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Classic gear from yesteryear; vintage audio standing the test of time.

ALTEC Model Nineteen

Doctor S, hi. Think of it this way. You're not collecting giant reptiles and keeping them in the basement. That would certainly get the attention of the "are you sane?" crowd. Some may finger point and say, keeping croc's or Gila monsters in the house is more than excentric. I say, nuts. The Model Nineteen suffered with the times: transistor amps, ALTEC trying some kind of last gasp marketing move and partnering with appliance stores and other unworthies (?!) as the venues of choice for a top of the line loudspeaker for the home. Because the Nineteens are two way rather than three (Klipsch) there are immediate benefits in imaging and coherence. Though a reflex woofer is mated to an exponential aluminum horn the whole thing makes quite good music with tube amplification. Once you get them you will embark on the road to tweaking them out. Why? Some crossover caps are electrolytic. The chokes are small iron core. At least the caps should be bettered. The internal wiring is stranded. The horn rings. All these things must be addressed. All that said I have heard some mighty good music out of my Model Nineteens even when stock. Although the sweet spot tends to be at the focus of the two horns the imaging can be impressive. There is also good jump factor (very fast dynamic range) which probably only compression drivers deliver. Enough verbiage. Get 'em and have fun.


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