Great Vintage Loudspeakers

Great Plains Audio is pleased to offer one of the most accurate and versatile low frequency loudspeakers available today, the GPA Model 416-8B High-Definition Low-Frequency Loudspeaker. Designed to provide unsurpassed low-frequency reproduction, the Model 416-8B is suitable for use in professional sound reinforcement venues, studio monitoring systems, and home theatre applications. In systems where smooth frequency response, superb clarity, natural sound quality, high efficiency, low distortion, and excellent linearity are a requisite, the Great Plains Audio Model 416-8B High-Definition Loudspeaker is the unit of choice.

Audio enthusiasts are not unfamiliar with the 416-series of loudspeakers - they’ve been in use in some of the most famous audio systems ever built by Altec Lansing, including the A-7 version of the Voice of the Theatre®, their Magnificent and Valencia systems, and the most renown home audio loudspeaker ever produced, the Altec Model 19. Great Plains Audio is proud to keep the legacy of the 416-series alive, assuring that it’s legendary sound will not be lost to those who appreciate it’s quality of manufacture and solid sonic performance.

The amount of low frequency program material found in today’s recordings is much greater than in other recorded media. When a loudspeaker system accurately reproduces such sounds, the result is impressive. When it does not, the results can often been unbearable to listen to. Most manufacturers, attempting to make their speakers “digital ready”, realize that substantial changes must be made in their speaker designs if they are going to be able to keep up with the audio found in the today’s world of high-definition audio. Large, heavy voice coils, inarticulate suspension systems, cones that weigh far too much to be able to reproduce the middle of the audio spectrum accurately - these are but a few of the compromises that must be made if ordinary speakers are going to be able to function in the new audio world. In addition, speakers of this type require massive amounts of amplifier power to operate. Not only that, but most of these types of designs incorporate voice coils that “overhang” outside of the magnetic field, a method of construction that results in a significant loss of control of cone movement, greatly reducing the ability of the loudspeaker to articulate sounds with the precision demanded by today’s listeners and performers.

Great Plains Audio’s 416-8B and 416-8C High-Definition Low-Frequency Loudspeaker doesn’t rely on such tactics in order to be able to respond to the demands of digital music and sound effects. Instead, it has a lightweight cone, high-compliance suspension, and it’s voice coil remains in the magnetic gap at all times. The 416-8B’s low cone resonance eliminates self-generation of unwanted harmonic components when mounted in a properly designed enclosure.
The GPA 416-8B uses a massive AlNiCo (Aluminium – Nickel – Cobalt) magnet, an edgewound copper ribbon voice coil, a very light cone assembly, and a low distortion cloth suspension, which enables them to provide extended bass response, extremely high linearity, and amazing efficiency.