Conclusion
As I said in the beginning of this review, these Burwell & Sons Homage speakers are made to reintroduce the world to the sound of classic Altec-Lansing. To me, they are a roaring success at carrying out this goal. I think they improve on almost every area of what I think of as the classic Altec VOTT sound without giving up any of its soul. They never let you forget they are old school Altecs. That old school Altec sound does some things better, much better, than modern speakers. They are especially emotionally involving, and the visceral way they play music is very seductive. For example, play some Billie Holiday on them and you will be moved by the immediate and emotional connection to the music that most modern speakers just can’t do.
In the end, these speakers are incredible at doing what they were designed to do. If you would like to experience the soul of the Altec-Lansing Voice of the Theater speakers in a physique that is a woodworking work of art, a speaker that is a reasonable size for a medium on up to a very large listening room; if you value vintage American speakers, and if you value American artisan creations, then you will probably love these speakers. You also get the privilege of having the builder tune the speaker and crossover settings to your room.
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Great review! Loved the Art Dudley reference…I hope he (and, for that matter, me) gets to hear, and see, these one day.
Interesting review of interesting speakers, thank you!
Please don’t take the following as criticism of your review, I’m just sharing experiences. The negatives that you described about the looseness of bass are somewhat characteristic of Altec bass drivers when driven by SETs and for this speaker your 300B Wavac aren’t the best choice. Large Altecs woofers need more power and current to take hold of the 15″ driver , then you’ll hear how detailed and full bodied they are without sounding fat. As far as the depth goes, the criteria for theater speakers pre THX was 15kz-50hz and that’s how they were all designed including the fantastic Klangfilm horns. For quality musical reproduction of lower frequencies you need to match the VOTT with a good pair of passive subs, that’s just how it is. Not having heard these speakers I can’t comment on manufacturer’s claims of 30hz and what that really means.
PS. In addition to my comments above, I’m not recommending solid state electronics for these speakers, but quality push/pull tubes amps with sufficient power to handle the 15″ woofers.
David you maybe right; at the California Audio show I preferred them with the Raven Spirit 3ooB
Reference Stereo Amplifier to the Pass Labs Stereo amp. The Raven does put out 36 watts per channel but it was not available for the review. Still I was able to get better bass in my room than with either amp at the show. That’s no surprise though, the show as in a hotel room.
is it possible to use your speakers outdoors ; are they waterproof or can they be coated to make them work outside