What would the main differences be between a Hartsfield and a VOTT Speaker?

[ralphd]

I am looking to buy a single speaker for my mono tube system to play my old 78's and was suggest by many people to get either a Hartsfield or a Altec VOTT speaker. As I am not familiar yet with either of these I was wondering what the main differences are, and what do you think would be more suited to Jazz and Blues 78's from the 1920's - 1950's??

Thanks
Ralph

[doodlebug]

To add to Mr. Grumpy's comments:

- There have been many different combinations of driver/crossovers/cabinets in the VOTT line up over the decades. This makes it more difficult to determine which ones you might be refering to.
The ones most frequently seen were the utility cabinet versions but there were home versions made with highly finished cabinetry.

- Be aware that sellers of some of the home versions of the Altec speakers (like the Valencia) on that big auction site will claim the speaker is a VOTT when, in reality, it isn't. There may be some commonality in the use of a driver or two but that's about it.

As for sonics, I've never heard a Hartsfield but have listened to a number of versions of the Altec folded horns configs. They can be awesome with the right electronics driving them. Some of the setups I heard in the 70s with 500hz and 800hz VOTT systems didn't sound that good mainly due to the quality of the gear and source components driving them.

Cheers,

David

[Mr. Widget]

This won't help much, but the design intentions seem to have been quite different, even though the implementations are both efficient, horn loaded systems. One is fine furniture and meant for a home listening environment, the other is either an object of audio desire, or should be behind a screen in a cinema, depending on who's opinion you listen to, or more importantly, what your personal tastes are.How about this... back in the glory days of monophonic high fidelity the the reviewers of the day named both the Klipschorn and the Hartsfield, which many would consider a Klipschorn on steroids, the best possible speaker for home use. While the VOTT and it's various Altec derivations have always had a loyal following, I don't think either were held in that high regard by those reviewers.


Widget

[Steve Schell]

Between those two choices I suppose the best choice would be the Hartsfield, as the bass section is a front loaded bass horn with sealed back chamber. This will likely sound more accurate than the VOTT bass cabinet, which is basically a bass reflex box with a short horn flare in front of the driver to help push the lower midrange through a perforated theatre screen. You need to try and listen to both however, as each has found favor with many listeners. Neither has particularly extended low bass response, but they do have a lively sound.

The Hartsfield, though beautiful and a classic speaker, is not an ultimate statement in a bass horn. Horn design is still the wild frontier, and it is possible to build a custom design that will outperform most commercial offerings. The bass horn in the picture is one of my earlier efforts, and offers very good response from 40Hz. to 400Hz.

[doodlebug]

Ok, Steve, I gotta ask...in the picture, is that thing on the right used to power that horn or do you have hamsters to do your bidding?

Inquiring minds want to know.....cool set up, BTW.

Cheers,

David

[Steve Schell]

Doodlebug, that gadget began life as a Schwinn exercise bike, but has proven most useful over the years as a shin scraper, dust catcher and clothes tree. It is currently out in the garage waiting for its next assignment.