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spiritofmusic

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Like some marriages...
 
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bonzo75

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I am not sure if you have ever tapped a real WE 16A before, but if you do, the ring goes on forever....:);)

The 16a metal is preferred by many to the wooden 15a on strings and guitar. There are metal song wooden fans. Last Munich WE was fantastic and top hit was metal and bottom was papier mache. This is not similar though autotech horns are very inert.
 
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Zero000

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The 16a metal is preferred by many to the wooden 15a on strings and guitar. There are metal song wooden fans. Last Munich WE was fantastic and top hit was metal and bottom was papier mache. This is not similar though autotech horns are very inert.

As we know 16A can sound amazing but play material that excites that metal cabinet resonance and it's gonna get very interesting.
 

Audiophile Bill

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I am not sure if you have ever tapped a real WE 16A before, but if you do, the ring goes on forever....:);)

Indeed. Interestingly the papier-mâché WE speakers were considered inferior sonically to their metal brethren despite being presumably low in ringing. That said, I think we have to think about the purposes of these things in theatres of the time - being very strong and to a degree moisture / weather resistant would be a huge advantage although still difficult to fabricate hence their move to try the papier-mâché.
There is a German producer making a wood 16a now. Would be interesting to hear it for sure. There was a lot of excitement when he released it.
 
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Audiophile Bill

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Here is some text from Mono and Stereo on the wooden 16a recently build by 13 Audio:

“Now, what about the sound?

I’ve always found that the 16a has limited listening capabilities. Some users attempt to dampen the thin metal walls, others claim to have a “special” torque and tightening sequence. Well, maybe. I’ve tried just about anything you could imagine and the 16a remains a thin- walled metal horn that vibrates.

This gives a very singular sound on violin or small formations, so if you’re into just that I guess it’s okay. But entering other more complex territories will leave you questioning. Lift the needle off the turntable and you’ll get an echo from the horn as the steel bounces back. Compare the 16a steel with any solid wood made horn and you’ll understand what’s so disturbing with the steel 16a.

Still, a 16a original is a valued part of my collection. Not for its sound but for what it is. It is a piece of audio history. And, it’s now installed in the 15th century medieval town where I live.

Some care to listen to the 16a in stereo. This means using the right and left channels on either side having the joined signals blend at the mono mouth. Why not. But when you understand the science behind the design of the 16a as clearly outlined in the patent where you appreciate that each side is actually half of the horn. As such, the added air columns are pretty much the same horn as the WE15b (two 555 WE15 horn). Both of the air columns add up to share the same mouth. But some enjoy it that way, so. . .

So, what does a dual 555-driver 16a horn made in solid wood sound like?

I was imagining that it would share the sound of the 12a horn (here). But I was wrong! The 16a has a far better lateral dispersion as the flares are curved sideways and not upwards. We addressed this question here when we actually put the 12 horns on the sides to get that lateral dispersion. It worked. Here we have that but done symmetrically and using 2 x 555 drivers. Just wonderful! Open easy and precise. No more metal resonance! Like the other solid wood horns I make it’s really a clean and well controlled sound wave generated by the 555 drivers. I have some sessions ahead to establish the correct settings even if of the bat it’s insanely good!

So was it worth it? Yes!

All I need to do now is get a pair and run in stereo! That’s a plan!”
 

bonzo75

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Hi! Could you please let me know which record exactly you play? Is it the original Decca? Thanks!

Speakers corner. The original is 1000 to 2000 GBP
 
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