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Tannoy Kingdom Royal "one off"

Tannoy385

Tannoy385

Member
Hi, hoping to find some info. What would a SINGLE "one of" Tannoy Kingdom Royal in Ferarri red & carbon fibre be worth (not selling)?
The 12" dual concentric unit and 15" bass driver are both working (unused) but the supertweeter dome is damaged and crucially the crossover is missing.
Could a crossover be built to drive it?

I already use HPD385s with THEOS upgrade in active configuration so not looking to change.
This is more "out of curiosity" what I could do with it. High end bluetooth speaker, subwoofer conversion....
 
That would be quite the Bluetooth speaker, was this in the Tannoy factory auction sale? I guess you could fashion a lovely centre speaker or drinks cabinet out of it!
 
It may be worth a little too someone who wanted to use it as a mono speaker or centre speaker, I'm pretty sure some clever bud could build a crossover for it and I'm sure the super tweeter could be replaced but at what cost. I think it would be a hard sell though.
 
wow&flutter said:
That would be quite the Bluetooth speaker, was this in the Tannoy factory auction sale? I guess you could fashion a lovely centre speaker or drinks cabinet out of it!
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My dad used to work for Tannoy from early 80s so I grew up with it all. Love the old stuff and have had Cheviot mk1, Devon, D700 /500 300. The HPD385 are amazing and would never change them but seeing this Kingdom in the flesh, the pictures don't do it any justice. Lovely piece of Engineering and would like to see the drivers working...though crossover frequency is little unusual at 700Hz for the dual. Drivers probably worth more as parts but whole thing together is awe inspiring....even though my favourite is Canterbury and Westie's with alcomax drivers.
 
The current Canterbury to me has the best look and proportions of the Prestige range,unfortunately it’s proportions as well as it’s price are a bit too large for my room and wallet!
 
I agree, especially with the price hike earlier this year. The Kingdom is more of a memento and the factory closure is a sad day indeed...my visit with my dad was the last one as the doors close permanently at the end of December so a last chance to see it.
 
Absolutely, the auction did state "This is a Display Unit with Non Functional Speakers", hence the low bid. I bought it as potentially something to display or convert but I have since confirmed that both speaker units (dual and separate LF) are functional so the description in the auction was a misnomer. In fact, aside from the crossover not being fitted the whole unit is complete down to the WBT Nexgen binding posts on the rear and the treble energy panel on the front.
In context, a single Eaton with no crossover and missing rear panel went for £105!
 
The Dual is the interesting thing in that Kingdom, featuring as it does Tannoys first use of a 3" hf diaphragm- long overdue imho and something Fyne have employed in their TOTL model.
 
cooky1257 said:
The Dual is the interesting thing in that Kingdom, featuring as it does Tannoys first use of a 3" hf diaphragm- long overdue imho and something Fyne have employed in their TOTL model.
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Interestingly the Tannoy cutoff is 700 Hz to 17khz vs Fyne's 750Hz to 26khz as the crossover to the supertweeter on the kingdom is 17khz. Would imagine the Kingdom driver might be capable of going higher.
 
As you have history with the brand I think buying it was a great move. I guess the lower bass driver was only used in Kingdom Royal but if the dc driver is the the unit used in the Westminster and Canterbury then it’s got to be worth a few bob. Could you buy another driver / crossover and transfer them into your existing cabinets as an upgrade? You could fund it by selling your existing drivers.
On saying that, would Tannoy sell a Royal driver on its own? I wonder?
 
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Tannoy385 said:
Interestingly the Tannoy cutoff is 700 Hz to 17khz vs Fyne's 750Hz to 26khz as the crossover to the supertweeter on the kingdom is 17khz. Would imagine the Kingdom driver might be capable of going higher.
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It's the capability to come in lower that is a 'feature' of the 3 inch diaphragm, my 3" JBL SAM1/2435Be comes in at 750 hz too, a better crossover point than 1 khz. upper roll off is a function of the horn/ waveguide throat- you could eq the pepper pots out to 20 kHz but you'll just be boosting a narrow beam and probably taking the diaphragm out of its comfort zone. They use a slotted phase plug in the 3" as do Fyne.
 
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wow&flutter said:
As you have history with the brand I think buying it was a great move. I guess the lower bass driver was only used in Kingdom Royal but if the dc driver is the the 15 inch unit used in the Westminster and Canterbury then it’s got to be worth a few bob. Could you buy another driver / crossover and transfer them into your existing cabinets as an upgrade? You could fund it by selling your existing drivers.
On saying that, would Tannoy sell a Royal driver on its own? I wonder?
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Exactly, the 12" dual is unlike anything they've done before. Took 2 years to develop and the driver is pretty imposing. Not a pepperpot with alcomax like the Westminster or Canterbury, new design with waveguide "hidden" behind a mesh so looking into the driver it looks 'blank'. The separate bass driver is equally imposing, again entirely new design. You can read about it here: https://positive-feedback.com/Issue64/tannoy_royal.htm
14a%20complete%20Dual%20Concentric%20driver%20-%20Tannoy%20photo.jpg

11%20a%20complete%20sub%20bass%20driver%20-%20Tannoy%20photo.jpg
 
If I remember correctly TonyL has voiced his love of the point source and crossover point of the big Tannoy DC speakers. I wonder if that presentation would still apply to the Kingdom Royal with its additional drivers, although the additional LF driver may be less of an issue
 
wow&flutter said:
If I remember correctly TonyL has voiced his love of the point source and crossover point of the big Tannoy DC speakers. I wonder if that presentation would still apply to the Kingdom Royal with its additional drivers, although the additional LF driver may be less of an issue
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Yes, I was aware it had been all over the world at trade shows etc. as a presentation piece but never driven given the absence of the crossover...also to my knowledge a pair were never made.
It's a really interesting driver, quite deep overall given the flat magnet. The waveguide is quite deep inside the horn as well. In the pictures the cabinet is a big red box, but in the flesh it really is quite interesting and imposing. I was visiting the factory and saw it which is why I bid knowing drivers were not functional but as it turns out they are, just the crossover was never inatalled...up close the whole thing is quite marvellous where pictures don't do it justice. And a funny thing....I believe I might have also purchased the flight case used to transport it but need to double check that.
 
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