(2011)   SOLD

In perfect cosmetic condition and operating perfectly, this essentially new pair of Gallo Reference Strada 2 speakers comes with a Gallo *TR-3D subwoofer and a pair of **maple bedrock stands.  

NOTE: as of this post, the speakers are not fully broken in yet.  We assume that we will manage 1-3 hours of playing time (with solid bass material at a conversational level) and that should recalibrate the Strada 2 since they left the factory.  We will update the copy at that time.

Each of the gorgeous designs feature brushed stainless steel spheres with a black frame.  Included are the maple bedrock stands as shown in the photos.  Currently, this complete system (speakers, sub & stands) would cost around $4500 if purchased new.

The Strada 2 is the second and improved version of the original Strada Side.  Essentially, it performs as though the speaker enclosure is significantly larger than it actually is, yielding a deep and powerful low-frequency response that is up to two octaves lower than would otherwise be possible in speakers of this size. This strong low-frequency performance was designed to minimize the need for a separate subwoofer in traditional stereo installations.  Of course the addition of the amazing TR-3D subwoofer greatly enhances the system.

Gallos's patented S2 technology allows Stradas to stand mounted or wall-mounted and provide amazing performance, regardless of the size of the listening area. As mentioned above, the Strada 2 was the improved version of the original Strada Side model in the Anthony Gallo Acoustics line.  The Strada 2 also utilizes the company’s proprietary Optimized Pulse Technology (OPT).
The current cost of the Strada 2 speakers is $2400/pair.

Note: OPT is an impulse correction and synchronization system designed to integrate the low, middle, and high frequencies into one unified sound source. 

Tech info:
Stradas also incorporate Gallo's patented CDT™3 cylindrical diaphragm transducer, redesigned to use their latest speaker technology available today. The unique design of the CDT3 tweeter and its cylindrical shape provide a dispersion pattern of 120 degrees for the center configuration and 180 degrees for the side configuration. This allows substantial flexibility in positioning the speakers, since the same high-frequency response is delivered off-axis as is on-axis. The CDT3 and the patented S2 technology deliver clarity, precision and range not found anywhere near the $2000 price point for a speaker system. The S2 technology decouples the backwave of the driver from the air inside the enclosure. The benefits of their S2 technology in home stereo speakers include superior low frequency extension, improved transient response and a substantial increase in efficiency. The OPT system, the re-engineered CDT tweeter and the patented S2 technology were crucial elements that combined to provide a truly emotional audio experience. 

Specs:
~Frequency response: 68 Hz – 20 kHz ±3 dB (in room with boundary reinforcement; loudspeakers within 1 foot of wall. ~Impedance: 8 ohms nominal.
~Sensitivity: 90 dB at 1 watt and 1 meter.
~Power handling: 150 watts RMS unclipped music power.
~Tweeter: patented CDT3 (Cylindrical Diaphragm Transducer), sporting 180° (for the side configuration) or 120° horizontal dispersion (for the center configuration) from 3 kHz to above 20 kHz.
~Woofers: Two 4" dynamic hyperbolic carbon fiber drivers optimized to integrate seamlessly with the CDT3 tweeter without the need for a crossover.
~Enclosure Type:  sealed, with auxiliary bass cavity supplementation and patented S2 loading.
~Enclosure Composition: Powder-coated cast aluminum chassis, with brushed stainless steel spheres and powder-coated stainless steel grills.
~Dimensions: Width: 5"  Height: 13.5"  Depth: 7.5"
~Connections: 5-way gold-plated binding posts developed specifically for Anthony Gallo Acoustics
~Weight: 11.4 lbs each without stands  

*TR-3D subwoofer:
The TR-3D powered subwoofer is a high-output, dynamic unit designed for the full spectrum of music, whether it be for pure realism in home theater applications or just good old HiFi stereo music.  It's also the perfect partner for the Strada 2.  It features a 10″ long-throw ceramic anodised aluminium cone driver, powerful 300 Watt Class-D digital amplifier and their patented S2 bass loading technology. 

~Frequency response is 18Hz – 180Hz +/- 3db  
~Power: auto/on/off: toggle switch, 300 watts RMS, 600 watts max.
~Connections: 2 female RCA phono inputs and 2 female RCA phono outputs (pass-thru) 5-way gold plated binding posts
The current cost of the TR-3D by itself is $1150.00

**Maple stands:
The handsome air-dried Ambrosia maple bedrock stands were made by Pierre Sprey's Mapleshade company in Baltimore.  The current cost is $1355 (pair).  They feature a satin lacquer finish that enhances the beautiful natural grain character of their old-growth Maryland maple.  These handsome, close-to-the-floor stands are a painstakingly refined implementation of Mapleshade's  patented "Vibration Control System".  They unleash the Strada's breathtaking levels of clarity, detail and warmth. Low bass extension and bass resolution that greatly improves the use of the subwoofer. 

About Gallo Acoustics...
Anthony Gallo designed his first loudspeaker at the tender age of fourteen. His first commercially available product – the Nucleus reference speaker, went on sale in 1994. Today, Gallo Acoustics loudspeakers are sold in over 30 countries worldwide.

Anthony Gallo was born in 1963 and from an early age he had an interest in the sciences and would take apart just about anything he could lay his hands on. At age 13 he began to become hooked on loudspeaker design. His first audio experiments were with electrostatics. “I got shocked a zillion times,” Anthony recalls. “I was always awed by electrostatics’ transparency and purity. The dynamics, however, were always short of my expectations.”

Subsequent experiments with ribbon drivers proved difficult to drive and limited in dynamic range. However, Anthony’s search for the “Holy Grail of tweeters” took a dramatic turn when he discovered a magazine article about Piezo film in the early 1980s. “I threw the magazine aside for a few years,” he says, “but in the back of my mind I knew that I would work with this material some day.” After a few years of experimentation, the first version of Anthony’s CDT (cylindrical diaphragm transducer) was born in 1987. Further refining the CDT design over the better part of the next decade, Anthony came to the realisation that he was onto something special, and decided to pursue his dream of designing and manufacturing loudspeakers full-time. Anthony Gallo Acoustics was born.

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('65-'66)  $300

In very good cosmetic condition and fully operational, these Acoustic Research AR-4X speakers have a legendary history indeed. 

The original linen grill cloth is (amazingly) in pretty good shape with no tears or holes.  The drivers and crossovers are 100% original with only a very recent dose of deoxit within the attenuator housings themselves.  As good as they sound, if they were recapped they would sound even better but then the price would be much higher.

Even though the wood grill frames are delicate, (and attached with industrial staples) we carefully removed one of the grills for photo purposes only.  

Here's the back story:
"The three models AR-4, 4x and 4xa are frequently used synonymously when searching for one of these speakers on auction websites. If you wonder what the difference between the AR-4, AR-4x and AR-4xa is, here is a short simple answer: It´s all about the tweeter!The AR-4 is the oldest of the three and by now a sought after collectible made in 1964. The AR-4x is its successor from late '65 and '66. The AR-4x has 2 1/2″ cone tweeters, whereas the AR-4 has 3 1/2″ tweeters. The AR-4x received outstanding reviews and is until today famous for its sound quality. Finally, in 1973, the AR-4xa speaker was introduced. The tweeters were switched to the 1 1/4″ tweeters used in the AR-6 and AR-7.

Specs:
2 way, 2 driver loudspeaker system
Recommended Amplifier: 15W (minimum)
Impedance: 8Ω
Bass: 1 x 8" cone
Tweeter: 1 x 2.5" wide dispersion cone
Finish: oiled walnut
Dimensions: 10"W x 19"H x 9"D
Weight: 19 lbs each
Original MSRP: $63 each

About Acoustic Research (AR)...
Acoustic Research was a Cambridge Mass. based company that manufactured high end audio equipment.  They were well known for the AR-3 series of speaker systems, which used the 12-inch acoustic suspension woofer of the AR-1 with newly designed dome mid-range speaker and high frequency drivers which were the first of their kind. AR's line of acoustic suspension speakers were extraordinary for their time, as they were the first loudspeakers with flat response, extended bass, wide dispersion, small size, and reasonable cost.
In 1967, Acoustic Research was bought by Teledyne Inc., and for the next 22 years it continued development and operations in Cambridge as Teledyne Acoustic Research. Technological breakthroughs in this period included the high-current amplifier. When purchased by Teledyne, AR was the world's second largest supplier of branded loudspeakers.  As of today, the brand is now owned by VOXX. 

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('87-'90)  $400

In mint cosmetic condition and fully functional, this stunning pair of Canton Karat 20 speakers were handcrafted in Germany from one of the oldest and most respected companies in Europe.  Their lineage goes back to WW2. Canton (and Visonik) were the original designers of a certain particular sound that has more recently been attributed to ADS. 

Although it's almost too subjective to discuss, in our humble opinion, these Canton Karat 20 speakers are best described as having a detailed presentation, very accurate and never over-the-top in lows, mids and highs, especially considering it's a 2-way system.   Rated at 4 ohms with a ceiling of about 80 watts each, it's suggested to drive these with a high quality power source that's not afraid of 4 ohms. 

Suffice to say these have very high quality drivers...the mid bass units have rubber surrounds. The heavy, solid mahogany enclosures are made for some of the best high quality bass performance ever heard in anything close to their size while the 25mm aluminum dome tweeters are unique to Canton.

The Canton Karat models fetch some crazy high prices and there are plenty of reasons why.  The Karat 20s are rarely seen for sale especially in such excellent cosmetic and sonic condition.  The perforated metal grills are also pristine.  As usual, let YOUR ears decide...

NOTE:
This two-way system features 25mm aluminium manganese dome tweeters and proprietary mid-bass 200mm woofers.  These drivers are legendary within audiophile circles for their near perfect sound properties.

Specs:
Impedance: 4 Ohm
Music power loading capacity: 60 Watt per speaker,
Crossover frequency: 36 - 30000 Hz
Dimensions 8.7"W x 13.4"H x 8.2"D 
Weight: 12.5 lbs each

About Canton...
In 1972, with the goal of producing the best speakers in their class, Canton was formed.   ‘Canton’ is a combination of the Latin word "cantare" (to sing) and the German word "ton" (musical tone). They started in a vacant small town school building and house in Niederlauken Germany.

Starting with 35 employees assembling speaker enclosures in January of 1973, Canton began its legacy of high quality audio reproduction in the tradition of what they called “pure music”.

Canton speakers combine innovative technologies, the highest quality materials, and a remarkably wide range of models and designs to provide a musical experience "second to none".

Often compared to vintage ADS/Braun speakers, the vintage Canton Karat speakers are quite often considered "better" than Braun by pure "audiophiles".  Obviously that's a subjective argument.  However, in terms of value, there can be no doubt that Canton Karat speakers are generally expensive and more on the rare side at this point."Karat" is loosely defined as a variation when used to describe the values of gold...

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(Early 2000's)   $600      (extremely rare)

These very rare HTD Level 4 speakers were built using only expensive, high-tech components featuring gorgeous carved enclosures with a stunning, authentic piano black laminate finish and real mahogany. Essentially, the Level Four speakers are a high level audiophile speaker system that's as exciting to listen to as it is to look at. 

Only around for a few years, the HTD Level 4 speakers were incredibly difficult to design and produce in a cost effective manner.  The time consuming production *process resulted in a limited run mostly due to cost vs ROI.  They simply could not justify continuing to sell them at their original price point of $400/pair.  It was either substantially raise the price or discontinue the model.  So...they decided to halt production.  The Level 4 are almost completely under the radar today.  They are a collector's dream...

This modest sized speaker produces a big, warm and smooth sound that is both musical and powerful. For use primarily as a bookshelf speaker that needs to be placed on heavy duty stands.

The Level FOUR includes the following features:

~6.5" drivers with doped pulp cones, butyl rubber surrounds, cast aluminum baskets, 2.5" voice coils, and high-efficiency neodymium magnets
~silky smooth 1.1" ferrofluid cooled silk dome tweeters
~3rd order crossovers on both the tweeters and mid-range drivers
~Dual bi-wireable gold-plated 5-way binding posts
~Removable shaped wood and cloth grills
~Knife-edge fit and finish cabinets made of CNC carved 1" MDF with internal bracing
~Internal tuned channels that end in front firing, elliptical ports for enhanced bass
~Video shielded for safe placement near a TV

*True Piano Finish- 
Most medium-grade and even some high end speaker brands use an inexpensive vinyl covering called "simulated" piano finish (although the word simulated is often omitted). This plastic material is shiny but it looks nothing like the true, rich high gloss finish that HTD creates. Others simply use a glossy paint and call it "piano finish". We use a multi-step process of applying lacquer, drying, sanding and cleaning. This process was repeated a minimum of seven times and took about fourteen days per speaker cabinet! The result was obvious in the stunning, deeply rich finish of every Level FOUR model.

Specs:
Power Handling:   110 watts RMS, 150 watts max
Frequency Response:  45 Hz - 20 kHz +/-3dB
Impedance:  8 ohms
Sensitivity:  88dB
Woofer Driver:  6.5" doped pulp with butyl rubber surround, cast basket, 2.5" voice coil, 4 OZ neodymium magnet
Tweeter Driver:  1.1" silk dome, 5 + 3 OZ ferrite magnet
Crossover:  3rd order on both tweeter and woofer at 2500Hz
Dimensions (HxWxD)  16" x 8 3/4" x 11 1/2" (bottom) 10" (top)
Weight (each):  27 lbs

About HTD...
HTD spun out of a company that began designing and manufacturing high quality audio equipment for many of the biggest brands in home audio in the early 1970's. They leveraged their expertise in designing and producing quality audio gear for others into the creation of their own HTD brand in 1998. The first HTD speakers were sold direct to consumers in January 1999 and Home Theater Direct, Inc. became its own company in early 2001.  With the advent of the internet, their decision to sell only direct to consumers was easy. Selling direct saved the customers' money by eliminating the price increases tacked on by distributors and retailers, as well as by catalogers and other internet stores.   HTD (Home Theater Direct) is a different kind of home audio company. They only sell what they make, and their HTD brand is only sold directly to consumers.

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