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Better than Tannoys...?

Rockmeister

Rockmeister

pfm Member
I have a thread open about powering Tannoys and another about building some, so it's not hard to predict this one coming.
Mostly because I have only ever heard one set of Tannoys that I loved and those were Pete's (I should Coco, from the Wigwam) at Scalford one year driven by a valve amp he had made. They were BIG (about Canterbury sized IIRC) which I can't repeat. I briefly heard the Legacy Ardens at a dealer some months back and enjoyed those, and to replace my Harbeth sHL5+ Anniversaries, I am seeking something more 'present', with a softer top end, an amazing mid and with whatever bass there is well defined which should = Tannoys, but before I commit either a large wad of cash, or some serious months work building on Tannoys I wanted to ask...
That kind of sound, for that kind of money (used included) what else should I be hearing?
My own list had Snell type A's , but they are just too huge for this room.
 
They will be more money, but an obvious answer would be the new Fyne Audio. They are serious cash for the 700 series (Althought I believe the 502 SP 10" floorstander might be affordable) but they might have the same jump n' fun factor but a bit more refinement and detail given the designers' pedigrees.

That being said I thought the ardens were excellent. Basically poor-man's Canterburys. If you have the room, it's the kind of speaker you happily never look to upgrade from. How many pieces can you say that about?
 
You mentioned the large Snells so what about some Audionotes, even the Es aren't that big? I "only" have AN-K but, for me, they do all that you say with no harsh top and enough bass and of course Es or Js would give more....
 
Scotty, the A's are about the same size as the pic above! I've owned Snell J's and heard E's more times than....hence why I now own Harbs, which I prefer. On paper I agree they kind of do sound like I have described but they don't quite have the presence...that feeling of the performer and acoustic being right there in front of you in the room.
And as to Yams Early, I only heard them back when they were new and do recall liking them...maybe I should try again? Not too sure if they are not a bit 'monitor' y ?
 
Rock,

That's what in talkin' 'bout. Make one more and you've got yourself a pair.

Joe
 
Rockmeister said:
I briefly heard the Legacy Ardens at a dealer some months back and enjoyed those, and to replace my Harbeth sHL5+ Anniversaries, I am seeking something more 'present', with a softer top end, an amazing mid and with whatever bass there is well defined which should = Tannoys,
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I've not heard the more recent DC variants but if you're looking for a smooth top end and are very strict about this requirement, then vintage Tannoy DCs with pepperpot may not fit the bill. They have a rising HF response when listened to on-axis, which is easily fixed with toe-in/toe-out so that the listening position is off-axis. However the HF response in general is also a bit ragged compared to conventional dome tweeters, at least that's what my measurements of several pairs of MGs and HPDs suggest, and my ears are inclined to agree. I still think it's an itch you probably need to scratch though!
 
Joe P said:
I'm afraid nothing is better than Tannoys.
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The guys behind Fyne would disagree with you. They are ex Tannoy designers and engineers who left because of the takeover by Beresford. They've been able to build on what they knew at Tannoy and implement ideas that didn't fit I with the Tannoy brand image. I've only heard one pair of Fyne speakers but they were darn good! Incredibly good for the money I fact.
 
Mr. Pig,

I need to work on my delivery, or at least insert a YouTube vid of a drum kit when I'm being tongue-in-cheek.

My Tannoys are ancient. They date to 1958 or maybe 1959, so waaaaaaay before the takeover by Behringer. My speakers are so British that they eat biscuits and take afternoon tea at 4 p.m. every day.

• • • •

Rock,

I'm afraid nothing is better than my Tannoys. The choice is simple — you either buy a ginormous pair like mine or you live in misery until you shuffle off this immortal coil.


Joe
 
I have heard big Tannoys at dealers and in theatres only. The thing that struck me each time is the papery colouration. Perhaps 'at home' this would be less problematic for classical music. Are some of the smaller woofers plastic based? That colouration I am used to.
 
Mr Pig said:
The guys behind Fyne would disagree with you. They are ex Tannoy designers and engineers who left because of the takeover by Beresford. They've been able to build on what they knew at Tannoy and implement ideas that didn't fit I with the Tannoy brand image. I've only heard one pair of Fyne speakers but they were darn good! Incredibly good for the money I fact.
Click to expand...
Beresford didn't take over Tannoy, Behringer (The Music Group) did.
 
Rockmeister said:
Mostly because I have only ever heard one set of Tannoys that I loved and those were Pete's (I should Coco, from the Wigwam) at Scalford one year driven by a valve amp he had made. They were BIG (about Canterbury sized IIRC) which I can't repeat. I briefly heard the Legacy Ardens at a dealer some months back and enjoyed those, and to replace my Harbeth sHL5+ Anniversaries, I am seeking something more 'present', with a softer top end, an amazing mid and with whatever bass there is well defined which should = Tannoys, but before I commit either a large wad of cash, or some serious months work building on Tannoys I wanted to ask...
Click to expand...

I suspect most of us who really love Tannoys use very big ones. Joe and I both have 15” models in huge cabinets, and for me at least it is here that they come into their own and do things that smaller speakers just can’t dream of. The Tannoy thing isn’t really a ‘hyper detail’ thing, more a broad-brush approach that brings a near life-size sense of scale, dynamics and realism. They just sound ‘right’ and do so with such authority, but if you really want to pick a recording apart or just have another perspective they may not be the only thing you need. There is a reason many of us love little mini-monitors (LS3/5As, JR149s etc) too.

Proper big Tannoys from the Monitor Gold range onwards have useful level and roll-off controls, so setting the treble response to your taste is pretty easy. I’d not worry about that aspect at all. The ones that don’t are the uber-collectable/expensive earlier Reds, Silvers etc, and you likely won’t be going there as a first step.

As with every walk in life some folk are just plain wrong, and this includes some oddballs who for some inexplicable reason don’t like Tannoys. As such definitely try to hear a good well setup pair before committing as good ones cost proper money (though hold their value very well indeed even proving very good investments).
 
Mr Pig said:
The guys behind Fyne would disagree with you. They are ex Tannoy designers and engineers who left because of the takeover by Beresford. They've been able to build on what they knew at Tannoy and implement ideas that didn't fit I with the Tannoy brand image. I've only heard one pair of Fyne speakers but they were darn good! Incredibly good for the money I fact.
Click to expand...

The far east manufactured Fyne (F500 range and below) are ok but a match for vintage Tannoy's could be their F1.
I've only heard them at shows, not sure I like the looks (everyday)
 
Rockmeister said:
I have a thread open about powering Tannoys and another about building some, so it's not hard to predict this one coming.
Mostly because I have only ever heard one set of Tannoys that I loved and those were Pete's (I should Coco, from the Wigwam) at Scalford one year driven by a valve amp he had made. They were BIG (about Canterbury sized IIRC) which I can't repeat. I briefly heard the Legacy Ardens at a dealer some months back and enjoyed those, and to replace my Harbeth sHL5+ Anniversaries, I am seeking something more 'present', with a softer top end, an amazing mid and with whatever bass there is well defined which should = Tannoys, but before I commit either a large wad of cash, or some serious months work building on Tannoys I wanted to ask...
That kind of sound, for that kind of money (used included) what else should I be hearing?
My own list had Snell type A's , but they are just too huge for this room.
Click to expand...
Zingali Home Monitors are great with valves mine are the 2.10 . 2 10inch drivers a horn in the middle. They give out a huge sound stage with singers in the room. None brightness. They come in lots of sizes bbelow 10 right up to 15inch drivers. The Music Room Glasgow are the only uk dealer I know of. Gorgeous build quality also they are Italian .
 
Having owned multiple Tannoy D.C. speakers in all sizes and flavours up to TW Stirlings, before being seduced by electrostatics, I would tend to endorse Tony's erudite assessment. They can sound impressive and very 'musical' but are ultimately coloured in terms of presentation. They tell the listener 'white lies' as opposed to the more tonally accurate and 'truthful' transducers that some favour.
 
I have heard a lot of Tannoys and have oft been disappointed - it is just a taste thing so if they meet yours, I suspect little else will do.
If I were looking for a big sound with a smooth top end, I would probably look at the Spendor 100 that is for sale now on one of the forums. I was very impressed as I have been with the quality and smoothness of the tweeter in the Celestion A series speakers. If you have the room, a pair of A3 may fit the bill. I do like my vintage JBL too and the NS1000M has already been mentioned but I do feel the latter is more present in the top end than the OP would wish.
 
I've actually never understood the argument about the tonal inaccuracy of the tannoys. Everytime I've heard a pair (and I owned 15" monitor golds in belvedere cabs for 2 years before STUPIDLY selling them....STUPID....STUPID...STUPID...) and they were quite fine in terms of tonal balance and presentation of instrumental sound. They are a bit "shouty" in the mids and upper mids, but not terribly so and I don't consider that to be a tonal thing I consider it to be a presentation thing. And as to Tony's comments above about the "big brush" it's part and parcel; they sort of 'push' the sound out at you in a way that once heard, is addictive. And it applies to so many styles of music. It's engaging. Occasionally you'll walk into someone's place with a narrow-baffle monitor with no waveguide and heard what you're missing in that regard.....and feel sad for roughly 3-5 seconds before feeling sorry for your friend who is missing out on what YOU have.

I'd call kans or briks about 300 times more tonally inaccurate than DC's (and I love both those speakers too for different reasons). They tend to have a bit of a pushy midrange and upper mids, but it's not tonally whacked.
 
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