I don't know the model you refer to. You should dig around in the archives (i.e. do a search) on the High Efficiency Speakers board at AudioAsylum.com or better yet at the Lansing forum at audioheritage.org (for all thingsLansing, Altec, and JBL). FWIW, I have a pair of the Altec 19s Xiekitchen mentions. They are great with tubes, and probably much better in a big space than a small one. My feeling is that they could be better with a bit more emphasis in the top octave (supertweeter territory) but they great as is. |
I'm familiar with them. They were a 1971 model, an "oversized bookshelf" of approx. 25"x14"x12"d. The 890C consists of a 10" woofer and matching 10" passive radiator (Altec called it a free suspension phase inverter) and a small rectangular (about 2"x6") aluminum horn packing a compression driver. Crossover is 2000 Hz. Picture here and specs from catalog here. My first stereo was an Altec 911A compact. I bought from an Altec dealer and listened to several Altec speakers. I had a pair of 874A Segovias for a couple weeks followed by a pair of 887A Capris, which I kept for a few years. The Segovia was their top-of-the-line oversized bookshelf speaker. It was a great-sounding speaker for its time, all direct radiators and also very sensitive. The 890C was in a similar-sized enclosure and was a notch down in the model lineup, but was largely ignored. I remember auditioning the 890C and thought it sounded awful. It is really a 10" 2-way with a crossover at 2000Hz, a configuration no one would ever do today, as the high crossover frequency causes the 10" to lose all dispersion above 1K, imparting a thin, nasal, honky sound. The Segovia was a much better speaker, but it's 4 ohms. Actually, although the little 887A wasn't as sensitive and didn't go as low, it had a much more accurate tonal balance and consistent dispersion pattern than the 890A. Still, it sounded best with a high current SS amp. I find it telling that the 890A was introduced in the 1971 catalog and didn't even make it to the 1974 catalog, while the much more expensive Segovia (about $560/pr in 1972 dollars) was still in the lineup. For anyone interested in vintage Altec or JBL speakers, I've found this web page invaluable. There are far better speakers from that era than the 890C. |
Altec's claim to fame was their VOT speaker systems, aimed at auditorium use. We had several such units in our psychoacoutics lab, and I had one at home for a time. IIRC, the HF sectorial horn came in 2 sizes with 2 different drivers, one for 500 Hz and a smaller unit for 800 Hz crossover. For home use, if you want vintage horn I'd look to JBL or Klipsh. You should definitely listen first, because horns are not kind to all sounds, especially voices, but they do project like crazy and will do a fantastic job with the horns in Aida. db |
