Altec 815

[RacerXtreme]

Hi, does anyone have experience with the 815 cabinet? Saw a pair locally that's pretty cheap. Never heard one tho.


Thanks,

Guy

[thevott]

Love 'em. 815 front loads to about 75 Hz. There is no bass reflex chamber however---they are designed to be high-pass filtered at 100 Hz. My pair has been modified/opened up and has additional boxes bolted to the base which, though not accurately tuned, provides velvety bass down to a solid 45 Hz. The front horn-loaded sound is unbeatable IMHO. The 815 horn is not the most desirable or practical Altec bass horn but it is a cheap way to get some really big speakes in your life.

[djnagle]

Hi thevott. I have 515Gs in my A7s and am going to put JBL 2245 in the bottoms when I can afford it. When I do that and section off the front horn section of the cab, am I in essence making 815?

[scott fitlin]

I have two 815,s in my system, they are good, very good! Compared to the vented horns, they dont get down as low, but have greater efficiency, and better transient snap!

[Jim D]

The 815 has a shorter horn than the 210, therefore will not horn load as low. They do work well and we made a caboose version of them with with a relfex chamber built on that wnt down to about 40-45. Absolutely blow away the 825-28 A7 style of box. NIce box. JIM

[RacerXtreme]

Hi Igor and thevott.........

looks like we're all from Michigan. I was thinking of trying the 815 cabinets with the hope
of downsizing from my A4's. They will be hard to sell tho, 'cause I've had them for so long.

Is the flare of the curve in the horn the same in the 210 cabinet and the 815 ? The 815 almost looks like it is similar to the 210 but with the lower chamber cut off.

Never had a chance to listen to any 815's, so I'm just not that familiar with them.

Igor: Haven't had an A7 in years, but I stuffed JBL E-140 woofers in the last pair I had and they
were impressive. Laid down really nice wood grain Formica on the horn section of the cabinet and they looked better too.


Guy

[thevott]

Yes, the 815 is a much bigger horn than the little 825 pups. They sound much bigger too---very nice front loaded LF! The 825's however do fit in my truck which is a plus. Also, not only is the 815 somewhat shorter than a 211 or 210, the curved pannels are made of thinner wood also for whatever thats worth.