Wharfedale W90 vs Altec 19

[Gang-Twanger]

:yes::yes::yes:

OK GT this nails it for me - I stand corrected with my apples and oranges comment! My first car was a baby blue 1978 Cadillac Sedan DeVille D'Elegance - smooooooth ride, 8 track, like a giant slipper on wheels - literally like floatin' on a cloud a'....
Funkier than a joint rolled in toilet paper - just like the W90's.

A few years later I got muscle car fever and got my hands on a black 1967 Mustang fastback - 351 engine - the "Bullitt" model. It scared my girlfriend and made me grin from ear to ear... And repeatedly gave me whiplash. Exactly like the L300's! :thmbsp:

My mother's car when I was a kid was a 1970 Pontiac LeMans Sport. It had a steel crank 350, a Muncie rock-crusher THREE-speed with a Hurst shifter, and bucket seats. My brother got it when he turned 16 (Lucky bastard), and he put a hot cam in it and changed to a bigger carb, and that car became the fastest thing in town... Literally....

And a friend of his later bought an older LeMans (a '67, I believe) with a balanced & blueprinted motor that put out about 500 horses (The engine was a big block... 421, I think). It was so-fast that he eventually sold it so he didn't end up dead. He said the power was too-damn-tempting. I rode in that thing, and it was... and he would have.

But yeah, like you and others said, the two speakers are apples and oranges for sure. If it's a normal-sized room where you can only take the volume so high without ears bleeding, then the W90's are the proverbial sh*t. But if you've got the space, the 19's, just like the big Concert Grands, would walk away with it. For me, I'm a music-lover through and through, and the W90 is all about that. They can get loud if needed, but the point where they start topping out is probably where the 19's are just getting started. Let me say this though. When listening to the W90's (I'll say oil-capped W90's for these purposes) hooked up to, say, a Fisher 500 or 800, there are ZERO harshities, frequency bumps, or artificial weirdness of any kind. So any talk about flat response and all that jazz is really kinda' pointless IMO, because it doesn't enter your mind once you hear them. But those who want to read the old review in the July '63 issue of Hi-Fi/Stereo Review, just do a googly search. It's available on americanradiohistory.com if I'm not mistaken. Pretty sure that's where I found it in PDF form. It's a review of the very-first W90 version like I have (with both woofers running full-range instead of being crossed over with the upper and lower-bass frequencies being divided/split between the two).


BTW, tomlinmgt, you may regret unloading those suckers. I do imagine they're not easy to wrangle at first, but I still think they're one of the most-badass-looking speakets ever made. I'm honored just to hear them mentioned in the same sentence as the W90. But let me say, the big Wharfie is one super-infectious mofo once you get them positioned right and with the right amplification. But with the early ones, at least, that's no joke about that model and poly caps. If I couldn't afford to source out some vintage oil caps, I'd at least be putting in modern motor runs, which are cheap, easy to find, and should still be "old-school" enough for them. But man, do they sound good with the old PCB-types. VERY-3D.

 

[Gang-Twanger]

Great to have you back Gang- Twanger!

 

[Gang-Twanger]

Much of what I'm hearing repeated about the 90's...musical, relaxed (but with the ability to come to life and bring it into the room), big soundstage, great low level presence, authority at volume....these are characteristics I routinely use to describe the Vadersteen 2ci's I once had. The one thing I'm not hearing about the 90's that I certainly enjoy about the Altecs (and the Vandersteens, for that matter) is speed and agility. I really do appreciate a speaker that's light on its feet yet still able to plow through the offensive line when needed, leaving crippled offensive linemen its wake. How are the 90's with transients, snap and an aggressive leading edge when the material has it?

Oh no, the W90 is actually SURPRISINGLY-quick and immediate. VERY-good snap. It's a very-dynamic speaker for sure. More on that later. Gotta' be somewhere.

 

[tomlinmgt]

But yeah, like you and others said, the two speakers are apples and oranges for sure. If it's a normal-sized room where you can only take the volume so high without ears bleeding, then the W90's are the proverbial sh*t. But if you've got the space, the 19's, just like the big Concert Grands, would walk away with it. For me, I'm a music-lover through and through, and the W90 is all about that. They can get loud if needed, but the point where they start topping out is probably where the 19's are just getting started. Let me say this though. When listening to the W90's (I'll say oil-capped W90's for these purposes) hooked up to, say, a Fisher 500 or 800, there are ZERO harshities, frequency bumps, or artificial weirdness of any kind. So any talk about flat response and all that jazz is really kinda' pointless IMO, because it doesn't enter your mind once you hear them. But those who want to read the old review in the July '63 issue of Hi-Fi/Stereo Review, just do a googly search. It's available on americanradiohistory.com if I'm not mistaken. Pretty sure that's where I found it in PDF form. It's a review of the very-first W90 version like I have (with both woofers running full-range instead of being crossed over with the upper and lower-bass frequencies being divided/split between the two).


BTW, tomlinmgt, you may regret unloading those suckers. I do imagine they're not easy to wrangle at first, but I still think they're one of the most-badass-looking speakets ever made. I'm honored just to hear them mentioned in the same sentence as the W90. But let me say, the big Wharfie is one super-infectious mofo once you get them positioned right and with the right amplification. But with the early ones, at least, that's no joke about that model and poly caps. If I couldn't afford to source out some vintage oil caps, I'd at least be putting in modern motor runs, which are cheap, easy to find, and should still be "old-school" enough for them. But man, do they sound good with the old PCB-types. VERY-3D.

Have you spent any time with 19's, Gang? You seem to be of the impression that the Altecs have to be at more than moderate volume to open up....and make the listener say "ahhh". They don't (proper upstream electronics disclaimer in full effect). I listen at around 85 db +/-5 and the emotion and drama is all there.. even more so now that I've heard them with 300B SET amplification. But just as you would imagine, throw the coals to them and they just push you back in your seat for a thrilling ride. You're right about listening space....my space is 16x20 and I wouldn't want them in anything much smaller. I sit about twelve feet away from the speakers and the entire front half of the room is a rich sonic landscape. Get any closer than that and the presentation starts to contract and imaging gets a bit too compartmentalized. But even with stand mount designs I never get closer than eight feet as scale of presentation starts to suffer (Have you ever heard 90's in a bigger room than yours?). For this reason near-field listening has never been my cup of tea. Hello, my name is Michael and I'm addicted to scale.

I don't doubt for a second these won't be easy to send to another home, Gang, but to me they represent yet another noteworthy stop in my audio journey...a journey that has ascent as the primary objective. 19's certainly aren't a final destination for many...me included...and they've presented a challenging bar to clear. Especially since I intend to try to do it with a DIY design. Fortunately I'm able to meet the challenge with a complement of drivers that is a proven, winning combination.....and I really like the part about all the parts being brand new. As far as the looks....sure, the 19's have badass written all over them. But they don't have a monopoly on badass....I mean, I happen to think my QLS-1's and IRS Betas have the badass thing covered pretty good.

Entertaining the idea of a brief diversion with the 90's is nothing more than an exercise in exposure for me. They do some things very well, evidently. I'd like to experience what that is so my audio vocabulary is that much more rich. I know where I can hear some Bozak Concert Grands....maybe I should just arrange a listening session with those instead of making space (that I really don't have) for another set of big cabinets. :scratch2:

 

[bowtie427ss]

You seem to be of the impression that the Altecs have to be at more than moderate volume to open up....and make the listener say "ahhh". They don't.

Totally agree. The Nineteen is perhaps the best balanced of all the Iconic systems.

A lot of Nineteen owners are running them on SET's with only a watt or two of output power. These are many of the folks who praise the Nineteens ability to create a broad, highly dynamic, and realistic soundstage with extended frequency response at relatively low listening levels.

 

[Ishmael]

Speakers, they are like Baskin & Robbins so many flavors, except you then have to consider your listening room, musical tastes, etc., it makes for one hell of a milkshake. I have a pair of W70B Wharfedales which have replaced an earlier pair of Wharfedale Lintons because they are so much more musical, broader frequency range, but really in listening they give me more of that "being there" that we all seek for in our speakers and system. They are currently companioned with a period comparable smaller powered receiver and I have to say when I stack up a bunch of 60s and early 70s rock and roll they become time machines. In our hobby changing anything changes the sound. I wonder if part of the beauty of vintage gear is that they are what the recordings were mastered through and so playing back those recordings through vintage gear now you are hearing essentially "what was said". So I would say don't get too hung up on the pieces of what you hear, dynamics, soundstages, etc., unless of course that is what moves you in listening, but instead trust what you enjoy in music, and when you hear it, keep them. The W70B's do many other things well, some not so well, but for me they are my time machine.

 

[tomlinmgt]

Totally agree. The Nineteen is perhaps the best balanced of all the Iconic systems.

A lot of Nineteen owners are running them on SET's with only a watt or two of output power. These are many of the folks who praise the Nineteens ability to create a broad, highly dynamic, and realistic soundstage with extended frequency response at relatively low listening levels.

I was editing my post to include that little tidbit about SET power (among other things) and returned to the thread to find your comment. :thmbsp:

 

[tomlinmgt]

Speakers, they are like Baskin & Robbins so many flavors, except you then have to consider your listening room, musical tastes, etc., it makes for one hell of a milkshake. I have a pair of W70B Wharfedales which have replaced an earlier pair of Wharfedale Lintons because they are so much more musical, broader frequency range, but really in listening they give me more of that "being there" that we all seek for in our speakers and system. They are currently companioned with a period comparable smaller powered receiver and I have to say when I stack up a bunch of 60s and early 70s rock and roll they become time machines. In our hobby changing anything changes the sound. I wonder if part of the beauty of vintage gear is that they are what the recordings were mastered through and so playing back those recordings through vintage gear now you are hearing essentially "what was said". So I would say don't get too hung up on the pieces of what you hear, dynamics, soundstages, etc., unless of course that is what moves you in listening, but instead trust what you enjoy in music, and when you hear it, keep them. The W70B's do many other things well, some not so well, but for me they are my time machine.

This I can kind of relate to. But let me share this. I have Infinity QLS-1's, Infinity's flagship line-source design from the late 70's.....an amazing design capable of doing amazing things, for sure. When I first got them I found a restored and modded Soundcraftsmen MA5002 and restored and modded Hafler 110 pre worked very nicely with them (compared to handful of other "big dog" amps such as Hafler 500, Emotiva XPA-2, Kenwood M2 Sigma, and Phase Linear 700B). All these pieces are of pretty much similar vintage....late 70's/early 80's....and created a system that set a new standard in performance for my ears at the time. I actually got a big kick out of being able to say "so this is what was possible back in the day....cool!" But as I started to introduce newer electronics such as an Aragon 8008, Threshold s/300 (which ultimately turned into a pair), Audio Research LS2B MkII, even a little Dared SL2000 tube pre, everything got better and more impressive. Sure, I was totally able to enjoy and even marvel at the performance that was presented to me after the time machine journey back to the day. But when I started to hear one incremental improvement after another come along as I introduced more modern design concepts into the fold those elements you mention..."dynamics, sound stage, etc" become pretty compelling in their ability to make you say "oh, WOW!" with a degree of intensity that wasn't happening before. That's not so easy to dismiss once you've heard it happen. Like they say, you can't "unhear" something. Yeah, the time machine is fun...just like my '68 Camaro, but the old pony car will never push as many buttons as something like a Ford GT, Z06 or ZL1 Camaro when it's track/twisty road time.

 

[Kenny Brant]

I've been watching out for 604-8G's. Once the 19's are gone Ill get serious about snagging a pair. The GPA 604's have my interest as well. Have you heard any of those or know anyone who has?

I think you would like the GPA 604's. I was down at GPA and bought my speakers and they had a pair in a set of cabinets and also a pair on the bench, impressive. I didn't get a chance to listen to them but did listen to a set of 212-8A's and they sounded good.

 

[Gang-Twanger]

Have you spent any time with 19's, Gang? You seem to be of the impression that the Altecs have to be at more than moderate volume to open up....and make the listener say "ahhh". They don't (proper upstream electronics disclaimer in full effect). I listen at around 85 db +/-5 and the emotion and drama is all there.. even more so now that I've heard them with 300B SET amplification. But just as you would imagine, throw the coals to them and they just push you back in your seat for a thrilling ride. You're right about listening space....my space is 16x20 and I wouldn't want them in anything much smaller. I sit about twelve feet away from the speakers and the entire front half of the room is a rich sonic landscape. Get any closer than that and the presentation starts to contract and imaging gets a bit too compartmentalized. But even with stand mount designs I never get closer than eight feet as scale of presentation starts to suffer (Have you ever heard 90's in a bigger room than yours?). For this reason near-field listening has never been my cup of tea. Hello, my name is Michael and I'm addicted to scale.

I don't doubt for a second these won't be easy to send to another home, Gang, but to me they represent yet another noteworthy stop in my audio journey...a journey that has ascent as the primary objective. 19's certainly aren't a final destination for many...me included...and they've presented a challenging bar to clear. Especially since I intend to try to do it with a DIY design. Fortunately I'm able to meet the challenge with a complement of drivers that is a proven, winning combination.....and I really like the part about all the parts being brand new. As far as the looks....sure, the 19's have badass written all over them. But they don't have a monopoly on badass....I mean, I happen to think my QLS-1's and IRS Betas have the badass thing covered pretty good.

Entertaining the idea of a brief diversion with the 90's is nothing more than an exercise in exposure for me. They do some things very well, evidently. I'd like to experience what that is so my audio vocabulary is that much more rich. I know where I can hear some Bozak Concert Grands....maybe I should just arrange a listening session with those instead of making space (that I really don't have) for another set of big cabinets. :scratch2:

Haven't heard them in person, but I know the voicing (having heard it well-recorded and posted, and playing that through good headphones as well as my W90's. Tighter than the '60's Altec sound, VERY-smooth on top while also incredibly-immediate and open. Able to cut with the best of them. Great leading and trailing edge. Seamless soundstage. Very-musical. Tight, yet bouncy upper-bass. Sound about right?

You mentioned scale. My W90's did not mind a good-sized room at all. If you can put 10-12 feet between you and the W90's, you'll just be able to open them up more, and they won't mind. But they can also handle being as close as 6ft from the listener if they have oil caps. That's what oil-capping mine did for me. Now I can turn them up more and yet can also have them lower than before and have them still sound good. Maybe not with all amps/receivers, but certainly with a tube Fisher. That's one thing about old Wharfedales. They don't mind smaller rooms as much as other speakers. They were designed that way.

The W90's seem to prefer tube gear. They also prefer MUSICAL-sounding gear. That's the key to waking them up. Fisher or Leak would probably be best.

But it's true though. The original W90's and W70's with the Super 3 cone-tweeter are perfect if you want to just start digging through your music collection and pick whatever floats yer boats. That's their biggest strength. They can make more music sound like butter than probably any other speaker.

I've heard Concert Grands before. Incredible speaker. You just need like 20ft of space between them and your listening spot. Wouldn't mind some Symphonies though. I could accommodate those.

The other important thing to remember (and I think I mentioned this already) is that they need to be high enough so the tweeters are at about eye-level. Also, I prefer to toe mine in.

And remember there were different variations of them. The early to mid-period W90's had the Super 3 cone-tweeter while the W90D had a purple fried-egg-style dome-tweeter instead. All are supposed to be awesome, but I can only speak for the first version I have. You'd have fun with those if you've got the room to really open them up. They do well with the woofers moving some air.

 

[tomlinmgt]

The W90's seem to prefer tube gear. They also prefer MUSICAL-sounding gear. That's the key to waking them up. Fisher or Leak would probably be best.

Before yesterday I thought the same of Altecs. But now that I've heard the "little" Pass First Watt F5 clone I can no longer say that. So "seem to" is the most significant part of your statement....make sure you keep it there. :yes:

 

[Gang-Twanger]

Before yesterday I thought the same of Altecs. But now that I've heard the "little" Pass First Watt F5 clone I can no longer say that. So "seem to" is the most significant part of your statement....make sure you keep it there. :yes:

Well, I just say "seem to" because I don't have a wide array of gear in my possession to experiment. That said, they responded well to a musical-sounding 20wpc Radio Shack tube amp, plus they didn't mind Sansui receivers from their early solid-state era (as in the 2000x, 4000, and that sort of thing). None of my Wharfies liked my NAD amp from the early '80's. Tube Fishers are an EXCELLENT match for them, as are the old tube Leak stuff.

I've talked to people who've tried W90's and other similar-era Wharfies with Adcom amps, and the results were less than satsfactory. According to them, they could hear the potential, but Adcoms apparently aren't able to bring them to life. In other words, neutral-sounding gear just doesn't appear to be their thing (the preamp section likely being the biggest reason for this). '60's Wharfies like a juicy-sounding midrange. I mean, think about it. We're talking about British speakers from the golden age of stereo, where the 'amp sound du jour' was stuff like Quad and Leak at their juiciest, so it makes sense that they would respond well to that.

The Wharfedales with the cone-tweeters have an EL84-type sound that's similar to the Vox guitar amps used by the Beatles back in those days, and they seem to like amplification with a similar, harmonically-rich midrange like that (I have to think tube Dynacos would be a good match, but haven't heard from anyone who tried it).

Whatever the case, W90's are definitely on the list of vintage speakers most-cherished by their owners, just like the best Bozak and Altec models (I wouldn't mind owning a pair of 820 Iconics... Don't see those come up for sale very-often).

But like I said before, for me it's all about the music, and Mr. Briggs himself was ALSO a big music-lover, plus he was a musician as well, as am I (He spent his entire life searching for "the perfect piano"... Owned dozens of them over the years). And his love of music certainly influenced his speaker designs. They ooze musicality.....

The book about Gilbert Briggs and Wharfedale is great. Talks mostly about the British happenings, but still a fun read for speaker fans.

 

[tomlinmgt]

Well, I just say "seem to" because I don't have a wide array of gear in my possession to experiment. That said, they responded well to a musical-sounding 20wpc Radio Shack tube amp, plus they didn't mind Sansui receivers from their early solid-state era (as in the 2000x, 4000, and that sort of thing). None of my Wharfies liked my NAD amp from the early '80's. Tube Fishers are an EXCELLENT match for them, as are the old tube Leak stuff.

I've talked to people who've tried W90's and other similar-era Wharfies with Adcom amps, and the results were less than satsfactory. According to them, they could hear the potential, but Adcoms apparently aren't able to bring them to life. In other words, neutral-sounding gear just doesn't appear to be their thing (the preamp section likely being the biggest reason for this). '60's Wharfies like a juicy-sounding midrange. I mean, think about it. We're talking about British speakers from the golden age of stereo, where the 'amp sound du jour' was stuff like Quad and Leak at their juiciest, so it makes sense that they would respond well to that.

The Wharfedales with the cone-tweeters have an EL84-type sound that's similar to the Vox guitar amps used by the Beatles back in those days, and they seem to like amplification with a similar, harmonically-rich midrange like that (I have to think tube Dynacos would be a good match, but haven't heard from anyone who tried it).

Whatever the case, W90's are definitely on the list of vintage speakers most-cherished by their owners, just like the best Bozak and Altec models (I wouldn't mind owning a pair of 820 Iconics... Don't see those come up for sale very-often).

But like I said before, for me it's all about the music, and Mr. Briggs himself was ALSO a big music-lover, plus he was a musician as well, as am I (He spent his entire life searching for "the perfect piano"... Owned dozens of them over the years). And his love of music certainly influenced his speaker designs. They ooze musicality.....

The book about Gilbert Briggs and Wharfedale is great. Talks mostly about the British happenings, but still a fun read for speaker fans.

W90's sound like they'd respond favorably to a warm and rich tube pre (think CJ) and some class A SS power. Geez, practically everything responds favorably to that combo, come to think of it.

 

[Jcricket]

Hmmm...Guess I need to finally get off my ass and finish redoing the set of W90's I have lying around. These are the ones with the purple donut tweeters. I have a hard time believing they will sound better than my 19's. However just to throw a little gas on the fire,, head to head a pair of 604-8Gs sounded better than the 19's, at least in a smaller room....

Hey Allen,
The pair I had used the super III tweeters. Those purple jobs were always a headache, sounded good but failed a bit too much for me.

The question, "I had, did I sell the E70's" Yes, and we all do some dumb things sometimes.:sigh:

 

[Gang-Twanger]

Hey Allen,
The pair I had used the super III tweeters. Those purple jobs were always a headache, sounded good but failed a bit too much for me.

The question, "I had, did I sell the E70's" Yes, and we all do some dumb things sometimes.:sigh:

Yeah, I was shocked to hear that. Seems like it might be a great contrast to the "all or nothing" midrange performance of the Briggs-era models (What I mean is, I bet the E70 has better low-bass performance than the original, alnico W70 from the early '60's).

I personally prefer the sound of the Super 3 tweeter. People see cone-tweeter and automatically see it as a bad thing, but the Super 3 is about as right as a cone-tweeter can get. Completely-non-strident and silky-smooth (The old Jensen P35VAH was a nice cone-tweeter as well... So were the Bozak B-200x and B200y models).

The thing about the W90 version I have (the EARLIEST one that was introduced in '62), it's like a tractor beam of musicality. It definitely trades off some low-bass performance to get it, but it's the sweetest-sounding speaker I've ever heard. Coherent and full of life. You can literally listen for 24 hours nonstop if you wanted to without your ears getting tired (You'll pass out from lack of sleep before your ears get fatigued). But as far as sound, Crestwood
23 put it best. They have that old EL84-type sound heard in the old British-made Vox AC30 guitar amps of the '60's (which is why they rule on Beatles stuff). That's what they sound like at their core. The AC30 is a class A circuit that, like the old Wharfedales, is ALSO about the blessed midrange purity.

Yesterday, I spent the afternoon listening to old Sinatra LP's, and the Wharfies are so-good with that stuff, plus they rule on '60's rock/pop. I have an old Aretha Franklin best-of that comes to life through those speakers. And they're perfect for Hendrix stuff as well as old funk/soul stuff like James Brown and Isaac Hayes (or Sam & Dave, the Spinners, the Temptations, Curtis Mayfield, Marvin Gaye, Al Green, etc.). But actually, they're like that with MOST music (certainly most music made before 1995). That's why I say they might be the most-musical speakers ever made.

 

[Gang-Twanger]

W90's sound like they'd respond favorably to a warm and rich tube pre (think CJ) and some class A SS power. Geez, practically everything responds favorably to that combo, come to think of it.

Yeah, they seem to favor a warm, rich, tube/tubelike sound. For tubes, Leak, Fisher, old McIntosh, Scott, Sansui, and that sort of thiing, and for SS, anything that truly has a warm, very-tube-like sound.

Gilbert Briggs had originally wanted to use Leak amplification at those big demonstrations back in the '50's, but Harold Leake turned him down, so he went with Quad instead, which led me to believe that the old Leak gear was Briggs' favorite for powering Wharfies. And my W90's LOVE my Fisher 800C, and I get the same opinion from other Fisher/W90 owners as well. HUGE synergy (Wharfies also seem to love the old, idler-driven Dual turntables and are probably just as good with the old Lenco models).

In terms of wattage, I would stick within the 25-40wpc range. My 800C puts out 30wpc in stereo, and that seems to be perfect (My W90's are rated for 40wpc, as are the other ported/vented versions with the Super 3 tweeter... I think the later W90D model is rated for 50wpc). I heard mine with a 20wpc Radio Shack tube amp when I first auditioned them, and even that made them sound wonderful.

Regarding the Super 3 and other drivers from the Briggs era, they're very-flexible. The Super 3 works well in both upfiring and forward-firing applications, plus, the Super 3 and Super 5, as well as their midrange drivers, can be used in both vertical AND horizontal configurations. So even though some people might view the horizontal tweeter/mid-woofer/mid-woofer/tweeter array as a point of weakness, I couldn't disagree more. On the contrary, it actually is an advantage in most cases, particularly on old 16 and 24-track analog recordings with a lot of panning and/or a wide soundstage (The W90's thrive on a wide soundstage... They're especially-good with Eddie Kramer mixes with heavy panning a la Hendrix stuff or the second Zeppelin album). Mostly, I just like them because they make my favorite music sound "right". I like the classics.

According to the old literature, the W90 can be placed on it's side as well (The W60 and other similarly-shaped Wharfie models actually sound best that way, although you have to add some more height so the tweeters are still at ear-level). I tried placing my W90's on their sides when I first got them and wasn't happy with the results. However, they were just sitting on the floor when I tried this, and I think the results might be different had they been high enough off the floor so the tweeters are at ear/eye-level. I need to try it again sometime. I just need to add more height to compensate so the tweeters are still high enough (That's important to remember when placing these things... Whether horizontal or vertical, the tweeters still sound best when at ear/eye-level).

 

[Gang-Twanger]

By the way, there sure seem to be an awful lot of "****** VS ***********" threads on here lately.

I'm waiting to see a "Realistic Minimus 7 vs Pioneer BS22" thread pop up anytime soon.

 

[30hz MAGIC]

I have been hearing so much stuff about the Altec 19's on this forum, they are the talk of the town seemingly. I cannot help but picture the Altec 19's as some mastodon, juggernaut of a floor speaker for sound quality. I have seen them but never heard them.

Plus, I LOVE vs threads! This one is probably the most exciting one I have seen yet because the ever so beastly Altecs are on the contenders list!

 

[Zonker92]

I'm waiting to see a "Realistic Minimus 7 vs Pioneer BS22" thread pop up anytime soon.

Ha; I have both but haven't played them against each other.