API 550A reissues!!!

[djui5]

Now the price of the originals will go up to $12,000 each....great.

[MichaelT]

"Now the price of the originals will go up to $12,000 each....great."


Yeah, I was thinking of that earlier today:(

[TonyBelmont]

List is $1695.00

Wait til you see there other new product to be announced at AES...

[Realtugs]

WoW!!! Looks nice...

http://www.harmony-central.com/Newp/...SM-Series.html

[feggymango]

There goes the kids college fund, WOW

[everybody's x]

ooh,ahhhh

nice

[hollywood_steve]

List is $1695.00

Wait til you see there other new product to be announced at AES...

Two weeks is far too long for you to expect us to wait........a good Gearslut shares this kind of info with his fellow members. HInts?

And does it seem like API (and the rest of the world) has forgotten that the 550a was't the original API EQ. There was a 550 (no "A") and I've got a pair. Where's my reissue?

[TonyBelmont]

Originally posted by hollywood_steve
List is $1695.00

Wait til you see there other new product to be announced at AES...

Two weeks is far too long for you to expect us to wait........a good Gearslut shares this kind of info with his fellow members. HInts?

It's the DSM mixer system....

[GPl]

List $1695 for the DSM? You've got to be kidding me???

[TonyBelmont]

List on the 72 channel DSM is $35k!

The 550A is $1695....

[Cluster]

Pardon my ingnorance, what is a DSM system?

[TonyBelmont]

Originally posted by Cluster
Pardon my ingnorance, what is a DSM system?

http://www.harmony-central.com/Newp...DSM-Series.html

[kmshroom]

Originally posted by TonyBelmont
http://www.harmony-central.com/Newp...DSM-Series.html

the link doesn't work..?

[TonyBelmont]

Originally posted by kmshroom
the link doesn't work..?

Let's try again...
http://news.harmony-central.com/Newp...SM-Series.html

[Tim]

Originally posted by djui5



Now the price of the originals will go up to $12,000 each....great.

Or it'll go down like the UREI stuff did.

[hollywood_steve]

Now the price of the originals will go up to $12,000 each....great.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Or it'll go down like the UREI stuff did.


I'd say that the reason the UA reissues caused older UREI gear to drop in price was because the reissues pretty much nailed the sound/performance/quality of the originals, at least as far as the 1176 and LA2A was concerned. Thats a good thing, I think. The price of a clean, great sounding 1176 had gone way past $2k, and then you could buy new ones for $1600. I know that I compared the two and made the easy decision to go with the brand new, under warranty version, for 20 to 25% less cost.

But you can get old 50s and 550As for less than $1k, if you shop around, certainly no more than $1100 or $1200. So, a new $1600 reissue is going to have to come down in price to impact the cost of the originals.

[grahluk]

Someone enlighten me please. How does this compare with the 550b? Apart from the obvious 3 bands+filters vs 4 bands/switchable shelving why would one want one over the other? The 550b's cost less. So what's the mojo 'bout the 550a.

[Silver Sonya]

I am curious as well... What is the big deal here? Is there some special sound characteristic that distinguishes these two units or is it simple utility? Or is it, as I suspect, fetishism?

I'm curious, as a happy owner of 550Bs...

--- c

[max cooper]

Yes, I would like to know as well. And while we've got an API topic on the board, I got my second lunchbox from API the other day. It doesn't have the "nominal level" -2/+4 jumpers on the board anymore. That really was a nice feature, really added flexibility. I called API to find out if they'd implemented it some other way, and they said only that they've "discontinued that feature" plus the guy I talked to seemed like he barely knew what he was talking about.

Also, anyone wanna take a guess as to why the 2-slot rack is a couple hundred bucks more than the 6-slot lunch? Better P/S?

[hollywood_steve]

anyone wanna take a guess as to why the 2-slot rack is a couple hundred bucks more than the 6-slot lunch? Better P/S?

my guess is competition. Averill and OSA were selling good quality lunchbox type enclosures for hundreds less than API and API finally got around to lowering their prices to compete. But only on the lunchbox type racks.

[Silver Sonya]

The mystery remains: what are the distinguishing characteristics between the 550A and the 550B?

What is so special about the A that it costs more? Are the shelves magical? What gives?

-- c

[ray dsr]

I own both the original 550a and 550b. I reach for the A more often, simply out of ease of use. $500 more than the 550b? NO WAY!

$1,695 is robbery. I wouldn't pay more than $1,000 for either of them. I got mine from ebay at under a grand each.

Check out the 7600 instead. You get the 550a, a great compressor and mic pre for $2,400(street).

I love api. Great company, great service. But they have to lower the price on these. At the inflated price the new 550A reissue seems to be pointed at collector's only.

[chrisso]

I was chatting with a vintage dealer a few years ago. I wasn't buying, so he had no axe to grind. He said he thought the 550A was the king of API EQ's, better than the 550 or 550B. Maybe it is down to the band choices, or the filters (which the 550B doesn't have).
At the end of the day, there is probably little between the 550A and B. I Imagine the 550A made API the name it is today though. Perhaps that's why people are still chasing after that sound.

[thethrillfactor]

Originally posted by chrisso
I Imagine the 550A made API the name it is today though. Perhaps that's why people are still chasing after that sound.

Uhhh...no.

There is a difference in sound.

I prefer 550a much better than the 550B even though the b's have the extra EQ points.

[chrisso]

Originally posted by thethrillfactor
Uhhh...no.

What did then?
'Cos everyone I know who loves the API sound, talks about the 550A.

[doorknocker]

How would it compare to the Brent Averill E15 ? http://brentaverill.com/e15/
I was surprised that the BA hasn't been discussed much here, any opinions (at least the price is way lower than the API reissue)

Andi

www.doorknocker.ch

[Geetar]

I've got a pair of 550A's which I know and love. I've just bought a pair of clean original 550's from a friend in Europe (cheap! he wasn't using them...why?) so what should I expect, sound-wise, between these and my A's ?

[Phaedrus409]

Has anyone done a shoot out with the new API 550A reissue? I don't want to mortgage my studio to buy one if a used one sounds better. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks guys.

[ray dsr]

I agree. C'mon API, you're overpricing these by at least $500!