I recently heard a custom system built with three new G.I.P. field coil drivers: an 18" woofer in an open baffle; a clone of the Western Electric 555 compression driver feeding a clone of a large Yoshimura Laboratories horn; and a clone of the Western Electric 597 tweeter. These drivers are exceedingly rare in this country and sound VERY good. I think the 555 clone is at least as good as the genuine 555 drivers I've heard. The 597 tweeter is particularly impressive in a non-impressive way (you are aware of the "air" and upper end extension without being really aware of the tweeter because it is so smooth and unobtrusive). I have not heard many genuine 597 tweeters so I don't know how the clone compares with an original, but, the copy is really something special.
The Best & Rarest of all Stereo Gear
When it comes to stereo gear, to me, besides sound and build quality/reliability, the next thing I look for is how rare it is. There is just something about very rare, one-off, stereo gear that makes it very enticing to find and acquire. Over the years, I've been lucky enough to have found some rare gear and there's still others items that I'd like to find.
Recently, in my local CL, there was a very rare pair of Symdex speakers available for $50 that retailed at over $2200. When I inquired about them, they were gone. There is very little on the net about these speakers and later was lucky enough to have found a pair of Paisley Research AE-500 speakers. The Paisleys are amazing & are really giving my Omega Grande 8's a run for their money.
How about the Wingate 2000a amp? In 30 years, I've never seen one of these beauties for sale. Does anyone remember the EJ Jordan shoe box sized amp and preamp?
Please share if you are fortunate enough to have owned any ultra rare gear or if you are looking to acquire something unusual. (I'll share my own list of rare acquisitions and wants in a follow up post. I didn't want to make this initial post too lengthy).
Look forward to hearing your responses, thanks for reading,
Lou
Recently, in my local CL, there was a very rare pair of Symdex speakers available for $50 that retailed at over $2200. When I inquired about them, they were gone. There is very little on the net about these speakers and later was lucky enough to have found a pair of Paisley Research AE-500 speakers. The Paisleys are amazing & are really giving my Omega Grande 8's a run for their money.
How about the Wingate 2000a amp? In 30 years, I've never seen one of these beauties for sale. Does anyone remember the EJ Jordan shoe box sized amp and preamp?
Please share if you are fortunate enough to have owned any ultra rare gear or if you are looking to acquire something unusual. (I'll share my own list of rare acquisitions and wants in a follow up post. I didn't want to make this initial post too lengthy).
Look forward to hearing your responses, thanks for reading,
Lou
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- 50 posts total
- 50 posts total