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Topic: Identify these loudspeakers

Scott Norwood
Film God

Posts: 8146
From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas)
Registered: Jun 99

posted 12-05-1999 11:13 PM

OK, I give up. I worked for a year and a half at this place and never could figure out the model number of these loudspeakers. The label on the side says "Simplex Voice of the Theatre" and, in small letters, "Manufactured by Altec." These are obviously Altec products (though maybe not the cabinets) and they resemble a cross between the A-4 and the A-7. These are two-way systems with Altec N-500 crossovers. The 15" driver is an Altec 515 or 515B and the horns are Altec parts with 288 diaphragms. They're both taller and wider than A-7s. They are amazingly efficient; 1/4 watt is all that is needed on the dialogue channel to provide proper sound levels for the 500-seat theatre.

These were installed in about 1954 or 1955 as part of a Simplex mag sound/CinemaScope package, including mag penthouses, B&L CinemaScope lenses, a new, curved screen frame, and Altec amplifiers. Phone calls to Simplex and Altec were extremely unhelpful.

Does anyone here have any ideas? Has anyone ever seen these in another installation?

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William Hooper
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1879
From: Mobile, AL USA
Registered: Jun 99

posted 12-06-1999 03:53 AM

Steve Guttag identified these as the 'Simplex W'. They're apparently a part of an Altec sound package (including little green Altec Amp) that went with a Simplex projector package.

Somebody shrank your horn.

But joyriding stagehands haven't damaged your bodywork, so you're ahead...

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Steve Guttag
We forgot the crackers Gromit!!!

Posts: 12814
From: Annapolis, MD
Registered: Dec 1999

posted 12-06-1999 09:23 AM

Ok here you go Scott..

What you have/had are International Projector Corp's XL532-311 Speaker system. IPC offered 6 different speaker systems. The XL532-311 consisted of:

A high-frequency horn LU-1085 (aka Altec 805) or the LU-1086 (aka Altec 1005)

A High Frequency Driver LU-1104 (aka Altec 288B)

An appropiate throat for the HF horn you have.

An LU-1121 crossover network (I don't know of a direct Altec cross, on this unit you shorted two posts if you had two HF drivers to add an additional series capacitor)

The LF cabinet is the LU-1106 large cabinet with a single LU-1081 (aka Altec 515) driver.

Bill Hooper's speaker is nearly identical but it is the XL536-322 since it has the double 15 cabinet LU-1107 and the LU-1087 3x5 horn (aka Altec 1505). There should also be two HF drivers mounted to a y-throat.

The next level up got you two HF drivers mounted to a common horn (y-throat) and the super-primo-deluxe had two w-cabinets with dual drivers in them and the double driver HF unit with a 3x5 multi-cell horn.

Steve

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"Old Projectionists never die, they just changeover!"

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Gordon McLeod
Film God

Posts: 9532
From: Toronto Ontario Canada
Registered: Jun 99

posted 12-06-1999 12:27 PM

A lot of Simplex system sent to canada had similar bass cabinets but the horn and all drivers were by Jenson

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Robert Throop
Master Film Handler

Posts: 412
From: Vernon, NY USA
Registered: Jun 99

posted 12-08-1999 10:03 PM

Scott,
I installed a pair of these bass cabinets in the Stanley theatre in Utica, NY. I mounted them one atop the other. I put 515B's in each lf cabinet with an N500C network with 2 288 drivers on a 1505 horn.
The theatre has just put in a new pa system with speakers mounted above the proscenium.
Since the stagehands are tired of moving the Altec system around it looks like it will be retired.

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