Alnico drivers

[alnico]

What do you think the Altec 288, JBL 375, TAD 4001 and Gauss 4080 large format alnico drivers?

[scott fitlin]

posted December 27, 2004 11:10 AM
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All the alnicos mentioned can be great sounding properly run!
The Altec 288,s have a very distinctive sound in the midrange, things like vibes and xylophone notes are very vivid sounding! Sweet sounding with the right amp!

The JBL375/376 has a plucky, brassy, yet sweet sounding, very clear, can get sibilant, they are amp sensitive, but very dynamic sounding!

Gauss 2in comp drivers were said to be sweeter sounding than the JBL, they did sound good, and if you have good diaphragms, you can get them regaussed and have good drivers! These can also get a bit squawky sounding if overdriven!

The TAD 4001. Considered to be the finest comp driver available! Beryllium diaphragm has the highest frequency response, but IMHO, they are a bit brittle sounding, as compared to a JBL 2441. You have to hear it and see if its your cup of tea! Definitely the lowest distortion, and most extended response, and definitely designed by Bart Locanthi who also was JBL,s designer! I still prefer the JBL sound.
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[Mirrophonic Sound System]

"What do you think the Altec 288, JBL 375, TAD 4001 and Gauss 4080 large format alnico drivers?"

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The next best thing to Electro-magnets - get them while they can be found !

Tens of thousands of Asian & European audiophiles can't be wrong.

Alnico has a smoother more mellow sound compared to ferrite for instance.

Listen especially to the lower registers of the male voice and for
sonic smoothness in upper female ranges and natural sibilance
(qualities that pre-war Western Electric drivers "own" but some post war
alnico drivers do a fair job with)

[Mirrophonic Sound System]

I've always wondered about the sound of the 2" GAUSS.
I'm pleased to hear that they improve on the JBL in some important areas.

Is the GAUSS Co. still in biz ?

Does anyone know if the GAUSS diaphragm has a true 4" voice coil
and would therefore drop into a Western Electric ?
(JBL are a fraction under 4" - no doubt so that his diaphragms could
not be used to repair Western Electric theater installations ?
enabling JBL sales ?)

[scott fitlin]

No, Gauss is no longer! They suffered the same fate as Altec under the same hands as well, Telex!

The 2`` Gauss was indeed a good sounding driver, in the same vane as a JBL 2441, some said they had a sweeter upper end tone! I dont know if the VC,s were true 4in or not, but parts for them can be found! I have heard them many a time, I liked them, but I like the JBL 2441,s as well.

What I would like to listen to are your WE drivers, I have heard talk these had the MOST liquid tone of them all! My grandfather was around when WE was a major player in theaters and big sound of the day, and he always would tell us that we didnt know what was good, that in his day the stuff sounded better! I grew up on 70,s and early 80,s Altec and JBL, and couldnt ever understand why he didnt love our NEW stuff, as it sounds great! He would walk through the bumper cars and look at me spinning records, ( disco records ) and tell me in his old time Brooklyn accent, "Ah, all you`se know is BOOM BOOM BOOM, dat aint music"! I would just look at him puzzled, and laugh!

And now today, with all the high power, and high power drivers available, I find myself saying the same thing of todays audio, as compared to what " I " grew up on!

[Mirrophonic Sound System]

"and tell me in his old time Brooklyn accent, "Ah, all you`se know is BOOM BOOM BOOM, dat aint music"!"

That's great . He was right. Western Electric are the Forbidden Fruit:
They stopped making them after limited production,
there's no substitute that lives up to them, and
there's no going back once you've heard them.

It's like those great pre-war buildings (Empire State Building)
(built the same year the WE 594 was developed - and in the same city NY,NY!)

[Steve Burger]

JBL 2441, greater extention than the 288- I don't think so.

[scott fitlin]

Umm, I didnt say that, I said the TAD 4001 has the most extended response of all the drivers listed, and IT does. But it doesnt mean I like its sound the best!


Altec 288,s have a unique sound, very dimensional notes, very crisp and sweet!

[alnico]

It seems that the electro-magnets driver is better than alnico.

Hello, Mirrophonic sound system

Do you mean that WE driver has a true 4" diaphragm? I wonder that Altec is formed by the WE staff and why Altec driver has the 3" diaphragm???

Hi, Scotty j

the JBL375 vs Altec 288, which one is better? I also grew up on 70,s and early 80,s and JBL is a very good speaker at that time.

[Mirrophonic Sound System]

Hello, Mirrophonic sound system

Do you mean that WE driver has a true 4" diaphragm? I wonder that Altec is formed by the WE staff and why Altec driver has the 3" diaphragm???

Hi Alnico

It's my understanding that WE products were engineered by Bell Labs scientists
in NY,NY in the 20s & early 30s and they then created E.R.P.I. Inc.
to service movie sound business but were forced to exit this business by the govt.
All-Tech Services ("Altec") then took over this business but had to
transition to their own products because Bell/W.E.
exited all aspects including
manufacturing. That's why the Altec drivers are a very different animal.
But some altec drivers (288 format) were branded 'WESTREX' after WWII.

As for 4" voice coil, it was about the right size for a 2" throat driver
which they specified for higher power handling (25W) in the early 30s.
JBL would copy this design 20 years later with an ALNICO magnet, but
for some perverted reason make the voice coil 3.9" instead of 4" !