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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
pryso
1,911 posts
 
I initially subscribed to Stereophile in 1971 and recall that J Gordon listed some model Hartley speakers in his recommendation list during the '70s.  I also remember reading about the HQD system but never got to hear it.  The Decca tweeter was a ribbon designed by Stanley Kelly.  A friend of mine at the time who emigrated to the US had been friends with Kelly.

Within the past 10 years or so I saw a reference that Hartley was again in business but I never heard any more about that.  I do remember that more than one customer mounted the Hartley woofers in the floor rather than build appropriate sized cabinets. ;^)
wideload's avatar
wideload
146 posts
 
Years ago I had a friend, an engineer who hand built every component, including room correction. Couple kilowatts of power placed under the floor beneath his monitors. Had a full blown MLSSA measuring set up. He mounted two enormous Hartley drivers in the mouth of his fireplace and built baffles that ran up the chimney. Glorious music. Full scale orchestral works verged on freightening 
wideload's avatar
wideload
146 posts
 
Years ago I had a friend, an engineer who hand built every component, including room correction. Couple kilowatts of power placed under the floor beneath his monitors. Had a full blown MLSSA measuring set up. He mounted two enormous Hartley drivers in the mouth of his fireplace and built baffles that ran up the chimney. Glorious music. Full scale orchestral works verged on freightening 
wideload's avatar
wideload
146 posts
 
Sorry about double post
hanksjim1
1 posts
 
Sorry to bring up this old thread, but, I have a Hartley 24" in a transmission line cabinet the size of a refrigerator (6' x 30" x 30" or so)...any idea of the value?   Just curious.

Beat up veneer, but sonically excellent.
I bought it with a set of Beveridge Model 2s and haven't used it in years.
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