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Any Large Acoustic Suspension Speakers Being Made?

I auditioned some Dunlavy SC-IVAs in the 90s. The sound was unlike anything I've heard before or since.

Was more like a video projector creating living sonic-images in the room.

The Dunlavys are a sealed box system. The front of the speaker is heavily felt damped (mids & tweets).

I'm also wondering about anything unusual about its crossover. I have to find out why these sounded so good!

The system: Audio Research VT-120 amp, ARC LS-2 pre, Theta DAC (pre-pro?), CEC Disk spinner, and Dunlavy wire. The room was about 25 * 25 with curtains on a glass wall and LPs on the rear wall. Power conditioning is unknown.

So I'm thinking it's either the acoustic suspension or a special crossover that made the difference.

Does anyone make large sealed box speakers anymore? 

128x128dweller

Showing 7 responses by dweller

dweller's avatar
dweller OP
3,748 posts
 

Just re-read the 1998 Stereophile review of the SC-IVAs.

A follow-up review states that they are sealed-box speakers.

Their price, at the time, was $8,000. Now I remember why I didn't buy them.

http://www.stereophile.com/floorloudspeakers/166/#6R8qd51SXovrkAOJ.97

dweller's avatar
dweller OP
3,748 posts
 
rcprince: If you read the Stereophile review of the SC-IVA, you’ll notice the fanatical attention to detail Mr. Dunlavy used in building his speakers. How about a frequency response of +/- 1.5%? He would hand-trim every crossover to match its companion driver. Mr. Dunlavy said this speaker could pass a square wave better than most tube amplifiers! I would love to hear these speakers driven by BEL 1001 Mk V amps (also built with fanatical precision). Try to find a maker that would go to these extremes today!
dweller's avatar
dweller OP
3,748 posts
 
Must investigate!
dweller's avatar
dweller OP
3,748 posts
 
All I know is that I had a "eureka!" moment with the Dunlavy SC-IVAs.
Everything sounded real -maybe better than real -everything.
This speaker was obviously conceived and built by a master of the art.
Of course, there was probably some "paradigm shock" involved.
I.E., when the mind is exposed to something significantly better than it's used to, it tends to overreact and possibly hear things that aren't really there. This wears off in time as it becomes the "new normal" and the "searching for something better" cycle resumes (seeking the next "eureka!" moment).
dweller's avatar
dweller OP
3,748 posts
 
bombaywalla: I agree that the first-order crossover is probably what did it. Furthermore, I think what sets these speaker apart is Mr. Dunlavy going the extra mile and hand tailoring each crossover section to its respective driver. Most manufacturers probably arrive at their ideal on paper and assume that "if the parts we receive from our supplier are within spec then the speaker will sound "good enough"". Mr. Dunlavy was a true believer and why I got into high-end in the first place. Unfortunately, my means at the time didn't allow me to purchase the SC-IVAs. I'm moving back east (from Las Vegas) and will be assembling my last system.
Hopefully, I'll find a speaker close to the Dunlavys. 
dweller's avatar
dweller OP
3,748 posts
 
I shy away from equipment when the original maker can no longer fix them.
dweller's avatar
dweller OP
3,748 posts
 
George, The Alexia is way-more speaker than I need. I'm thinking about some used Sashas partnered with the new D'Agostino Classic stereo amp and an Audio Research Ref 5SE. Can't see needing more than this in my Golden Years...
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