Gale GS401A Amplification

TheFlash

Also available in pink
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Not really IMO. I have heard several pairs of vintage speakers for whom I believe this to be true. The Gale 401, NS1000M, Ditton 66 et al.I listened again to my old 801's on New Year's Eve at a party at their new owner's house. They are something! Built in 1979.

If the point was in reference to them showing up the Rotel then I have no idea.
Fair enough, perhaps I should have said “vintage Gale”. I was given a pair of boxed new Gale Gold Monitor standmounts 12m ago and sold them on eBay for tens of quids without hearing them as they looked very budget-y indeed and came with a budget hifi stack - hence my seeking clarification. I’m pretty sure these would not have stood up against £5-10k speakers!

 

oldius

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Fair enough, perhaps I should have said “vintage Gale”. I was given a pair of boxed new Gale Gold Monitor standmounts 12m ago and sold them on eBay for tens of quids without hearing them as they looked very budget-y indeed and came with a budget hifi stack - hence my seeking clarification. I’m pretty sure these would not have stood up against £5-10k speakers!
Back in the Ira Gale years, Gale were up there. In the Richer Sound years, Gale were down there.

Playboy-Pictorial.jpg


 

britishcomposers

britishcomposers
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Didn't Julian Richer (Richer Sounds founder/owner) play a bit loose & fast with a bit of poetic licence with the model numbers when he bought the brand name?  Gale Force One, Gale Force Two, and so on...  Wonder what Ira would have made of it?  

Quite a few Ira stories told down the years, including his fascination with the Goodmans Maxim he put through it's paces under test at the GEC test facility, right to the point of blowing all the drivers.  Then the story of an unattended briefcase in the car-park and security being called in because his name was on the case.  Some uncertainty of the reliability of sources, but made for amusing anecdodes.   

 
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SergeAuckland

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I had a client, a multi-millionaire in property who lived in one of those cream-coloured Crown Estate mansions that run along part of the perimeter road of Regents Park.  He had various items of gear that all needed servicing.  Quad ESL-63's being just one part of his collection, along with an LP12;  all possibly via Studio 99 at Swiss Cottage/Hampstead way in the day.  Anyway, he had four Gale 401's with the forward/upward facing units; most needing work doing to them.  

This huge property was steeped in what reflected the state of the 1973 art of interior design, - which was when this client had moved in;  setting about with 'the look', - which included a red bathroom suite with multiple lights adorning the ceiling.  Quite retro upon my 1998 visit there.

I suggested having all four of these speakers restored and putting onto sturdy stands and using them as a 4.0 system in place of the tv-based system he was using in the huge main reception room.  A large CRT Loewe tv was in place and so with his Denon flagship amp, it all worked very well, including the serviced LP12.  He no longer wanted the Quads in this room, so as non-working items, I bought them and has them refurbished;  the proceeds going toward an engagement ring that has long since disappeared along with the wife.

Anyway, the point of all this Ronnie Corbett preamble was that this guy was a close friend of Ira Gale who commissioned him to design a loudspeaker best suited to his eclectic taste in chrome-plated modern interior design, and hence the birth of the 401

.... and yes, those chrome end-caps are a bugger to remove!
The Chrome 401 aesthetics were designed by Jon Bannenberg, who found later fame designing yachts. Lovely looking 'speakers.

S.

 

uzzy

Grumpy Old Git
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 Poking around in the loft a while back I came across along forgotten pair of Gale GS401As in very sad condition and, if memory serves, they'd been there for 22 years! Unfortunately they were a little too near a small long term leak that developed in the roof (fixed long ago) which did little to improve the chrome work. The main reason they went out of use was a blown tweeter in one of them which at the time was unobtainable and thus irreparable.

     More out of stubbornness than anything else I've decided to restore the old girls back to their 1970's glory. There was something about the sound I rather liked. Naturally I know it would be far more sensible to get rid of them and forget the idea altogether but where's the fun in that?

     So far all I've done is got them down, knocked off the end caps (I don't want to repeat THAT experience!), and cleaned everything up ready for parcelling up and despatch for refurb and chroming. I'm not expecting to be reassembling them this side of new year. When that happy day comes I'm going to find myself in need of some amplification. As they'll be pretty much second string system speakers using my MFs isn't really an option. The 401s are, of course, not the easiest load for amps. 

     Any ideas for economical amplification, power or integrated within £ Three Figures? Thoughts that went through my mind were a Quad 405 (doubtful), an older MF power or integrated and even a pair of bridged Behringer A500s (I do like the vfm that Bellringer offer). 
The fuses are recommended at min. of 2.5 amps and are easily available from maplin and a host of other places so I do not know how you had difficulty (do not use slow blow).  I would fit 5amp fuses as if they blow then the amp is likely to go into melt down.

They drop below 4 ohms and need grunt - I bought the Hafler DH200 (it being the only amp I could afford with the grunt to drive them in the 70s) and love the amp so much I wouldn't change it.  Other ideal matches - well when I was in a hifi shop the EAR 509 valve amps would drive them but didn't drive them as well or sound as good as the Hafler.  You need an amp that can deliver down to 2ohms without strain.  That limits you more than you might think.

The fuses should be changed once a year if you listen at high volumes (you will see it is not shiny and a the fuse wire distorts a bit in shape).  I upped the value to 5amps in mine as the hafler has 2.5 amp fuses on the outputs so it is more likely to blow on the hafler before the loudpeaker (which is more desirable cos if the speaker fuse goes it can lead to a melt down of the output transistors (mosfets) in the amp.. 

If it was me buying now I would go solid state and look at the following

Hafler DH200 or xl 280 if you can find one second hand

Meridian 557

Krell KSA 50/100/200 the bigger the better

I used an Amcron DC300 A for a while on them,  when i was loaned one.  That worked a treat too.

I would not go for a bridged amplifier as I have yet to see one that is recommended for less than 8ohm load.

The quad 606 or 909 may do the job but you need to suck it and see (the 405 or 405 2 certainly will not).

When looking for an amp look for one that can deliver down to 2 ohms (especially if you listen at high volumes) and do not even bother with a Naim 250 or tha series, they throw the thermal switch after about a minute of normal listening levels (not sure about the newer ones but they are not on my list at all :)  )

I never got to try any of the new class D amps but they may be an alternative.

I repaired the foam surrounds on my bass units (you tube will show you how) - i never got round to the mids before i sold them but they should be easier (less cone travel so easier to position and stick down) ... 

 
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General Factotum

Just the basic facts
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The fuses are recommended at min. of 2.5 amps and are easily available from maplin and a host of other places so I do not know how you had difficulty (do not use slow blow).  I would fit 5amp fuses as if they blow then the amp is likely to go into melt down.
     It was the tweeter that died, not the fuse. As to why it went AWOL, I have no idea. As you rightly say, finding fuses isn't exactly rocket science. Perhaps my enthusiasm for repair was blunted a tad by feeling the need for a speaker upgrade, having used the Gales for 15-20 years. I thought "I'll get those sorted later" but other things came along and that was that.

     For a little historical interest I don't recall having even heard of Maplin when the problem arose, never mind know where the nearest store was. The internet retail experience was less than stellar at that time so I doubt if I would have considered it. It's sometimes easy to forget ( for ME anyway ) that life in some areas is so much easier now.

 
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THOMO

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In good faith.

I have a Rotel (RA1570) and it seems fine to me. Am I (literally) missing something?
What you miss with more typical SS amps like Rotels [even the MIchis] and without a good preamp is the beautiful tonality and timbre  of which the the Gales are capable .You can still achieve a really good sound that will show up many of their strengths such as their tight and rhythmical bass and seamless driver integration but you will miss out on the sort of tonal richness , complexity and  atmospherics that makes them  a bit special.Well at least if you are into that sort of stuff.

 

oldius

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Apparently the Lentek integrated is a terrific match for the 401. I have one and adore its sound quality, but the match surprises me a little because of the comments about the difficult load that the Gale's represent.

 
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THOMO

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Apparently the Lentek integrated is a terrific match for the 401. I have one and adore its sound quality, but the match surprises me a little because of the comments about the difficult load that the Gale's represent.
Yes it is about current and quality rather than outright power.

One of the better sounding amps I have tried on them was a Hiraga pure class A 20 watt.Only 20 watts but a massively built and very hot running beast of a thing which obviously handles low impedance speakers well.

 

uzzy

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     It was the tweeter that died, not the fuse. As to why it went AWOL, I have no idea. As you rightly say, finding fuses isn't exactly rocket science. Perhaps my enthusiasm for repair was blunted a tad by feeling the need for a speaker upgrade, having used the Gales for 15-20 years. I thought "I'll get those sorted later" but other things came along and that was that.

     For a little historical interest I don't recall having even heard of Maplin when the problem arose, never mind know where the nearest store was. The internet retail experience was less than stellar at that time so I doubt if I would have considered it. It's sometimes easy to forget ( for ME anyway ) that life in some areas is so much easier now.
We had  an electrical spares shop just up the road from Guildford HIFi in the 70s and W H Smiths used to have the Maplin catelogue for sale £1  in the magazine racks I seem to remember. 
Anyway water under the bridge now .. for your refurbishment you will need to acquire Celestion HF2000 tweeters, Peerless KO40 MRF mids and the bass drivers are Gales own. 
They will no doubt need refoaming as will the mids.   The only problem with the Gales is getting an amp that can handle the load to deliver their full capabilities .. but a great loudspeaker design that I love (looks and sound).
The attenuators on the back were not there for user adjustment as such - they were set at factory to ensure the speaker response was flat as possible.  They are fairly cheap pots and if twiddled a lot eventually give up the ghost .. so they may need replacing or refurbishing.

 
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uzzy

Grumpy Old Git
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What you miss with more typical SS amps like Rotels [even the MIchis] and without a good preamp is the beautiful tonality and timbre  of which the the Gales are capable .You can still achieve a really good sound that will show up many of their strengths such as their tight and rhythmical bass and seamless driver integration but you will miss out on the sort of tonal richness , complexity and  atmospherics that makes them  a bit special.Well at least if you are into that sort of stuff.
The star of the show in my opinion is the HF2000 tweeter from Celestion (smilarly with the Ditton 44s and 66s and 25s) .. it is a very smooth detailed unit and to my ears has qualities that few other tweeters equal or  bettered in those days.    Of course the other star is the crossover that integrates it all .. interestingly the 402 produced at the end (Ira had left and someone else was running the company then) was the same as the 401 but with a different tweeter and it was good but somehow lost the magic of the original 401 (probably due to the loss of that wonderful integration of units to sound like a seamless whole in the original 401 series.  I also believe it did not have the extreme low impedance of the original so was a tad easier to drive.

The Sugden A48 could do the job but it got mighty hot .. but to get high volumes you needed watts as well as current .. that is what led me to the Hafler DH200 that could deliver 100 watts at below 4 ohms and has no "sound" it just produces what you throw at it .. the better the preamp the better it sounds and last but not least was affordable.  A friend of mine had the bloody great Mission thing (with the chassis and front panel molded to read Mission)  .. his jaw dropped when we compared the two together and the Mission sounded restricted, narrow and lacking in depth compared to the Hafler .. 

 
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General Factotum

Just the basic facts
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We had  an electrical spares shop just up the road from Guildford HIFi in the 70s and W H Smiths used to have the Maplin catelogue for sale £1  in the magazine racks I seem to remember. 
Anyway water under the bridge now .. for your refurbishment you will need to acquire Celestion HF2000 tweeters, Peerless KO40 MRF mids and the bass drivers are Gales own. 
They will no doubt need refoaming as will the mids.   The only problem with the Gales is getting an amp that can handle the load to deliver their full capabilities .. but a great loudspeaker design that I love (looks and sound).
The attenuators on the back were not there for user adjustment as such - they were set at factory to ensure the speaker response was flat as possible.  They are fairly cheap pots and if twiddled a lot eventually give up the ghost .. so they may need replacing or refurbishing.
     The refurbishment is already completed Uzzy, courtesy of Vintagegale who have done a far better job than I ever could. I've posted a rebuild log in



     Thanks for your advice on this subject though, I shall certainly mentally file it for future use.

 
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britishcomposers

britishcomposers
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One detail I've noticed on this topic with the pictures attached along the way in this thread is that they all only show speaker units on one side of the cabinet, whereas the four that I had Dave Smith refurbish for the client of mine (who'd commissioned his friend Ira to have designed using the chrome ends for his Regents Park modern interiored home in 1973) actually had the speaker compliment on two profiles, - as in mid and treble units facing upward and in-line (as I recall) with the forward firing mid and treble units that sat between the bass drivers.

Yes, those Celestion HF2000's were rather good, along with the Ditton 66 mid, which should also have been used on the 44 in my opinion.

 

SergeAuckland

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One detail I've noticed on this topic with the pictures attached along the way in this thread is that they all only show speaker units on one side of the cabinet, whereas the four that I had Dave Smith refurbish for the client of mine (who'd commissioned his friend Ira to have designed using the chrome ends for his Regents Park modern interiored home in 1973) actually had the speaker compliment on two profiles, - as in mid and treble units facing upward and in-line (as I recall) with the forward firing mid and treble units that sat between the bass drivers.

Yes, those Celestion HF2000's were rather good, along with the Ditton 66 mid, which should also have been used on the 44 in my opinion.
Whatever those specially commissioned 'speakers were, they weren't 401s. 

S

 
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britishcomposers

britishcomposers
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Whatever those specially commissioned 'speakers were, they weren't 401s.
Every aspect of the cabinet design, size, speaker layout (on the forward facing baffle) and chrome ends, were exactly as per the 401's, but I cannot remember looking at the terminal board to see what model number appeared on there.  These, as I thought at the time, were 401's, - as indeed Mr Jackson, the client, had told me at the time (around 1998) when getting them reconditioned.  I had known of the 401 since getting into hi-fi in the mid-70's.  Maybe they were prototypes he built for this early commission? 

 

SergeAuckland

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Every aspect of the cabinet design, size, speaker layout (on the forward facing baffle) and chrome ends, were exactly as per the 401's, but I cannot remember looking at the terminal board to see what model number appeared on there.  These, as I thought at the time, were 401's, - as indeed Mr Jackson, the client, had told me at the time (around 1998) when getting them reconditioned.  I had known of the 401 since getting into hi-fi in the mid-70's.  Maybe they were prototypes he built for this early commission? 
Could well have been, could perhaps have been a response to the client wanting a more diffuse presentation. This was the era of the Bose 901 'speakers when the direct/reflecting principle was current. Linn did something similar with the Isobarics, and there are still loudspeakers today that follow that principle.

S.

 

uzzy

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Could well have been, could perhaps have been a response to the client wanting a more diffuse presentation. This was the era of the Bose 901 'speakers when the direct/reflecting principle was current. Linn did something similar with the Isobarics, and there are still loudspeakers today that follow that principle.

S.
Perhaps someone bastardised a pair to try different cabinet formation.  In my time at Guildford hifi (75 -90) i had loads of pairs go through my hands and the arrangement was as in the picture above.  The other story (not confirmed) is Ira actually bought a load of loudspeakers and cut them in half to see how the cabinets were designed.  All that we do know is Ira only developed one loudspeaker (the 401 in chrome and wooden guises) that came to market.  In 1975 there as nothing to touch them for size and performance (they gave you all you get from a Ditton 44 and 66 in a modestly sized cabinet) ... they were ideal for old Victorian and Edwardian houses of the time where most downstairs rooms had an alcove each side of the fireplace, usually built in with shelves and they sat nicely on each side.

There only problem is to get them sounding their best meant driving them at realistic sound levels which in turn meant buying an amp that could handle them.  I loved them because they showed prevented the use  of Naim amps where after a few minutes at realistic level the thermal cut in tripped and silence.  I had got to the stage by then of doing the opposite of what most hifi mags were recommending as through comparison in the listening room you realised most of it was a fairy story .

When I heard them first in 1975 they blew my mind I had to have a pair - i finally managed to afford a second hand pair in 1978 .. for the first year they worked of a fashion on the end of my old Leak Stereo 70 and in 79 i finally managed to afford the hafler with an Audionics B2 preamp and changed the Thorens for a Systemdek .. and aquired my Decca Gold Garrot .. (later rebuilt by Expert with a fine line and sounded even better).  So being the boring old fart I am the cartridge remains unchanged since that time (with rebuilds as necessary) but the Gales have gone but I will always have a fond memories and I could certainly live with them if I didn't have room for the big monoliths I have now :)  

 

mawgiwifih

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Here’s my pair. Saved them from a dumpster a couple of years ago and refurbed them myself with the help of some very clever folk on here - not least Mr. Tibbs. They truly sing and do so driven by an Accuphase e303x amp of much the same period. From time to time I swap the amp out for a 30w Croft Iosis valve power amp (weighs a ton and delivers masses of current) and Dynavector L200 pre. Happy listening.

15A919C7-8D46-4F0E-8707-1781A0DD5613.jpeg

A4035AB4-1D7B-47B7-886C-56D8FB50A855.jpeg

FB47040E-18FD-4085-A41E-5A0B5D14F348.jpeg

 

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