Q: 515-G series vs. 515-GHP series

[LICORNE]

Hi,

The 515 8GHP is manufactured by GPA. GPA has all the cast and tools to make the 515 and the 3000 series.

According to CPC which utilizes the 515 8GHP
in their pro( set up ) or gear it is probably the only PRO ALL Altec Lansing for large concerts "40,000 people or more" in existrnce in the world.
We are talking HI FI here (underhung voice coils).

Murray Keidge is the FOH engineer and has only praises for this system.

Thanks to Australia we have one HI FI system that is used by pro rock or classic band for live performances .

Like anny system there is a ratio of speaker to size for performing venues to respect. So I won't go into this for now .

http://www.cpcproductions.com/altec_lansing/index.htm

.............................................

[Old Guy]

CPC does say they use that speaker, but haven't updated their website in almost 3 years.

The 515g HP's if you see them are most likely made by Altec not Great Plains.

I haven't heard CPC's system. But I can tell you guaranteed CPC could not compete in the UK or US markets.

It's a heckuva lot easier to get away with using ten year old stuff in Australia. You could never do it in the markets I mentioned.

I've been told the HP 515 uses a different cone. Unfortunately Great plains only lists it as an assembly so we can't tell if it's the cone or coil that is different. The HP has less bandwith by Altec's own specs in a tradeoff for efficiency.

As far as the HP's there were several. I don't own any, i'll have to dig for lit, lots of that stuff is hard to find.

[Old Guy]

http://alteclansingunofficial.nlenet...-Series-02.jpg

According to the above sheet, the coil is obviously different. The cone would almost have to be different also, since the resonance is the same. Note the compliance is different.

[sguttag]

Hello all...my name is Steve and I'm a long-time Altec reconer and user of the product in movie theatres.

During the dark years when Telex shut Altec's doors in OK and had the EV people trying to supply Altec parts, they once and once only published a list for Altec reconers the individual part numbers for the kits that Telex was to support...including the 515 series...so here is the information to your questions on the 515G versus the 515GHP...

The cones are identical for all G (and H) series 515s. For your reference, it is Altec number 18-03-035662. If you have one of these drivers, you will see this number stamped on in white somewhere on the underside (at least the 035662 part).

This is NOT the same cone as used on earlier 515s like the B, C or E drivers. The G series cone is much less stiff (lighter). The spider on the G series though is stiffer than an earlier 515.

There was a generation of the 515-LFE drivers too. Its number 18-03-024853 doesn't match up with either earlier 515s or the 515G and later. It feels like it is somwhere in between a standard "E" cone and a G cone. The voice coil on the LFE is also different than either the E or G (or GHP).

Anyway...back to the HP versions. The voice coils are notably beefier. It also has vent holes for cooling and fat leads. For reference, the 8-ohm "G" voice coil is a 27-05-035673 whereas the 8 GHP voice is a 27-05-035672.

Many times only the last grouping of the part number will be stamped on the part. Note each part in an assembly has its own part number so when looking at an Altec part you will often see several numbers.

[Old Guy]

Thanks. It may be when I heard "uses a different cone" what was meant was that the G series uses a different cone.

What is the year on that list just out of curiousity?

[bfish]

Hi Steve, and Welcome!

Thanks for the insight. If you have the patience to spend a little time with us goobs, we'd all appreciate and benefit from it, I'm sure.

Your #s match the cone #s on my 515-16Gs as well as my 515-8GHPs. I reconed some -8Gs (GPA pts) way back, but they're no longer here to check out.

Would I be correct in thinking that neither the Altec or EV-numbered cone versions were produced in-house, so would only vary by production runs made by the actual mfr?

[bfish]

Just thought of another important (to me anyway) Q. What can you tell us regarding Airflex, current substitutes and the general effects of doping the 515 series. As I recall, Altec recommended Airflex for the 515s, but used the more-common gooey varieties for the bulk of the others.

[sguttag]

I don't recall the exact year anymore but it was around 1998 or so...within 6-months of the Oklahoma plant being shut down.

As to the doping. Only the 515G series (and beyond) were to get the Ariflex 500 (water based) doping. All earlier 515s, including the 515-LFE received the 57008 (solvent based) tacky dope.

Having worked on the 515s that were made throughout the years (starting with the original 515), I can tell you the consistancy of the doping is all over the place (the type and thickness) and other changes have clearly occured in the driver's design without necessarily a model change. The driver seemed to get more "springy" by the time the "E" series came out...with the exception of the LFE version which clearly is a precursor to the HP versions.

As for the doping...they both have advantages, in my mind. 57008 did its job real nice and would give some protection against accidental damge (it will keep a cut/tear from spreading). The Ariflex is easier on the lungs and does not drift once it cures (the 57008 will migrate as it never really dries...the older versions were much worse at this...look at an old driver...it is easy to tell the orientation the driver was mounted in). I have noticed that when you get your adhesives from the driver manufactures (doping included)...they don't all have the same consistancy and they are constantly fiddling with them. When EV was the care-taker of things, they kept pretty tight controls over the age of them (they came with expiration dates based on date of manufacture, not date of shipment).

As to the cone manufacure...that is a question for Bill. I don't believe Altec stamped their own cones but they were made to their specifications with the truely funky ones being for the "bi-flexes" like the 418 driver. The part numbers are Altecs, always have been and not the cone maker's or EV's.

Bill has kept the numbering thing up and even puts the proper QA stamps on. About all that is missing from the last of the Oklahoma diaphragms is the Maestro silk screened on the diaphrams. Bill's stuff aren't knock-offs, they are the real-deal.

[bfish]

Thanks, Steve!