I have a pair that came from Valencia cabs with the covers missing. I beleive these are circa early 1970s.....
I have seen many like this and I assume they came from the factory this way. Anyone know why?
thx...
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I have a pair that came from Valencia cabs with the covers missing. I beleive these are circa early 1970s.....
I have seen many like this and I assume they came from the factory this way. Anyone know why?
thx...
They are 416 Z's. Altec used them in sealed speaker systems. They are actually quite common.
Aren't the covers simply aesthetic? Makes sense then that in a unit, where you're not likely to open the box...Quote:
Originally Posted by robertbartsch
The covers are cosmetic as Cal says. Since they are being sold in cabs, saves a few bucks to leave off things like labels and covers. VERY COMMON practice.
Yes, it's most likely a 416-8Z. For example, here's a "naked" motor driver I happen to have:
http://imageshack.us/a/img96/9812/41684ebay.jpg
Does yours look like this?
The "30767" gives it away as a 416-8Z, that and well, it's naked.
Most likely a manifestation of the bean counters' increasing role, most definitely a cost cutting/profit enhancing measure that had virtually no effect on performance.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cal Weldon
I agree with AB that the 416Z is probably the most common. As the OEM version of the 416A, it came in a LOT of speakers both home and theater(A7's) and was surely the first 15 inch woofer to omit it's "can". Many other "Z" models would follow. Some of the MI version motors actually got a coat of black paint and their numbers inked in silver/white.
416Z is common but I think the MI 422z and 423z outnumber it. The 422z can recone as 416 if you find a blown pair cheap. Used to be able to find blown up PA sets and redo the horns and woofs. Generally scrapped the boxes, the xovers are usually low budget also.
Have seen lots of 414z also.
My model 19's have 16" frame 416-8Z and they're stock as well.
It just struck me that an older valencia may have the 16 Ohm 416Z in there. And the part number on that would be 105281.
Yes, 846A's were generally loaded with 416-16Z's. You may want to add Flamenco, Milano, Capistrano, 9845A monitor, A7(several variants), and A8 to that list.:DQuote:
Originally Posted by Alien_Shore
Interestingly, when you get into the 8 ohm era, you can find those 416-8Z's in both 15 and 16 inch frames. The same can probably be said for 422-8Z's
Also, consider that for a period of time woofers that were purchased as raw drivers probably included the covers while they were omitted for OEM applications where the majority of users would never see the rear of the driver under normal circumstances.
Well Thankfully my 19's came with 416-8B's..FWIW the later the 19's the better the chance of seeing the Z's in the 19's along with 902's.Altec really started to cut corners with regards to covers and things like that around the early 1980's.. '80-'83 IMHO. WRT the model 19.Quote:
Originally Posted by zelgall
Mine came with 416-8C's [ceramic] and 902-8A's. No 'official' sticker on the back plate of the woofer just a white mini label. The 902's have the 'official' Altec look to them.Quote:
Originally Posted by Altec Best
Why thankfully? They're the same drivers without a cover. I'm not selling mine and I've tried 416-8B and 8C's in them without noticing a difference in sound. Esthetics don't come into play when the speaker is in a box. My 19's have 802's in them with the 416-8Z. They sound great and that's the bottom line.Quote:
Originally Posted by Altec Best
This is NOT correct.Quote:
They're the same drivers without a cover.
The 416 "B" uses a 1 piece cast magnetic return pot, all other alnico 416's use steel pipe and plate welded together.
416-8A, 416-8B, and 416-8C all have different T/S parameters, and they all sound different.
IMO&E, the 416-8A is an excellent woofer. In a bass reflex alignment the 416-8B is the best and excels over the others in LFE. The 416-8C works best in a VOT type alignment, has noticeably damped LFE compare to the others in a reflex alignment. The flat magnet 416-8C's from the EV era fall well short of any other version, i think it has mostly to do with the suspension and other moving parts EV was using at the time. YMMV.............
I agree with all this... And why the 416-8B has always been my favorite woofer followed by the 515B.The B's are here to Please ! :biggrin2:Quote:
Originally Posted by bowtie427ss