Vintage Speaker Rant

[DaveHo]

I frequently peruse the usual online sources for vintage speakers. Mostly stuff from the 80's that I drooled over as a teenager, but could never afford. Occasionally, I'll find a good deal & pick up a pair to give a listen to.

I'm constantly amazed at the great length some people will go to to **** up what used to be a great pair of speakers. Usually it'll be replacing the woofers with some generic replacement when all they needed was a refoam. Although I recently came across one that I think takes the cake. Someone decided to shoehorn a midrange driver into a classic pair of 2-way Advents. No telling how they wired it up. Sometimes I have to restrain myself from e-mailing these people to ***** them out for being such morons.

-Dave

 

[DD66000]

Then there are those of us who take a top of line speaker of the day, and make it better.
original

updated to mirror image and high end custom crossovers, also mounted on top of sub

 

[Midcow2]

I am from the Vintage age

I frequently peruse the usual online sources for vintage speakers. Mostly stuff from the 80's that I drooled over as a teenager, but could never afford. .... -Dave

I just wish I were just a teenager in the 80s. I think speakers back then we full-range because they only had two channel stereo and no subwoofers. You have to alsoremeber the input was not digital, you had reel-to-reel, stero receivers and 78 nad 45 rpm records. A lot of the material used to make speakers and enclosures have deteriorated.

In my personal opinion we have come a long ways forward in technology and audio science in the last 30 years and most vintage speakers have beensuperceded in quality of sound.

JMHO yours may vary ... However my Marantz 1060 is still kicking strong and I bought it new in 73. The speakers failed, then they failed as end tables and now they are gone.

Cheers,

MidCow2

MidCow2

 

[DD66000]

There have subs since the '70s. That pic I showed was of two 3-way towers and the sub in the middle.
As far as today's speakers being better, not always. A top end speaker then is still better than many speakers of today.