ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
I'm fairly new to Beoworld and to B&O in general. I have (optimistically) acquired a Beogram 4004 and a 6000, Beomasters 4400 and 6000, and numerous other pieces that I hope to bring back to life.
At this point, I have not added any speakers, if only because I have no experience with forty year old speakers. But I have a pretty good six-speaker surround system that my son gave me for reasons I have yet to figure out. The current six speakers are an upgrade from the original system he gave me: a weighty RCA receiver and six speakers that still sound pretty good to me although the four corner speakers in total are about as big as the powered subwoofer alone. The newer, bigger speakers seem to be named Q-KEF, made in Belgium, with Q-55.2 on the back. The original, smaller speakers are claimed by RCA.
As I tweak and adjust the BG4004 and BM4400 to keep the music flowing while I try to build up the courage to open up the BM6000 four-channel, etc., I am faced with the question of whether I really should consider shopping for:
a - forty year old B&O speakers
b - modern B&O speakers
c - use the Q-KEF speakers
d - the smaller RCA speakers
I am very much pleased with the Q-KEF (or whatever they're called) speakers, whether music from my satellite box via the RCA system or my Benjamin-Miracord 10H that I purchased in 1964 (kindly don't do the math) thru my Beomaster 4000 (sic). Is there any reason, or mandate, that I purchase B&O speakers? Be advised that I often play my Stan Kenton and Maynard Ferguson pretty loud - not ready for no nursing home yet.
Your advice/opinions will be appreciated.
jack
A lot of the music you could play on an older system, you could probably get on itunes and stream on a bluetooth speaker. But (if you're like many of us) half the point of an older system is not simply the musical capabilities but the respect for the older technology and design. Older systems go alongside their older speakers. I suppose a similar analogy would be whether you'd put modern alloy rims on a Jaguar E-Type or wear a modern 'slim tie' with a proper 3-piece suit. If you don't have matching original speakers then you're only half way there!
You can certainly use your KEF speakers if you'd like to. You'll just need to find the proper ends for the speaker cables. Your Beomaster 4000 is 60 Watts per channel RMS, and your Beomaster 6000 is 75 Watts per channel RMS, so this should power the KEF speakers fairly well. I'd give it a shot.
ITunes? Bluetooth? Nooooooo, Mister Billlll.
Point well taken. Although I would then wonder which vintage B&O speakers might be best.
A secondary reason for my question is: don't speakers dry out over the decades? Speaker cone paper, foam rim, etc. After putting up my previous post, I recalled that my basement holds my trusted pair of Jensen 3-way Shelf speakers that I also bought in 1964. I can't imagine them being nearly as good as the KEFs. Might try them, just for the exercise.
So, if vintage speakers are still viable, and if they can hold their own compared to modern speakers, which models should I be looking for? (Remember, I will have the volume up.)
And thanks for holding my hand thru this difficult time.
Jack
My living room is getting crowded - KEF, Jensen, RCA. Good thing I bought a large pack of those 2-pin DINs.
I'm not going to say that I'm a speaker expert by any means, but KEF speakers are very well reviewed.
As for going with vintage B&O, that's a very good option as well. I've used Beovox S45-2's in my systems before, and find them to be very good speakers, especially for their age. Some models do suffer from the foam rot, and others avoid it with rubber surrounds. The S45-2's use rubber surrounds and have no foam rot issues. However, some people will argue that any older speaker should have the capacitors replaced in the crossover. I think that's a good thing to do as well.
Maybe look for some Beovox M80's? Or the Beovox S45-2.
P.S. I'd never advise you to buy music via iTunes when you already own it on vinyl or otherwise. That's just insanity.
MP3 is such a waste - quantity over quality. But then I don't want to fiddle with 12" LPs in the car.
I think I passed up a set of S45's locally recently on Craigslist. But then I have enough projects to keep me busy come winter, and the KEF system, so I'll watch for future opportunities. Capacitors are on everybody's "hit list" (a zillion to be replaced in the BM6000 4-ch.); I don't go anywhere without my soldering iron.
Thank for the help, guys. I think I'm on the right path.
To my ears, the best vintage B&O speakers are the M70s. Perhaps not as common as the S45-2 though.
Jacques
I think your present speakers will be fine - if you want B&O speakers, you need the older variety - I would suggest M100s for the 4400 (that is what I have) and I would use S45.2s for the 6000 - a rather charming alternative for the 6000 would be P50/45 panel speakers which have the advantage of taking up less space, sounding rather good, are unusual and were the speakers designed for the 6000 system. The 6000 is not the pinnacle of amplifier design but one could make a very good case that it is one of the most spectacular systems made by B&O. (I take it is the quad system we are talking about?)
Peter