Tannoy Re-cone

[BobC]

As we all know the HPD series of tannoy speakers used a thin foam rubber surround that deteriorate after about 15 years. Initially it goes tacky and then starts to split etc...hence the need for a replacement.

The HPD series of speakers were designed for the new transistor amps and are capable of over 60Ws. To do this some petals were added to the back of the cone to stiffen it up, this led to additional mass and a loss of a couple of db sensativity compared to the previous Gold and Reds etc...

I have always sourced my surrounds from Speakerbits in Melbourne as I knew these were the correct material compared to the much thicker surrounds offered by many on e bay. They also provided them as a kit with shims, pva glues, instructions etc and could also supply new spiders and suspension units as required.

Of late there has been a chap on e bay selling complete and original Tannoy cones complete with surrounds, coils, spiders for between £250 and £300 depending on speaker. Anyone used these?

I have also seen the Tanoplas surrounds being offered for HPDs, these surrounds are the same as those on the Golds and do not deteriorate over time. I think ther were a kind of fibre impregnated rubber??????

Does anyone know for sure if these tanoplas surrounds are the same compliance as and provide the same damping factor as the correct foam runner HPD surround...in other words will they change the sesativity of the speaker?

I should add that the above is a bit of "ported history" and there is much more to the Tannoy story. I should also add that if the rubber surrounds on and HPD are at the ripped and destroyed phase, chances are the coils will have rubbed and will need replacing, the trebble horn may need work and that someone like Lockwoods may well be the best option for a rebuild. I do not know the prices charged.


Cheers

BobC

[goomer]

I had assumed the seller on ebay was Lockwood because the location is very close (Northwood ~ Watford), and presumably what is on ebay is also what you can get from them directly.

[Cable Monkey]

I haven't used them but my D700 drivers (and 10 inch hpd recone kit) came from him and they are original Tannoy parts.

[john.stone]

Hi Bob,
I thought I'd reply to your question here rather than in the other guys thread and avoid taking it any further off topic.
They are a pair of Berkleys with 15" HPD385a. Re-coned and with new spiders fitted at the factory a couple of years ago. I had a brief listen and liked what I heard so I'm having a home dem of them today. I'm expecting a different sound to the lowthers with (hopefully) more in the lower frequencies. I'm quietly optimistic.
Camerons coming over today too so we'll have two sets of ears to let you know how it goes.

[voiceofthemysterons]

There's been speculation about the very questions you ask over on the Yahoo Tannoy Group for some time now, you followed them?
A fair degree of disagreement and different opinions. No definitive agreement.
I used Lockwoods a) because they are near London so could easily be contacted/visited and b) because of their good reputation. I didn't want to screw them up diying either, so ended up paying a bit more for that.
No regrets, my experience in the improvement in sound quality before/after going from soft to 'hard' edge surrounds, recone and crossover has been very positive.
They've taken time to loosen up but they're sounding pretty sweet now.
They don't sound quite the same as Golds I have heard before, but are very good with most music and are maybe a bit crisper, difficult to say as they've been in different systems and situations.
Very tight bass and really good imaging. Higher frequencies may be a bit rolled-off but so is my hearing!

[i_should_coco]

As we all know the HPD series of tannoy speakers used a thin foam rubber surround that deteriorate after about 15 years. Initially it goes tacky and then starts to split etc...hence the need for a replacement.

Does anyone know for sure if these tanoplas surrounds are the same compliance as and provide the same damping factor as the correct foam runner HPD surround...in other words will they change the sesativity of the speaker?

BobC

I'd imagine they're different. Whether that's a bad thing is not necessarily clear. They're unlikely to change the sensitivity much, but will likely alter some of the Thiele-Small parameters.

[voiceofthemysterons]

That was a significant point in the discussion.
I'd c&p some of it but it gets sent in such an annoying and repetitive format that it's too much hassle.

[BobC]

Hi Bob,
I thought I'd reply to your question here rather than in the other guys thread and avoid taking it any further off topic.
They are a pair of Berkleys with 15" HPD385a. Re-coned and with new spiders fitted at the factory a couple of years ago. I had a brief listen and liked what I heard so I'm having a home dem of them today. I'm expecting a different sound to the lowthers with (hopefully) more in the lower frequencies. I'm quietly optimistic.
Camerons coming over today too so we'll have two sets of ears to let you know how it goes.

I think you will enjoy them, have owned a few pairs before and thoroughly loved them. Just wait till you hear a pair of Ardens, the bigger cab really does lower the bass registers...it's addictive, i warn you

[BobC]

There's been speculation about the very questions you ask over on the Yahoo Tannoy Group for some time now, you followed them?
A fair degree of disagreement and different opinions. No definitive agreement.
I used Lockwoods a) because they are near London so could easily be contacted/visited and b) because of their good reputation. I didn't want to screw them up diying either, so ended up paying a bit more for that.
No regrets, my experience in the improvement in sound quality before/after going from soft to 'hard' edge surrounds, recone and crossover has been very positive.
They've taken time to loosen up but they're sounding pretty sweet now.
They don't sound quite the same as Golds I have heard before, but are very good with most music and are maybe a bit crisper, difficult to say as they've been in different systems and situations.
Very tight bass and really good imaging. Higher frequencies may be a bit rolled-off but so is my hearing!

I try and follow the Yahoo group, but as you say, a tad disjointed. It';s good to have the opinion of others on here, a better class of HiFi nuts me thinks
I might just enquire about some tanoplas surrounds for the new 12" HPDs, the foam rubber ones are going tacky and a replacement wont be far off.

[deggie]

hi bob.......did you get my ..pics.....

[BobC]

Not yet, I might of given you a duff e mail

try again.... bob.cusworth@live.com

[PaulStewart]

Hi Bob,

I have used Lockwood for years and have known Roger for longer. They are the definitive Tannoy people and when Tannoy moved out of London, they got all the original spares for older models. I'm on my third pair of Lockwood cabs, the others I had to leave in various studios when I moved on. However this is the seventh set of Tannoys I've had that were serviced by them and I could not recommend them more highly. Give them a call or an e-mail about your HPDs they are only too happy to talk thing through.

[BobC]

Cheers Paul, i will do. My other HPDs were re-coned by them and the previous owner had just bought them direct from Lockwood's owner, Roger i presume. They had new everything and are great speakers, currently residing in a GRF cab. I fancy building a large ported affair, so this second pair will be heading into that cab.

[la toilette]

I fancy building a large ported affair, so this second pair will be heading into that cab.

How big are you thinking of going? I have my 12" Golds in a pair of heavy duty ply cabs built to 'Balmoral' dimensions - approx 120L iirc. They sound really good IMO. I have a copy of the original Tannoy plans that I could send you if they'd be useful.

[BobC]

Was thinking of 150l, a bit of research suggests that this is a good volume to aim for. Would really appreciate a copy of the plans though, I may be able to modify them a bit.

Cheers

bob.cusworth@live.com

[russ abbott - royds brother]

Sorry to go ot bob,but does anyone know the litre sizes of the old tannoy cabs?

[stewartwen]

Here is the name of a man whom I use for all my reconing of any type of driver..........
Dave Smith, DK Loudspeakers, 10, Spring Gardens, Elm Park, Hornchurch. RM12 5BQ
01708 447344. He is not the cheapest, but his work is amongst the best.
S

[BobC]

Sorry to go ot bob,but does anyone know the litre sizes of the old tannoy cabs?

Just google the name and a set of plans normally pop up. Or go to Hans's site or the Yahoo group and you can find them there. Have just ordered up the plywood fro the new pair of speaks, a ported box this time. Quick and easy to build, so hope to have these up and running March/April after Darren's are done. 150l with 2 100mmx200mm port tubes.

[russ abbott - royds brother]

Seems the yorks i have are around 250 l.
Be nice to go a fair bit bigger.
Will have to look on that tannoy site.

Are the ones you are making your own design?

[la toilette]

The ideal cab volume for 12" drivers has been discussed before on the yahoo Tannoy group, and iirc the advice from Tannoy themselves was that the recommended range was 75L to 150L (despite them producing considerably smaller cabinets like the Devons and Chatsworths etc), with anything larger than that not really improving performance. Presumably the 'ideal' must vary depending on the exact model of driver though.