Which Tannoys, folks?

[montesquieu]

. When you're finished lovingly restoring the Mansfield's, I'd expect them to give your Turnberry's more than a few surprises!

Marco.

I would too. Those cabs are far and away better than any Lancasters I've seen.

[Reffc]

I would too. Those cabs are far and away better than any Lancasters I've seen.

That was the biggest surprise Tom, just how solid and heavy they are. Lockwoods said that they only occasionally see a good set of Mansfields, and that this was an exceptional find. Most have been bashed around recording studios and driven hard for a living. I'm not bothered about how long it would take to run the new cones in. It won't be much different to the Turnberrys (I expect) which from new have taken a good 100 hours or more to properly bed in. They sound better with every playing.

I may hang onto the original cones as spares providing coils are all ok. I've removed the back plate cover and the crossovers will come out next with a little guidance. Connector plug quality to the speakers is fab...way better than the plastic block connector rubbish on the new ones. In principle I could hardwire (solder) direct to the driver but for convenience, will simply clean up the original, use contact cleaner/lube, and re-assemble. Binding posts will be de-soldered, drilled out and binned. I feel some WBT ones coming in! Mind you. I like the CNC ones too, they;re well made and a fraction of the price.

[walpurgis]

Paul, don't worry about the power handling. The tweeter and bass voicecoils will never blow in domestic use. Even older Tannoys were designed to go devastatingly loud. I provided music to a very big party all night using my little Tannoy Eatons with a 200 watt amplifier and they didn't even break a sweat (I brought them along as my friend had melted his Harbeths, silly boy). If you take the cones out, you'll find the coils looking like new. Trust me you'll never have power handling issues, I've lived with various Tannoys for forty years and it just doesn't happen and I've been known to get them very, very loud. Upgraded terminal post is a good mod though.

I'm not knocking Lockwood, but they are out to get business and obviously will try and sell you their products. I'd love to see you have a bash at refoaming the existing cones.

[Reffc]

Paul, don't worry about the power handling. The tweeter and bass voicecoils will never blow in domestic use. Even older Tannoys were designed to go devastatingly loud. I provided music to a very big party all night using my little Tannoy Eatons with a 200 watt amplifier and they didn't even break a sweat (I brought them along as my friend had melted his Harbeths, silly boy). If you take the cones out, you'll find the coils looking like new. Trust me you'll never have power handling issues, I've lived with various Tannoys for forty years and it just doesn't happen and I've been known to get them very, very loud. Upgraded terminal post is a good mod though.

I'm not knocking Lockwood, but they are out to get business and obviously will try and sell you their products. I'd love to see you have a bash at refoaming the existing cones.

You've made some good points Geoff...with me its mostly down to time as I have a fair few projects running at present (TT plinths/hifi furniture and a backlog of cables) so making time is always problematical when self employed! I'd love to have a crack at it because it can't be too difficult looking at what needs doing. I'll strip them down later on and examine them closely. If they look ok, I'll follow your suggestion Geoff, if not, then I may just package up and send off for repair as I'd have to buy the complete kit anyway (these had been run in their present condition at low volumes for quite a while!).

[Elephantears]

I've missed a lot of this thread but I'm fascinated to hear the ongoing comparison between the ancient and modern Tannoys.

Over Christmas in Ottawa I heard a pair of Tannoy Buckinghams at a great shop called the Record Centre. John, who owns the shop, is a serious Tannoyista as well as a vintage Turntable evangelist. These Buckinghams were serious beasts with three large drivers. He had sourced some of the few recone kits remaining in existence, so these were practically as new. They sounded great; all the depth and warmth I'd hope for from Tannoys, and clear as a bell.

[Reffc]

Hi Andrew

yes, its been a fascinating journey so far and one thing is standing out. Older Tannoys = more DIY standard cabinetry (!) but better quality drivers and connectors/New prestige range = better woodwork but poorer quality connectors and cheaper made drivers. That's not to say that the new ones sound worse, because they don't, to my ears they sound better in the sense they're more dynamic, more "hifi". What the older ones seem to do better is present a more effortless sense of scale and they have a wonderful midrange on all the one's I've so far heard. I can forgive what Tannoys do badly in exchange for what they do well if properly implemented (there's no going back in fact).

Update:

Drivers removed and stripped. In remarkable shape. Voice coils (treble) measure 10.6 Ohms and 10.3 Ohms (each drive unit respectively) and LF units measure 6.4 Ohms. Very closely matched on DC anyway although I'm aware thats not an indication of tolerance for FR. Its good news though as it means that the voice coils are intact and haven't scraped/shorted out.

Crossovers measure fine on continuity and crossover panels willbe re-drilled to accept decent speaker binding posts. Cabs will benefit from a very light rub with fine emery or fine sandpaper and will have a fresh coat of lacquer or Danish oil applied. Base to be drilled for castors as these will be moved about. Should be mint examples when everything is done.

[walpurgis]

Your driver tolerences seem very close indeed, I've known them to vary quite widely.

If the speakers sound OK once the cone issue is sorted, I'd be cautious about any mods or 'upgrades'. As I've said before, old components do not necessarily sound bad and modern components are not necessarily better, proceed with caution.

I don't know what type of adhesive Tannoy used for the veneer, so my inclination would be not to use any kind of oil treatment as some veneer adhesives dissolve in oil.

[Reffc]

Your driver tolerences seem very close indeed, I've known them to very quite widely.

If the speakers sound OK once the cone issue is sorted, I'd be cautious about any mods or 'upgrades'. As I've said before, old components do not necessarily sound bad and modern components are not necessarily better, proceed with caution.

I don't know what type of adhesive Tannoy used for the veneer, so my inclination would be not to use any kind of oil treatment as some veneer adhesives dissolve in oil.

Absolutely Geoff, we're agreed on that. After some thought, it'll be a gentle rub down with very fine sandpaper then Canauba and beeswax well rubbed in and buffed in layers until a nice even sheen is evident. Carnauba will provide a tough finish and help smooth out the slightly rough natural teak grain and won't harm any adhesives.

As far as the caps go, I won't mess with them design wise (although the cross overs CAN be bettered) and will keep them original spec with any changes being like for like. I want these close to standard but mint. I've designed the stands now which will sit on castors and raise the speakers around 10 inches making them quite imposing! I'll try and get as close a veneer match as possible for those and make them to fit the base plinth as an exact match profile/size wise.

[walpurgis]

Absolutely Geoff, we're agreed on that. After some thought, it'll be a gentle rub down with very fine sandpaper then Canauba and beeswax well rubbed in and buffed in layers until a nice even sheen is evident. Carnauba will provide a tough finish and help smooth out the slightly rough natural teak grain and won't harm any adhesives.

As far as the caps go, I won't mess with them design wise (although the cross overs CAN be bettered) and will keep them original spec with any changes being like for like. I want these close to standard but mint. I've designed the stands now which will sit on castors and raise the speakers around 10 inches making them quite imposing! I'll try and get as close a veneer match as possible for those and make them to fit the base plinth as an exact match profile/size wise.

A thought. If you're going to rub down the cabs with fine sandpaper (flourpaper), try finishing off with a light final rub over with very fine wire wool, this will help clear any grit from the grain prior to waxing. It will also remove any slight 'fluffing' of the wood surface fibres.

[Reffc]

Exactly what I had planned Geoff. I've done several cabs and other bits of furniture this way now. It takes time and patience to get the best results!