New Arrivals.... RFC Corner 'Rutland' Cabinets incorporating Tannoy 12” Monitor Gold

[WESTLOWER]

New Arrivals....
RFC Corner 'Rutland' Cabinets incorporating Tannoy 12” Monitor Gold drivers.

I was running a stunning, very heavily modified 300b Power Amp, based on the WAD design,
beautiful mesh plates, into modern Kudos C3 speakers and was a happy man.
Well I thought I was!

The Tannoy switch started after responding to a classified ad on here by Tom (montesquieu) offering a pair of early Tannoy 12” Monitor Gold drivers. I’d read lots about other Tannoy journeys on AoS with much interest. Anyway, an itch was brewing... Damn it!

I responded to the classified that “alas, my 300b amp wasnt up to getting the best from such drivers, GLWTS”, something I had no experience of at all, but had gleaned from others that my 300b may struggle to deliver the bass from Tannoys. I had previously purchased a 300b from PetRat here on AoS, pricelessly because of this, his 300b struggled with his mighty Tannoy Westminsters, albeit, different drivers.

Well Geoff (Walpurgis), promptly replied, “It would make sense to try your amp with these speakers if you have an interest, you may be surprised”. So a date was set and I headed with my amp & Mrs. Westlower to Berkshire. The speakers were in solid, but rough, Chatsworth sized cabinets and were hooked up to HPD Crossovers. We fired up the 300b, nice, very nice, but there was indeed a ‘lack’ of bass, these were sealed cabinet after all. Tom Swapped over to his Radford STA25, instantly the balance of controlled Bass, lush mids and a sweet treble came into focus. I loved the sound, and lovely Mrs. Westlower gave me that look!.. tbh, she was smitten too. Damn!
It would mean a different Power amp.
Anyway, I wanted that sound and so I purchased the speakers.

At Tom’s, the two beautiful 'RFC' Corner Canterbury speakers which sit proudly at one end of the living room are simply stunning to look at, I loved the styling and quality. Tom fired them up. I sat quietly immersed in what was coming out of these beauties. It was a game changer. My head was spinning. It was a stunning system to experience, very well thought out.

I enjoyed the rough ‘Chatsworth’ sized Tannoys back at home for a while and then commissioned some custom RFC Monitor Gold crossovers, from Paul Coupe, after hearing from others at the huge shift in performance they would bring. These were built to top quality standard and installed. The lift in SQ was night and day. More of everything and then some. Top Job, not cheap, but for what one gets, not too much either. A huge difference.

I had already made my mind up to have quality Corner cabinet made, similar to what i’d seen and heard at Tom’s place, they would need to be scaled down slightly, as my Cottage living room is not huge, and I quite like being married!

Time to speak to Paul Coupe who Tom collaborated with to design the ‘Corner Canterburys’ I’d been so impressed with.

Firstly, Paul is an extraordinarily generous man with his knowledge, experience and time. After some discussions Paul got to work on designing a similar style cabinet based around the 12’’ Monitor Golds and my living Room. A very important factor.

Fast forward a few months.... and the beauties are here.

So how are they sounding?
Buying in effect 'blind' like this is a nervous experience, you have to have faith in the designer, although a huge nod to Tom's RFC Corner Canterburys, these are a different speaker.

Well, firstly i will say they exceeded my expectations in every way.
The quality of the cabinets, the styling, the attention to the design of the construction and the tuning is just a joy. Paul really applied himself to these. Music from both Analogue and digital source simply renders me to paralysis. I sit for hours emersed in what they deliver. Every millimeter of the room is filled with sound. They don’t have to be loud to deliver detailed, textured tops, lush, unctious mids and a bass that you could read the notes with grip and feeling. With Acoustic Jazz, the Timbre is exceptional...With reggae, they go low nicely and controlled.
But Tannoys don’t do bass... Utter tosh!!
I can’t wait to get home every evening and be transported to audio bliss.

Really, they are that good. I'm a happy Jazzer.

My thanks go to Tom for the original inspiration, his generosity of advice, knowledge and help it took to get to this point.
Paul Coupe of Reference Fidelity Components, for designing such a quality product and his endless support and essential advice.

RFC Rutland Tech specs:

Distributed vent tuned, RFC constrained panel design, modelled on the RFC Canterbury, scaled down to suit MG12 inch drive units. Design aims to push cab resonances out of the critical mid area and uses sub panel harmonic frequency splitting to reduce resonance amplitudes. Corner design results in stiffer cabinet with fewer direct acoustic reflections through driver, keeping out of phase reflections lower than on traditional rectangular boxes. Internally damped....panels damped for resonance as well as using acoustic damping to absorb upper mid/HF frequencies. Extra-stiff and thick laminated front baffle and base/top sections. Internally braced.

Cab Materials: Slow Grown Latvian Birch ply of various thicknesses. Sapele Wood Veneer.

Frequency response: Approx: 39Hz to 20KHz (-6dB) (Actual extension may be lower in room).

Mass: circa 50Kgs each..

External overall dimensions Approx 1200 x 600 x 420

Crossover: Externally mounted 2 pole electrical, LR4 acoustic, RFC designed, electrically compensated circuit equivalent to electrically flat autotransformer setting incorporating fully discrete point to point solid copper core wiring, high quality parts, RFC "HDF" inductors;
Internal Wiring: 2.5mm2 OFC biwire cable terminated in gold plated and sprung 4 pin tannoy connectors.


Cabinets: Design by Reference Fidelity Components. www.referencefidelitycomponents.co.uk
"Reference Rutland"

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[anthonyTD]

Excelent!
Great to see another satisfied Tannoy user, and a positive for Paul at RFC.:)
A...

[Ali Tait]

Very nice!

[struth]

great craftsmanship as usual...

[Marco]

Brilliant stuff, Adam!

More people with a decent budget to spend on hi-fi should go down the high-quality 'bespoke designed' route, rather than buying commercially produced equipment and speakers from manufacturers with a so-called 'desirable badge', as in my experience that's where the *real* deal and most rewards (not just sonic) are to be found...

Top notch craftsmanship again from Paul, who as a cabinet maker and speaker designer is certainly the real deal. Enjoy mate, and I wish you many years of fun and musical satisfaction with them :cool:

Marco.

[WESTLOWER]

Brilliant stuff, Adam!

More people with a decent budget to spend on hi-fi should go down the high-quality 'bespoke designed' route, rather than buying commercially produced equipment and speakers from manufacturers with a so-called 'desirable badge', as in my experience that's where the *real* deal and most rewards (not just sonic) are to be found...

Top notch craftsmanship again from Paul, who as a cabinet maker and speaker designer is certainly the real deal. Enjoy mate, and I wish you many years of fun and musical satisfaction with them :cool:

Marco.

Thanks Marco, you are right, no way could you get this level on a commercial route for the price point.
I intend to enjoy these for many moons to come.

[Marco]

Indeed, Adam. It's something you should appreciate and treat as unique - a 'one off' design, built specially for you. Such things should be treasured forever :)

"No way could you get this level on a commercial route for the price point".

Indeed not. However, you had the balls to take a risk, applied some lateral thinking and went with your gut instincts, - and you have been suitably rewarded, so enjoy! :cool:

I only hope that others will take note and follow your example...;)

Marco.

[Jazid]

Despite the lack of success of Tannoys in my own living room this is a testament to 'horses for courses' and massive respect to you for following your instincts, and putting your money where your faith is.

Your speakers look fab, if they sound even half as good they will be winners. I'm not too surprised given Paul's work on Tom's speakers, but delighted the success continues ☺

Sent from my GT-I9195 using Tapatalk

[montesquieu]

I had the privilege of hearing these speakers on Saturday. I had a really fun afternoon and evening (six hours in total) - a proper listening session briefly paused for a fine curry cooked by Penny, Adam's other half.

Adam's 401 that you can see in the pics is a real cracker - beautifully refinished in grey hammerite, with Russ Collinson Shindo-type plinth, and a superb high-mass Series 1 SME 3012 that's had a trip to J7's for rewiring and an all round fettle. With Adam's vintage SPU GE, there was a real 60s vibe going on - 60s arm, 60s cartridge, 60s drive units, 60s-design Radford Revival STA25 MkV, and the 60s Golds in 60s style cabs of course - with 60s jazz, an intoxicating mix. It all just sounded so 'right'.

A big part of that synergy was, it seems to me, delivered by the AD Satchmo preamp/internal phono stage that Adam was running, paired nicely with my old Hashimoto HM7 (built up by Graeme 'Valvebloke') - the combo seemed beautifully balanced between detail, ambience and oomph - I was well impressed by that and a real match with the rest of his kit. This hadn't been on my radar before but it came across as very accomplished, with all the warmth and dimensionality you look for in a good tube pre/phono. Great choice.

I brought four cartridges round and we had a bit of a play - the Royal N was a great match with the Series 1 3012 and an interesting 'modern' update to the SPU GE. (It certainly demonstrated that the 401/3012 could do detail with the best of them including Adam's other TT, a top-spec LP12). I also brought both mono Miyajimas (0.7 Zero and 1.0 Premium) which worked well too - Adam's system really brought out the benefits of running a mono cartridge, even against the Royal N, which while fab with stereo presented mono as a bit narrow, whereas the Miyajimas broadened the sound out across the whole space. In Adam's intimate setting it felt like being at a gig (in fact, more like a gig than it did in stereo). Glorious. We also had a bit of fun with a Tonar Diabolic E I picked up recently - hilariously good on Adam's heavy arm for the £50 that it costs and really not so far behind the SPU GE.

Adam is a true music enthusiast (as anyone who has been following the jazz music thread would realise) and his record collection is superb (and enormous) - I enjoy jazz but I don't know that much about it, but Adam was pulling out some really cool stuff. (Dr John? Awesome). Nice to have my horizons expanded.

But I guess along with Adam's music, the star of the show was the speakers. I just love the proportions of them (possibly more aesthetically balanced than mine with their tall, slim looks) - they have the real look of vintage corner Tannoys and are a wonderful match for the 12in Gold driver. They sound superb in Adam's space - sweet, punchy and with great atmospherics - and I was most surprised at the in-room bass response - definitely the best I've heard from 12in Gold. The tuning sounded absolutely spot-on for the room, so Paul has clearly done his usual trick with the maths.

The cabs themselves seemed really well sorted - well damped and braced, no resonances or other nasties. Paul's speciality of course is his crossovers, and Adam went for his top-end ones - so the clarity is amazing. (No Tannoy honk or grainyness - Tannoy skeptics really owe it to themselves to hear some of Paul's crossovers).

But the biggest impact was from the synergy of the way it all worked together - Adam was looking for something that reflects his passion for 50s and 60s jazz, and I can hardly imagine a better set up - from the cartridge through to the speakers - to achieve that. Really impressive.

But of course I couldn't go without trying some of my own stuff ... a Bach cantata and some Schubert Lieder, natch - needless to say they handled this music with aplomb as well.

Anyway, thanks to Adam (and Penny) for being such super hosts. It's fantastic to see someone create a system like this, each part sourced with thought and care from the artisan ecosystem that surrounds and supports our wee community. This is my way of doing stuff too (as it is for many here) and it's so fab when it all comes together.

[WESTLOWER]

massive respect to you for following your instincts, and putting your money where your faith

Thanks but the real leap of faith was Tom contacting Paul at RFC and putting forward his idea of updating the original
Corner cabinets. I was very grateful to have Tom's Canterburys as a reference point, without which I'm not sure I'd have
Stumped up completely blind.

[WESTLOWER]

thanks to Adam (and Penny) for being such super hosts. It's fantastic to see someone create a system like this, each part sourced with thought and care from the artisan ecosystem that surrounds and supports our wee community. This is my way of doing stuff too (as it is for many here) and it's so fab when it all comes together.

Very Kind words indeed Tom, I'm really chuffed you thought so highly of the system and the synergy. I know you have a good ear and I also know if you heard weaknesses you'd have been honest in highlighting them. I will be sure to pass your impressions on to David Coe, the designer of the AD Audio Satchmo pre/phono. We always believed it would be a top class pre amp when he was building it, its great to know it hit the spot.

It was a great afternoon/evening, thank you for making the effort to come over and bringing the arsenal of cartridges.
The monos were a real revelation, it's my next quest as i must own a few thousand late period mono LPs and it was evident I am missing out on their full sonic potential. The Royal N was knockout on the stereo set up.

I was pretty confident you would approve of the whole presentation but there was always that worry on the first needle drop! It's great to get other people's opinions and impressions and even better when such people have been through as much kit as yourself. But your comments resonate with me regarding the independent Hifi community and especially those on AoS. Without a platform like this for us all to forage, learn and share I certainly would have missed out on a whole other world of audio pleasure. It's great we can approach our hobbie from an alternative angle. So thanks to all on here who generously contribute their experiences and knowledge and especially the people who keep it going as such a vibrant community and resource for us all.

Feels bloody marvellous when the kit comes together. Now for some Coltrane...

[walpurgis]

The 'Rutland' cabinets are beautiful Adam. A credit to RFC and Paul and I'm sure they sound superb.

[julesd68]

Hi Adam, congrats on your magnificent speakers! Quite stunning to behold.

I was wondering if you have any photos of the interiors? I would love to see how they look if poss.

[WESTLOWER]

Hi Adam, congrats on your magnificent speakers! Quite stunning to behold.

I was wondering if you have any photos of the interiors? I would love to see how they look if poss.

Hi Julian, I don't actually, but I'd imagine Paul Coupe at RFC may.
Thank you for your nice comments. :)

[WESTLOWER]

The 'Rutland' cabinets are beautiful Adam. A credit to RFC and Paul and I'm sure they sound superb.

Thank you Geoff, I have to say if You hadn't suggested I go to hear the 12'' Monitor Gold drivers, these lovely things probably wouldn't have been built for me.

[Sophistry]

Great to hear how this has all come together, Adam - seems like you have an absolutely fantastic set-up which should hopefully give you years of listening pleasure! Was a great write-up and read also!

I just wanted to reiterate the points made about the generosity of both Paul and Tom - both have been incredibly kind to me and important in putting me on the hi-fi path I am currently running headlong down.

(Can't wait to get the crossovers that Paul is currently working on for the 15" HPDs I recently got my hands on - background to follow in a proper post when I get some time!)

[WESTLOWER]

Great to hear how this has all come together, Adam - seems like you have an absolutely fantastic set-up which should hopefully give you years of listening pleasure! Was a great write-up and read also!

I just wanted to reiterate the points made about the generosity of both Paul and Tom - both have been incredibly kind to me and important in putting me on the hi-fi path I am currently running headlong down.

(Can't wait to get the crossovers that Paul is currently working on for the 15" HPDs I recently got my hands on - background to follow in a proper post when I get some time!)

Cheers Charlie, you are in for a treat with the Crossovers!
What cabinets are they/(will be) in?

[Sophistry]

Currently in standard Arden Mk1 cabinets. They are currently slightly too resonant, so Paul has explained what I need to do to brace them and sort the internal dampening out etc - I will need him to talk me through it in more detail at some point so that I get it right!

At some point in the future, I will change the cabinets, but for the price I got them I am very happy - seems like a good way to start on the Tannoy journey!

New turntable arriving shortly, and then I have to sort my amp and preamp situation out. The AD Audio preamp you have has certainly piqued my interest - I have really been looking for an EAR Yoshino 868PL (in fact getting scammed out of a tidy sum of money when trying to buy one which it looks like I am unlikely to get back), but they are few and far between and very expensive. This AD Audio or a Croft preamp sound like they could be pretty good matches and great value for money!

Anyway, enough about my changes - really, very happy that it has all paid off for you and how happy you seem to be with it all!

[Wakefield Turntables]

Welcome to the RFC Tannoy club. I'm really pleased that things worked out for you.

[Marco]

But your comments resonate with me regarding the independent Hifi community and especially those on AoS. Without a platform like this for us all to forage, learn and share I certainly would have missed out on a whole other world of audio pleasure. It's great we can approach our hobbie from an alternative angle. So thanks to all on here who generously contribute their experiences and knowledge and especially the people who keep it going as such a vibrant community and resource for us all.


Nice one, Adam. The above is the very raison d'être of AoS, and what makes this place special - so long may we hear of your adventures! :)

Marco.

[Sophistry]

Adam, what power amp are you running in the end? Did you change amp as you mentioned you planned to do in your first post?

I see that your profile still refers to the WAD 300b Power modded (and I think I can spot it on the bottom left in the photos), but Tom mentioned a STA25 Mk5 Radford Revival (which I think I can spot that in the bottom right of the photos (unless Tom also brought his Mk3 along?)).

[WESTLOWER]

Adam, what power amp are you running in the end? Did you change amp as you mentioned you planned to do in your first post?

I see that your profile still refers to the WAD 300b Power modded (and I think I can spot it on the bottom left in the photos), but Tom mentioned a STA25 Mk5 Radford Revival (which I think I can spot that in the bottom right of the photos (unless Tom also brought his Mk3 along?)).

I currently have a Radford STA25 MK5 on loan which works exceptionally well. The AD Audio KT120 Monos didn't work in that room with those speakers as well and my 300b, which btw, is a magnificent amplifier is away being fettled...but prior to the new Ported Rutland cabinets, the 300b didn't have the bass with the Tannoys 12''MGs.

[Sophistry]

Interesting! Yes, the Radford amps seem to be a lovely match - trying to sort one (in some form or another!) myself!

What was wrong with the AD Audio KT120 monos? Certainly not lacking for power!

[WESTLOWER]

Interesting! Yes, the Radford amps seem to be a lovely match - trying to sort one (in some form or another!) myself!

What was wrong with the AD Audio KT120 monos? Certainly not lacking for power!

Damping factor, apparently. The bass with this amp using these new speaker cabinets once ported, was too much in my smallish living room. I've had the KT120 on other speakers and they were incredible. The Radford has a good balance with these speakers.

[User211]

CI have really been looking for an EAR Yoshino 868PL (in fact getting scammed out of a tidy sum of money when trying to buy one which it looks like I am unlikely to get back), but they are few and far between and very expensive. This AD Audio or a Croft preamp sound like they could be pretty good matches and great value for money!

I had almost the exact opposite experience. Here's my EAR868PL below, bought by meeting the vendor in Cheltenham by KFC near GCHQ.

He pulled pictured item in from the boot, charged me £2K in cash, and I was one happy bunny. The sad part is he said he was dying of cancer. Not good.:(

Anyway, if you end up with the same markings on the base (see link below picture for all the pics - it is the last one I am talking about), the unit's only and minor flaw, you know you got the one I had. Unlikely but hey.

I was initially pleased with it. In fact Paul at RFC heard it in my system with my older Apogee Duettas (now long gone) and a Parasound A21.

I actually realised fairly quickly I didn't really like it and subsequently passed it on. What you see are the pictures I took for ebay. I think the unit went to France from memory. Needless to say it sold for a lot more than £2K!

Which reminds me I need to reply to one of Paul's e-mails which I'll do over the weekend Paul, who I am sure is perusing this thread!;)

Enjoy the pics!:) And the speakers, which if close to Tom's, will be fabulous.

He who dares can win, and I am sure you have,

https://hhjjig.ch.files.1drv.com/y4mUv8xFthEK1X9Mpbd9jePv53GyljJF9PtzZg0Eit-Ar2qc48RbC8KH4U3okV7O2YJRDKH3AvJs5GF4-_GtWnaCOEv0_fthS_OaMtU6E-pE_S343922t1ExwuKN9B_qY5MxRpzafXkPKGXG3Dl_xsxZ_atl-bbP21L9WreELo-FdyJVuCWdU5UFrPx5Oz_WYORhkf-lDrrxJ3v5wE9_xftgw?width=1024&height=768&cropmode=none

https://1drv.ms/f/s!ApUl1xxOUo0liULAeRYithX9kKHW

[hermit]

Absolutely gorgeous speakers.

https://media1.tenor.com/images/51d1a68d402dd1427103be2ae492d75d/tenor.gif?itemid=4892432

[Edward]

Looking good Adam

Can't wait to hear the Tannoys in their new clothes. I feel I've been on your journey as well having heard your Tannoys in their original form, then the huge difference Paul's xovers made and the various amps. A big thumbs up to you of having the vision and bravery to take this so far.

And the new cabinets looks just fine next door to your bespoke 'Islington' rack. :)

@Tom, what's your opinion on the difference (if any) between your Radford and mine that Adam is using? Perhaps there are too many other variables in the picture to make any sensible comment?

[montesquieu]

Looking good Adam

Can't wait to hear the Tannoys in their new clothes. I feel I've been on your journey as well having heard your Tannoys in their original form, then the huge difference Paul's xovers made and the various amps. A big thumbs up to you of having the vision and bravery to take this so far.

And the new cabinets looks just fine next door to your bespoke 'Islington' rack. :)

@Tom, what's your opinion on the difference (if any) between your Radford and mine that Adam is using? Perhaps there are too many other variables in the picture to make any sensible comment?

Hard to spot any differences in an unfamiliar setup .. the similarities are obvious though in the fullness of the sound, the control of the cones, and the overall sense of ease and liquidity. Will gets a few additional watts over the Mk3's 35w, but not sure how often you'd really access them in a reasonably efficient/well matched setup such as this.

I suspect the main differences are not necessarily audible but more in the 'non-functional' areas such as improved reliability from new boards and wiring, the IEC socket allowing use of a nice mains cable (the original is captive), and the use of modern materials and components.

The originals are going to be around 50 years old now and most likely any failed bits would have been replaced on and ad hoc basis, which is not always going to deliver an ideal outcome. Though by all accounts the transformers (the secret sauce in Radford amps) do seem to last pretty much indefinitely unless mistreated in some way.

[Edward]

Hard to spot any differences in an unfamiliar setup .. the similarities are obvious though in the fullness of the sound, the control of the cones, and the overall sense of ease and liquidity. Will gets a few additional watts over the Mk3's 35w, but not sure how often you'd really access them in a reasonably efficient/well matched setup such as this.

I suspect the main differences are not necessarily audible but more in the 'non-functional' areas such as improved reliability from new boards and wiring, the IEC socket allowing use of a nice mains cable (the original is captive), and the use of modern materials and components.

The originals are going to be around 50 years old now and most likely any failed bits would have been replaced on and ad hoc basis, which is not always going to deliver an ideal outcome. Though by all accounts the transformers (the secret sauce in Radford amps) do seem to last pretty much indefinitely unless mistreated in some way.

Thanks Tom. Would be interesting to try both new and old side by side in the same setup one of these days.

<just viewed an incredible sunset here in Western Oz. Perfect.>

[montesquieu]

Thanks Tom. Would be interesting to try both new and old side by side in the same setup one of these days.

<just viewed an incredible sunset here in Western Oz. Perfect.>

I'm sure that can be arranged.

<I'm looking out from my office at a grey sky and light English drizzle ...>

[hifinutt]

just resurrecting this post

a lovely pair of RFC Rutlands available at 6k here . someone is going to be very happy

https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/price-reduction-rfc-tannoys.292025/