616 in 816!

[Steve Burger]

we have tried that. Only problem is with the parallel top and bottom of the mouth opening of the 816 produces an anomoly at somewhere about 400 hz. The horn driver is actually an 804 I believe. The 616 is an excellent sounding driver all in all. Actually more similar to the JBL Le15

[dennis gilliam]

The speaker: 616-8A 15" alnico ceiling speaker, stock C/O. (For the HF these have an 802-type driver w/aluminum diaphragm with just a small cone behind a woven wire grille, about 2" diameter. The LF is a lot like the 411 woofer, with a 4" VC and accordion edge)

The cabinet: 816A stock.

The amp/source: 6V6 PP 15-Watt stereo homebrew, fed from a Revox C221 CD player. Selections range from Bach to Rock.

The control: A7-500's (416B, 802D, 511B, N500F)

The outcome: Very respectable considering the size difference, especially since it is doable without an external horn/driver. No evidence of image or beaming anomolies, and bass was both evident and felt. The efficiency seems to be the main difference from the control, as you will be dumping a few more Watts into this to make the same SPL.

This is a subjective test only, I have made no measurements via test gear.

Conclusion: A very nice system, all Altec even if not the "usual". It will fit in a lot more households than A7's and will usually be cost effective.

DG