Tannoy?

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. 

However, I fell head over heels over the System 10DMT.

LOL! that's the exact speaker that I have in one of my systems - the DMT10 Mk2 (I realize you really liked the rev1 version of this speaker). like skoczylas i will not part with this speaker willingly. It does not have any WAF but, boy, is it a really good speaker to listen to or what? Easy to drive (really flat impedance curve) & being a dual concentric the radiation pattern is 90 degrees from the cone thus the soundstage does not change even a little bit whether i stand or sit on the floor & listen. It's really a superb speaker that will take on many other speakers in the market many more times its own cost....
Ignore this brand at your own peril. 

It is a shame that Tannoy does not get the press or acclaim they should. I have owned a pair of Westminsters and loved them. They ended up being too big for the room they were in but I also have a pair of Definition D700's for going on a dozen years now and really have no intention of selling them, I still love their sound.

I once visited a dealer who is close to me, about 60 miles away, and he had a pair of Canterburys set up, which is a step down from their top of the line, and the sounded very hi-fi-ish. I know it was the set-up but if that was the impression a dealer was giving to prospective customers, then its no wonder they don't get the accolades the brand deserves.

Mike