my altec lansing 501 speakers

[652mac]

hello to all! I'm new to this vintage audio stuff so bear with me if i'm lost or in the wrong spot.I got me a pair of altec lansing 501 speakers that im trying to find info on.A friend of mine found them at a pawn shop one day and decided to bring them home.long story short now i own them.I would really like to know when they were made,how much they sold for,what they were intended to be used for,how much power is to much.I've tried using a home theater amp with them and didn't like that,a nad pre amp and a carver tfm15 power amp sounded a lot better.I found new speakers like my on the alec web site but they are very shy on info.HELP IM LOST!

[Don McRitchie]

In 1982, Altec Lansing licensed the rights to their brand name for home speakers to Sparkomatic. Sparkomatic developed their own line of speakers that had no relationship to anything previously produced by Altec Lansing. The 501 is one such model. Sparkomatic (now known as Altec Lansing Technologies) no longer supports their older models. A fire at one of their facilities destroyed all of the documentation associated with these systems. Therefore, there is not much information to be had.

[grumpy]

info I have is for '86:
$750 ea.
2 10" carbon fiber
1 2" polyimide dome
1 1" polyimide dome
93dB SPL 1w/1m, 4 ohms nom.
xovers not specified
46x12x14" 72lbs
oiled walnut, black knit grille

Later incarnation ('89-90?) was 510, $100 more/pair
3" taller, 28lbs heavier, crossovers at 550, 3.5KHz
finishes (vs black) became optional.

-grumpy

[652mac]

thanks for the info! I can not thank you both enough for your help!:applaud:
Now that that is over life can sorta return to normal
once again I thank you both.
BTW would the drivers in the newer version work in my boxes?or are they totaly diferent.If i kill a driver will i ever find a replacement?

[grumpy]

BTW would the drivers in the newer version work in my boxes?or are they totaly diferent.If i kill a driver will i ever find a replacement?

Absolutely no idea. Suggest if you like 'em, treat 'em right :)
As mentioned, there's not much documentation on these.
I can only imagine that they'd be similar enough to work
(501 vs 510 sparkomatic-era woofers) but that is a total WAG.

-grumpy

[652mac]

thanks grumpy for the added info.SO does anyone else here have a pair of these?or two hanging around?sure would be nice to see some pics of others.At least i"ll know im not alone!

[grumpy]

http://audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=11870&highlight=altec+511

-grumpy

[652mac]

hey grumpy thanks for the info on the altec speakers.If anyone has any other info let me know.

[JackRA]

Just a point of reference Altec is re-issuing the 508 S speakers which are almost identical to the 501's just slightly more ohm independence 4 v. 6 for $1100 each

[Deadbolt]

There big brother the 511's