ALTEC 420A Frames - Useful As ????

[LowOhms]

Hello,

A friend has given me a pair of ALTEC 420A drivers, which have NO usable cones in them.

I run VOTTs ( A7-800s ) at home, with 16 Ohm 515Bs and 802Ds.

Would these 420As be viable as a FRAME for GPA to re-magnetize and to recone? If so, what can it come close to be used for, in light of my sole interest in A7-VOTTs ?

I am NOT an ALTEC expert, but I bet many of you will know how to advise me.

Pretty drivers, white cast frames and a light gray back cover.

How to best put these to use? Ideas anyone?? T.I.A.

Low Ohms Jeff Medwin

[GM]

Well, I know they have the same basic motor as the 803B/416A, so unless there's some differing detail[s] I'm not aware of [not an 'expert' on any/all the different design details of the various models, never even re-coned one], then assuming GPA can do a period correct re-cone, you'd have the theoretically technically second best woofer to the original 803 the A800 series horn cabs were designed for.

Whether or not you'd prefer its performance over the 515B though........... I just know I preferred the 416A's bass and the 515B's 'sweeter' mids/HF at the time I compared them, so chose the latter and just used more bass boost.

Sounded great with a tube amp, but horrible when I switched to SS in '70, which led me to learning about the radically different way each was accomplished. This fortuitously occurred during the time I learned about/auditioned Altec's upcoming bi-amped VoTT and 'super' [AKA 'sub'] woofers using a SS XO in a Popular Electronics article, so began my odyssey with multi-amped systems in general and preoccupation with 'sub' woofer systems in particular to this day.

GM