Dynaco A-25 Speakers - What Do They Sound Like?

As my title would suggest, I'm looking for info about what the sonic signature of the classic Dynacos is. There's a company (Tekton Design) making an updated version with SEAS drivers (incl. a 10" woofer!) and the same sort of aperiodic cabinet design, and I'm considering...

In particular, how is the midrange of the A-25s, and are they bright, neutral, or rolled-off in the highs?

Cheers,
Bruce

 

The originals were a little rolled off but had a harshness all the same. They were big on distortion as were most other vintage dynamic drivers. What made them interesting was the size of the box, and the materials used. The Seas drivers had a butyl rubber surround and they also had metal dome tweeters.

Personally, I'd overlook the novelty and get a modern speaker design. That said, the new, models will have a much better driver set and x-over and the only thing they would share would be a similarly sized cabinet and the reference to the older design as a marketing tool.
-Bill

 

Ah; that was my experience when I got a pair of "smaller" Advents a few years ago. A bit aggressive sounding.

 

If I recall, the Tekton speaker has much higher top end range, for what its worth.

 

I owned Dynaco A-25s right when they came out. At the time, Stereo Review magazine raved about them, particularly in comparison to one the standards of the time, the Acoustic Research AR-3a. The Dyna's had better bass, and more overall clarity, if I recall correctly.

OK, that was in 1970 something. I recently gave the old A-25s a listen (they had been in storage for some time, and had probably deteriorated). I'd say the mids are a bit hard, the bass pretty good for bookshelfs. For a bedroom or second stereo, not bad. Probably not the most revealing speaker, but for the rock I was listening to at the time, they were terrific.

 

I used a pair in my PC system until about a year ago, and I didn't find them harsh at all. One of their strengths is that they mate well with a wide range of gear. I used them with both tubes and SS, everything from 30 watts up to 150, vintage Dynaco, Onkyo, Marantz...in all cases the A-25's made music.

There's definitely some roll-off at the very top and bottom frequencies, which is probably why they're so forgiving. Initially I thought that would be a problem but in the long run I found myself enjoying music more with the Dynaco's than other more revealing bookshelf models I've used. There's a reason these speakers were once as common as dirt.

 

BillyBuck, those sound like my kind of speakers (I prefer rolled-off highs/lows myself - it's all about the midrange for me).

Darn, I wish there was a showroom where I could hear the new Tekton AR-25s...

 

I had the A-25's and A-35's. They had the exact same drivers but the 35's had a larger box and a sealed enclosure. It's a long time ago but I recall that the 35's had better bass. They made the A-25's bass seem a bit muffled. Nobody but me ever seems to have had the 35's. I've never talked to anybody who had the A-50's.

I added the A-25's to my 35's to go Quad. When I got tired of Quad I sold the 25's ultimately.

 

Hi Rachael,

I had the A-35s. Loved them.
I believe their enclosure used what Dyna called an "aperiodic vent" (internally).

Best regards,
Barry
www.soundkeeperrecordings.com
www.barrydiamentaudio.com

 

I see 35's on eBay periodically. (not aperiodically, har har.)

 

I got mine in 1971 as part of the first real stereo. I had 'em paired with a Dynaco pre, Stereo 70, and a Philips 212 TT. I kept my A35's until the mid 80's when I wanted bigger speakers. They sounded good with a variety of amps for me over that time.