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Spendor SP1 question(s)

How about constructing some from Dexion Speedframe? Not terribly cheap, but it should be possible to make a pair of stands for around £100.
 
I used Speedframe back in the late ‘70s to make a pair of stands for my BC1s. They worked well until I could afford
Spendor stands.
I still have them, complete with castors.
 
I'd keep my eyes peeled for some old BC1 stands, I've seen them crop up on ebay. Alternatively one of those generic stands that 70's speakers used - the ones that often had castors. I have some here, under my speakers.
 
The man at Spendor was scathing about the original Spendor stands on castors.

Dexion Speedrame seems quite expensive to me, maybe I’m not looking in the right place.
 
I have my Spendor's on some "Custom Design" brand stands which do have an open frame top. About 14" high, which looks proportioned correctly etc but could really do with being a fair bit higher (20") for best results.
 
Ha! Look what I’ve just bought for £25

9-EF56-BFB-C563-46-FE-844-D-2-A80-D1-A656-BF.jpg


Made by Apollo. 50cm high, the platter at the top is smaller that the bases of the speakers, so the side walls are free to vibrate in tune with the fundamental harmony of the universe if they want.

And you know what, I may be kidding myself but I think the image is better than it was before!

I’m not using spikes (I took them off when they were in the car.) Anyone got any opinions about that?

They look too high, but being and ESL owner I’m kind of reconciled to that sort of thing now.
 
Nice! I reckon that's about the right height for them acoustically even if it looks a bit "awkward".
I'd get them right out of those corners and a metre of so from any wall though! I'd expect them to sound rather unhappy where they are. I have BC2's myself and have long term experience with SP1's after two good friends at the time both used them for 5 years or more. I know from experience that they are very much a free space design! Same applies to the 770's BTW.
 
The man at Spendor was scathing about the original Spendor stands on castors.

Dexion Speedframe seems quite expensive to me, maybe I’m not looking in the right place.

The man at Spendor can be scathing about the original stands with castors, but I need them to pull my
BC1s out into the room.
 
I'd get them right out of those corners and a metre of so from any wall though! I'd expect them to sound rather unhappy where they are. I have BC2's myself and have long term experience with SP1's after two good friends at the time both used them for 5 years or more. I know from experience that they are very much a free space design! Same applies to the 770's BTW.

This was a bit of very sound advice so thanks for mentioning it. Unwelcome though it was, because it makes them hard to place in that room.

They're now in a different place and responding very happily to the distance from the wall, and also to the Electrocompaniet.
 
When I started this thread it was because

Someone is offering to sell me some SP1s and I'm tempted. He says he bought them 15 years ago from the person who commissioned them from Spendor, and they have never been modified or serviced since.

The seller said that he bought them from an "engineer" who

some bloke on ebay said:
DESIGNED AND BUILT THE VERY SPECIAL INERT STANDS.


and when asked about size he informed me that

some bloke on ebay said:
THE SPENDOR SP1 IS 635 X 300 X 300 MM., 840 MM. HEIGHT ON THE STANDS


Hence the stands, the special stands, the magic stands, are 200mm high.

Now I know that this sounds as though it's going to be too close to the floor to work, that the bass will boom. But nothing ventured nothing gained, I have a pair of stands designed for ESL 63s which are doing nothing, they're not

some bloke on ebay said:
VERY SPECIAL INERT STANDS.


but they are 200mm high.

So far so good, no obvious ill effects and it is at least a more acceptable interior design solution.
 
I find with my BC2's that the tweeter really needs to be at ear level or a touch higher for best sound. It's not a night and day difference but everything kind of snaps into a bit better focus and tonal balance.
I've noticed a few old pics of similar BBC speakers actually in use at BBC and noted that they are often on what looks like unfeasibly tall stands by normal domestic standards....
 
I've noticed a few old pics of similar BBC speakers actually in use at BBC and noted that they are often on what looks like unfeasibly tall stands by normal domestic standards....

Wouldn't that be because they have to be above the level of the meter bridge of the mixing desk?
 
A pic would be much appreciated!

Of course if the issue is tweeter height rather than floor resonance, then the problem’s easily solved by sawing off the legs of my chairs.
 
Here’s the SP1s on ESL 63 stands, very nice sound and very acceptable design solution, I plan to reduce the size of the shelf of the stands tomorrow so you won’t see them.

9-D3-F034-E-B5-B3-4-C65-9-BE5-3-AD166-E729-D1.jpg
 
Interestingly, they look more or less the same height as the old BC1 stands :)!
I used to use Rogers Studio 1's (same dims as BC1/SP1) and preferred them just slightly higher, on stands about 40cm.
 
I find with my BC2's that the tweeter really needs to be at ear level or a touch higher for best sound. It's not a night and day difference but everything kind of snaps into a bit better focus and tonal balance.


You were right about that (for SP1s), again! In fact if anything, what you said tends to underestimate the effect. Unwelcome though it is, it's got to be back to the tall stands.
 
Well, I’ve been running my SP1s with supertweeters for the past year. Then a couple of days ago someone wanted to buy them, I took them off to take photos and that made me see how big a positive difference they make.

Am I right to think that that’s probably because the tweeters on my SP1s are old and tired? Like they’re getting a shot in the arm for the Townshends. If so, I’d prefer to restore the Spendors, just because I want my own personal collection of museum quality equipment. But I don’t know how possible it is to get the parts for these speakers.

Your thoughts appreciated.
 
Well, I’ve been running my SP1s with supertweeters for the past year. Then a couple of days ago someone wanted to buy them, I took them off to take photos and that made me see how big a positive difference they make.

Am I right to think that that’s probably because the tweeters on my SP1s are old and tired? Like they’re getting a shot in the arm for the Townshends. If so, I’d prefer to restore the Spendors, just because I want my own personal collection of museum quality equipment. But I don’t know how possible it is to get the parts for these speakers.

Your thoughts appreciated.

The Coles tweeter is still available: https://www.falconacoustics.co.uk/coles-4001g-16-ohm-super-tweeter.html
 


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