Is This (Very Old) Monitor Setup Worth It?

One of my nearfield monitors died so now I'm faced with replacing the set. I'm thinking about buying new ones --Yamaha HS50M or HS80M are strong contenders. However, I have a pair of old Tannoy speakers (passive) and a Yamaha power amp that could be pressed into service. I paid about $300 for the Tannoys, and the Yamaha as I recall has overkill wattage. Both are circa about 1990.
 
Questions:
1) Has the technology advanced in the last 20 years such that it's not worth it to salvage this old equipment? Things would have to be not just a little, but a LOT better to motivate me to spend $400-$600 just on this point alone.
 
2) There are no jacks on the Tannoys or Yamaha--only screws, and you have to wrap bare wire around the screws to make the connections. The Yamaha has to plug into my M-Audio Omni breakout box which has jacks. How big a deal would it be to make this all workable/easier ?
 
Thanks!
 
 

The only noteworthy change in speaker technology in 20 years has been the advancement of automated assembly processes.

The only change in power amp technology in the past 20 years has been in making them more power efficient while attempting not to lose the good sound of the old fashioned power hungry designs. The best power efficient amps have almost as good a sound as the older designs... but not quite.


Your Yamaha and Tannoys can probably still be described as state of the art.

Enjoy.

best regards,
mike

I agree but I have been eyeing the HS80Ms myself....

I love my HS80Ms......

R

There is another way of looking at it. I teach sound engineering at a TAFE college and we have an old pair of passive Tannoys in the main control room. They in fact sound pretty bad actually. My Mackie HR 824's sound a thousand times better. So that means there are some very nice active monitors out there right now and they are sounding way good today. Speakers being old is not enough to get them over the line sounding great. The passive power amp concept is ineffecient as well. The latest modern poweramps they are designing into some of the better active monitors are delivering excellent specs, huge power and very loud SPL levels without distortion. I believe that in terms of speakers there have been some very major developments and it is one area where things are getting better and better. I have listened to some very fine hi fi monitors back in the 70's but they used to cost a fortune. Now I am hearing a very similar (or better) sound with the latest active nearfields and at lower cost.

What has been getting worse is some modern production techniques, mastering loudness wars coupled with inferior formats like mp3 etc. In some ways those things are not doing modern speakers any good. Maybe it is why people are saying the music today does not sound as good. But if you take a beautiful modern recording eg a modern jazz CD that is pristine and lovely dynamics (a la latest Kurt Rosenwinkel or latest Brad Mehldau OMG!) and listen to some modern nearfields then you can really hear how far they have come.

Use the Tannoys for sure while you are in the process of getting a new pair of active nearfileds. In fact they might come in handy for mix reference checking and translating. The latest Tannoy models are quite interesting though and have had some great reviews so make sure you give them a try as well.

Thanks for the responses--good stuff! Looks like we have everything from "the old gear is perfectly fine" to "the old gear is far inferior, buy new." :-)  Okay, guess there's more work to do here--no worries!

I did the hardest part yesterday--went to the (distant) storage space, dug the stuff out. The Tannoy speakers are PBM-8's, the power amp is Yamaha P2150C. Haven't set it all up yet so I don't know how it sounds. Specs are below (I don't know what most of this stuff means). Based on this updated info, I'm curious to see if your opinion has changed. One potential problem: the rubbery stuff encircling both woofers on the Tannoys has minor tears and openings. Can this be easily/cheaply repaired? Or is this a dealbreaker?

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Yamaha Power Amp  Model P2150C
120V   500W   600VA   60Hz  (sine wave symbol)
Max RMS Output 150W/4 Ohms (24.5V)--stereo
Max RMS Output 300W/8 Ohms (49V)--Mono

Tannoy PBM-8 speakers.

Power, Frequency and Sensitivity Specifications

The Tannoy PBM-8 speakers have a frequency response of 45 hertz to 25 kilohertz (-10 decibel at 33 hertz), when allowing for +/- 3 decibel. The crossover frequency for the speakers has been measured at 1.9 kilohertz, and at their peak power they can handle 125 watts. The PBM-8s have a sensitivity of 92 decibels, or 89 decibels in an area that has a low degree of sound reverberation.

Size, Weight and Impedance Specifications

Tannoy's PBM-8 monitor speakers use an 8-inch woofer. A pair of the speakers weigh 23 1/2 pounds, while alone each weighs 11 3/4 pounds. The height, width, and diameter of each speaker is 16.3 inches, 10.88 inches, and 10.75 inches respectively. The speakers have an impedance of a minimum of 4 ohms and a maximum of 8 ohms.

Tweeter Specifications

The Tannoy PBM-8 speakers use a 5DR51570 tweeter, which has a 1-inch acoustic cavity silk dome that is ferro-fluid cooled. It is 4 1/16 inches when you measure across the front of the mounting plate. The outside diameter of the tweeter is 4.09 inches, while the diameter of the hole cut out for the cabinet is 2.845 inches. The tweeter has a peak power rating of 110 watts, a frequency range of 2,000 hertz to 24,000 hertz, and a maximum impedance of 6 ohms

I just bought another pair of 30 year old Auratones.

Very Very + good condition. I couldn't resist.

I agree that the PBM series in general are not that great. I think they were one of Tannoy's first attempts at the mid line market. I had hoped you had access to a pair of the higher end concentric s from your first post. They were designed for more pro end playback systems and their pricing reflected that as well. AS far as putting new surrounds on them. Depending if you have a local who is proficient at it, it may be worth saving them. If they have tears and are generally in poor shape. Then you should move on to other options or get them fixed. I've had older JBL's repaired for about 75.00 each.