Tannoy Speakers

The Prestige line are some of the best speakers I have ever heard but they are pricey and the looks won't please everyone.

The Dimension series is highly underrated. The TD10 was really incredible sounding - different from most speakers but perfectly natural in the end. They need a BIG space to really open up. If you want orchestral pieces to sound believable, these are the speakers for you IMO.

I have never found the Eyris to sound good - they have always been rolled off and dull. I don't recommend them.

However, the Mercury series is really surprisingly good for the money. The MX3s I heard were most impressive and basically did everything right (except for scale but they are little speakers). Way better than Eyris for a lot less money.

Arthur

I owned two sets (the MX series for HT & the Revolution 3's for 2-channel). I still use the MX series in my HT and very much enjoy them. The R/L front MX 4's play down to the low 30's so the sub crosses over much lower (about 45Hz).

As far as the Rev 3's, they sounded fairly neutral (slight upper mid bump) and were easy to listen to in my analog setup. However, my listening room is 17 x 35 and open behind the wall they were up against (another 12 x 35) and even though the bass was tight and clean (down to the upper 30's), there just wasn't enough of it. I now have Kirksaeter 220's.

I own Tannoy Arundels with the 15in dual concentric drivers. I could not be much happier with those speakers. They are not «hifi» (they have a little horn coloration) but just plainly musical, coherent and easy to listen. They are efficient and present a easy load to the amplifier. The only drawback is that the are big and bulky and not much wife friendly but can have some retro charm. I have completely redone the crossover (without changing the values) and refinished the exterior so I plan on keeping them for a long time.

Hi, my comments are in the context of an owner of 12" Tannoy red monitors, as well as auditioning the big 15" red GRF Autograph monitors and the huge dual 15" red GRF Autograph Professionals in friend's systems I'm familiar with. I also owned dipolars, Apogee ribbons and conventional ported and sealed box speakers.

The better Tannoy dual concentrics are more about the "big picture" of music reproduction because they capture the flow, emotion and human qualities. They also sound very alive at low volume levels, a common trait of horns, where other topologies tend to sound sleepy and compressed in comparison at low levels. They can boogie at high levels too, if that's your thing. They work with different genres of music - classical, chamber, jazz and rock. And they do some of the best "tone color" I've heard. These qualities come with a trade-off in less transparency, detail and accuracy compared to other speakers. I hear better sound with the other speakers, but I'm reminded of living people performing music on the better Tannoys.

Scott

I have owned and enjoyed Tannoy Dual Concentrics since the 1970s.

I currently own three pairs from the Tannoy Professional line, none of them, unfortunately, current models: the System 15 DMT II, the System 10 DMT II and the (rather rare) active model, the AMS-12A.

I have also owned Monitor Golds, Monitor HPDs, and the System 12 DMT I.

Sensitive, dynamic, detailed yet supremely musical--all the good adjectives are applicable, plus the special something that only full range drivers and DCs can deliver--except DCs don't compromise frequency extension and dynamics they way single full range drivers do.

I have auditioned and owned many other fine (and not so fine) speakers over the years, but have always gone back to Tannoy DCs (Tannoy makes regular non-dual concentric speakers as well, but they are budget models and do not compare to the dual concentrics).

One day, when I get the money and the space, I will get a pair of fully horn loaded Tannoy Westminster Royals.

P.S.: Altec's long-time competitor to the Tannoy DC, the 604 series (once again available from Great Plains Audio in the U.S.) are also very fine speakers. I owned the 604-8K until recently, and enjoyed them immensely, but they are somehow not as engaging as comparable Tannoys.