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Spendor SP-1: First Impressions/ Questions about Cole and Celestion HF units.

Tonight I purchased a pair of Spendor SP-1 in excellent condition with stands and original boxes for $300 US. I've recently switched to Quad 57s after using vintage Tannoys for 2 years. Ultimately I found the Tannoys to be very fatiguing. Spendor was on my short list years ago before I got into Tannoys. After discovering the divine Quad 57s, I soon became frustrated by the limitations of these speakers and started looking toward a dynamic speaker with Quad-like properties. This is what brought me back to Spendor again and this evening I am hearing them for the first time.

My initial impressions are that they have less bass than the Quads, which is a surprise. However, they DEFINITELY do what the Quads do in terms of size, transparency, midrange magic, imaging, tonality, balance, and focus....so this speaker is a winner for me there, which is another surprise.

Problems with the Spendors:

1) The bass is REALLY weak. I'm thinking these may be a bit top heavy. I'm not a bass freak, but I do like to feel some vibrations. I like real bass and I'm not sure these are delivering.

2) I'm also afraid I may find the treble to be annoying. Perhaps I'm just tired or something, but these speakers are NOT as smooth as the Quads. They are closer to the Tannoy in that they can be brutal...it seems. This is a puzzle because the last thing I expected was for the Spendors to be fatiguing and I can't tolerate ANY TRACE of harshness in the highs.

A) Does anyone else find these speakers harsh or fatiguing?
B) How do the treble and upper mids compare between the BC1 and these SP-1? Are the BC1s more on the soft side? What about more recent Spendors or other models?

3) One thing is clear. These Spendor people DEFINITELY know what the fuck they're doing. These are SERIOUS speakers and these people are ON the right track. However, I can't help but want to hear other speakers from the line. I'm imagining the SP-1 with more bass and a more lush and pleasant top end. BC1? SP100? Rogers? Harbeth?

I also have some questions that I'm hoping can be answered:

1) Are there multiple versions of the SP-1? Can I be assured that I have the Coles and Celestion units in mine?

2) How do I date mine by serial number?

3) What is the claimed efficiency rating of these speakers?

4) Are either the Coles or Celestion high frequency units metal or are they both soft dome?


Comments and advice welcome and encouraged.


Gear profile:

Amps: Sargent-Rayment SR 5100 tube power amplifier, HH Scott 299C tube integrated amplifier
Preamp: deHavilland Mercury
Source: Music Hall CD25, JA Michell Hydraulic Reference w/ Shure V15 III


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Topic - Spendor SP-1: First Impressions/ Questions about Cole and Celestion HF units. - Mr Blue Sky 04:25:09 06/17/05 (2)


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