Another thrift shop find, these Rectilinear XIa speakers were surprisingly smooth! I usually don't buy speakers without first examining the drivers, but the grills on these were apparently put in place to stay in place. I kept the pair in my garage for a few months until the Celestion Ditton 33 pair arrived to relieve their shift. During their stay they filled the space with pleasant full-range sound. Lots of bass for their size, and pronounced if not overbearing highs.Unfortunately, lack of storage space forced me to make some tough decisions, and since my wife wouldn't approve my idea of moving the washing machine and dryer to the dog run, the speakers had to go.
Honestly though, I've always hated the name Rectilinear. Although part of me appreciates the name as suggesting high-tech and futuristic, another part of me equates it to an unpleasant-sounding anatomical descriptor, as in "We entered the patient rectilinearly, and removed his spleen."
I know, "grow up!"
Have any experiences with your Rectilinear speakers? Send 'em on in - thanks.
What's it worth?
Good: $75/pair
Fair: $60/pair
As in photo: $60/pair
My first pair of speakers was a pair of rectumliner 3 I think, 10" 2 ways. I remember them sounding good except when I turned them up real loud, then the cabinets rattled so much I thought they would explode. But I remember them with fondness.
ReplyDeleterectilinear 5 was the best sounding speaker in the 70's. You could hear the fingers hitting the strings, violins sounded like they were in the room. I am looking for a pair of 5's
ReplyDeleteI just finished upgrading the dead tweeters in a pair of XIA Rectilinears. I am impressed, nice tight bass, and the dome tweeters bring the highs up a bit. These will make someone a nice pair of speakers for a vintage system.
ReplyDeleteI just bought a pair of the Rectilinear Research Corp. XIa's for $15.00 here in Naples Fl. They sound better than the Klipsch speakers I used to own and those were over $1000.00 !!!
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