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Hello All!
I'm new to the board but have been an audio nut for 45 years. I recently purchased a storage unit with a bunch of nice gear including what appears to be an 806A but I'm unsure that it is legit because the magnet structure and diaphragm are different than any photos that I can find on the net.
Any chance anyone knows what I have?
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Any words of wisdom are appreciated!
My guess would be an 806 with an aftermarket diaphragm.
I thought 806 were all Altec green?
Not sure about that, I have seen some that are black. You may be right about the replacement diaphragm, I found on on eBay from a British seller that looks similar to mine.Quote:
Originally Posted by RonSSS
I may have figured it out. It appears to be an 806-8A like the one below but with an 806A cover and no side sticker. It measures 7.1 ohms.
Attachment 3402
806 or 807 body
definitely aftermarket diaphragm
Reminds me of Carvin...........
GM
The real giveaway is your picture of the top plate which showed the manufacturer's number/date of manufacture as 391444. That makes it the 44th week of 1964 which was the first year of Altec's 806A production. Somebody must have painted it black as the all-black 806-8A didn't come out until 1972.
Jeff
Why not an 807 from 1974?
That's what i see, and where my betting money would go.
Look how sloppy the execution is. It just screams LTV.
I would be VERY surprised, shocked, appalled to see a 60's 806A with construction and finish that poor.
I have never seen a "punched" back plate on an 806, they always have a nicely machined outer diameter that closely matches the diameter of the pipe section of the return pot.
807's OTOH, have been some of the sloppiest looking HF Altec drivers i have seen.
Typical 807:
http://www.hostboard.com/forums/hbmc.../2017/02/2.jpg
That was my 'knee jerk' conclusion also due to its rather coarse finish and doesn't show any signs of ever having been repainted, but don't recall/wasn't aware that '72 was the first year of being black, yet had a much earlier 806A sticker....... so limited my response to the diaphragm.
In retrospect though after getting some much needed rest, I ordered/received period correct mid '50s era spec'd 515Bs as late as '85, so inclined to believe that it could be an even newer '84 with an old sticker if originally custom ordered. With Altec's records long gone now, no way to be sure AFAIK.
GM
Thanks for the info fella's!
I don't think that it has been painted and the sticker looks to be original but perhaps it is a back from and older 806A slapped on a newer 807. The curveball here is that it came from a high-end collector and everything else (50+ pieces) is legit, including 2 nice working, all original 1567A's. Makes me wonder why he'd bother with this piecemealed "Frankenstein" thing.
Or maybe why he didn't use it...Quote:
Originally Posted by SonicWeaver