Top Vintage Speaker Review Summary November 2023

[@jaduong9]

Big fan of your channel. Very informative. I am biased towards the ADS Braun brand. Glad they held their own in this match up. Keep up the good work.

[@morrisonAV]

Been a lifelong fan of ADS (or aDs or a/d/s....;-) and was fun to get your reaction to the L810. They were the first "real" speakers I ever owned. I've strayed from the ADS brand several times over the decades but always came back to that sound. My L1230s will be with me a long time.

[@auxiliam4564]

Loved watching all these speaker reviews.....and I'm glad I held onto my set of polk audio sda 2's!! Not in the number one spot but close enough for me, I have them set up in my main room and love them to bits 😁🎶❤️

[@ricardomartins1081]

I really like your videos and your system of comparison. Greetings from Brazil

[@stereoniche]

Awesome, thank you!

[@marcparsons1726]

You just saved me time and a lot of money! Nice job, I've been educated!

[@stereoniche]

Glad I could help! Did this help with your choice of speakers? If so, what direction did you take?

[@I-Libertine]

Love my Nova 8Bs. Got them fresh and unused in Boxes from a Boy Scout troop in Houston. Wonderful. Ugly grills, okay. Sound is great. YES: do a recap and let us hear your thoughts.

[@HomeTheatre101]

Great video! Definitely recommend a recap as caps only last 10-15 years before they go bad. Every speaker I’ve recapped has had a noticeable improvement across the spectrum. Happy listening! ✅

[@acemacgruber6593]

Based on current prices do you think that the Polk SDA II’s may be the best value?

[@stereoniche]

A best value by a large margin. Of the top 6 in my ranking, the Polk are typically under $500 while all of others are $1k - 4k in price.

[@carlos2bass]

I wonder how will JBL L200B would compete with the Big Reds.

[@stereoniche]

When I get my set ready, we will find out. 🙂

[@natanpierce495]

Tee-Hee...yes, I just recently hooked up my ADS Braun *4 om, to pair with my JBL L80T, the sound stage on them actually goes to the left of the speaker about 2' and the right is just about that much- a bit less, but it is because of my fireplace being closer to the right side...can't move the fireplace...haha/ But boy are they nice. ADS??? Hmmm, kind of a less than Advent speaker from what I remember- but it's hooked up to my NAD power envelope and a subtle subwoofer. Really like them and have no deep pockets for new speakers.

[@michaelvaladez6570]

ADS was a very good system. There ad design was " The Invisible Sound "..and set up right they did have a nice realistic sound stage.

[@jeffk2503]

Have you every compared the Advent Heritage to the New large Advent?

[@stereoniche]

Unfortunately, I have yet to own a pair, but it is something I plan to do once I get a pair into my collection.

[@RC-gf8cs]

I have for 10 yr now .bose 901 reflector speakers came with sep.equalizer. on the stands.they r great still..wat 2 get nex?. I kno evenutally they gonna go

[@sidesup8286]

Very interesting video Scott! Audiophiles would probably rank them Thiel...Altec...Yamaha; with not many people having heard the Pioneer speaker. Not that their opinion is any better than yours. Probably a little controversial with the Pioneer at #1. Their vintage speakers from the 1970s/80s were not very natural sounding; but one new designer hire could have changed all that; it probably would have required some new direction decisions by the top brass too. Speaking of brass; it looks like the Thiels have brass driver screws. I remember an article in The Absolute Sound where (Tweaker Guru Supreme) Enid Lumley recommended using only brass screws for your phono cartridge. She really had "ears" and I wish I would have caught her articles earlier on. The speakers with the best midrange & tweeter drivers are usually the best speakers. In this case it would have been the berrylium drivers of the Yamaha NS 1000. For speed & purity, berrylium is hard to match. But other factors can hold the speaker back; like the crossover and cabinet. The Yamaha NS 2000, which is extremely rare, is a much better example of what kind of sound quality is possible with berrylium drivers. If they would have made the Advent a 3 way & taken the midrange drivers and tweeters out of the cabinet like Dahlquist, it would have been a better speaker. The editor of The Absolute Sound said back then, that the Advent's midrange is about the most uncolored he's ever heard. . The Thiels have many strong points; perhaps their pinpoint focus being the most memorable. For me, I think the ultimate vintage speaker comparison (if someone out there has them), would be The Snell Type A III vs.The Ohm F (with its true full range Walsh driver), the Watson Labs model 10, the Acoustat X, the ESS Transar, the Yamaha NS 2000, the Fusselier speaker, and the Linn Isobarik loudspeaker. Probably there isn't a lucky collector on the planet that has all those to compare.

[@stereoniche]

Indeed, other's ears and preferences would no doubt rank them differently. We have to take it as entertainment really, just good fun. The Pioneers were developed by their TAD group so they brought a unique perspective as well as exotic materials to the table. When I do a "Top Dog" shootout, things could change. It is one thing to compare each to the Advents, but when they go head to head, I think that may highlight more strengths/weaknesses in them. Who knows, could be a shakeup. I actually have a set of Snell A, but they are in rough physical shape. I need to get them going at some point. I may pickup some Acoustats soon, will see if that deal comes through or not. Almost had a set of Watsons a few years ago, but missed them. Have yet to run across the others, but all in good time and so many others to still experience!

[@sidesup8286]

The Watson Labs I heard the model 10 and the model 7, which looks like a smaller twin of the 10, and it too sounded amazing. The Ohm Walsh 2 speakers, which I keep around since they're not bad; they actually sound best with a thin sounding extended treble bright amp like the Yamaha M35. It's extremely rare when your hear a sensation of depth like Ohm Walsh from a box speaker.

[@rickmarshall6397]

Wish u had a pair of ADS l 980's,they'd be near the top!!!

[@stereoniche]

Me too! 🙂