As it happens, I get a chance to hear a system composed around a variant of my amp and Forte IVs on Saturday at a local dealer's 'special event'. I'm not planning to swap speakers but, having never heard the Fortes (or CWs) I am at least intrigued, even if they're not quite so aesthetically pleasing as the Ardens (though neither are classically beautiful). The Ardens are very good, but I don't know where this implication that they don't do low levels well comes from - they do low level listening very well, subject to the usual Fletcher:Munson considerations (which apply to all speakers at lower volumes).
I have ordered a pair of Ardens but only found out when ordering that they will be made in China, not Scotland. I don’t doubt that China can make equipment of the highest quality but it is always a concern when a change like this takes place. Does anyone have Chinese made Legacy speakers and, if so, can you attest to their quality?
My Ardens were made in Scotland. But Tannoy have closed the factory there and production may well now be from China. That doesn't mean the quality should suffer. Hey, as a Scot, I get to criticise my own countrymen, and I wouldn't be surprised if quality were to improve under a different regime (but please, no haters). FWIW, my Ardens have nothing about them that would suggest anything less than care and attention in construction. But I do know that we underestimate the capabilities of well-organised overseas production and often romanticise the capabilities of home-grown production. It happened with cars in the seventies, and look where we are now...
My Cheviots were made in London before the move to Scotland. I know they are nearly 50 years old but I can see from the cabinet construction that quality was not high on the agenda.
Yes, @Malibu John, I’d double check on this one. In another forum on May 18, 2021, Kevin Deal from Upscale Audio said specifically that only Tannoy’s “Lower-priced products” are made in Asia and that “…there is a new factory opening in England where they will be manufactured, warehoused, and shipped from under one roof.” Re-reading his post he didn’t qualify the Tannoy Legacy line as one of the higher-priced lines, but given that a pair of Ardens cost the same as a Prestige pair of Turnberry speakers, I don’t see how there’d be a difference. In any case, if you didn’t hear it from Kevin Deal directly, I’d call back to get his clarification.
I decided to move our Cheviots into our family room system through the rest of the year to keep them safe from all of the hustle & bustle in our living room with the Christmas tree up in that room now. This will be the first time that I'll be giving the Cheviots an extended audition on our Yamaha AS-3000 integrated amp. The combo with our Prima Luna EVO 300 tube integrated has been heavenly, but it should be fun to hear them through a decently powered solid state amp.
Oh no....first the Japanese come after the Scotch distilleries and now this....whats next?Canadian Haggis?
So got curious and just placed a call to Upscale Audio. I was told the upper-tier lines will remain “European-based” in their production, and the person I spoke with, not Kevin Deal, speculated that future batches may be made in Hungary or Croatia, but the lastest batch they just received were “UK-based”, but he didn’t give me a specific area or factory location.
They are emphatically NOT being made in the UK. I will direct you to a more informed thread that talks about the fact that the Tannoy factory closed down and is being demolished for housing: sad day for coatbridge tannoy factory Hope it's ok to post a link to another audio forum btw.
It is of course possible that they had inventory to shift after closing down the factory a few years back.
If you look at the wording on their web site (like the Eaton for instance), it says the cabinets are made in Scotland . . .
When US buyers realise their Tannoy Heritage speakers are made in China (or possibly some unknown location) and not Scotland sales will plunge. Look at the people on here who got upset about made in Malaysia Technics. This is the biggest rip off in hi-fi history being the only example I can think of where a product price increased by £ thousands when moved to a cheaper production location. Apparently the real Tannoy people now work for Fyne which is located across the road from the demolished Tannoy factory. Also the more affordable Fyne speakers are made in China.
Yes, I’d known the Scotland factory closed, but Kevin Deal explicitly states in a post, “Therefore, there is a new factory opening in England where they will be manufactured, warehoused, and shipped from under one roof.” However, that differs from what the salesperson at Upscale said to me a few days ago. Hard to get a clear picture it seems. Assuming it’s allowed, here’s the thread I’m referencing. Upscale Audio replies on page 1. Audiogon Discussion Forum
I ordered and put a deposit down on a pair of Ardens at Audio Emotion in Fife, 50 miles from the closed factory in Coatbridge. The nice lady there told me “Tannoys haven’t been made in the UK for some time” and that they were waiting patiently for an overdue shipment from the Far East. She implied that they had a number of outstanding orders and that if the shipment did not arrive soon they would have “a lot of very disappointed customers”. That was a few months ago. No news since.
The review repeats the claim on the official Tannoy website that the speakers are “built by hand at the company’s Coatbridge, Scotland workshop”. Even Kevin Deal acknowledges that is not correct. If the pictures that accompany the review are of the pair that were reviewed, they may be old stock because the gold plate says they were made in the U.K.
I agree that there is no objective reason to believe that quality may suffer if manufacture is moved out of the U.K. It is always nice to support workers in one’s own part of the world but any notion that factory workers who live in Britain have superior assembly skills to those in other parts of the world is misguided. Indeed, I think the evidence is abundant that assembly workers in the Far East have extraordinary skills and reach unprecedented levels of consistency in this regard. But there is always concern when a major change happens to a product’s production that something about the design might be compromised or changed until the new finished product has been seen and inspected. Tannoy and their dealers have used their British heritage and their connection to Scotland to promote their brand in the past and to retain their premium market position, so if it is right that production has moved abroad that may present a considerable marketing challenge for the brand even if the quality of the product is consistent or even improved. But it is surely not a good sign that the official company website, dealers, and now a recent review all continue to state that the products are made at Coatbridge when that is plainly false and has been so for some time.
Only instance I know off that involved jacking prices up even more when production moved to the far east. Frankly if they want to play on British heritage make them in the UK. Every time this happens people lose jobs here so it is totally unacceptable. Also I can't see how they can replicate that type of cabinet craftsmanship in another location without someone to train and pass on the expertise. IAG on the other hand are now making some models in the UK again including the new Mission 700. I understand now these 'Tannoys' are going to a warehouse in the Netherlands before coming to UK dealers which increases transport costs. I suggest if you want these speakers look out for mint used examples that fetch under half the price of the new ones (even from a dealer that took them in trade). They are quite plentiful in the UK. Somehow I think the Tannoy brand as we know it may be short lived unless another company acquires it. Can't see many shelling out £8.5K for Chinese made Ardens. No wonder the owners are being evasive about manufacturing location.
I received a set of GAIA isolation feet for my Cheviots for Christmas. Just installed them and seem to have increased my high end . I am wondering how much is from the isolation or if it is because they are about an inch taller now, bringing the tweeters closer to ear level? I’ll report back when I’ve had some more time with them.
Yes, I’m very curious to hear your findings. How about any improvement to the bass? Also, does the added height from the new feet detract from the overall aesthetics of the speakers?
As to the height change, don’t think aesthetics are changed a bunch as the feet are recessed a bit. The change in height might be an issue if you had Tv/projector screen or a stand which now became partially obscured. Not sure yet on bass response. I’m working this week so not getting a lot of time with them. Had to keep the volume low for much of last night.
