10"/12" Tannoys

[hoopsontoast]

I am looking to revisit some Tannoys, having in the past owned some HPD315A Cheviots, Chester as well as the more modern Stirling HE.


Tannoy Chester by Robert Seymour, on Flickr


Tannoy Stirling HE by Robert Seymour, on Flickr

My room is a little challenging as it produces a large peak around 32Hz, which with larger speakers (Rega R9 or even KEF 201/2) show up and is very difficult to get rid of without the use of DSP. The speakers need to work well near the rear wall and nearish corners. Physical size itself is not an issue for me as the whole back wall is dedicated to hifi
The room is ~17' x 12' with an alcove to the left of the TV as shown below.



And how it is today (I plan to use the Tannoys with the Bryston B60 rather than the Decware Zen)


System by Robert Seymour, on Flickr

From research, I found a model which is quite rare, the 'Dover' (same range as the Caernarvon/Arundel/Balmoral) with the SRM10b (2558 driver) DC unit, in a sealed box which looks ideal although a bit more difficult to find.
There is the SRM10b or old original Stirling model but again, both difficult to find. The closest other is a HPD295 such as the Eaton, and more affordable.

I've not heard any of the Studio range such as the LRM/LGM 12" models which may well work?
I worry the larger models such as Cheviot/Berkley while they may well fit size wise, may not in the room.

Budget is around £1k depending on if I can sell/PX the Rega R9/Larsen 4.2s.

[walpurgis]

The Eaton should fit the bill. I liked them enough to have owned five pairs over the years and preferred them to the Cheviot and Chatsworths at the time. Bass is controllable with port bungs if need be, but in the end used mine without.

[hoopsontoast]

The Eaton should fit the bill. I liked them enough to have owned five pairs over the years and preferred them to the Cheviot and Chatsworths at the time. Bass is controllable with port bungs if need be, but in the end used mine without.

It looks like Eaton may be the best bet then, at least availability wise. Comparing to Cheviots, 12" HPD based, what about the Chatsworths, was that with 12" Monitor Golds?

[DiveDeepDog]

I've just got Eaton's and enjoying them, but as always wonder how Little Red Monitors would compare?

[walpurgis]

My Eatons by the way, were the original HPD 295A model, not the recently introduced Legacy version (which I would not want).

Incidentally, the HPD 295A is the most durable of the HPD's as it does not have foam cone surrounds that rot away, like those on the 12" and 15" models.

[paulf-2007]

I've just got Eaton's and enjoying them, but as always wonder how Little Red Monitors would compare?

When you mention the word monitor I think near field listening. Always enjoyed tannoys when I've heard them and have been drawn towards 10" reds, but never bought any.

[hoopsontoast]

My Eatons by the way, were the original HPD 295A model, not the recently introduced Legacy version (which I would not want).

Incidentally, the HPD 295A is the most durable of the HPD's as it does not have foam cone surrounds that rot away, like those on the 12" and 15" models.

Thats good to know, I assumed the 295A had foam surrounds the same as the 315A/385A. Not that that would phase me as I have re-foamed speakers before including the KEF 104/2.

[walpurgis]

Purely by coincidence, I'm working on a pair of Tannoys which are probably just the sort of thing you are after. These will be for my system though .

They started out as very battered empty Dorset cabinets, which I've nearly finished restoring and converting into reflex boxes instead of ABR items. Into which the 2528 drivers from my Ascots will be mounted, once I've fitted these with modified SRM 10B cone assemblies. They will end up looking like smaller versions of my previous Cheviot Mk.II speakers.

[hifinutt]

My Eatons by the way, were the original HPD 295A model, not the recently introduced Legacy version (which I would not want).

Incidentally, the HPD 295A is the most durable of the HPD's as it does not have foam cone surrounds that rot away, like those on the 12" and 15" models.

any reason Geoff , i rather like the new version ... fits into tight spaces , images amazingly well and although tempted to move to a cheviot or kensington at some point , the smaller eatons just seem to sing

[walpurgis]

The new Eaton is I believe around the same size as the original HPD one and would no doubt be as versatile. However, the new Legacy model employs a tulip waveguide tweeter, not a pepperpot compression driver horn as per original HPD 285A. Having owned many Tannoys of both types, my preference is for the pepperpot types, simply for that last degree of immediacy, mid transparency and lightning transient response. Both tweeter designs sound good though.