Classic Audio T1 and T3 field coil loudspeakers

I heard them in 2 rooms. In the big room, the bigger pair was being driven by Atma-sphere MP1/M-60s. When I got there, Ralph was playing Sara McLachlan's "Angel" which is a favorite of mine, w great attack and decay on the piano.It was breath-taking and achingly beautiful as one of our long running threads is titled. I forget the other room , maybe Modwright electronics. Anyways the big model with the all tube/OTL was amazing; the other less so.

Agree with Swampwalker, the T1 was superior. The T3 had field coils only on the mid and high horns, the woofers were not field coil.

There is so much presence and immediacy with these speakers, it's scary. Everything else sounded slow and opaque by comparison.

The bass was almost overpowering with the T1s, but that was probably the room set up. The bass was articulate, but I've heard more resolving bass. The highs might be a little edgy, but overall they sounded amazing!

Too bad that the T1s with all field coil drivers cost ca $50,000, according to Ralph. The T3s with field coils can be had at a much more down to earth price, but are still expensive.

Hello Lewm,

I have heard both speakers on several occasions, the T.1's with field coil drivers are very special IMO, and worth seeking out an audition to form your own opinion.

During me decision to purchase T1’s which took well over a year, I auditioned the T 1’s with various amps, Atma-sphere, Shindo, and Esoteric, and a few different cartridges Air Tight Supreme, Air Tight PC-1, Van Den Hul Colibri, and a Koetsu Coralstone. The T'1's easily resolved the character of each combination.

I find these speakers to be very transparent to the source, they convey tone colors much like an electrostatic speaker, but with huge dynamics. They also really allow the energy of live music to be conveyed in a way I have heard very few other speakers. Despite being "lively" there is a smoothness about them. In hi-fi jargon that seems like an impossible combination, lively yet smooth. I suspect this type of sound is what field coil drivers bring to the table. I will leave that part of the discussion to the technical people.

I have heard vocal, folk, rock, large and small scale classical music all done to my immense satisfaction on the T1’s. These speakers allow you to explore all genres of music, instead of gravitating towards a narrow type of music which many systems tend to gravitate towards. Some of my former systems are included in that generalization.

Since these are horn speakers it is worth mentioning that they can convey a wonderful vocal without the typical mega phone horn sound. When I heard vocals with a Koestu at the helm and Atma-sphere driving, it was a very special combination. The midrange "sweetness" of a Koetsu was very complimentary to the Classic/Atma-sphere combo, which if it needs anything it is a slight sense of "sweetness". Perhaps adding the Koetsu is a coloration, but in this combination it is magical addition....to me. However, what really sold me on these speakers was with the Air Tight Supreme at the helm playing classical music. For me that was the first time ever on a stereo system I was able to really enjoy large scale classical music. It was large in scale, dynamic yet had a sense of delicacy. I was done once I heard classical music on these speakers.

In summary, these speakers are not a one trick pony, they shine on all types of music and at low and high volumes. These field coil Classic T'1's, are something special, and worth jumping on an airplane to audition.

David