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new to me Vintage Speaker day...


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Posted

Saw the speaker listed for under market and pounced on it, I had bought one earlier but it arrived with a cone rub. They don't call it fleabay for nothin'!

 

Anyway, the Frank-en-Champ needed an 8 incher that would work with it's 16 ohm Mongo-sized OT. I had an old Ampex/JBL that sounded wonderful but wouldn't clean up due to a very slight rub. I was intrigued by the Diffusicone's oversized magnet/vc assembly, the obvious top end quality build, and the funny looking cone designed to eliminate the beaming of treble frequencies.

 

It arrived yesterday. I installed it and it sounded very similar to the old JBL in that amp. The bottom and mids sounded more like a 10 inch speaker than an 8 thanks to that oversized magnet/vc in it, and it was also very detailed in it's top end. Distorted tones were wonderful, but the cleans were truly spectacular. The diffusicone thingie works, the amp sounds pretty much the same as you walk back and forth in front of it, a quality like the old Altec 600b 12's I have. And it's amazingly loud for what few watts go into it, can keep up with a drummer unmiced if very fat and hairy sounding, with a VOS RCA 5v4 rec and TungSol 5881 socketed for about 9-11 watts. Maintains full clarity at high volumes, won't mush out. I can't wait to stick in that old Sylvania 6550, hehehe. The oversized PT has enough juice to run it, and the Frank-en-Champ's just plain sick and wrongfully loud when doing so.

 

University was bought out by Altec Lansing at a later date, they were a very top end US speaker manufacturer under their own label, After my experience with the 8, I'd be more than willing to try out one of their 12's. They made several types of 12 inch speakers, all very efficient and full range. I had no idea that the 8 would be this good, it's truly spectacular and is tonally totally worth what it commonly costs to get one. I'm thinking that an 18 watt project, Deluxe Deverb or my Harmony H306A would sound good with the right University 12. Would be interested if anyone has experienced them.

Posted

Man, your FrankenChamp sounds like a little tone monster!!

 

I'm amazed that an 8" can keep up with your band. What is their website?

 

I've got to look into that speaker maker for my own mini-arsenal of Rivera Champ amps.

Posted

We don't have a lot, if any, up, we're brand new Might find us in FB, Michael Dallin Project. The secret of both volume and tonal girth is that Heyboer 5-7 pount output transformer that had to be bolted to the bottom of the cab with t-nuts and the Allen PT that supplies a little more b+ with capacity of a lot more current. Tossed the comparatively wimpy 5y3 and use the slower warmup high current 5v4 for the rec, for the 6550 or el34 I go for the max and socket a 5ar4, I do like the Chatham 5r4, but the amp gets loud enough to vibrate that very heavy tube out of it's upside down socket when left dimed and thrashing the audious snot out of it for a while so I only use the tater masher if using that amp to drive a 16 ohm 2/12 or 2/15.. All those recs use 5v 2 amp heater winding, same as 5y3. There are almost no Fender parts left in that BF circuit's guts.

Posted

...late 50's-through 60's top shelf designed for tube amp hifi weenie stuff...Some of the bigger diffusicones have a two piece cone a la Altec biflex.

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