Altec A7 measured...

[paul300b]

Hi,
First post here. I own a7/ 825 cabs loaded with 802-8g and 416-8a drivers. (plus corner cabs with 803b/ 288-16g's). A couple of weeks ago this was posted on an Australian guy's site.
Red Spade Audio: Altec A7 Voice of the Theatre horns measured

Both the 511 horn and cab with 416-8b don't measure too well. Anyone measure theirs?

[Phil-G]

there are a few A7 threads here. lots to read. you've come to the right place. from my very short experience with these. and reading about them, these are common problems with stock boxes. i read an article from the 60s that says as much

[gortnipper]

Welcome, Paul!

[paul300b]

there are a few A7 threads here. lots to read. you've come to the right place. from my very short experience with these. and reading about them, these are common problems with stock boxes. i read an article from the 60s that says as much

Thanks. Is that article online? I would be good to know how to fix, pref without active DSP.

- - - Updated - - -

Welcome, Paul!

Cheers David! Nice to be on this side.

[Phil-G]

Altec Lansing VOTT Clones? - Page 2 - diyAudio
this isn't the article i'm looking for, but pano who posts here from time to time explains things fairly well.
still looking though.

[GM]

The woofer appears to be half past dead [needs magnet drained/recharged at the very least] and I've no clue what's causing the broadband dip in the 511 as I've never seen anything like it in any Altec or similar design horn regardless of driver brand/model.

Bottom line though is that it takes significant EQ to flatten one out over a wide BW because it was designed to be driven with either a ~matching impedance amp or at least one with variable DF tone controls plus be heavily toe'd in to compensate for its rising on axis response in a HIFI app if no super tweeter horn is used.

GM

[paul300b]

Thanks GM. I thought it was weird, as I never had seen anything like it in 15 years on the net about A7 Vott. I've 3 friends here in New Zealand that have build Altec systems after hearing mine.

[bowtie427ss]

The Red Spade article is bunk, it lacks credibility and should not be published. It is haphazard and careless, doesn't begin to accurately represent an A7 system.

As GM has pointed out, the drivers are not to spec. There is no useful baseline/reference data. The 908(a symbiotik loaded driver) was NEVER part of an A7 system.

My WAG with regard to the HF is that the 908's have original phragms that were rode hard and put up wet, or have been re-loaded with cheap crap aftermarket phragms.

Then again, if the tester used the same disregard with his test environment, equipment, and it's calibration as he did with the speakers themselves, then maybe that analysis isn't so bad.

[fpitas]

A 45dB null at 5.6kHz, and the author never suspects there's something seriously wrong. Amazing.

[alancohen]

You have to question the methodology when someone doesn't even bother to blow the dust off. It's obvioulsy a half-as*ed test at best.