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Thread: Tannoy Arden - well regarded for home listening?

  1. #11
    Join Date: Sep 2009

    Location: Derbyshire

    Posts: 9,228
    I'm Josie.

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    Quote Originally Posted by danilo View Post
    Arden boxes as well as HPD's (from the then recent takeover by the infamous Harman Corp) were genuinely quality reduced from previous productions)
    Thin / flimsy wood used in the Arden enclosures, better materials apparently being beyond the mandated build budget.
    Note the: Bio degradable foam surrounds on the Driver cones, Reduced cone mass (patched with folded paper bits of glued on as reinforcements)
    Pepper pots drilled by co-ordination disadvantaged, low wage New Hires.. Hey At least iHPDs didn't have the Laughable 'computer designed' Wave guide abominations.
    Fairly common for Swarf to be found in HPD motor and HF diaphragm areas.
    Just saying, that despite the provenance there 'may' be problems hidden .

    Arden Boxes can be stiffened... with ingenuity, bits of wood/glue and screws.. at which point they are quite good actually.
    Drivers? Refoam the things this will need doing every 10/15 years. Thank you Very much.. Harman Corp.
    Dissasembly (if ambitious) to check for swarf and alignments and to try and patch the pepper pot drilling bungles ...could be useful work.
    Crossovers? Replace the Tired Electrolytic caps in the crossover.. and the others, with decent Film 'n foils ..Easy diy.
    Cheapish too... Unless one buys into Audio Weenie Religion dogma.
    OEM Coils and Resistors are 'fine' quality.. period!
    Remember One notable twit who swore that his Several Hundred $$ of Duelund resistors in his HPD crossovers made massive improvement... As if
    1. Short story: Don't be be buying 'replacement' or 'improved' crossovers'.
    Last decade os seemingly hundreds of bastardised efforts are sold or touted. Boggles my imganiation.
    2. Few if any live up to their claims.. caveat emptor.
    And If you must go that route (as opposed to refurbishing the oem versions ) absolutely Not... before living with you OEM bits for a Year or so.

    G luck and enjoy.. those are Exceptionally Good Speakers.. ONLY limited by the quality of the gear that feeds them.. That ! will be self evident/unmistakable first time you fit Genuinely Good gear.
    Point 1. Once you have a decent updated crossover the difference is certainly noticable. The problem comes when someone makes a crossover with the wrong values or goes crazy with the wrong type/make of components. Troells is guilty of this and really should update his web page.

    Even the most boutique components can be the 'wrong' components or wrong design for a given speaker. They might look impressive with an impressive price tag attached but it doesn't always work out that way.

    I speak from experience in building crossovers for Tannoys and have learnt a lot over the past 6 years from numerous people on AOS including Nick and Paul who are well regarded here in their work.

    Point 2. Yes... 'Few' do fail to reach the mark for the reasons I've stated above (most likely), and then some don't fail to make the mark because they have been made properly with research and 'lots' of listening comparisons.

    So, 'Cateat Emptor' in the respect of your post should be 'Caveat audiens' (Listener beware) in the respect of the points I've raised from your post.
    Ultrafide U500DC power amplifier - Croft Vitale )highly modified) - TRIO L-07D Turntable - Denon DL103C1 - Funk Firm Houdini - Lentek MC head amp - 15" Tannoy Monitor Gold Loudspeakers in Lockwood Major cabinets (From Trident Studios) - Tannoyista SPEC 3 Custom Crossovers - VanDamme Black Speaker Cable


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  2. #12
    Join Date: Apr 2012

    Location: N E Kent

    Posts: 51,624
    I'm Geoff.

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    Quote Originally Posted by danilo View Post
    IMO audio is NO place for investment issues.
    That's an odd thing to say. Good vintage equipment can be both very worth using and a material asset that should appreciate. Certainly something to consider.
    It is impossible for anything digital to sound analogue, because it isn't analogue!

  3. #13
    Join Date: Sep 2009

    Location: Derbyshire

    Posts: 9,228
    I'm Josie.

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    +1
    Ultrafide U500DC power amplifier - Croft Vitale )highly modified) - TRIO L-07D Turntable - Denon DL103C1 - Funk Firm Houdini - Lentek MC head amp - 15" Tannoy Monitor Gold Loudspeakers in Lockwood Major cabinets (From Trident Studios) - Tannoyista SPEC 3 Custom Crossovers - VanDamme Black Speaker Cable


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  4. #14
    Join Date: Feb 2013

    Location: W Lothian

    Posts: 99,005
    I'm Grant.

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    Aye the dont buy xovers is a silly comment. Properly fettled ones are a boon to tannoys or any other brand of speaker. On tannoys Josie and Paul, to mention just 2, make them properly.
    Regards,
    Grant .... ؠ ......Don't be such a big girl's blouse

    I've said it before and I'll say it again: democracy simply-doesn't-work
    .... ..... ...... ...... ................... ..... ..... ..... ..... .....
    FIIO K7 BT, M11 PLUS, BTR7, KA5 - OPPO BDP-103D - PANASONIC UB450 - PANASONIC 4K ULTRA HD TV - PIXEL 6 - AVANTREE LR BLUETOOTH - 2* X600 SOUNDCORE - HEADPHONES INCLUDE, FIIO, NURAPHONES', FOCAL, OPPO, BOSE, CAMBRIDGE, BOWER & WILKINS, DEVIALET, MARSHALL, SONY, MITCHELL & JOHNSTON - 2*ZBOOK'S- MERCURY BD ROM, ROON, QOBUZ, TIDAL, PLEX, CYBERLINK, JRIVER - MULTI HDD'S -

    Oh my god! There's nothing wrong with the bidet is there?

    “Nothing discloses real character like the use of power. It is easy for the weak to be gentle. Most people can bear adversity. But if you wish to know what a man really is, give him power. This is the supreme test. It is the glory of Lincoln that, having almost absolute power, he never abused it, except on the side of mercy".

    “You see these dictators on their pedestals, surrounded by the bayonets of their soldiers and the truncheons of their police ... yet in their hearts there is unspoken fear. They are afraid of words and thoughts: words spoken abroad, thoughts stirring at home -- all the more powerful because forbidden -- terrify them. A little mouse of thought appears in the room, and even the mightiest potentates are thrown into panic.”

    "You don't have free will. You have the appearance of free will.”

    “There's a war out there, old friend. A world war. And it's not about who's got the most bullets. It's about who controls the information. What we see and hear, how we work, what we think... it's all about the information!”


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  5. #15
    Join Date: Feb 2008

    Location: South Wales

    Posts: 9,151
    I'm NotTakingLifeTooSeriouslyTheseDays.

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    Well, I would be more inclined to take notice of those who have actualy spent time in test and development of cross over design and implimentation.
    And I would like to remind folk that AOS is an open minded forum. Therefore; we do not stifle, nor do we encourage, or endorse a close minded attitude towards those who have dedicated their time and effort in doing so.
    A...
    "Today scientists have substituted mathematics for experiments, and they wander off through equation after equation, and eventually build a structure which has no relation to reality"
    Nikola Tesla



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  6. #16
    Join Date: Jan 2008

    Location: Wrexham, North Wales, UK

    Posts: 110,012
    I'm AudioAl'sArbiterForPISHANTO.

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    Ah, Tannoy Ardens, also affectionately known, back in the day, as 'Ard ons'.... Great, proper-sized speakers, completely devoid of WAF, so hen-pecked hubbies need not apply!

    Marco.
    Main System

    Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.

    Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.

    Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.

    CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.

    Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.

    Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.

    Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.

    Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.

    Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.


    Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!

    Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!


  7. #17
    Join Date: May 2008

    Location: A Strangely Isolated Place in Suffolk with Far Away Trains Passing By...

    Posts: 14,535
    I'm David.

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    Ard-Ons in stock form are VERY LOUD, with that 'ease' that only large speakers can give, but pretty horrible otherwise... I remember pics on the net showing sub-standard pepperpot waveguides too, which served to mess up the already rather hot and rollercoaster treble, but this could be a one off.

    Having said that, resonant cabinets can be replaced or substantially treated or re-enforced and modern crossovers seem to transform the main driver once it's been overhauled. The foams do fail every fifteen to twenty years or so, but these, together with the 'girdacoustic' additions to the backs of the cones, helped get lower bass than previously, the price paid being a few db in sensitivity, which doesn't matter today with modern amp designs.

    I suspect Ardens could make an exceptional project for winter months, but like all Tannoys of this type, they will need work to get the fidelity quality up to modern standards once you're taking the dramatic scale and image size for granted.

    Just my thoughts. I'm coming at it from a polar opposite view - speakers that reproduce most acoustic instruments and speech very well indeed at modest volumes, but which fall apart at higher volumes, can flop about in the low bass and which could fairly be said to be 'dynamically coloured' as no matter how much power you put into them, they'll never excite, impress and pin you to the wall as old Tannoys and similar can and do - and I say this with a pair of Harbeth SHL5's on the property as well as the old BC2's

    Marco, just 'cos you have a submissive other-half who allows you all your excesses in your spare room doesn't mean all other males are hen-pecked. I note the Lockwoods don't live downstairs in your sitting room, do they?
    Tear down these walls; Cut the ties that held me
    Crying out at the top of my voice; Tell me now if you can hear me

  8. #18
    Join Date: Jan 2008

    Location: Wrexham, North Wales, UK

    Posts: 110,012
    I'm AudioAl'sArbiterForPISHANTO.

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    Quote Originally Posted by DSJR View Post
    Marco, just 'cos you have a submissive other-half who allows you all your excesses in your spare room doesn't mean all other males are hen-pecked. I note the Lockwoods don't live downstairs in your sitting room, do they?
    Ha - only because neither Del nor I would want them in there! I certainly wasn't 'told', in no uncertain terms, not to have them in the lounge, like some pour wee souls are, lol. It's called compromising, Dave, which is what makes all good marriages work!

    No-one in our house is unfairly 'the boss', apart from perhaps Abella, our female tortoiseshell cat.....

    The lounge is a reasonable size, but simply not the place for huge big speakers (as it's full of antique Welsh furniture and nick-nacks), hence why the 15XRs live there, so we can still both enjoy music together in that area of the house, and in the summer months especially, that's where most of our listening is done.

    Last night, for example, we were up until 1am, enjoying some Bach and Elgar, whilst sipping Prosecco, in cosy candlelight.... Do your good lady and you enjoy listening to music together?

    When the lads come round for a sesh, or I get a visit from someone from the forum, then we listen upstairs, with the Lockies, in the 'broom cupboard'!!

    Marco.
    Main System

    Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.

    Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.

    Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.

    CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.

    Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.

    Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.

    Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.

    Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.

    Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.


    Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!

    Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!


  9. #19
    Join Date: May 2008

    Location: A Strangely Isolated Place in Suffolk with Far Away Trains Passing By...

    Posts: 14,535
    I'm David.

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    Hifi for me is a personal experience, as herself dislikes practically all the music I play and noise in general - a lot of ladies don't like 'noise' I've found, or maybe it's the ones I know. It was certainly commonplace in past decades. if she wants to play a track or album, she'll play it on her laptop, or use her personal music player on headphones. She neither wants to know how to use my stereo's or cares even less if they might just make her music sound better. THAT's the compromise I live with - and I know I'm not alone in this. Having a family takes up time as well, as well as some work I do away from home now. A shame, but I was single and selfish a very long time, so I live with the consequences. Remember, I gave up some truly wonderful big ATC active speakers at the time for the life I have now - maybe I was mad, but that was then and this is now.
    Tear down these walls; Cut the ties that held me
    Crying out at the top of my voice; Tell me now if you can hear me

  10. #20
    Join Date: Feb 2013

    Location: W Lothian

    Posts: 99,005
    I'm Grant.

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    Quote Originally Posted by DSJR View Post
    Hifi for me is a personal experience, as herself dislikes practically all the music I play and noise in general - a lot of ladies don't like 'noise' I've found, or maybe it's the ones I know. It was certainly commonplace in past decades. if she wants to play a track or album, she'll play it on her laptop, or use her personal music player on headphones. She neither wants to know how to use my stereo's or cares even less if they might just make her music sound better. THAT's the compromise I live with - and I know I'm not alone in this. Having a family takes up time as well, as well as some work I do away from home now. A shame, but I was single and selfish a very long time, so I live with the consequences. Remember, I gave up some truly wonderful big ATC active speakers at the time for the life I have now - maybe I was mad, but that was then and this is now.
    I dunno why; most of them never stop gabbing
    Regards,
    Grant .... ؠ ......Don't be such a big girl's blouse

    I've said it before and I'll say it again: democracy simply-doesn't-work
    .... ..... ...... ...... ................... ..... ..... ..... ..... .....
    FIIO K7 BT, M11 PLUS, BTR7, KA5 - OPPO BDP-103D - PANASONIC UB450 - PANASONIC 4K ULTRA HD TV - PIXEL 6 - AVANTREE LR BLUETOOTH - 2* X600 SOUNDCORE - HEADPHONES INCLUDE, FIIO, NURAPHONES', FOCAL, OPPO, BOSE, CAMBRIDGE, BOWER & WILKINS, DEVIALET, MARSHALL, SONY, MITCHELL & JOHNSTON - 2*ZBOOK'S- MERCURY BD ROM, ROON, QOBUZ, TIDAL, PLEX, CYBERLINK, JRIVER - MULTI HDD'S -

    Oh my god! There's nothing wrong with the bidet is there?

    “Nothing discloses real character like the use of power. It is easy for the weak to be gentle. Most people can bear adversity. But if you wish to know what a man really is, give him power. This is the supreme test. It is the glory of Lincoln that, having almost absolute power, he never abused it, except on the side of mercy".

    “You see these dictators on their pedestals, surrounded by the bayonets of their soldiers and the truncheons of their police ... yet in their hearts there is unspoken fear. They are afraid of words and thoughts: words spoken abroad, thoughts stirring at home -- all the more powerful because forbidden -- terrify them. A little mouse of thought appears in the room, and even the mightiest potentates are thrown into panic.”

    "You don't have free will. You have the appearance of free will.”

    “There's a war out there, old friend. A world war. And it's not about who's got the most bullets. It's about who controls the information. What we see and hear, how we work, what we think... it's all about the information!”


    ***SMILE, BE HAPPY***

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