Oh Allison … His Ears Were True
January 25th, 2007
I’m in my second round of physical therapy for a bad ankle, worn out by more than 30 years of running. The place I’m going to happens to be around the corner from 7 Tech Circle, in Natick, MA. This is an address that was familiar to me nearly 30 years ago. It was the original home of Allison Acoustics. 7 Tech Circle is a modest building, as seen in this aerial photo.
I own two pairs of Allison loudpeakers — the Model 3 (click thumbnail picture at left), purchased in 1979, and the LC-110, shown above, that I bought in 1988. Both pairs are still working perfectly. Roy Allison isn’t a household name like Amar Bose, but he is a legend in audio circles, especially in the Boston Area.
Before starting his own company, Allison designed speakers for Acoustic Research in Cambridge, MA. Motown Records went through many pairs of AR3 speakers when monitoring and mixing recordings in the 60’s.
Allison speakers sound very open and natural, favoring dispersion over detail, so they aren’t ideal for punchy studio recordings. But their virtues are immediately apparent to anybody who is familiar with live Classical music.
Besides having an excellent ear for neutral sound reproduction, Roy Allison is a true gentleman. He helped a competitor, Andy Kotsatos, start the still-extant company Boston Acoustics. (I also own a pair of Boston Acoustics A40 speakers, purchased in 1983.) Allison was put out of business during the recession of ‘89-’95 in Massachusetts, when his bank called in his loans. Those were tough times around here, believe me, while the minicomputer industry was in its death throes, before the Internet boom saved us.
Roy Allison regrouped and formed a new company called RDL Acoustics, but it didn’t last long. Today he’s retired in Florida, but he’s lent his name to a new line of speakers. They sell replacement drivers for the original series, and every so often I tell myself I should buy a pair of woofers — just in case!
10 Comments
1. Liz Brandt | July 20th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
Hi, I own a pair of Allisons 130 for about 30 years.They look just like the ones in your picture. Now the bottom cone is broken and I am looking all over how to repair this. My friends say buy new but I love my speakers. Can anyone help.Thanks
2. DOuG pRATt | July 20th, 2008 at 8:57 pm
Broken in the sense it doesn’t play anymore, or is the foam rotted? If the foam surround, as it’s called, is rotted you can repair it yourself with an inexpensive kit.
If the woofer itself is shot, you’ll have to replace it. There’s not much left of Allison Acoustics as a business, but replacement parts do exist in a warehouse, and you may have some luck by using this address:
david@allisonacoustics.com
Let me know. Thanks.
3. Gerard FDaigneault | October 6th, 2008 at 8:39 pm
I Have TWO EACH OLD ALLISON ACOUSTICS SPEAKERS WITH 7 TECH CIRCLE SPEAKERS. SERIAL NO D13241 AND SERIAL NO D13243 .THAT NEED REPLACING.
4. Nick Roberts 94230 France | October 27th, 2008 at 5:21 am
I found a pair of Allison sixes ( the cubes) in the road near to where I live. The plastic grill covers were shot and the foams were dead but I re-foamed them and they work really very well! I have about ten pairs of speakers and out of all of them the sixes are the ones that present the best imaging. The serial numbers are F11960 and F1196. Its a real shame that the banks can shut down a business that makes great products, when what the world needs are enterprising people with innovative ideas!
5. DOuG pRATt | October 27th, 2008 at 11:03 am
Nick — That’s a great find. In the 80’s I followed several UK Hi-Fi magazines, and I remember reading the Allison Six was popular in France and was referred to as “Le Cube “. It was essentially a downsized Allison 4, which also had an upward-firing woofer.
Yesterday, for free I was given a pair of EPI 100’s, in nearly perfect condition. I haven’t heard this speaker in ages, and I’m looking forward to familiarizing myself with their sound again.
My Allison 3’s are now 30 years old, and the foam on the woofers is still intact. I assume it’s due to the coats of lacquer.
6. Julian Higgins | November 21st, 2008 at 10:00 am
Somewhere there is a warehouse with a bunch of Allison parts - m,dranges - tweeters. There are lots of owners like myself who need them. Must be some way to connect the two……
7. DOuG pRATt | November 21st, 2008 at 10:34 am
I’ve heard the same thing, that somewhere in Kentucky there’s a cache of quality replacement drivers for Allison speakers. The allisonacoustics.com domain name registration doesn’t expire until September 4, 2009, but there’s no web server behind it. I just sent mail to the address I posted above, and it hasn’t been rejected yet.
(Later) The message bounced:
Message transaction details:
11/21 10:33:08
Domain: allisonacoustics.com
Server: allisonacoustics.com - IP Address: 209.62.20.192
No response from mail server
Could not open to any mail server
So that’s it. Allison Acoustics has no online presence, except for a domain name that has yet to expire. A woofer can be re-foamed, but if a mid or tweeter blows, we’re stuck.
8. Max | November 25th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Does anyone know what the impedance is on the AL 110s?
9. DOuG pRATt | November 25th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
I’m pretty sure I have the spec sheet, but I’m not home at the moment. I’ll look for it. I think it’s 6 ohms nominal, 4 minimum. But I’ll check.
10. DOuG pRATt | November 26th, 2008 at 12:10 am
Max — It’s 4 Ohms. Click here to see a scan of the spec sheet.
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