Planar Speaker Asylum

Welcome! Need support, you got it. Or share your ideas and experiences.

Return to Planar Speaker Asylum


Message Sort: Post Order or Asylum Reverse Threaded

Acoustats getting refurbished, back to the Totems

99.234.172.233

Posted on August 21, 2015 at 06:52:57
Mendel
Audiophile

Posts: 1207
Location: GTA
Joined: January 17, 2009
I have decided to have the 2123 interfaces on my Acoustat Spectra 22 refurbished. They will be having all HV diodes, capacitors, key resistors, wiring and binding posts replaced. The bias voltage will be brought up to spec for each speaker. I am really looking forward to the results.
I the meantime, I have reinserted my old speakers, Totem Hawks back into the system. Now I have always considered the Hawks to be excellent speakers, but the difference in sound quality from the Acoustats has been shocking.
The sound field of the Hawks seems much smaller. The imaging is good, but seems much less "real" than the Acoustats. The speakers do seem to disappear better than the large Acoustats, but the illusion of the venue is less real.
Tonally, the Hawks seem thinner in the lower midrange and this seems less realistic. The highs seem bright and almost distorted. I know many people find the Totem's metal dome bright and fatiguing but it never seemed that way to me. Till now. Bass seems not to go as low and bass lines are harder to follow. The cone woofers do seem to have more "punch" than the Acoustats.
Details in the music seem harder to follow. The music seems to be more homogenized, with less clarity and a higher noise floor.
My Hawks are about 17 years old to be fair, and probably deserve to be upgraded as well. I know that there have been many advances in speakers since then. But I doubt I could ever go back to a dome tweeter.
Can't wait to get the Acoustats back up and running!

 

Hide full thread outline!
    ...
RE: Acoustats getting refurbished, back to the Totems, posted on August 21, 2015 at 07:24:44
Sondek
Audiophile

Posts: 9600
Location: Fort Worth
Joined: May 17, 2000
Contributor
  Since:
April 5, 2002
I guess sometimes you don't know what you have until it's gone - where have I heard that before? I know what you mean. It's been a while back, but after I'd had my Acoustats for a while I sold the Vandy 3A Sigs that the Acoustats replaced. Before the buyer showed up to collect them I reconnected my Counterpoint NP100 to the Vandys so that he could hear the Vandys in action. My experience was very much like yours. I could not get over how puny the Vandys sounded compared to the wall of sound the Acoustats present, and details in the music I'd heard with the Acoustats were just flat missing. Fortunately, the Vandy buyer didn't ask me to demo the Acoustats for him or he may have had second thoughts.

 

Acoustat Spectras rock!, posted on August 21, 2015 at 14:59:55
morricab
Distributor or Rep

Posts: 9160
Location: switzerland
Joined: April 1, 2005
I heard them again after a long break at a friends (also Spectra 22s), man what a good sound. I like them better than his Apogee Studio Grands and wish I hadn't sold mine...sigh.

 

RE: Acoustat Spectras rock! You know it, posted on August 21, 2015 at 17:44:51
Byrd69
Audiophile

Posts: 2875
Location: East Syracuse, New York
Joined: August 23, 2004



Here's a pic from the past. These (oops...THIS is one of my assembled Acoustat Spectra 11) with cabinets that a cabinet maker made with me.....a pair of 2+2s and 1+1s. The unassembled 11 is in the foreground.

The 2+2s are still my main speaker upstairs. The 1+1s have been idle for 14 years. I bought them and one ended up having some light snapping (arcing) going on. Every winter, I plan on stripping them and cleaning them out. Here comes winter #15.

The 11s....my favorite!!!!....are spectacular. I never considered electrostatics great for rock music, but these things do it, very very well. The 2+2s do too. I replaced the 8" drivers in the 11s with a pair of ADS. I'm using them now as the fronts for my 5.1 system...instead of Polks SRS somethings. I use a pair of SDAs 1C, or 2C...I forget, in the rear and a CS-350 in the center.

I also have a pair of Martin Logan Airus? Nice, but not Acoustats. They been used as room dividers for the past couple years.




Your interest may vary but the results will be same. (Byrd 2020)

I can't compete with the dead. (Buck W. 2010)

Cowards can't be heroes. (Byrd 2017)

Why don't catfish have kittens? (Moe Howard 1937)

 

RE: Acoustat Spectras rock! You know it, posted on August 23, 2015 at 09:58:07
morricab
Distributor or Rep

Posts: 9160
Location: switzerland
Joined: April 1, 2005
I had 1+1s as well and I brought them out from time to time but they were not the equal of the Spectra 2200s. I had three pairs at one time, 1+1, Spectra 2200 and Spectra 4400 (2+2 sized). The most ambitious system was the Spectra 2200s with Spectra 4400s being used as subwoofers below 80hz. I ran the 2200s full range. That was an awesome sound.

 

Holy Cow!! Now my Spectra 22 Rock!!, posted on September 17, 2015 at 17:51:31
Mendel
Audiophile

Posts: 1207
Location: GTA
Joined: January 17, 2009
Just got the refurbished interfaces back. Pretty much everything upgraded, new caps, resistors, diodes, wiring, binding posts even upgraded power cord. Bias voltage up to 6KV for both speakers.
I am blown away by the sound! The interfaces aren't even fully charges yet. Parts still have to break in. This is the best sound I have ever had in my room. Maybe the best I have ever heard (and I have recently spent a fair bit of time auditioning the big Quads at $15 K at my local dealer). Everything is better than it was, and the sound before was very good. In particular, the soundstage seems more realistic, punch and dynamics are much improved and bass seems deeper. No subwoofer needed!
If you have Acoustats, consider having the interfaces restored. You will be very surprised. With modern quality passive parts and proper bias voltage, these speakers can be world class. WOW!!

 

Page processed in 0.030 seconds.