Old 01-26-2015, 03:13 PM   #1
Dannii
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Default Auratone 5c Appreciation Thread.

I don't know how many here are using or have used Auratone 5c Cubes in their studios but those who have know why they are on the meter bridges in most well known studios.
When you get your mix right on a pair of these, it will translate well pretty much everywhere.

For those who are using them, post up some pics (keep them a reasonable size though so we don't have to endure the annoyance of the horizontal scroll to read the posts!!

I have two pairs of Auratone 5c Cubes in my studio normally arranged in quad (surround) configuration. They form the midrange drivers of my custom monitors but I also use them alone in near field mixing. I drive them from a Yamaha RX-V1800 amp.

Here's a photo of my portable recording/mixing setup with a pair of Auratones:



...and here's a shot of them when used as the midranges in my mid fields:

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Old 01-26-2015, 03:48 PM   #2
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Mine are sitting on top of each other on one of the NS-10's. It took me a while to hear their full mono glory, but these days I certainly do. (external mono switch required)

[too lazy to take a photo right now ]
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Old 01-26-2015, 05:54 PM   #3
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Wish I had bought a pair cheap when they first came out!
First time I saw them was at Wessex in the 70s.... I thought they were for talkback!!!
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Old 01-27-2015, 08:10 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ivansc View Post
Wish I had bought a pair cheap when they first came out!
First time I saw them was at Wessex in the 70s.... I thought they were for talkback!!!
The original ones weren't meant for studio's. The first manufacturer of these was a furniture and cabinet manufacturer in the US who made a lot of these boxes for background music in shops etc.

They only made it to the studio because a lowfi mono check for radio compatibility was needed. And then they somehow became a standard. Just like several other speakers.
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Old 01-26-2015, 05:55 PM   #5
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no pix at the moment ...

but I have my early '80s AURATONES being driven with a fully restored/mint Dynaco S-70 tube amp. This is the first time using a tube amp for any reference monitors.

Without doubt, they are critical reference monitors.
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Old 01-26-2015, 06:14 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by beingmf View Post
Mine are sitting on top of each other on one of the NS-10's. It took me a while to hear their full mono glory, but these days I certainly do. (external mono switch required)

[too lazy to take a photo right now ]
Do you have the obligatory paper screen over those NS10 tweeters?
One of the things that really impresses me with the Auratones is their stereo imaging. If I hit the mono switch, it sounds like there's one 5c right smack in the middle, which is exactly how it should sound.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ivansc View Post
Wish I had bought a pair cheap when they first came out!
First time I saw them was at Wessex in the 70s.... I thought they were for talkback!!!
lol
You COULD use them for talkback!!
As of 2014, it looks like the original Auratone company is manufacturing new ones that appear to be very similar to the 70s and 80s ones. http://www.auratonesoundcubes.com/
Quote:
Originally Posted by RJHollins View Post
no pix at the moment ...

but I have my early '80s AURATONES being driven with a fully restored/mint Dynaco S-70 tube amp. This is the first time using a tube amp for any reference monitors.

Without doubt, they are critical reference monitors.
Now THAT sounds like a VERY cool setup! I remember hearing a Dynaco St70 many years ago at a HiFi shop owned by a friend. That was in the late 80s and through a set of the biggest Tannoy dual concentrics I'd ever seen. The low end response was phenomenal.

St70 is EL34 push-pull outputs right?
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Old 01-26-2015, 06:43 PM   #7
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Yes ... the EL34.

I was never a 'tube amp' guy for things like studio monitors. I was always mindful not to have monitors sound 'better' or euphoric when making engineering decisions on them.

But the situation happened for me to get a fully restored ST-70.

Once I started reading up on this amp, and found the sub-culture of enthusiast and modder's .... I knew I was in over my head :|

I ended up getting the quad-matched Mullards from a highly recommended place in Arizona [US]. They were not cheap to say the least ... and they may not be what the audiophile guys drool about ... but I must say, I can definitely work with this combination

For grins, I even hooked the Dynaco up to my original 1980's NS-10s ... again, very workable. It might even sway me from the original Hafler, QSC, or Bryston / NS-10combo.

Anyway... I totally agree on the Auratone usefulness. When ya hit MONO ... you get MONO.

I was very fortunate [early in my career] to start work with a veteran producer that insisted working on Auratones.

Like most ... I hated them ...especailly compared with having huge JBL or TANNOY's for the house system.

It was definitely worth the growing pain/struggle to make those Auratones sing. When it did, the results in the big mains was usually mind-boggling.

It usually did not get similar appreciation going the other way.

My 'technique' went Auratones -> NS-10's -> to house mains.

But even during tracking or mixing, the Aura's clearly showed every thing from pitch issues, to backing vocal blend, snare level to lead voice ... ahh so many different issues became obviously exposed with them. I find them personally essential.
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Old 01-26-2015, 09:58 PM   #8
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When I was a kid in the 70's, my dad brought one home from the studio he was working in at the time. It was an object lesson in critical listening.

He had a pair of Rectilinear IIIa Classics back then. Rectilinear was a local NY brand. They were towers: a 12" bass reflex enclosure, 4 supertweeters in a zig-zag array from top to bottom, and a sealed midrange with a metal dust cap. Some places in town used them for mains in their smaller rooms. They were pretty honest, and the reflex enclosure meant they were efficient enough to drive with a 40-watt Akai integrated amp. They could kick pretty hard when pushed.

The Auratone was wired up to a cord with a stereo 1/4" phone jack. He'd plug it into the headphone out, and get an instant mono fold-down.

He told me, "pay attention to the mix through one of these at low levels, and NOT blasting the big guns. If you can hear the details here, in mono, it's a good mix."

Last edited by ginormous; 01-26-2015 at 10:03 PM.
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Old 01-27-2015, 01:11 AM   #9
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[QUOTE=ReaDave;1467345]

lol
You COULD use them for talkback!!
As of 2014, it looks like the original Auratone company is manufacturing new ones that appear to be very similar to the 70s and 80s ones. http://www.auratonesoundcubes.com/

QUOTE]

I don´t think they will be available in Europe, will they ?
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Old 01-27-2015, 08:22 AM   #10
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Anyone tried the Aura-Subkick thing? Using an Auratone for (additional) kick mic duties?
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Old 01-27-2015, 08:15 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Giano View Post
As of 2014, it looks like the original Auratone company is manufacturing new ones that appear to be very similar to the 70s and 80s ones. http://www.auratonesoundcubes.com/

I don´t think they will be available in Europe, will they ?
It's not the same company, nor speaker. And yes, they are available in Europe; but I don't see them around studio's here. A tiny bit overpriced, I'm afraid.
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