Who makes a "true" Transmission Line speaker?...

I ran across these in the for sale section http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrfull&1101500158

I listened to some IMF's at a shop in Sagnaw Michigan years ago...stunning bass quality and over-all one of the best speakers I had ever listened to at the time (another being an old pair of linn (Isobaric?) not sure of spelling.

Follow the info. link on this old pair and you can read the lit. from that time.

Note; I do not know this seller and only refer the link info.

Dave

Hi Trelja,

I’m thinking of buying Von Schweikert VR-4jr speaker. What attributes you didn’t like about the VR-4jr sound? Please explain your findings to help me make a better purchasing decision.

Best regards,
Alex_G

This may be irrelevant because They are so old, and apparently scarce . . .
I have a pair of Infinity Monitor IIa speakers that I bought in 1974/5. They are described in the user manual as Transmission line and go on to elaborate on the spec's (ie the length of the line). They listed in 1975 for $700. The published frequency response is 22Hz - 27kHz +/- 3dB. Regardless of whether they really do 22 Hz at -3dB, the bass I hear is wonderful. They are a 4-way design - the super tweeter is an inverted cone Walsh tweeter. I still love to listen to them. I switch between them and my Totem Sttafs. They don't image as quite nicely as the Totems, and the upper bass isn't as well defined, but I get that good, deep, and natural bass with them that works better on a lot of music.

I'd like to have another pair for my home theater . . . but haven't found anyone else that has a set, much less one they are willing to part with.

Alxg, although this will sound kind of like a copout, what was wrong with the VR4Jr speakers is very difficult for me to put my finger on. Most of our group of 15 or more felt the same way. One person even owns an older pair of Von Schweikert 4SE(?), which he seems to enjoy, and also felt these speakers to be horrendous. All through the day (and it was about a half day), people were talking about being shocked at how poor, "hi fi", and Best Buyish the speakers sounded.

I think that the overwhelming thing I can say was that they were all wrong. Particularly, in the tonal characteristics. But, also in the bass alignment, which stood out like a sore thumb. The treble, which I find to be a strong point of the VR1 was also weird.

In short, while most feel that the VR2 and VR4Jr are among the best speakers out there, I must say that I feel the hype surrounding them is far in excess with their performance. And, while some may think I am bashing the company, I would like to say that the VR DB99 we also heard during this listen were very, very good. And, the VR1 and VR2 are nice enough speakers at their price points. Maybe even among the best in their field, just not really for me.

Trelja, your response puzzles me. I went out and compared VR-2 to VR-4jr speakers. All I can tell you is that I was blown away with VR-4jr’s.

VR-4Jr’s were driven by the Gamut CD 1 CD Player, Rogue M-150 Monoblocks, and Ninety-Nine MAGNUM preamplifier.

I used Dave Brubeck - Quartet Time Out, Dinah Washington - the Diva Series, Monty Alexander Trio – Impressions in Blue, and Sheffield Lab James Newton Howard & Friends CD.

The first thing that shocked me is the sheer dynamics presented by the VR-4jr. It was like being at a live concert, where you fill the impact of the drums in your ribcage, the drums sounded real, musical and articulate. What I was not prepared for is to hear the resonance of the bass strings, I continued to shake my head in disbelieve of the juniors ability to resolve not only each note but also its true harmonics. I thought that VR-4jr had the help not from one but multiple subwoofers, but there were none in sight.

The second thing that shocked me is the seamless integration between all drivers. Not one frequency range was out of place. The soundstage was wider, and deeper and also imaged much better then VR-2.

What equipment was used to drive the VR-4jr?

Where these speaker using 50-pounds of lead, and where they on spikes?

What is speakers do you prefer?

Best regards,
Alex