FOR SALE - Hornet Hedlund horns with Lowther DX4 drivers

[bumpy]

I have owned these horns from new. The cabinets were made by Hornet Audio in Croatia and imported by me about 12 years ago. They are recognised to be the best incarnation of this design both in looks, build and sound. You will find no MDF here.

I bought the drivers new about 6 years ago as an upgrade. These are the most expensive drivers that Lowther make to fit this design (currently £1336 for just the drivers). You will note the rolled whizzers, which totally eliminated any early criticism of Lowthers as being a bit 'ragged'.

The cabinets are sealed and waxed to give a finish that can be easily maintained and have undergone a number of improvements since new, including driver chamber damping, felt trim, oak feet, and easily removable grills.

I believe there are only about 5 pairs of these Hornet Hedlund speakers in the UK and these are probably as pretty and well cared for as you will find anywhere in the World.

If you know and like the Lowther sound then you know what to expect - clarity, scale, musicality and extreme dynamics. They are quite forgiving as to where they are placed relative to the back wall, as all sound is emitted from the front.

I am selling as the wife has corralled my Hi Fi into a corner of our room, where the Hedlunds can no longer perform as they should. They are a true statement piece.

Price is £2250

[bumpy]

More photos

[bumpy]

Last two

[bumpy]

Someone recently asked what are the strengths and weaknesses of this design, so I thought I would capture it here:

Weaknesses

Wife acceptance factor.
Needs some effort to transport them.
Despite their size, they do not plumb the very depths of base. To get a horn to do this, it would be MASSIVE (see below).
Quite directional.
Good but not great for heavy rock music

Strengths

Very rare statement speakers, unlikely to decrease any further in value.
Excellent craftmanship
Pinpoint sound from each 'single' driver.
No crossovers, so no resistors or capacitors in the signal path.
Forward firing so minimises room effects.
Probably the most dynamic speakers you can find.
Images well.
Very fast.
Very efficient, so can be run from a low powered amp - 1 watt is plenty.
Lovely transparency.
Base is well integrated.
Easy maintenance finish.
Most domestic horns use an internal labyrinth of chambers to develop the base, resulting in lots of messy internal reflections.
Lowther drivers go on for decades and actually improve with time. Lowther give excellent support.
Real talking point with visitors.
Performance is not compromised at low volumes - great late night speakers.
Great on close mixed music, jazz, acoustic music in particular guitars, and vocals.


If you want very deep base from a horn, this picture always makes me smile

http://www.goodsoundclub.com/Site_Images/Klaus_Midbass_Horn.jpg

[Firebottle]

Beautiful finish, GLWS.

Pedant mode ON Low frequencies are bass Pedant mode OFF

[Audio Al]

I must say they do look very well made :)

[bumpy]

I must say they do look very well made :)

The original Hedlund design was very much DIY, involving a multitude of MDF pieces glued together to get the curves. This is how most of the Hedlunds in the World were made.

Miroslav of Hornet Audio in Serbia commissioned his local carpenter to build the first pair using progressive layers of plywood glued together around a large former to generate a smooth horn.

[bumpy]

It is so difficult putting a price on a piece of Hi Fi that is almost unique.

For that reason I am going to REDUCE THE PRICE BY £50 PER WEEK every Wednesday

This week's price is £2200

[Firebottle]

So can I buy them in December for £950? ;)

A novel approach, I hope you get a good price Chris.

[bumpy]

So can I buy them in December for £950? ;)

A novel approach, I hope you get a good price Chris.

One has to believe that when the price is right they will go to a good home :)

[bumpy]

This weeks price £2150

[bumpy]

This weeks price £2100

[bumpy]

This weeks price £2050.

Beginning to generate some interest now

[bumpy]

In response to a question, I can confirm that the drivers are the latest version with rolled whizzers. They are 8 ohm and have high ferric voice coils and rare earth magnets with a flux density of 2.2 Tesla.

[bumpy]

This weeks price is £2000

I am away for a bit and may be out of contact, If you have questions etc then just e mail and I will treat them in the order they are received.

chris.valder@tiscali.co.uk

[bumpy]

This weeks price £1950

[bumpy]

This weeks price £1950

If you have Lowther drivers and are just looking to upgrade the cabinets. These cabinets are available for sale at £1300 without drivers.

[disarmamant]

I feel your pain. I tried to sell a pair of solid birch ply Mauhorn V's with Lowther DX4 drivers on various forums for over a year.

I guess there are few who appreciate the superb sound quality that these speakers can provide.

I wish you the best of luck with your sale.

[bumpy]

I feel your pain. I tried to sell a pair of solid birch ply Mauhorn V's with Lowther DX4 drivers on various forums for over a year.

I guess there are few who appreciate the superb sound quality that these speakers can provide.

I wish you the best of luck with your sale.

Thanks Martin

I have had a reasonable bit of interest, but I am just north of London and have had two different people interested from Ireland and one from near Scotland. That's a fair bit of inertia to overcome :)

Nobody has been to see or hear them yet. :) I think the two biggest obstacles will be WAF and transport :)

[bumpy]

This weeks price £1900 complete, or cabinets alone at £1250

[agk]

I'd think a divorce better value. Absolutely gorgeous, a great example, very good luck with the sale.

[bumpy]

This weeks price £1850 complete, or cabinets alone at £1200

[bumpy]

This weeks price is £1800 complete or £1150 without the Lowther drivers.

[bumpy]

This weeks price is £1750 complete or £1100 without the Lowther drivers.

Still nobody has been to see or hear them. :(

[bumpy]

You may see these speakers advertised at a higher price on E Bay. This is to account for the 13% total commission they take which hinders any discounting.

Buy them through this site for better value. :)

[bumpy]

Price is £1750 complete or £1100 without the Lowther drivers.

£500 reduction since first advertised. This is as low as I will go folks.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=655168287993008&set=o.266187900250821&type=3&theater&notif_t=like&notif_id=1471543212686980

[bumpy]

Speakers now sold and on their way from Herts to Belfast.