PSB Avante Bookshelf Speakers, Pair – Vintage, Made in Canada

A vintage pair of PSB Avante two-way speakers in walnut, from the early years of one of Canada’s best-known speaker makers, with 8-inch woofers, fully tested on our bench and still sounding great.

What it is

Paul Barton founded PSB in 1972, and the Avante goes back almost to the beginning. PSB’s own timeline dates the Avanté II to 1974 and names it the first PSB speaker to incorporate the early findings of Barton’s listening experiments at Canada’s National Research Council. PSB’s literature called the Avante the most popular model in its line, and listed the CBC, Ottawa’s National Arts Centre, broadcasters, recording studios and the National Research Council itself among its professional users.

It is a two-way design in a tuned, front-ported cabinet. An 8-inch long-throw woofer, with a laminated compressed-fibre cone and a 1-inch aluminum voice coil for power handling, hands over at 1,500 Hz to a 1-inch textile dome tweeter chosen for wide dispersion. The crossover is a second-order Butterworth design built with air-core inductors. PSB rated the Avante at 87.5 dB and 8 ohms, for amplifiers from 15 to 150 watts, with in-room response down to 38 Hz: real bass from a bookshelf cabinet, thanks to that 8-inch woofer.

Around the back, spring-clip terminals in a recessed cup take bare wire or pin connectors. Our own Radique Audio pin connectors are the natural match for a neat, secure fit, and our Custom Speaker Cable Builder will make you a pair to the exact length, terminated and ready to connect.

The service it has had

Fully tested on our bench before listing.

Condition

Fair overall. The front baffles and drivers are in good condition. The cabinets are fair, with some rough surfaces on the finish, but no large chips or cracks. They still sound great, and they are priced for their cosmetics rather than their sound.

Canadian hi-fi history with an 8-inch woofer, and a sound that has aged far better than the finish.

Available for pickup in Kanata, or shipped across Canada and internationally — we have sent equipment to fifteen countries in the past year, each piece packed in-house in 275 lb test double-wall boxes. Live shipping rates for your address are calculated at checkout. Backed by Radique Audio’s Bumper-to-Bumper Warranty and our Perpetual Trade-Back Program. Available for audition by appointment in Kanata.

PSB Avante Specifications

• Type: two-way bookshelf speakers, tuned front-ported cabinet, sold as a pair
• Service: fully tested on our bench
• Woofer: 8″ (200 mm) long-throw laminated compressed-fibre cone, 1″ aluminum voice coil
• Tweeter: 1″ (25 mm) wide-dispersion treated textile dome
• Crossover: 1,500 Hz, second-order Butterworth (12 dB/octave), air-core inductors
• Frequency response: 38 Hz to 21 kHz in room; 70 Hz to 20 kHz ±2 dB anechoic
• Sensitivity: 87.5 dB (1 W / 1 m)
• Nominal impedance: 8 ohms
• Recommended amplifier power: 15 to 150 watts RMS; power handling 100 watts program
• Terminals: spring clips, for bare wire or pin connectors
• Finish: walnut, with black cloth grilles
• Made in Canada
• Dimensions: (Width x Height x Depth) 11.5 x 22.25 x 10.5 inches (292 x 565 x 267 mm), each
• Weight: approx. 28 lbs (12.75 kg) each

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Backed by Radique Audio’s Bumper-to-Bumper Warranty and our Perpetual Trade-Back Program. When you’re ready to move on, we’ll take it back. That’s the Radique difference.

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