Tannoy 12" Monitor Golds, rubber surrounds, custom cabs

[Jazid]

For Sale, my Tannoy 12” Monitor Gold speakers in custom cabinets. The drivers are the later rubber surround variant with specs very similar to the HPD model for potentially better bass extension. Sensitivity is the standard 92dB and 8 Ohm impedance makes them an easy drive. This pair are (IIRC) sequential serial numbers and drivers are in excellent condition front and back.
The cabinets are professionally made, a kind of Balmoral variant I believe, designed by the chap who runs Anatek and built for him out of heavy ply, waxed, high quality work, his own personal speakers. They are quite big, 44cm wide x 45cm deep x 92cm tall. The quality of construction is excellent, the finish is somewhat retro industrial - I like it but know it is not everyone's taste. What matter, they sound excellent, I had them at the same time as a pair of Lockwood re-coned Cheviots, and really there was little comparison; scale, heft, and transparency were all much improved with these. I sold the Cheviots and kept these, but they never worked in my room as well as either my Kef 105s or my AN-Es, and I have long since admitted defeat. They are way too good to store and I need space, so off to a new owner to enjoy.
The grilles are in Tannoy style cloth, they seem acoustically transparent to me, and would look fab with the lightning badges added, but I never did this. The drivers are near perfect front and back, the rubber surround which is rather closer to the HPD than the original paper MG in specification is rot-proof of course, unlike the foam on the HPD. The crossovers are original and correct Tannoy issue, re-capped by Dave (La Toilette) with Wilmslow audio polypropylenes but retaining the original Tannoy chokes and autoformers. I tidied up his soldering and wires, and seated them better so the crossover boxes shut properly which is essential for the chokes as their value changes if they are compressed (!). I have disconnected the level and treble lift rotary switches which are still present, they could easily be reconnected if you wanted to, or I can do it, but IMHO the speakers sound better without them. One control panel has a crack, this is not uncommon and caused by tightening the case against them when installing. It makes no functional difference and you have to look closely round the back of the speaker to see it. The binding posts are gold plated banana plugs also on the back.

I bought them from Dave – La Toilette - and this is taken from his sale blurb:

“I've had these drivers for the best part of 10 years after trying out lots of Tannoy models before and during, and these always seemed the best of all of them to me. Originally came in Lancaster cabs and now is really solid birch ply affairs professionally made for the guy who owns/runs Anatek - finished by me with Osmo wax straight onto the ply. I made and fitted the grilles. The cabs are basically repro's of the Balmoral cabs but made with good ply, and they sound l-o-a-d-s better than the Lancasters ever did. Replaced all the caps in the crossovers with Wilmslow Audio supercaps some years ago.

This won't be the end of my Tannoy story I'm sure, but with my kids and loads of house diy I think it's time to make some sort of compromise, and so next it'll be either smaller Tannoys or something in the Harbeth/Spendor/Rogers mould I should think. Anyway, I want to see if there's any firm interest at my valuation of £1350, which given that the cabs cost £600 to put together and the ever-increasing prices of vintage Tannoys....seems pretty reasonable to me. The drivers themselves are in excellent order, these have the rubber surrounds (non-rotting), the only negative:- one treble control panel is cracked in the middle (always been like it and makes no difference to operation, hidden on rear of speaker anyway). I left these controls in circuit as they've always been totally quiet and a handy way of adjusting... the treble! Oh yes and a small scuff on the surface of one cone - totally superficial and not desperately visible.”


They are difficult to photograph and my man cave is (always) a mess. I had them on the ridiculous stands seen in order to get the driver close to my high seating position. The snaps show the grilles as quite transparent, but in fact the grilles are visually pretty opaque and textured as per period finish, and the first pic makes the top look bleached but it is just a reflection.

Up for sale at £1000, basically the current cost of the drivers. I would rather sell the drivers and cabs together as they work so well, the drivers alone would also be £1000 for those interested. These are big, quite heavy, and consequently collection only from W. London. They will not fit in a hatchback I suspect, you will need a medium estate or a van. PM me with any questions.

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1070939.comp.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1070939.comp.jpg.html)
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1060998.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1060998.jpg.html)
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1060254comp.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1060254comp.jpg.html)
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1060255-comp.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1060255-comp.jpg.html)
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1060127comp.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1060127comp.jpg.html)
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1060125comp.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1060125comp.jpg.html)
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1060255.jcomp.pg.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1060255.jcomp.pg.jpg.html)

[struth]

James, you will need pictures in this ad mate as per rules... asap please...if youve any problems inserting them, send them to me and I will pop them in. otherwise the ad will be removed..thanks




For Sale, my Tannoy 12” Monitor Gold speakers in custom cabinets. The drivers are the later rubber surround variant with specs very similar to the HPD model for potentially better bass extension. Sensitivity is the standard 92dB and 8 Ohm impedance makes them an easy drive. This pair are (IIRC) sequential serial numbers and drivers are in excellent condition front and back.
The cabinets are professionally made, a kind of Balmoral variant I believe, designed by the chap who runs Anatek and built for him out of heavy ply, waxed, high quality work, his own personal speakers. They are quite big, 44cm wide x 45cm deep x 92cm tall. The quality of construction is excellent, the finish is somewhat retro industrial - I like it but know it is not everyone's taste. What matter, they sound excellent, I had them at the same time as a pair of Lockwood re-coned Cheviots, and really there was little comparison; scale, heft, and transparency were all much improved with these. I sold the Cheviots and kept these, but they never worked in my room as well as either my Kef 105s or my AN-Es, and I have long since admitted defeat. They are way too good to store and I need space, so off to a new owner to enjoy.
The grilles are in Tannoy style cloth, they seem acoustically transparent to me, and would look fab with the lightning badges added, but I never did this. The drivers are near perfect front and back, the rubber surround which is rather closer to the HPD than the original paper MG in specification is rot-proof of course, unlike the foam on the HPD. The crossovers are original and correct Tannoy issue, re-capped by Dave (La Toilette) with Wilmslow audio polypropylenes but retaining the original Tannoy chokes and autoformers. I tidied up his soldering and wires, and seated them better so the crossover boxes shut properly which is essential for the chokes as their value changes if they are compressed (!). I have disconnected the level and treble lift rotary switches which are still present, they could easily be reconnected if you wanted to, or I can do it, but IMHO the speakers sound better without them. One control panel has a crack, this is not uncommon and caused by tightening the case against them when installing. It makes no functional difference and you have to look closely round the back of the speaker to see it. The binding posts are gold plated banana plugs also on the back.

I bought them from Dave – La Toilette - and this is taken from his sale blurb:

“I've had these drivers for the best part of 10 years after trying out lots of Tannoy models before and during, and these always seemed the best of all of them to me. Originally came in Lancaster cabs and now is really solid birch ply affairs professionally made for the guy who owns/runs Anatek - finished by me with Osmo wax straight onto the ply. I made and fitted the grilles. The cabs are basically repro's of the Balmoral cabs but made with good ply, and they sound l-o-a-d-s better than the Lancasters ever did. Replaced all the caps in the crossovers with Wilmslow Audio supercaps some years ago.

This won't be the end of my Tannoy story I'm sure, but with my kids and loads of house diy I think it's time to make some sort of compromise, and so next it'll be either smaller Tannoys or something in the Harbeth/Spendor/Rogers mould I should think. Anyway, I want to see if there's any firm interest at my valuation of £1350, which given that the cabs cost £600 to put together and the ever-increasing prices of vintage Tannoys....seems pretty reasonable to me. The drivers themselves are in excellent order, these have the rubber surrounds (non-rotting), the only negative:- one treble control panel is cracked in the middle (always been like it and makes no difference to operation, hidden on rear of speaker anyway). I left these controls in circuit as they've always been totally quiet and a handy way of adjusting... the treble! Oh yes and a small scuff on the surface of one cone - totally superficial and not desperately visible.”


They are difficult to photograph and my man cave is (always) a mess. I had them on the ridiculous stands seen in order to get the driver close to my high seating position. The snaps show the grilles as quite transparent, but in fact the grilles are visually pretty opaque and textured as per period finish, and the first pic makes the top look bleached but it is just a reflection.

Up for sale at £1000, basically the current cost of the drivers. I would rather sell the drivers and cabs together as they work so well, the drivers alone would also be £1000 for those interested. These are big, quite heavy, and consequently collection only from W. London. They will not fit in a hatchback I suspect, you will need a medium estate or a van. PM me with any questions.

[Jazid]

Sorry Grant, I was trying to add them and the add somehow submitted itself :scratch:

[southall-1998]

Which Audio Note AN-E's are those, James?

S.

[struth]

No probs..they look great.. Like rhe cabs

[Jazid]

Which Audio Note AN-E's are those, James?

Hi Shane
They are an unusual pair - PQ's old speakers! He designated them AN-E SPx -SE for sale although they are neither external x-over nor standard efficiency but are instead tricked out with all sorts of fancy bits under the hood I believe. They sound fab! They also are mounted on rather irregular stands - from the AE1 re-issue model. It's to get the tweeter up to the right height as I sit in an office chair. There is also a pair of Kef 105.1s' in the man cave as well at the mo...I like them a lot but a very different beast for sure and I'm using a cannibalised Marantz amp running class A to drive them. My wife has just about given up on me...:lol:




No probs..they look great.. Like rhe cabs

Thanks! I do as well, but they are different beasts from the faux Edwardian cabinets that Tannoy have made a big name with, they do sound good with excellent tight and extended bass. Sound great on the end of a pair of Leak TL12+ monos :^

[Jazid]

I've just noticed the Leaks sitting on top of the Tannoys in one of the pics :D

[Jazid]

Bumpitup

[Jazid]

And up, lovely speakers these

[The Black Adder]

Beautiful speakers...

If I had the doe I'd have these as a second pair. As an owner of both 12" and 15" MG's I really liked the 12" MG's, yes the 15" have more scale but there is something about the 12" that remains very addictive and fun.

Nicely updated crossovers too.

Good luck with the sale.

[Barry]

Love the AVO valve tester and the old Tektronics scope. :)

[anubisgrau]

As an owner of both 12" and 15" MG's I really liked the 12" MG's, yes the 15" have more scale but there is something about the 12" that remains very addictive and fun.


agree, 12" has cleaner mids, no interference from a bass misbehave like on a 15" (unless you make a SOTA cab to control it)...

[Jazid]

Love the AVO valve tester and the old Tektronics scope. :)

Yes they are both fab. I suspect the Tek 545A is as close as I'll ever get to a 570 :rolleyes: whilst the AVO is a day in day out workhorse, and a pleasure to use.

Re: the 12" issue I have never had a pair of 15" Tannoys in decent cabs so can't comment, but these cabs work down to lowish 30's without loss of output, so there's a good foundation to the music, and I wouldn't accuse them of misbehaving in the bass region at all.

[Jazid]

Up we go :)

[Jazid]

Enthusiastic bump :eek:

[struth]

Surprised theseare not long gone tbh.

[Jazid]

Bump

Sent from my GT-I9195 using Tapatalk

[Audio Al]

Whoops , wrong post

[nickbaba]

PM to Jazid

[Jazid]

An update: I had the drivers out of the cabs to re-insert the tweeter control pads though they remain unconnected.
The drivers are not sequential serial numbers but are pretty close - 085218 and 084889. Quite how close this actually is I wouldn't know but they look and sound identical.
Here are some pics of the innards
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1080301.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1080301.jpg.html)
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1080296.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1080296.jpg.html)
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb376/fgcouk/12MG/P1080304.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/fgcouk/media/12MG/P1080304.jpg.html)

[walpurgis]

It's rare to find Tannoys that were sold as pairs to have consecutive driver serial numbers. It's not worth worrying about.

[Jazid]

Still available, they are in the system now and sounding fine. Open to swaps for interesting stuff as well :)

Sent from my GT-I9195 using Tapatalk

[montesquieu]

Still available, they are in the system now and sounding fine. Open to swaps for interesting stuff as well :)

Sent from my GT-I9195 using Tapatalk


Rather astonished these haven't sold. The very best of the 12in Golds (the last ones), with crossovers, in perfectly respectable, presentable cabinets that are probably better than the majority of factory contemporary Tannoy cabs, at a very fair price. I'd take these over any current model Tannoy speaker including the prestige range short of the £8000 Tannoy Kensington.

Anything over 12w push-pull - Radford STA15 or STA25, Leak Stereo 20, Quad 22s, or a modern PP amp like the Puresound 2A3 - and you'd be in Tannoy heaven.

(TBH James I don't know what you are thinking ... set up properly these should smoke more or less any pair of AN-E's out there, unless you are trying to feed them with a single ended amp).

[walpurgis]

The very best of the 12in Golds (the last ones).

I thought the tacky foam 'Tanoplas' surround items were the last 12" Golds?

(I really fancy these James, but don't have the room unfortunately)




.

[montesquieu]

I thought the tacky foam 'Tanoplas' surround items were the last 12" Golds?

(I really fancy these James, but don't have the room unfortunately)




.

oops correct .. these are indeed the best Golds (but as Geoff says, not the last ones).

[rdpx]

I have a couple of questions.

1. Can these sit directly on the floor (wooden) and hard up against a wall?
2. is that a Croft Integrated sitting idly on top in the third picture, and if so have you tried it with these speakers and how do they work together?
3. Had a thought inspired by Q2 which is probably very daft, but could you put an amp and/or CDP on top of one of these cabinets, or does that way madness lie?

[Jazid]

Hmm, various thoughts and questions. Well, my experience of these speakers in my room is as follows:

1) Yes, they were designed to sit on the floor, my daft stands are because I sit at a desk in quite a high chair and didnt want them angled at my midriff. They are currently on the floor with a book inelegantly angling them up. They sound the same to me. They are front ported and pretty well raced so I can think of no reason why they wouldn't work well hard against a wall, currently they are about 1ft away (but only for logistical reasons). Frankly they sound worse in the room - but that's my room for you..
2) That is a Croft 25R sitting idly on top of one. I liked the sound they made together, it was refined, but overall I prefer the TL12+ monos and Tannoy combo as I find it a bit richer, so the 25r went to a new home. I tried the Tron and it is a great match, so some SETs are fine (at a price mind you) and even tried my latest obsession - a modded Marantz class A amp which drives the Kefs and ANs both with equal aplomb, but it didn't gell with the Tannoys. Synergy, what a pain!
3) I think that way madness lies if you are considering a source or valve amps. Solid state amps would probably get on with it just fine however!

Tom and Geoff, I too am surprised these didn't fly out, I thought they were priced to sell. But a couple of sniffs and one visitor later I must conclude that my legendary (lack of) selling skills are on display yet again. Hey ho! They are back in the system and sounding rather fine, I have half a mind to keep them. But my AN-Es are a very well fettled pair and have a midrange that is silky and persuasive and which flat out hoses the Kefs famous B110, and tidily beats the Tannoys head to head. The bass of the other two is unequivocally better it must be said, no possible need for a sub with the Tannoys, whilst the 8kHz and up is good on all three, so personal taste in presentation really.

Well... I don't have to sell, I just want the space back so I can collect more daft valvey stuff

[rdpx]

Thanks for the answers, James. I think they might be too tight a fit where they would need to go (radiator an issue at one side and a wood burner on the other!)
Still thinking about them though, but they would be powered by a Croft Integrated. I'm wondering what they might look like painted, and how much it would cost to get them professionally sprayed...

Sent from my GT-I9195 using Tapatalk

[Jazid]

I have no idea TBH, but I expect they could be easily enough veneered as an alternative. The woodwork is very tidy and straight for that. Others might be able to offer better insight into spray painting, I don't have any experience of this. Sorry I can't be more helpful!

[Audio Al]

I think Paul at RFC does finishing , ask him what he can do :)

[Jazid]

Sold. Please archive and thanks for all the replies folks :)