Hartley speakers--anyone heard/heard of?


i recently found an old pair of hartley bookshelf speakers in a thrift store, and upon doing a bit of research found that they are one of the oldest manufacturers of speakers still in existence. yes, they are currently based out of wilmington, n.c. after their beginnings near london and subsequent moves to n.y. and n.j. they still manufacture their own drivers by hand, although they do not currently build finished speakers. i have to say that the midrange on these unassuming little speakers really surprised me with it's immediacy and detail (but then again i'm easily impressed :-) but i REALLY was impressed that they are still around, quietly crafting their product for all these years.
musicdoc
In the mid to late fifties the Hartley single cone 10" MS220 was placed in a modified infinite "boffle", correctly spelled as mentioned, and it was touted to have a performance between 20-20,000 Hz. They were demonstrated with a demonstration record which began with a drum roll and it was an effective sales tool. The speaker had a very good mid-range and because of this, it was a stellar performer which sold quite well. This period is also the same period where the Wharfedale W12FSAL was also promoted as a full range 12" speaker. It, too, was a remarkable speaker and I have recently purchased a pair and I am presenlty astonished as to how a 12" speaker can produce such highs. Both speakers had a foam surround and when you find them they do need to have those surrounds replaced.

These are interesting speakers which give credit to their designers for that time period in the music reproduction history. As such, there are many who are presently seeking these speakers as collectors items. They are not on a par with current speakers, but they are a credit to their designers who relied solely on their ears as their instruments for judging their merits.
Jimjenjr...My second loudspeaker (circa 1955) was a 12 inch Wharfdale full range. I put it in a folded horn corner enclosure that I built. The interesting thing about this driver was the wool flannel cloth surround. (Really low Fs). Foam came later. It was driven by a Dynakit preamp and power amp (tubes of course) and was just about SOTA.

Of course Wharfdale was also famous for sand-filled enclosures.
I HAVE A 24" HARTLEY IN A 36"X36"X47" CUSTOM CABINET
NEEDS TO GO TO A NICE HOME
IIRC (and I may not), Mark Levinson (the man, not the company) used Hartley woofers with Quads and a super tweeter in a very early assault on the loudspeaker SOTA. The system was highly regarded in many high-end circles and the Hartlley woofer was supposed to be the edge of the art in low end reproduction. FWIW.
Exactly correct Marty. The tweeter Levinson used was the Decca ribbon, and the old Quad, a pair per side, was the midrange driver, with the 24" Hartley in a big box. The speaker came with an active cross-over designed by John Curl. The system was named the HQD, for the obvious reason. I believe most of them now reside in Japan. VERY expensive when they were introduced!