Tannoy?

Tannoy are quite reputed for their speakers. Apart from their Westminster, Canterbury, etc (I remember ogling over as a kid) they now have a series called TD(?) with dual-concentric drivers (mid-bass) and hi-rez tweets on them. I heard one of these models, the 12 (if memory serves) that I assume is the biggest... It was beautifully finished and sounded very good, very musical, phase correct (as far as I could tell) & quite "full-range". Don't know about the pricing though -- I think it's expensive...

Tannoys are overall my favorite loudspeaker. Very accurate and smooth, but exciting as well. Noted throughout the recording industry for accuracy, they're also known to be "easy on the ears," that is, they don't fatigue the listener. The dual concentrics are also noted for their excellent imaging properties-the single point-source thing. A pleasure to listen to-I find it very easy to become engrossed in the music and forget about the gear, which to me is the ultimate goal. As a musician, I prefer the single point source loudspeaker over the multi-way reflective speakers, but then, although I listen a lot for enjoyment, it's all critical listening to a large extent. I don't have music on as "background;" if music is on, I listen to it. N.B.-This is not any sort of negative comment towards folks who like music playing in the background. As a matter of fact, I think for people who enjoy music playing for ambience, there are undoubtedly better loudspeakers, because in my experience, single-point style speakers seem to require the listener to be in a certain spot, or focal point, whereas the reflective speakers "fill" the room with sound, which many like. Along the same lines, many Altecs (the older ones, when Altec was still on its own) are excellent, too. BTW, Tannoy is still winning new friends in the recording industry; their inexpensive litte powered two-ways are regarded by many as the best "budget" monitor. Anyway, Tannoys are fine speakers-if you still had your Devons, I'd bet you'd still like them, if you like the conventional style of speaker.

tannoy is probably the largest and oldest brand that I have never had an opportunity to give a serious listen to.  On paper, I like them a lot.

Wondering if people in US find them a worthwhile value these days?  

I've followed Tannoy line for many years,

The higher end tannoys, i.e. those having 10" drivers and bigger, are best suited to larger  spaces.

They can be a little challenging to setup, but very rewarding once good setup is acnieved. Toe-in is important and acute.

Even those models with the smaller 6" drivers can present problems especially if acoustic room treatments have not been dealt with.

Compared to more "modern" designs many models appear a little "old school" but with all things in audio - let your ears be the judge.

If you compared them to other speakers in the same snack bracket on sound quality alone you might be surprised at performance level of the Tannoys. They often  better many higher priced brands/models.

I own various Mercury models for use in my A/V system simply because they offered the best bang for the buck.

I often listen to larger models at a local audio store and am still amazed at the superb reproduction qualities of solo vocal and full  orchestral tracks - which I believe demonsrates their ability to handle acoustic subtleties, whilst being very adept at  maintaining clarity as  the decibels climb.

They are pretty efficient, so matching to amps is relitivelly problem free, but there are some amps that seem to dislike them, so do your research.

A Comment from my local tannoy store owner...

"Tannoys tend to be the last speaker we sell to our customers"

Hope that helps

Good question and something I have wondered about also.

I own vintage Tannoy HPDs in new custom made cabinets. I would not part with them willingly. They are extremely musical and a pure joy to listen to for a range of music - from jazz to rock to classical. They don't sound great on pop or electronica - but many hi fi speakers do not. They also have a unique characteristic of sounding great with many amps - they are the least amp dependent speaker I have heard. This is not to say amps don't matter - just that the amps I have tried don't change the sound as much as they do on other speakers I am familiar with. 

I think viggen makes many good points about the lack of push, pull, marketing and demand. I will add to his analysis that if we were to put speakers on a scale from 'musical to clinical' Tannoys are generally on the 'musical' side. Listening for a long period of time, I can't say the sound is exactly rolled off, but it is somehow more musical and warm than clinical or detail oriented. That said, the image very well - perhaps artificially well with a 3D effect at times in the right set up. Right now, most hi fi shops, magazines and many listeners in America seem to focus on the other end of the spectrum - with lots of emphasis on detail. For this reason, I think Tannoys will not be popular in America right now.

As to the new ones vs. vintage ones - the vintage are truly special. They aren't for everyone, but if you like what they do well (musical, 3d sound, soundstage, beautiful mids), they are hard to beat. The new ones I have more limited experience with, and they are expensive. I would probably go with Harbeth if I were to purchase new speakers in that price range - but Tannoy is a close second. They both have that magic I find lacking in a lot of new speakers that are popular in America these days.