2. speakers
  3. 1391382321

Life after ADS

When I first started this hobby a few years ago I was immediately drawn to vintage ADS speakers because of the performance/price ratio plus they are just flat out musical.

Many well regarded speakers have come and gone that offered an amazing hi-fi listening experience but I always kept at least one or two pair of ADS speakers around for background music and so forth.

It has taken me the better part of three years to find a mint pair of L1530's and wouldn't you know it a pair came up for sale to me locally and I grabbed them. However I am moving into a smaller house and will not be able to keep them. My first question is what would be a good modern monitor to replace them with.

I will say I listened to some Adam Audio's (not sure what model)and for the money they were very good. In fact I am thinking of getting a pair. The ribbon tweeter sounded very open and detailed without being harsh or aggressive. Before I get the Adams are there any other speakers with ribbon tweeters I should consider? Others I have been looking at are LSA Statements, Vapor, and Evolution Acoustics.

Any suggestions are welcome. Thanks.

Thanks.
chrshanl37
wrm57
629 posts
 
If you love the ADS sound, how about the ADS L-1290 mkII? It's a very slender floorstander with a footprint of around a square foot, taking up less space than many a monitor on a stand. Works well in smallish rooms. Many find it to be among the best-sounding ADS. And you can generally find a nice pair for south of $400.
sid42
244 posts
 
I also have been/am a devotee of ADS' speakers. Having owned the 1530's like you, they were a superb sounding speaker. I also had to go to a smaller footprint later on, and so I now own the 1290/2's and the 1590/2's. If you loved the 1530's, you'd love these also. The 1590/2's are more similar to what you had as for speaker compliment, but either one more than fills the bill as to a smaller footprint. Those 1530's, at 2' wide, were a bear to place in a room. You might have to search a bit, but they do come up frequently on the internet.
simao's avatar
simao
656 posts
 
The LSA's are superb and under-valued. You might also consider the Reference 3A de Capo i. There're a pair for sale now on agon.
peter_s
1,088 posts
 
How do those ADS models compare to the 810's, which I have heard and was impressed with?
johnnyb53
3,490 posts
 
I had both a pair of L1090s (like the 1290s, but slightly smaller woofers and not bi-ampable) and a pair of L810s. They had a very similar sound, as they both used the same drivers--the sticky soft dome midrange and tweeter, and a pair of woofers made of ADS's proprietary "Stifflite". The L1090 and 1290 have the advantage of placement, as they are towers with a small footprint. They also have the advantage of a narrower front baffle, which lowers the amount of sound bounced from the front baffle and theoretically improves imaging.

In actual use I think it's pretty hard to tell them apart sonically. Basically, if you come across L1090/II, L1290/II, L710 or L810, they'll all give you what you're looking for, though the towers take up less floor space and don't require the stands. OTOH, I highly recommend getting outriggers for the L1090/1290 because on their own those speakers aren't very stable on carpet.

Depending on your tastes and room interactions, you may want to add a sub or two for the 710s or 1090s.
More to discover