== Context ==
As I've grown older, my tastes—especially in dating have matured to match my age. So, when @santhosh offered to introduce me to two gorgeous ladies from the 1960s, I couldn’t resist.
A few months ago, I had the chance to audition Manav's 1967 Tannoy Monitor Gold 15s (MG15) in their original Lancaster cabinet. Listening to the extended version of "Nights In White Satin" from The Moody Blues' Days of Future Passed LP was nothing short of a hair-raising experience. This encounter sparked my interest in the world of vintage speakers, especially those with Tannoy's legendary MG15 drivers.
A discussion with @arj led me to @anilva, who then connected me with @GeorgeO, and ultimately, Santhosh. Each of these individuals knows more than a thing or two about two-channel audio; they are all Tannoy owners and swear by them. Special mention goes to @ronniemarker, who boasts a venerable collection of Tannoy vintage speakers across nearly every cabinet type.
The Tannoy MG15s were originally available in four different cabinets: Lancaster, York, GRF, and Autograph, each increasing in size and gradually escalating the "you live or the speakers stay" debate with one's spouse. Fortunately, Santhosh had the GRF cabinet at his experience center, which old literature claims strikes the perfect balance between gravitas and practicality.
Santhosh, who is not easily impressed, upped the ante by offering a pair of vintage Altecs for audition as well — though he made it clear that none of these were for sale.
== Travel, Equipment and Santhosh ==
Last Sunday, I took on an outstation trip from Bellandur to Vijaynagar, covering a significant 23 kilometers in a satisfying 1 hour and 45 minutes duration; weekend traffic in Bangalore is usually light. My good friend Gifen joined me for the drive, and as we moved closer to our destination, the scenery transformed. The foliage grew greener, lakes appeared cleaner, and potholes got smaller. As one leaves the newer areas like Whitefield, Bellandur, and Sarjapur, it became clear how Bangalore truly lives up to its Garden City moniker.
Santhosh, a fellow audiophile and the owner of AutomateAV, runs a fantastic experience center in Vijaynagar, where he invited us to audition both the Tannoys and the Altecs. Being the perfectionist he is, Santhosh asked me to bring all my audio gear to replicate as close to an in-home experience as possible, a thoughtful gesture, indeed. Upon arrival, we unloaded an Accuphase E260, Lumin T1, Belden tinned copper cables for interconnects and speaker wire, a Supra ethernet cable, and a Ubiquiti switch into his double-doored listening room. Setting up took a little time but nothing noteworthy. The listening room itself is both aesthetically pleasing and acoustically refined, making it a joy to audition any equipment. Santhosh also had a pair of Scanspeak slim towers that defy the principles of physics, and yes, they were for sale! Depending on the size of the crowd, you might also be treated to coffee and snacks.
== The lovely ladies ==
The first lady we auditioned was an Altec — a 515B bass driver (LF) in a locally hand-built cabinet, paired with a 288G mid/high driver in a compression-loaded Azura horn, all connected through an external crossover. The luscious red horns exuded both sass and pizzazz. She was driven by @viren bakhshi's Lyrita Audio 2A3 integrated amp, with Santhosh's LP player (don't remember the model) and my Lumin streamer handling the source duties.
The Tannoy, on the other hand, was housed in a custom cabinet with Anil's crossover, both built to spec as per the original Tannoy GRFs. The speaker terminals on the left channel were loose, and my 12 AWG Belden speaker cables were slightly too thick for them, so I had to use a thinner patch cable temporarily. Santhosh offered to add the same patch cable to the right channel as well, but by then, I’d had enough of his shenanigans and proceeded to connect the Belden directly! The Tannoys were powered by my trusted 90W Accuphase amp.
== Listening Impressions ==
We began our audition with the Altecs and then moved on to the Tannoys. In hindsight, it might have been better to reverse the order. The Altecs, with their horn HF, demanded attention and delivered remarkable resolution. Despite their cutoff at 16 kHz, there was no noticeable roll-off. We often focus on a speaker’s bass response and sensitivity etc., but I’ve learned that a speaker’s lasting impression often comes from its mid and high frequencies. The Altecs excelled in this area, weaving a spell of emotional magic. All three of us just basked in musical bliss totally abandoning our being. The closing crescendo of "Nights In White Satin" was surreal and moving. On another track, Gifen even felt as if Youn Sun Nah had come out of the Altecs, so close that he could feel her breath loudly whispering "My favorite things". Yet another track, Silsila "Ye Kahan Aa Gaye Hum" OST, Amitabh Bachchan’s baritone sounded substantial, while Lata Mangeshkar’s voice was livid as if something ominous was just about to happen. Now that's horn projection for us!
The Altecs created an orchestrated chaos that probably elevated our heartbeats to medically concerning levels, but we did not have a thing to complain about, though if I were to nitpick, the LF cutoff at 40 Hz was slightly higher in the dampened room, but this is mere nitpicking.
Next, we turned to the Tannoys. With her big brown silhouette she had a presence to behold. She wears a long skirt barely showing her ankles, comes from a cold British town, preferring to wear warm earthy colors. Nothing that immediately draws your attention. She lacked the visual jazz of the Altecs and it appeared that a streaming frontend would be too modern for her. I couldn't be more wrong. The Tannoys exuded gravitas, offering just adequate dynamics and resolution. Where the Altecs lacked in slight bass presence, the Tannoys compensated tastefully. Jennifer Warnes’s performance, known for her transition from a chorus singer to a frontwoman, was a testament to this. The Tannoys’ concentric tweeter and 15" woofer provided pristine balance without muddying the midrange. The Tannoy music just settles under your skin and wards off any nightmares when you fall asleep at night. She didn’t demand attention or cause a dramatic reaction; instead, left us in awe of a marvelous human creation. She was fabulously modern yet so organic in her demeanor. Loved her.
The Tannoys are like a grandmother recounting stories of her youth to her grandkids. She carefully "replaces" any details that might be too harsh for tender minds while conveying the essence of the stories with heartfelt accuracy.
Both speakers are spectacular, making a direct comparison unfair. For instance, in Zakir Hussain's Pancham track from @essrand's audition playlist, the tabla sounded incredibly accurate and real on the Tannoys, while the Altecs allowed the finger caps hitting the ghatam to gently push other percussion instruments into the background. Each speaker excelled in its own right, grading one over the other would be impossible.
== Conclusion ==
A low-wattage Accuphase pairs exceptionally well with Tannoy MG15. Contrary to some beliefs, vintage speakers aren’t limited to vintage LPs (even Steve Guttenberg didn’t get this right!). Amitabh Bachchan’s baritone is as rich as Barry Richards', and Lata Mangeshkar’s vocal resolution surpasses Diana Krall’s. Also, as a host, you don’t need to be modest about your setup. You can enjoy it as much as or even more than your guests!
We left Bellandur at 2:30p and I returned home by 11:30p, taking the newly opened, much awaited, Silk Board double-decker flyover and having a late dinner at Zaatar. Last Sunday (Aug 04), we spent 5.5 hours with the two ladies while Santhosh, both patient and enthusiastic, facilitated the experience. It wasn’t much of a conversation; the ladies mostly spoke and sang, and we listened as true gentlemen. We learned so much about them that we fell in love. It was indeed a double date done right. Thank you again, Santhosh.
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while central and south Blr would have the 2 channel lovers.
Any reason or evidence for such thoughts on the geographic distribution?
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