Altec 755e

The Altec 755 is a legendary full range driver, especially for open baffle enthusiasts. Like many, I first encountered these on the wonderful JE Labs website, and I was anxious to get these mounted on a panel.

The 755 was originally a PA speaker. Many believe these drivers reproduce the human voice with amazing accuracy. The most famous (and desirable) of the series are the original early 1950’s 755A, especially the very early Western Electric labeled drivers. The A series had alnico magnets, and perhaps a different cone material than the later drivers. Prices for these drivers have hit outer space now, so I regret not being able to report on them. The E series drivers, as seen below, did not quite live up to my expectations of the pedigree and were easily outclassed by the Supravox, Visaton and Audio Nirvana drivers. The little Coral fe103a drivers have more warmth and presence than the 755e, and sound much more engaging. In short, this one was a bust for me.

The A series may be a completely different speaker though, and one day I hope to find out. These rare early drivers were stock in the first Acoustic Research loudspeaker, the AR1, so be on the lookout at the next flea market.