Mystery speakers - Need help!

[Fatdog]

I have a pair of mystery speakers I know nothing about. There is no marking, no model number, no sticker, and no brand name anywhere. They are old and heavy. Of course, the woofer foam is completely rotted. The woofer is 12 inches and has a square magnet. I've never see that before.

So, who made these speakers?

 

[Fatdog]

Okay, after some more intensive research, I have determined that the woofers were manufactured by Eminence during the 20th week of 1976.
Still looking for specs...

The tweeter is Philips AD160/T8 dome tweeters and were manufactured in Belgium in the mid-1970s.
1) Frequency range: up to 22,000 Hz.
2) One inch polycarbonate dome
3) Integrated shallow horn
4) Resonance frequency: 1000 Hz
5) Impedance: 8 Ohms
6) Rated at 40 watts RMS

The midrange is Philips AD5050/sq8 manufactured in Belgium.
1) Resonance frequency: 210Hz
2) Power handling: 40W
3) Impedance: 8 Ohms

 

[ford93]

At first I thought Acoustic Research but looking at how the rear looked so plain I was convinced they weren't.

I guess even in those days they were non branded model speakers?

 

[Ghettoboom767]

At first looking at the cabinets they looked like some old Sansui's
or a knock off. An old friend of mine had some and the cabinets
looked similar.

 

[oldskool69]

This is going to be a tough one. The top dog manufacturers can be identified on the spot. There are a lot out there however that will leave you scratching your head. There were tons of manufacturers of "hi-fi" gear in the 60's and 70's that were small and were either absorbed by larger companies or didn't make it. Something else to consider is that kit speakers were huge in the 70's with parts from Heathkit to Radio Shack and who knows what other mail order system. The speakers seem interesting enough. Test them at low volume and if the price is right, get 'em refoamed and see what you can do with them.

 

[AE_Stereo]

Can it be a DIY box by a very skilled enthusiast? Well made anyway.

 

[milosancho]

Hey FD - I have a pair of Avid 103 speakers that I'm pretty sure have that exact same tweeter.

I'm not sure these are Avid speakers though as the surround on my 10" woofers are rubber and I'm pretty sure the magnets is not square. But even the mid looks similar to those found in Avid speakers.

My 103's sound fantastic by the way. Heavy speakers! Not very well known US name though. Been trying to sell them for quite a while........

 

[tshorba]

They have a Marantz look about them, from a rack system though. The level controls don't look like any major manufacture I have seen

The square magnet is a ceramic type i believe

 

[-GZ-]

My first thought was Realistic... but not with Phillips components

 

[tshorba]

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=437189

Could be these with front controls vs rear, this is the only info I could find for you

 

[mancardo]

 

[duckman]

Sorry for reviving an old thread, but newish to site, just saw this and adding my 2 cents to the mystery.

Probably never ID them unless someone has the exact same pair with the paper tag on the rear as it looks like there is a staple near the top on rear. Many speakers were designed as 'House' speakers out of a few plants and shipped to various audio outlets back in the day who applied their own badging.

Pic is of a 'Kit' speaker sold out out Toronto under the Double Diamond label, but these were available to the enthusiest similar to Heathkit gear back then and are easily identified by the front baffle application with the large head screws.

Philips was probably one of, if not the, top supplier of drivers on the planet and showed up in many brands such as B&O, Dalquist, DCM, Rectilinear, RW Oliver, and SpeakerLab out of Seattle.

These particular ones were, I suspect due to the vinyl wrap on them, factory made and are most likely from the USA as per the Eminence woofers.

As for the quality of these, the Philips drivers are quite nice and the mid is one of the finest of it's day and still produces excellent mids, and along with the tweeters, make a great pairing for lower power applications, SS or Tube. The Eminence woofer, tho I have never heard this exact one, would supply adequate bottom end though a matching Philips, as the one in the pic, is hard to match for the time in terms of musicality.

Long story short, I never pass on them (always seem to go cheap) and a fabulous set-up paired with the right amp for Non headbanging listening, especially for acoustic guitar, jazz and female vocals. I know, no death metal??? That's what Cerwins are for

On a side note, if you ever come across a set of speakers with rotted surrounds, lay them on their backs to have a listen, and don't crank them. This will keep the voice coil in the gap (no surround, no support, and sagging coil = damage) and you won't hear the scatching/popping thinking they are shot. Unless they are, lol.

Anyhoo, cheers gents.