The Most Significant Loudspeakers of All-Time?

Organizing my mother’s garage last month in Florida came with an unexpected surprise; my beloved pair of Spendor SP2/3s that had been my primary pair of loudspeakers between 1998 and 2006. The walnut cabinet showed the signs of some clumsy moves over the years; I donated the loudspeakers to my parents to enjoy in their New Hampshire farmhouse and they must have lost the original packaging before they retired to their new home in Palm Beach County.

I inherited my first pair of loudspeakers in 1983; a set of Celestion Ditton 33 MKIIs that were graciously passed down to me as a Bar Mitzvah gift in Toronto and something that I enjoyed until the end of college in 1993.

I did buy a set of MartinLogan Sequel II’s in 1989 but they were far too large to enjoy in a dorm room and they remained in my system until almost 1998 when I went on a loudspeaker buying spree adding NHT Super Zeroes, MartinLogan Aerius and Aerius I, Meadowlark Audio Kestrels and HotRod Shearwaters.

Over the past 40 years, I’ve owned at least 25 pairs of loudspeakers; not all of them were smart purchases — some were the wrong type of loudspeaker based on marriage, children, and living accommodations.

I don’t miss all of them, but products like the Spendor SP2/3, Meadowlark Audio HotRod Shearwaters, MartinLogan reQuests — were irreplaceable.

Dusting off the SP2/3s in the garage made me somewhat nostalgic, but also start to wonder about other loudspeakers that influenced me significantly over the years.

We all prefer different things and that includes the types of electronics required to make them sing.

Which loudspeakers have been significant in your music listening experience?

My list will hopefully ignite a healthy conversation about products that moved the needle for you.

Altec Lansing Voice of the Theater

This large, horn-loaded speaker was introduced in 1945 and was widely used in theaters and concert halls. I remember the first time I saw a pair in an old movie theater in Toronto that was being converted into a film editing facility and how they broke every rule when it comes to domestic tranquility.

Over the years, I’ve been fortunate enough to listen to multiple restored pairs of VOTT A7s and A5s with a wide range of tube amplifiers and vintage solid state receivers and wondered how these could possibly work in my own home.

Magnepan Tympani I

A planar magnetic loudspeaker that was introduced in 1971 became popular for its clarity, accuracy, and spacious soundstage. The Tympani I belonged to my uncle who was a computer engineer and future convict and one of my first experiences with a pair of audiophile loudspeakers growing up.

Our living room had multiple sets of Chinese folding screens in the 1970s that were actually from China and likely to crush one if they toppled over. The Tympani I had a similar look with the exception of being beige and without any from of decoration.

My uncle was a DIY guy who built his own computers and amplifiers and we always wondered when he was going to burn the house down and kill everyone.

What struck me about the Magnepan Tympani I was just how clear it sounded and how the loudspeakers in our Zenith Console always distorted when you pushed the volume too high and the absolute lack of presence.

After listening to a pair of Magnepan MG3.3s in the late 1980s driven by Mark Levinson and Proceed electronics, I became somewhat despondent that I had just spent all of my summer work money on a pair of MartinLogan Sequel IIs.

A pair of Magnepan LRS have been the heart of my den system for almost 2 years and I can’t imagine not owning them — the level of sound quality for $650 USD is remarkable.

Quad ESL

Peter Walker’s iconic loudspeaker was introduced in 1957 and whilst not inexpensive to restore or upgrade in 2023, a remarkable engineering achievement that changed domestic high-end audio forever.

The Quad ESLs were not the first electrostatic loudspeakers but they certainly paved the way for everything that came after; MartinLogan, Quad, Innersound, and SoundLab certainly took the technology and ran with it for the past 4 decades.

There are a lot of opinions about which amplifiers work best with the original Quad ESLs; the late-Glenn Croft of Croft Acoustics told me many years ago that he used the ESLs when developing his amplifiers and that he still used a set for his own music listening.

The first opportunity I had to listen to both the original ESLs and the Quad 63s was in the 1980s at the home of a Toronto Audiophile Society member and whilst I loved the forward and clean delivery of both loudspeakers overall, I left with the impression that they were loudspeakers for a different type of listener who did not enjoy Rush, Led Zeppelin, or Sir John Williams at rather high listening levels.

Over the years, having had the opportunity to enjoy jazz, chamber music, and a lot of vocal material on a pair of restored ESLs that belong to an industry colleague who listens at moderate levels — I have learned to appreciate just how innovative these loudspeakers were. When you get these setup properly and the amplifier can drive these properly — the experience can be humbling.

MartinLogan CLS

Gayle Sanders and I discussed the history and evolution of the earliest MartinLogan Electrostatic Loudspeakers during our recent podcast and for those who want to know the truth about how the iconic brand emerged from the shadows in the 1980s, it is a very worthwhile listen.

The CLS were not the first successful product to emerge from the factory in Lawrence, Kansas, — but they changed things for the company in a significant way. Gayle Sanders knew that they would be a hard sell because the rest of the system had to be up to the task and whilst there were plenty of high-end dealers like Andrew Singer (Sound by Singer, NYC) who sold them to affluent NY/NJ/CT audiophiles with matching Krell or Aragon systems, the CLS were not the easiest to setup and a very demanding load.

Blue Circle Audio’s Gilbert Yeung lived two hours west of me and used the original MartinLogan CLS and CLS IIz Loudspeakers with all of his amplifiers as a benchmark. If they couldn’t drive the loudspeakers to his satisfaction — back to his bench they went.

Gilbert and I would pickup pizza and listen for hours to dozens of records and CDs and marvel at the transparency, detail, and overall experience. The bottom end was missing but when the system was properly setup — music just moved you in a very cerebral way.

Apogee Acoustics Stage

Apogee Acoustics was a high-end loudspeaker manufacturer that was founded in the 1980s and went out of business in the early 2000s. One of their most innovative products was the Apogee Stage, a smaller planar magnetic loudspeaker that was highly regarded for its sound quality and unique design.

Overall, the Apogee Stage was a unique and highly regarded loudspeaker that was well-suited for audiophiles who valued accurate, detailed sound and were willing to invest in a high-end system. While Apogee Acoustics is no longer in business, used examples of the Stage can still be found on the market and are highly sought after by audio enthusiasts.

Having listened to the larger Apogee Caliper and Duetta models, I had very high hopes for the Stage when I first tried them at a Toronto Hi-Fi store but the experience left me somewhat confused.

The store owner explained that they only worked well with Krell or Classe Audio amplification and that if one couldn’t afford to invest a lot of time in the setup and room — it was better to look elsewhere.

The listening room was on the smaller side and the dealer had set them up 4 feet from the wall behind them and pointed straight ahead. Apogee had already introduced the Grand and Mini-Grand models and the dealer had raised the Stage off the floor using the bass cabinets of the Mini-Grand.

The Stage was a two-way dipole speaker system with a 12″ by 26″, electromagnetic film-diaphragm woofer and a 0.7″ by 26″ ribbon midrange/tweeter. The loudspeakers were 37″ H by 26″ W by 2″ D (without stands) and weighed 60 pounds apiece.

The Classe/Krell combination was way out of my budget but as I listened, I was struck by how utterly natural sounding these loudspeakers were with acoustic instruments, brass, and the human voice. Rock music was not a strength.

I’m not sure I’ve ever heard a cello sound that realistic before; timbre, presence, decay, and just the energy of the instrument filling the room.

There are vendors who can restore a pair for a significant price and there is the issue of requiring amplifiers that can output 200 to 400 watts (4 ohms) and maintain a really firm grip on the low end.

The 1994 version of the Stage with the Mini-Grand subwoofer cabinet (and DAX crossover) was almost $6,000 USD at the time which doesn’t seem like a lot of money in 2023 for such a full-range system — but you also needed $10,000 USD worth of electronics to make it come alive.

One day. Maybe.