dB Plus 440 Monitors

I picked up this little pair of dB Plus 440 Monitors a few weeks ago, they were offered up pretty cheap due to the fact that they needed a re foam.

These are made by Audio Products International, the same guys that did the Energy 22 loudspeakers. In fact these have a similar  look as the Energy 22's if they were shrunk down in size. Mirror imaged and the cosmetic ring give it the look and pretty decent build quality.

These speakers seem to be made for the digital era with an efficiency rating of 94db's, this makes them go very loud. The tweeter is reminiscent of Infinity's Polycell tweeter.

The 6 1/2 inch woofer does not go floor shaking deep but has decent enough bass, the mid range is smooth and the high end does sizzle.

This speaker would probably match up well with a low powered tube amp.

Aesthetically I removed the above badge from the front of the speaker and attached it to the rear to clean up the front baffle, I think it looks way better now.

JBL L26 vs. Pioneer HPM-60

A long awaited sound off on two classic rock and roll monitors the ever so sought after JBL L26 and the not nearly enough respect, the Pioneer HPM-60. These comparisons are non scientific and are only conducted within my sound room on the same source equipment. So if you are looking for a bunch of technical graphs and what not, that is not happening here. This is just what sounds best to my ears.

To begin with this is really a 2 way versus a 3 way battle and the JBL's got a new Solen cap installed where as the Pioneer still has the original caps, so lets get that out of the way.

Aesthetically the JBL L26 wins hands down on the fact that the cabinet is a real oak veneer where as the Pioneer cut the corners and give you the vinyl veneer. I also like the cleanliness of the JBL's front baffle with the tweeter over the woofer, it just looks cleaner and much more visually pleasing. JBL wins in this respect.

Sound, there is something about how well the 10" woofer attacks and reaches into the bass region in the JBL over the Pioneer. You can feel the rumble of the JBL 125 woofers and it brings a rush of anticipation of what is going to hit you, no other woofer gives you that feeling. The HPM-60's woofers are just as fast on the attack but they do not give you the rumble that JBL's gives off. The nod goes to the JBL's in the bass department.

Mid range is a completely different story, hands down the HPM-60 is smoother across the mid range spectrum and it is not to hard to figure out why. The tweeter and the woofer on the L26's need to share this role where as the HPM-60 has a dedicated mid range driver. Hands down the Pioneer wins in this respect.

The high end also goes to the HPM-60 as one does get a bit of sizzle out of the super tweeter, the JBL tweeter tends to roll of faster than the HPM-60's.

Sound stage, the HPM-60's are of course more forward than the JBL L26's, both put out a great three dimensional sound stage, putting the instruments in the right places. Although the JBL's reach lower both speakers give you the bass punch where you can feel it inside of you. A note that should be taken with this, is that both these speakers are meant to give you that live feeling, like you are there front row center at a concert, these are not the speakers that reveal the finer musical passages that give off details in an airy sense. Some call it the West Coast sound versus the New England sound.

So who wins in the sound off? My nudge would go towards the JBL L26's. Although the mid range is not nearly as smooth, the bottom end along with the real oak veneer and the cleaner looking front baffle is the clincher for me.

As I write this the JBL's did move along to a new owner and the HPM-60's are currently listed for sale, the used market for JBL's when priced right is far more liquid than that for a pair of HPM-60's. That said the HPM-100's move much faster and are more sought after. Some argue the HPM-60's 10" woofer is just a bit more refined than the HPM-100's as it is easier to drive.

A/D/S L420

A few pairs of speakers came and went this past week, the JBL L26's have found a new home along with the AR15's.

In their place was this entry level pair of A/D/S L420 and a pair of Advent 5012's.

I have become more of a fan of the Braun/ADS/Heco/Canton/Visonik style of speakers due to the employment of refined tweeters and mid ranges.

The tweeters sparkle and have an airiness and detailed sound unlike any other tweeter I have heard. One gets to hear more musical detail.

This pair of ADS sat on a local classified site for over two months with no takers so I had to pounce and make them mine. A lot of speakers come and go from my collection but I have a feeling these ones will be with me for a while.

An original sales brochure for the ADS L420 can be found on this link.

I am happy these speakers fly under the radar of most people getting back into the vintage audio scene, they truly missed out on a pair of gems.

JBL L26 update

The JBL L26's got finished off last week and I have been enjoying them exclusively along side of the Pioneer HPM-60's.

There is something about the early JBL's that is wholly unique to these speakers. The bass is just super tight and full, the mid range is not the best on the L26's but the high end is clearly there and it is like a concert in your living room. The fullness and attack more than make up for the mid range. These are fantastic speakers to own and I am glad I am experiencing my second pair.
 

 Crossover before and after with Solen Fast Caps.

Woofer re foamed

JBL L26 Decade

Another pair of JBL L26 speakers arrived this week and these will need the full makeover. This project will include a re foam, re cap of the crossover, new banana plug terminals on the rear and a re finish on the veneer.

I look forward to hearing these speakers again and perhaps I will do a L26 vs. HPM-60 shoot out.....might as well since I have both speakers.

Visonik Euro 7 Speakers

A pair of Visonik Euro 7 speakers arrived last Friday night and I have had the weekend to enjoy these incredible speakers. The drivers are very reminiscent of Braun or A/D/S/ L710 models with twin 6.5" woofers, the unmistakable dome tweeter and the super airy dome tweeter.

The cabinets are a tad bit rough but some elbow grease will get the real walnut veneer back in order.

Sonically these speakers are very close to my Dual CL390's that I love so much. I think this pair of speakers will be keepers in the collection.

More to come on these wonderful speakers.  

Sony STR 7055 Receiver

This beautiful, mid 1970's vintage Sony STR 7055 receiver was acquired yesterday. The STR 7055 was the second highest top of the line in Sony's receiver, bettered by the STR 7065 at that time.

This unit is in mint condition for being 40 years old and needed little cleaning to make it shine. The fuse type bulbs for the face plate need to be replaced and that is about it. While it is opened up I have cleaned out the pots and switches along with the decades of dust.

Vintageknob.org has a more info on the history of this receiver along with all the specs.

From what I have read the unit is conservatively rated at 35WPC, 45WPC at 1K hertz into 8 ohms and 55WPC at 4 ohms with dynamic power of 200 watts at 4 ohms.

I got a chance to listen to this unit for a brief period of time last night and this unit sounds phenomenal. Further searching the interweb, some have compared this model to early Marantz receivers and Sansui  amps. There was even some postings that Sony had their eyes set on MacIntosh amps when building this unit.

The sound is wonderful, full and warm like all units that you would expect from this era. I believe this Sony will be in use for a long time in the sound room.