strong bass ,and sparkling high and mid (with new tweeters)

tweeters break down ,because of wrong wires

I have ditton 15xr's for a few years,from my father ,they sound very nice. I first had 2 ,but i went to a Hifi shop and bought 2 extra (co-indencedence).. On my old Yamaha ax700 it sounds quite allright ,better then all my previous configs. althought an old 70's marantz (with gyro) will do some xtra nice sound i'm kicking myself for selling that amp. ditton's have a bright sound and very deep bass (i'm a pop ,new bands listener) i'm very satisfied!

Build Quality, smooth and relaxing sound, musicality, easy to drive.

large size, heavy

I''ve had a Celestion Ditton now for 3 months. I purchased on the advice of a friend who has had a ditton 33 for quite a few years. These speakers are absolutely gorgeous. I like their finish, quality and their 3 speaker design. I currently drive them with an arcam 8 amplifier. The source is CDP Arcam Alpha 7SE. Most of all, the sound is smooth and non fatiguing. I could listen to it for ages. Some modern speakers just grate after a while. and they do not last as long. I can heartily recommend them as fantastic value at the price. Unfortunately you can''t get hold of them anymore.

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Mission 751s, 773s, Kef Coda 8, (a variety of) Tannoys

Studio quality speakers. Freq response + Effeciency

None

Originaly purchased in 1987. Still going strong. The quality is impecable. Specs are in the Celestion Webb Site.

I have yet to hear something comparable. Often seen in recording studios around the world.

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Klipsh, Energy, Bose

Ability to lend themselves to all music very well - quiet they are neutral - loud they are colourful (but english)

parts are hard to find for these 20 yr old speakers, are a little inefficent, but very nice!!!!!!!!!!!

I purchased my celestion ditton 551 speakers 20 years ago...
I have had a love affair ever since, even now, each time I listen to them, I am just as rapt,(if not more), than when I first purchased them! They have the ability to astound when driven and then to fade into the background when played softly. The harder they are worked the more colourful they get - loud rock'n'roll sounds great, but so does soft classical. astounding mid range, with a light base. The dome tweeters and mid range speakers are protected by wire mess and are kid proof - I know. The variable cross overs and overload fuses are good features. A lightening strike almost claimed them - one of my crossover boards now has a hole burnt right through it and a tweeter blew. Kindly rebuilt by topend hifi in wollongong - they live to fight another day... I'll never buy any other speaker...the orpehuis did sound nice????

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never wanted to try anything else - ever

Clear mid frequency and sweet bass.

8" low drivers are not for loud sound. High frequency is not very crispy.

I got my used pair in 1991.

I like the Celestion Dittion for their warm cosey sound. The mid frequency drivers' exceptionally warm sound is hard to find.

Their size are small and compact (I think they were about W13"xH26"xD10" and 25lbs each, I do not have them any more). The accoustic suspension method and rubber surround creat a light punchy bass.

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None I have found to compare with.

Quite hefty bass - look quite nifty.

minimal evidence of treble and mid.

DITTON 15XR's,

Got these speakers off my dads friend who wasn't using them, they date from 1960 something, the rubber cone surround means they haven't broken down like my old B&O speakers did (they were thrshed though, teehee.)

The 15xr has a 6in sub with a kind of anti-sub below it, when the sub pumps out, the anti-sub sucks in as there is no ports on the speaker - weird, but makes for a rich bass i spose. there's also a tweeter, but no mids, so the sound is lacking higher up.

My 15xr's are paired up with a set of sony ss-tx7's which kind of replace the missing treble & mid (they are 2 4in mids and a tweeter in each speaker), running from a BIG 70's sony amp (str-4800, wooden panels included, nice!). sounds alright to me.

It is perfect

none

I already heard a lot of good and very expensive speakers.Like:B&W 802 Matrix,Sonus Faber Amati,Aerial Acustic.etc.I Prefer the lovely sound of the celestion Ditton 66.Atacked with krell system.

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B&W 802 Matrix

"ear candy" in every sens, extremely forgiving & universal sound reproduction/ elegant design and finishing for this "british classic".

Lack of definition and dynamic, a bit muddy sounding compared with today's speakers. Bulky enclosure: I'm afraid it won't win the "woman acceptance factor".

Reading some rave reviews about « antiquities » is somehow captivating but also a lot of fun, bearing in mind all these Hi-Fi magazine reviewers who regulary state that if you’re about to get the best sound reproduction available , you should then upgrade your equipment in a regular basis. Nevertheless some Hi-Fi enthusiasts remind us that aged audio gear of a good quality can sustain musical pleasure even after several decades of constant use. I just wanted to mention the Ditton 44- which by the way have been sold by trucks in the 70’s- partly because I’ll be the first to post a review about these british classics and I think they really deserve it.
I certainly would also appreciate to get some feed back and reviews from other 44 owners.
I purchased my Ditton 44 in 1977, after carefull auditioning, even versus the so-acclaimed Ditton 66 studio monitor, and some other few contenders such as the JBL L36, Kef Calinda.
I have been using them for 23 years without any flaw . In the 70’s, a basic entry system would consist in a Kenwood or Yamaha amplifier and a Thorens turntable + shure cartridge ; hopefully at that time, cable & tweaks were not a major issue.
These large and heavy speakers have always produced such a warm and rounded cozy sound that shifting from vinyle to CD in the early 80’s never became a problem for me . I simply did’nt understand what was all this controversy about : for instance why this new digital format have been extensively described as awfull, glassy, harsh sounding.
I’m pretty sure, you can’t find a more forgiving loudspeaker around.
Eventhough absolute transparency, accuracy, punch, dynamic are not the Ditton 44 most obvious virtues, I have to say that upgrading to a better amp was quite noticeable and rewarding.
Finishing is of first rate with it’s real wood veneered enclosure (sealed boxes) fitted with proper Celestion drivers ; pretty seldom nowadays, specially in the budget market.The HF2000 tweeter has been designed according to BBC spec, and provided a smooth & widespread soundstage, while being rather fragile nonetheless. It can also be found in the Gale 401 and in the Ditton 66
Compared with today standard they might sound boomy, mushy, too soft and slow, but on the other hand, easy in the ears if only not pushed too hard. I remember having impressed some friends with my Celestions during improvised listening session at home. Powered with clean 100 watts and placed in free space and you should get a pretty good result, if not in pure Hi-Fi term.
Last year I sold my Ditton 44 to a friend who is very happy with, and I’m sure these speakers would still work for another decade or 2.

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JBL L36, Ditton 66, BW DM6, Cabasse, Elipson...

good and clear sound, great volume for small room

not that powerfull, heavy and large size

I recieved those oldies (they were purchased in England around 1975!) from a clasical music fan that replaced his stereo.
For 10 years they are my front speakers and I really understood how good they are only after I bought an A/V reciever (my old Fisher stereo reciever was lousy!).
Thier mid and high are clear, tha bass is not that powerfull but with a sub and a center they are good for movies too.
I tried to find a center that will match them but Celetion are not that hot today so the other companies has more to offer!

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Worfdale 200

the ditton 25 has great audio quality at all volumes and sounds briliant for 60 watts

huge speaker size and weight

the speakers are 3 way with bullet mid-ranges and dome tweeters and a celestion 12" bass woofer with a passive radiator, the speaker handles 30- 40,000 hertz if im correct and sounds great, it has god bass output and a huge freq range

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ditton 15's