The top vintage floorstanding speakers
Horns, electrostatics and studio monitors: the large speakers that collectors seek out and build rooms around.
Paid links: listing links go to eBay and we may earn a commission if you buy (eBay Partner Network). Not affiliated with eBay or any brand shown.
| Live | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Klipsch Klipschorn | 1946 | 3-way, fully horn-loaded | 15" | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 2 | JBL Hartsfield | 1954 | — | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 3 | JBL Paragon | 1957 | — | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 4 | Quad ESL-57 | 1957 | Full-range electrostatic | — | — | 15 Ω nominal | 0 | Listings |
| 5 | Quad ESL-63 | 1981 | Full-range electrostatic | — | 86 dB (2.83 V/1 m) | 8 Ω | 0 | Listings |
| 6 | Altec Lansing A7 Voice of the Theatre | 1950s | 2-way, horn-loaded | 15" | — | 8 Ω (A7-8, from 1970) | 0 | Listings |
| 7 | JBL 4343 | 1976 | 4-way | 15" | 93 dB (1 W/1 m) | 8 Ω | 0 | Listings |
| 8 | JBL L300 | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 9 | Klipsch La Scala | — | 3-way, fully horn-loaded | 15" | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 10 | Klipsch Cornwall | — | 3-way, horn mid/treble | 15" | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 11 | Klipsch Belle | — | 3-way, horn-loaded | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 12 | Tannoy Westminster | — | Dual Concentric, horn-loaded | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 13 | Tannoy Autograph | — | Dual Concentric, corner horn | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 14 | Tannoy Canterbury | — | Dual Concentric | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 15 | Bose 901 | 1968 | Direct/Reflecting, 9 full-range drivers | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 16 | Dahlquist DQ-10 | 1970s | — | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 17 | Altec Lansing Valencia | — | 2-way, horn tweeter | 15" | 100 dB (1 W/1 m, 846B) | 8 Ω | 0 | Listings |
| 18 | JBL Olympus | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 19 | Pioneer HPM-100 | 1970s | 4-way | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 20 | Technics SB-7000 | — | 3-way, staggered cabinets | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 21 | KLH Model Nine | late 1950s | Full-range electrostatic | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 22 | Acoustic Research AR-9 | late 1970s | 4-way | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 23 | Magnepan Tympani | — | Planar-magnetic | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 24 | Allison One | 1970s | — | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
| 25 | ESS AMT-1 | 1970s | — | — | — | — | 0 | Listings |
-
1. Klipsch Klipschorn
A corner horn designed by Paul Klipsch, one of the longest-running speaker designs ever made. It is enormously efficient and fills a room from a few watts.
- 3-way, fully horn-loaded
- Corner-placed
-
2. JBL Hartsfield
A large JBL corner horn of the 1950s, now one of the most collectible speakers ever made.
- Corner horn
-
3. JBL Paragon
A one-piece stereo speaker, built like furniture, with a curved reflector panel. Its design and rarity make it legendary.
- Single-cabinet stereo
-
4. Quad ESL-57
The original Quad electrostatic, still praised for one of the most transparent midranges ever achieved.
- Full-range electrostatic
-
5. Quad ESL-63
Peter Walker's second electrostatic, designed to radiate like a point source, with remarkably coherent imaging.
- Full-range electrostatic
-
6. Altec Lansing A7 Voice of the Theatre
A cinema speaker that found its way into homes, with horn-loaded mids and massive dynamics.
- 2-way, horn-loaded
-
7. JBL 4343
A four-way JBL studio monitor of the late 1970s, a reference in studios and in homes.
- 4-way
- 15-inch woofer
-
8. JBL L300
A floorstanding JBL with a horn-loaded high end and a deep-reaching woofer.
- 3-way
- 15-inch woofer
-
9. Klipsch La Scala
A fully horn-loaded Klipsch for rooms where corners are not available, with huge dynamics.
- 3-way, horn-loaded
-
10. Klipsch Cornwall
A big, efficient Klipsch three-way with a 15-inch woofer and a horn midrange.
- 3-way
- 15-inch woofer
-
11. Klipsch Belle
A horn-loaded Klipsch designed to sit on the floor in front of a wall.
- 3-way, horn-loaded
-
12. Tannoy Westminster
A large Tannoy horn cabinet built around the Dual Concentric driver, at the top of the brand's range.
- Dual Concentric driver
- Horn-loaded cabinet
-
13. Tannoy Autograph
A historic Tannoy corner horn with the Dual Concentric driver, now very collectible.
- Dual Concentric driver
- Corner horn
-
14. Tannoy Canterbury
A large Tannoy floorstander with the brand's Dual Concentric driver.
- Dual Concentric driver
-
15. Bose 901
An unconventional design with nine identical full-range drivers, mostly facing the back wall, and an external equalizer.
- 9 full-range drivers
- Active equalizer
-
16. Dahlquist DQ-10
An unusual multi-driver design with its drivers staggered on an open frame to align their sound. A favorite for imaging.
- Staggered open-baffle mounting
-
17. Altec Lansing Valencia
A horn-loaded Altec in a furniture-grade cabinet, with lively, efficient sound.
- 2-way, horn tweeter
-
18. JBL Olympus
A JBL floorstander with a carved wooden grille and big, efficient sound.
- Large cabinet
-
19. Pioneer HPM-100
A large Pioneer with a polymer-film supertweeter, designed for the late-1970s power-receiver era.
- 4-way
- Polymer-film supertweeter
-
20. Technics SB-7000
A Technics speaker with staggered cabinets so all drivers align in time.
- 3-way
- Staggered cabinets
-
21. KLH Model Nine
A tall KLH full-range electrostatic, highly regarded among early electrostatics.
- Full-range electrostatic
-
22. Acoustic Research AR-9
AR's tall flagship, with two side-firing woofers and a sophisticated multi-way design.
- 4-way
-
23. Magnepan Tympani
An early planar-magnetic Magnepan, built as multi-panel folding screens.
- Planar-magnetic
-
24. Allison One
Roy Allison's design built to work with floor and wall reflections, with smooth bass.
- Room-boundary design
-
25. ESS AMT-1
An ESS speaker built around Oskar Heil's Air Motion Transformer tweeter.
- Heil Air Motion Transformer tweeter