AUDITORIUM 23 WESTERN ELECTRIC HOMMAGE 22A SPEAKERS

The »Hommage 22A« loudspeaker is at the top of the Auditorium23 line: a blend of both new and old, the latter owing to our new speaker’s forebear, the original 22A horn from the legendary American company Western Electric. Today, vintage 22A horns fetch premium prices on the international auction scene; the A23 »Hommage 22A« was made possible by the Chinese company Line Magnetic, whose 22A replicas are of the highest quality – yet are nonetheless affordable. 

And while Auditorium23’s top-of-the line loudspeaker owes its existence to the founder and owner of Line Magnetics – who has committed himself to reproducing many other classic Western Electric loudspeakers, drivers, and tube amplifiers, all to a level of quality that bears comparison to the originals – the »Hommage A22« owes much to the work of physicist Uwe Meyer of the Büro für Raumakustik in Wolfsburg. (In truth, Uwe Meyer was so inspired by this year-long project, it didn’t take much to convince him to offer his services!)

Quite simply, the »Hommage A22« loudspeaker sets a new tonal standard; no modern horn system we have heard presents the musical message on a comparably high level. 
How is this distinction defined? 
By the A22’s ability to ring out many different sounds at once, independent of one another and of all external influences
By its ability to exude music with no sense of strain, and with such an ease that music simply exists, with no sense of connection to the loudspeaker’s working parts. 
By the unmistakable liveliness that this effortlessness allows the music to retain. 
By the efficiency and sureness that are necessary not only to make audible the slightest detail, but to maintain an organic coherence: to ensure that, when the music demands, quiet sounds stay quiet, distant sounds stay distant, that a vibrato sounds sure and alive, not mechanical or tentative. 
By a spatial presentation that endows each tone with the natural wholeness and substance it ought to have. (Please note, this has nothing to do with projecting a miniature “soundstage“ around the speaker system.) 
Technology
The »Hommage 22A« loudspeaker is a complete concept, consisting of the Line Magnetic 22A horn – mated with Line Magnetic’s reproduction of the Western Electric 555 compression driver – and the Line Magnetic recreation of Western Electric’s 597 tweeter. A cabinet attached to the curved silhouette of the 22A horn contains two active bass drivers of different diameter and specification. The electronics used allow individual regulation of bass-driver volume, and thus optimal room matching. The system’s “partial-active“ solution allows the 555 and 597 drivers to be fed the best possible signal, without electrical or mechanical interference from the bass section. The tweeter is fastened to the neck of the larger horn, in a manner that allows flexibility of tweeter positioning, while the bass cabinet and horn are held by four bronze bars with wooden protecting caps. The sides of the loudspeaker are available in walnut, maple, or chalked oak. The »Hommage 22A« is sized to fit easily into most living spaces. 
No sense describing the Hommage A22 in accordance with the popular hi-fi attributes: Our flagship loudspeaker speaks for itself, with qualities that capture the imagination of the listener, allowing him to get deeply involved in the musical event and to discover anew his record collection.