The still extraordinary Dahlquist DQ-10 [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

PDA

View Full Version : The still extraordinary Dahlquist DQ-10



emaidel
08-16-2006, 08:43 AM
Frankly, I'm quite surprised that I've never read anything about these speakers either under this heading, or under "Vintage Gear." If one looks under the reviews section, there are 78 reviews on this outstanding speaker (including one by myself), almost all of which say much the same thing, and that is that the DQ-10 was, and remains, one of the greatest accomplishments in speaker design in the history of the business.

That's not to say they're the best ever made, but certainly the best at anything near their price point. Originally $500 each, and ultimately $750 each just prior to the factory shutting down, I dare say that no other speaker, even those three and four times as costly, comes close to the accuracy, clarity and neutral quality of these babies. And "neutral" is by no means a minor issue. For a speaker to sound terrific whether listening to Santana, The Eagles, The Moody Blues, Joan Baez, Enya, Fourplay, Acoustic Alchemy, Ramsey Lewis, David Sanborn or the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus is no mean feat, and is a claim few speakers can make, but one the DQ-10's can, and can boast about too.

Yes they're awfully big, need to be elevated at least 16", require a high power, and high current amp, and, most definitely, need to be augmented with a good subwoofer (preferably not the Dahlquist DQ-1W, as newer, self-powered subs are infinitely superior), but most readers of this forum don't seem to mind to have to provide such "accessories" to their system.

The only DQ-10's available today are used units, and they seem to be offered almost all the time on line by someone somewhere. As of this writing, there is a pair of DQ-10's on eBay going (at least when I first looked) for just over $100 for the pair, plus $150 for shipping. Nothing anywhere comes close to the value of that listing, and I suspect that by the time I'm finished writing this posting, the price will have gone up.

Regnar is a company in NY consisting mostly of former Dahlquist employees, and routinely rebuilds either parts or all of older DQ-10's. In reading many of the reviews posted under the speaker reviews section on the DQ-10, it would appear that many are as enthusiastic about the efforts of Regnar, as they are of the speaker itself. I've only had Regnar rebuild my woofers (after a botch-job of re-edging by Simply Speakers in Florida), but I too have nothing but praise for them.

My DQ-10's are close to 30 years old, but continue to amaze me at how good they sound. (All the rest of my equipment is considerably newer, and close to "state of the art"). If you've got a powerful, high current amp, and the room to fit these speakers (they're almost 3 feet square each!), then you owe it to yourself to try to find a pair. And, that's my two cents for the day.

squeegy200
08-16-2006, 09:36 AM
I acquired a pair of DQ-10s about four years ago. Unlike other speakers, I was surprised that there were no active user groups or forums dedicated to the speaker. Regnar is slow to respond and does not offer any interactive information.

Most of the relevant information that I found was from searching archives of the various forums.

Once one knows what common issues were associated with the DQ-10s, the solutions were easy to rectify and parts and equivalent replacements easy to source.

Its still on one of the editors of Absolute Sounds top 100 All Time best list.

emaidel
08-16-2006, 10:12 AM
My dealings with Regnar were quite the opposite of yours. I initially sent them an email inquiring about a woofer rebuild (after the hatchet job by Simply Speakers, which left them distorting at certain frequencies, and which the Simply Speaker folks attributed to me "driving them beyond their capabilities"). I received a phone call from Regnar's service manager, Joe, and he and I wound up having a series of rather lengthy, and quite informative, discussions. He explained in great detail why a refoaming was inadequate (especially for a 27 year old speaker), and what the differences were between the DQ-10 woofer and the Advent woofer (which most of the posters at another website insisted were identical).

Once Regnar received my woofers, Joe called me and outlined, in great detail, the sloppy job done by Simply Speakers, and didn't mince is words either about the "rush job" that he said they did. And, unlike thte 8 weeks plus that it took SS to refoam the woofers, Regnar completely rebuilt and returned the woofers within two weeks. Joe and I had additional, and fairly long, discussions afterwards.

If you need any work on your DQ-10's, I'd suggest contacting Joe directly, and you'll probably come away with an entirely different opinion of Regnar. Their prices are at times downright frightening, but these guys really know what they're doing. Just read some of the comments on their work on the reviews of the DQ-10 on this website.

JoeE SP9
08-16-2006, 10:34 AM
www.audiokarma.org (http://www.audiokarma.org) is a web site that specializes in vintage audio gear. They have more than a few posters who own DQ-10's including several with stacked pairs. Check them out if you're a DQ-10 owner. IMHO they are one of the better sounding box speakers ever made even if a little shy in the extreme low bass.:cool:

emaidel
08-16-2006, 03:09 PM
Audiokarma.org bumped me off the site because I had the audacity to criticize one of their administrators (Grumpy) after he sent me a nasty, poorly written and badly spelled email. I had posted a number of threads there on the DQ-10's, but all have been deleted ( as well as anything else I wrote) by the administration. To this day, I cannot access the site.

The first thread I posted on audiokarma.org on the DQ-10 was one in which I stated that, after a poor repair job on my woofers by Simply Speakers, I had decided to bite the bullet and spend the $139.50 for Regnar to rebuild each of them. Most of the subsequent posts to my thread were nasty comments from other members, all but accusing me of being a total idiot, and of being unbelievably dumb and gullible to believe that which Joe, the service manager at Regnar, told me. The fact that Joe, and most of the Regnar staff, were the very people who originally manufactured the DQ-10, and knew more about it than anyone was apparently considered immaterial

I then posted a newer thread once the rebuilt woofers came back, hoping to convince the naysayers that it was money well spent, but the same entourage returned with equally vicious commentary. And all of this with the blessings of the site administrators who felt that my comment on a different thread about collecting receivers stating that I thought the money spent in collecting vintage, 70's receivers, would have been better spent on newer, and superior equipment, was inappropriate and uncalled-for.

So, you can see that I'm quite the troublemaker, so watch out!.

JoeE SP9
08-17-2006, 07:36 AM
It would seem that going to a site that specializes in 70's receivers and telling the posters they wasted their money is counterproductive.:ihih:

emaidel
08-17-2006, 08:23 AM
So it would seem. I tried to be diplomatic, by stating that I didn't understand the concept of collecting receivers (what does one do with 23 receivers anyway?), and that, in my own opinion, the money would have been better spent on better equipment. And so, even at 61, I continue to "live and learn....."

squeegy200
08-17-2006, 09:50 AM
It would seem that going to a site that specializes in 70's receivers and telling the posters they wasted their money is counterproductive.:ihih:

I've learned to never make light of others obsessions--regardless of how silly the collection. Its guaranteed to insult the collector to question the sensibility of such endeavors. ;)


One of my audio stops has a vintage "museum" of audio equipment. It is a fascinating collection of many of the most notable items from the last 60 years.

Taking this back to topic, in that museum was a nice pair of Quad ESL 57s . Dahlquist's original intention was to emulate the original ESL57s both in performance and appearance. His final product was the first Dahlquist DQ-10s. Rumor has it, when he first unveiled them to the public, he also had an unfinished pair of electrostatics in the works. But he never did finish them.

The phased array configuration of the DQ-10 was revolutionary. It does exhibit some of the openess and stage presence qualities of dipole planar speaker. Many new speaker companies have taken this concept and have improved on the design. But I think Mr. Dahlquist was the first.

JoeE SP9
08-17-2006, 01:52 PM
So it would seem. I tried to be diplomatic, by stating that I didn't understand the concept of collecting receivers (what does one do with 23 receivers anyway?), and that, in my own opinion, the money would have been better spent on better equipment. And so, even at 61, I continue to "live and learn....."


A lot those guys are equipment collectors not music lovers. Most of them use speakers I consider to be almost unlistenable. (Pioneer HPM100 and Yamaha NS1000 for example) Even so it's exceedingly rude to come to someones house and tell them they have too many children and should have thought of birth control, no matter how true it may be. That's only my 58 year old opinion.:ihih:

JoeE SP9
08-17-2006, 01:58 PM
I've learned to never make light of others obsessions--regardless of how silly the collection. Its guaranteed to insult the collector to question the sensibility of such endeavors. ;)


One of my audio stops has a vintage "museum" of audio equipment. It is a fascinating collection of many of the most notable items from the last 60 years.

Taking this back to topic, in that museum was a nice pair of Quad ESL 57s . Dahlquist's original intention was to emulate the original ESL57s both in performance and appearance. His final product was the first Dahlquist DQ-10s. Rumor has it, when he first unveiled them to the public, he also had an unfinished pair of electrostatics in the works. But he never did finish them.

The phased array configuration of the DQ-10 was revolutionary. It does exhibit some of the openness and stage presence qualities of dipole planar speaker. Many new speaker companies have taken this concept and have improved on the design. But I think Mr. Dahlquist was the first.

I was busy coveting a pair of ESL 57's when the DQ-10's were introduced. I gave them a listen and bought some used ESL 57's anyway. I had heard a Levinson HQD system and had my ears tuned in that direction.:cool:

squeegy200
08-17-2006, 02:32 PM
I was busy coveting a pair of ESL 57's when the DQ-10's were introduced. I gave them a listen and bought some used ESL 57's anyway. I had heard a Levinson HQD system and had my ears tuned in that direction.:cool:


Ha! I still covet a set of ESL 57s ;)

JoeE SP9
08-18-2006, 08:04 AM
Ha! I still covet a set of ESL 57s ;)

I'm quite happy with my Acoustats. Even without the subs they have some bass.:ihih: