CS 88A that I purchased for $55. I had them hooked up to my Pioneer SX 950 and SX 980. Found that the bass was lacking which is the common complaint about these speakers. Hooked them up to my Realistic STA 2100 and they sound great. The Lattice grills on those speakers match my Realistic Nova 6 and 7B speakers.
 
I haven't seen the CS-E series being mentioned here. In fact, there's very little information on it on the internet. They were manufactured here in Europe, and I guess that's the only part of the world where they were sold. I own a pair of CS-E730's; they are well built with a lot of bracing in the cabinet and thick internal wiring. They sound wonderful, too, so Í've the impression that Pioneer really put some efforts in the CS-E series.
 
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