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Loudspeakers have we really made that much progress since the 1930s?

Since I have a slight grasp on the history or loudspeaker design. And what is possible with modern. I do wonder if we have really made that much progress. I have access to some of the most modern transducers and design equipment. I also have  large collection of vintage.  I tend to spend the most time listening to my 1930 Shearer horns. For they do most things a good bit better than even the most advanced loudspeakers available. And I am not the only one to think so I have had a good num of designers retailers etc give them a listen. Sure weak points of the past are audible. These designs were meant to cover frequency ranges at the time. So adding a tweeter moves them up to modern performance. To me the tweeter has shown the most advancement in transducers but not so much the rest. Sure things are smaller but they really do not sound close to the Shearer.  http://www.audioheritage.org/html/profiles/lmco/shearer.htm
128x128johnk
larryi
4,047 posts
 

Sal,

Your experience is very much like mine.  I did not like the sound of Klipshorns and most of the Altec systems I heard.  I got interested in horns after hearing a pretty decent sounding Edgarhorn system.  I am now a fan, and owner of a system that mixes modern (but old school) drivers with Western Electric compression midrange and horn. 


There are many other examples of vintage horn and non-horn gear that are also VERY good, such as Jensen fieldcoil direct radiators, IPC compression drivers, RCA compression drivers, Japanese Western Electric replica drivers, and a lot of other similar gear, that would surely surprise a lot of people if only they had a chance to hear the stuff.

I sort of agree with you on the Classic Audio fieldcoil speakers.  I think they are interesting, but, they are not quite my taste.  The Avant Garde systems I heard were also nice, but, not quite what I wanted either.  I heard a nice Goto system, but it cost more than a nice house.

whart's avatar
whart
3,050 posts
 
@salectric --which compression driver for the Altec? And if a modern paper cone woofer, which one? And what do you do for a X-over? The WE stuff is too recherché, but doing this with a bit of Frankenstein-ing might be cost-effective. 
TIA,
bill hart
salectric
755 posts
 
Whart,

I use an Altec 802-8G compression driver on the 32A horn.  Woofer is a Jensen P15LL which is a 15" with paper cone.  Both drivers have Alnico magnets.  The drivers and horn date from the 1970s, I believe, but are still available on Ebay at reasonable prices.  The drivers and horns are just the raw materials, however; the trick to getting them to sound so good is the crossover.  I have spent way too much time getting the crossover just the way I like it, but I am happy to provide details to anyone who is interested.  Just send me a message through the Agon email system. 
larryi
4,047 posts
 
The 802 driver is a very nice compression driver.  I too like the old school paper cone woofers with alnico magnets and pleated surrounds.  To me, these low compliance  woofers deliver better "tone" for bass, even though they cannot go quite as low and deliver the same kind of punch as modern woofers.  My speaker utilizes a modern version of old school woofers; it has two 12" pape- coned, alnico magnet drivers and has a pleated fabric surround. 
salectric
755 posts
 
Larry,

Yes, there is something about the old school paper cone woofers.  The Jensens may not go as deep as modern woofers or have the same impact, at least in my bass reflex cabinets, but they somehow are able to blend seamlessly with the 32 horn and compression driver to create a coherent sound source. 

Coherency is one of my top criteria for judging speakers.  I want a speaker to sound like a single full-range speaker, not a 2-way or 3-way.  If this means giving up some extension in the bass or the highs, that's an acceptable tradeoff for me.   
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