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View Full Version : Urei 811 instead of 604-8H (II or III) ?



baja
08-11-2008, 12:52 PM
hi,
this is really by accident ...
in regard to my negotiation I've got an offer for a pair of Urei 811. this is really confusing. because I've read a little bit about these item.
I'd glad for a few suggestion, if I should take them instead of the altec - although they are quite round the corner ...
thanks!

doodlebug
08-11-2008, 01:06 PM
There were, I believe, 3 versions of the 811s that had different versions of the coaxial driver in them. So, the question is which version of 811 are you being offered.

IIRC, the first generation used Altec 604 drivers with UREI's blue horn replacing the classic multi-celled Altec horn. I have a set of the 813s of this vintage that were rebuilt by GPA and recharged. I love 'em.

The later 2 versions used various JBL configurations but can't recall what the exact differences were. I believe there have been posts here about that so try some searching on the UREI 813s. There are also the owners manuals for some versions in the Archives at JBLpro.com, too.

One thing to consider is that the 811s will be 20+ years old by this point and will likely need some reconditioning to bring them back to full potential today.

Cheers,

David

doodlebug
08-11-2008, 03:15 PM
Here's the cross reference details from www.jblproservice.com (http://www.jblproservice.com):

http://www.jblproservice.com/pdf/Systems%20Reference%20Charts/UREI%20Series.pdf

That should help.

Cheers,

David

Bob Womack
08-11-2008, 04:40 PM
Hi! My mains at home are 811cs. My mains at work are 813cs. In my opinion, if you are looking at the 811 "c" variant, you are looking at a much smoother sounding speaker than any of the 604-based systems with which I am acquainted. Perhaps I could help more if I knew more.

Bob

baja
08-12-2008, 01:09 AM
thanks for reply,
today or even tomorrow I will get original images of the 811.
the guy who sells them told me, that they come originally from a famous european studio. acutally I asked him which type (a,b or c) his items are?
if I get respond, I will be back. probably this could be a best by and all my negotiations come to a sudden end ....

@bob:
what do you mean with "much smoother" in comparison to the 604?

baja
08-12-2008, 02:22 AM
@bob & all
ok, they are 811b - what does it mean?
thanks for reply

http://85.17.225.26/74400001-74450000/74408501-74408600/74408574_5_jH5v.jpeg

Bob Womack
08-12-2008, 05:25 AM
thanks for reply,
today or even tomorrow I will get original images of the 811.
the guy who sells them told me, that they come originally from a famous european studio. acutally I asked him which type (a,b or c) his items are?
if I get respond, I will be back. probably this could be a best by and all my negotiations come to a sudden end ....

@bob:
what do you mean with "much smoother" in comparison to the 604?The 604 had a characteristic and fatiguing "honk" in the upper mids. The time alignment crossover and horn created by UREI tamed much of that, making the 811 easier on the ear than even the Big Reds version of the 604. When JBL bought out UREI, they replaced the Altec drivers with JBL components and created the B series. They then continued to do some more improvements with new drivers and the sound got better and better.

UREI B Series Info (http://www.lansingheritage.org/html/jbl/specs/pro-speakers/1984-urei.htm)

Bob

baja
08-12-2008, 05:39 AM
ok,
should I go for the urei 811b and quit the 604-8h project? alluring argument for the 811bs is, that they will cost around 1200 dollar - and I can fetch them by car. on the other hand I still have this competition between 604e in 620 cabinets and 604h in 612 cabinets in mind and the 604h was quite close to what I'd like to get after closing my luxurious stable of audiophile gear ...

I'd like to use the urei (or altec) with otl mono amps and as alternative with an 845 se integrated - probobly this will work out with both.

what do you think?

Bob Womack
08-12-2008, 10:04 AM
ok,
should I go for the urei 811b and quit the 604-8h project? alluring argument for the 811bs is, that they will cost around 1200 dollar - and I can fetch them by car. on the other hand I still have this competition between 604e in 620 cabinets and 604h in 612 cabinets in mind and the 604h was quite close to what I'd like to get after closing my luxurious stable of audiophile gear ...
I wouldn't pretend to know your tastes. This is a taste issue so you'll want to go with your own tastes here. What I can tell you is that I spent several years monitoring on a couple of 604-based monitors including the Big Reds. During that time I learned intuitively about the spike in the 4k region that everyone talks about and learned the meaning of ear fatigue from that spike.

We went shopping for first-line large scale monitors at the Audio Engineering Society meetings in the mid-'80s and came home with 813c's. They are marvelous speakers. I've monitored on many different monitors since and can tell you that the 801C/2426HS driver combo used in both the 813c's and 811c's causes the lowest ear fatigue of any I've spent long times on. The B's I've listened two sounded very similar. Look HERE (http://www.in2guitar.com/stereo.html) for a little page about my history with the 811's and 813's.


I'd like to use the urei (or altec) with otl mono amps and as alternative with an 845 se integrated - probobly this will work out with both.
what do you think?That would be a great plan. We are using Hafler amps at work with our 813s. I use a surround receiver at home because the 811s form the backbone of my home theater.

Happy hunting!

Bob