Tannoy Westminster Royal HE


Hi, I would like to hear your opinions and comments regarding the Tannoy Westminsters. These very oldfashioned (to many: ugly) looking speakers have been quite a while, undergoing various modifications. According to some audiophiles they sound impressive. How will they sound compared to my current speakers, the Dunlavy SC-Vs? Do the Tannoys beat them in terms of sonics and sheer musicality? Do you have to drive them with single ended amplification or can they also sound good with solid state? Thx in advance.
dazzdax
On the topic of the Churchill, although it has an efficiency rating of 95dB/8Ohm, the 15-inch Dual-Concentric driver does require a little more power to coerce good levels of dynamics to fill up a medium-sized room. My Churchill Wideband can be driven very satisfactorily with 7Wpc, although I must also concede to the immense dynamics and scale of the CW when they were driven by powerful solid-state amplifiers.

On the other hand, 3Wpc is a little underwhelming for the big drivers; but the real potential of an SET of such output is predominantly dependent on the actual design of its power supply section. I've come to learn that with serious efforts in equipping the amplifier with a powerful power supply, even an SET can push a lot of speakers in a medium-sized room, including the Churchill Wideband.

Constantine Soo
Publisher, Dagogo
These were Cary 2A3SE monoblocks. It surprised me that they were able to develop big bass with the Churchhills (suggesting that the 3W amps were up to the job) and yet the whole presentation was discontinuous and not very musical. It was a long time ago, however, and memory is weak. I would only suggest that Dazzdax not become too enamoured of horns viewed from afar; the Dunlavy V is a very different animal and the large Tannoys leave a large footprint after international delivery.
Does anyone care to comment or happen to know if this cabinet is vented on the front corners w/45 degree angles similar to the "Onken" vents? It does seem curiously familiar...
I just heard this speaker for the first time yesterday.

I used to own the Tannoy Arden,which also uses a 15 inch concentric,but that's about where the similarities end.

This speaker is in a whole other zone.

I heard it driven with a 17 watt el84 push pull tube amp, I believe from DIY audio kit.

More than enough power to drive the speakers, and the sound in a medium sized room was very good.

There's nothing lacking with these speakers.

They are speakers you can sit back and just ooze into the music.

Nothing about their sound shouts out "I'm atweeter hear me soar, I'm a woofer hear me roar".

No, the music is all you notice and isn't that the way things should be?

So, for the flash bang,knock my socks off ,these speakers rock types,they may sound different than what those folks have been raised on.

But I think one listen on these with any type of music could convert anyone over to them.

I bought my Acoustat X monitors from the same fellow who owns Westminsters, and I can understand why ,as good as they are, the X's went and the Tannoys stayed.

Then again, at over 300lbs a piece,there might be other reasons.

But all joking aside, these speakers are not a joke,don't let their pipe and slippers look divert you away from these if you are considering a truly great speaker to hold onto and enjoy music with for a very long time.

If I were at the beginning and not the end of my audio journey, I would buy these, a good amp and front end and never look elsewhere for decades.
Here in Scottsdale, Arizona, there is a music museum with a small auditorium where concerts are performed. Luckily, they use Tannoy speakers for sound reinforcement, and I truely am in awe of the sound. Instruments on stage sound exactly like they're supposed to....astounding dynamic contrasts, etc. I don't know the electronics they are using, but it really does work. The big concert hall in Phoenix has the very worst sounding system I have ever heard. I have written to them asking for improvements, but I fear it has landed on deaf ears.