Allison Three Speakers. Anyone still have them or used to have them?

[TLS Guy]

Explains why they fit exactly in the corners , now days subwoofers have replaced that job so main speakers can focus more on vocals and content rather then just bass. I’d definitely look into some modern speakers and maybe add a subwoofer if possible. I have them hooked to my tv for cable /movies etc , music shows like the voice etc .
unfortunately my dads not a fan of speakers so there’s one tv room with none hooked up, my room is on the opposite wall. So my sound during loud commercials sometimes bleeds into the next room .

Yes, a corner location was common for the first 40 Years of audio. The Voight corner horn of the thirties was corner loaded. That was the world's first Hi-Fi speaker.

Its descendants are the speakers from Lowther, still in business and the world's oldest H-Fi speaker company.

From the US we have the Klipschorn

And of course Tannoy again UK

All the above are horn loaded speakers. Horns have to go in the corner, as F3 is directly related to the width of the horn mouth and so the corner becomes an extension of the horn mouth.

Gilbert Briggs, GAB as he was affectionately known, and founder of Wharfedale, designed a ported three way speaker known as the Airedale back in the fifties. It was very popular speaker.

I designed a corner speaker as a "nod" to GAB, for the living room of our home in Grand Forks. The build was 1979. We sold them with the house in 2008.

So those Allison speakers for their time they were nothing unusual

 

[Kvn_Walker]

I had a pair of CD9's (bought twice and sold twice) and a pair of Allison Ones.

Those speakers were ahead of their time. The stage and image were incredible and their radiation pattern meant they weren't extremely fussy about placement. They might not have the bass or the crystal clear dynamics of more modern speakers but few that I've heard can sound as "3D" as a pair of Allison's. Not to mention the space you save by putting them against the walls.

Roy Allison solved problems 40 years ago that many manufacturers today keep creating for themselves.

 

[crazyfingers]

OK so here is a question. Are there speakers made now that are designed to sit in the room corners like the Allisons?

 

[TLS Guy]

OK so here is a question. Are there speakers made now that are designed to sit in the room corners like the Allisons?

The only two I know of are the Lowther TP2. You would have to import from the UK and they are expensive.

The other is the Klipschorn AK6 which will cost you around 20K for a pair.

However you could build a pair. Back in 1959 Paul Klipsch published a paper in the AES journal saying that corners were an optimal placement for speakers.

When I designed mine, the results were actually good, and I really enjoyed those speakers for nearly thirty years. Imaging was not pin point, but they filled the room evenly, had a really nice bass and were enjoyable. We used to enjoy listening to the Friday night Minnesota Orchestra live broadcasts on Friday evenings, by a nice roaring log fire in the cold North Dakota winters.

So the design is very much akin to designing for in wall. There is much greater bass reinforcement as the front of the bass driver has a significant degree of front horn loading.

The speaker is totally cardioid in radiation, as there is only forward radiation. The reflection pattern is a bit chaotic as you might expect, as the reflections are coming from boundaries at a 45 degree angle to each side of the speaker baffle. So you are not going to get outstanding imaging. Like every endeavor there are upsides and downsides. I can tell you they are far from the disaster that many proclaim them to be. I can tell you that if it is a music only system and you choose a good bass driver, you will not need a sub. Those speakers of mine in the picture had KEF B 139 drivers, and I can tell you that the bass was deep with great authority and they never lacked for bass in any way at all.

So, yes it is possible, but it is not fashionable, and if you want to go that route it will mean DIY.

 

[Eppie]

Tannoy also had the Autograph series but the Mini only goes down to about 100Hz so a subwoofer would definitely be needed. My father inherited a corner cabinet that was a unique DIY build. Looked similar to the Klipschorn except that the woofer was downward firing and the chamber opened up to the back of the cabinet and the cabinet had an open back. The builder used Electrovoice drivers and crossovers and the midrange and tweeter were both horns and the woofer was a 15" Electrovoice. Driven by a Scott kit tube amp. Sounded pretty amazing actually. Really wish I had some detailed photos of that design.

 

[crazyfingers]

Having listened to the Allison's a lot recently, especially with the new NAD preamp which is better than the old Adcom, I don't think it's wise or practical to think about replacing them now or in the medium term. The Allisons sound as good or better than they ever did and finding something that will go in the area available would be really hard I think.

And as I mentioned, I don't turn them up as high as I used to when I was younger. Then I'd have the Carver lights brushing the top LED. Now I rarely have them three lights up. There are 6.

And here is my room. It's the basement and It's not just mine. Unforunately, stuff flows downhill and It's work just to keep the area around the speakers clear.

The room was once a 2 car garage but is now a finished basement. Only about 60% of the room is shown here.

The TV is out of view on the right side wall. It's impractical to use the stereo for the TV audio. Maybe I'll think about something better than a soundbar and subwoofer for the TV for the rare times that I stream concerts.

 

[TLS Guy]

Having listened to the Allison's a lot recently, especially with the new NAD preamp which is better than the old Adcom, I don't think it's wise or practical to think about replacing them now or in the medium term. The Allisons sound as good or better than they ever did and finding something that will go in the area available would be really hard I think.

And as I mentioned, I don't turn them up as high as I used to when I was younger. Then I'd have the Carver lights brushing the top LED. Now I rarely have them three lights up. There are 6.

And here is my room. It's the basement and It's not just mine. Unforunately, stuff flows downhill and It's work just to keep the area around the speakers clear.

The room was once a 2 car garage but is now a finished basement. Only about 60% of the room is shown here.View attachment 61690

The TV is out of view on the right side wall. It's impractical to use the stereo for the TV audio. Maybe I'll think about something better than a soundbar and subwoofer for the TV for the rare times that I stream concerts.

That is a large space, and I would be afraid you are pushing those Allison speakers pretty hard. When they fail if you want better speakers in the same location, I think that would have to be a custom DIY project.

That is one of the great advantages of DIY, it allows you to design for situations not covered by commercial companies.

 

[crazyfingers]

That is a large space, and I would be afraid you are pushing those Allison speakers pretty hard. When they fail if you want better speakers in the same location, I think that would have to be a custom DIY project.

That is one of the great advantages of DIY, it allows you to design for situations not covered by commercial companies.

The whole room is yes. But that photo is also distorted. This is more like where I listen and typically the Carver isn't showing any movement in the levels. The two lowest lights are steady and no upper lights going on.

 

[lovinthehd]

The whole room is yes. But that photo is also distorted. This is more like where I listen and typically the Carver isn't showing any movement in the levels. The two lowest lights are steady and no upper lights going on.

View attachment 61700

Oh, you need to explain this photo a lot more

 

[crazyfingers]

Oh, you need to explain this photo a lot more

I could name off all the places the cats sleep i see 11 places in the bottom photo. There is one cat in the photo.

 

[lovinthehd]

I could name off all the places the cats sleep i see 11 places in the bottom photo. There is one cat in the photo.

Damn, wasn't even thinking cats. Won't allow them on my property personally. I at least found a way from stopping them from shitting in my flower beds.

 

[crazyfingers]

What would you like to know about my mess?

 

[TLS Guy]

What would you like to know about my mess?

Probably the less the better.

 

[Kingnoob]

I could name off all the places the cats sleep i see 11 places in the bottom photo. There is one cat in the photo.

I couldn’t find the cat , we’re do you sit to listening to these speakers or do you crank them up and just listen from anywhere?
you could fit anything in that room even cinema-speakers .

 

[isolar8001]

I couldn’t find the cat , we’re do you sit to listening to these speakers or do you crank them up and just listen from anywhere?
you could fit anything in that room even cinema-speakers .

The cat is on the shelf in the upper right corner.

 

[crazyfingers]

I couldn’t find the cat , we’re do you sit to listening to these speakers or do you crank them up and just listen from anywhere?
you could fit anything in that room even cinema-speakers .

I mainly sit at my desk. It's nearly centered as the pillars are the center. And I'm I estimate that I'm a little closer to either speaker than the speakers are to each other. I really don't need to crank them at all.

If I really want as close to perfection as I can I stand in front of the desk in front of a pillar but making sure the telescope doesn't block line of sight to the tweeter on the left.

Are you wondering something?

 

[crazyfingers]

The cat is on the shelf in the upper right corner.

That is actually a wooden blue cat sculpture.

The real cat is partly behind the telescope on the couch pillows below the light blue winter coat.

 

[crazyfingers]

I do love this room. This is the back with a bathroom, bar and the utilities. The gas burner and HVAC fans get in the way of listening sometimes. It's all still beautiful though now concealed behind clutter.

Stairs up to the kitchen. From 1999.

Is there a listing room topic where I can see your rooms?

 

[isolar8001]

That is actually a wooden blue cat sculpture.

The real cat is partly behind the telescope on the couch pillows below the light blue winter coat.

Hey..it's still a cat. I like fudge by the way. (reward?)

 

[crazyfingers]

Oh I forgot to mention that I did get to talk with the manager there who sold me the Allison's about 1978. He didn't remember me of course. He's had a bazillion customers. But I recognized him. He asked me how the Allison's were doing so I told him they are still great.