Dunlavy Audio Labs SC-III.A (successor to Cantata)

The SC-III.A was introduced in 2002 as a cabinet revision of what had been the Cantata (and before that the Athena). The III.A is a three-way with forward-facing M-T-M plus a downward-firing 10” (sub) woofer. The speaker is a sealed box with stepped baffle and first-order crossovers. Dunlavy speakers are true time- and phase-aligned designs, of which there are very few on the market. You can hear the benefits of this approach immediately in imaging that is almost beyond belief. The speakers have a very natural, organic sound, which is what I prefer. Bass in my room goes down below 30Hz and, as a sealed-box design, is taut and tuneful. I have driven these speakers with everything from a 10wpc Audio Note tube amp to a slightly higher-powered PrimaLuna tube amp to very high-powered solid-state designs from PS Audio (BHK), Sanders Magtech, Hypex (DIY), Spectron and others. The Dunlavys made beautiful music with all of them, the differences being mainly in bottom-end weight and slam.

I am the original and only owner of these speakers, which I purchased in 2010 as “new old stock” from several pairs discovered in the warehouse after Dunlavy had shut down due to John Dunlavy’s illness and subsequent passing. The cherry finish on these has become deeper and richer with age and looks gorgeous. Mine is a smoke-free household. I have never used the grills, so they are mint. The individual driver surrounds are butyl rubber, so foam rot won't be an issue.

Aside from a few minor blemishes here and there (all very minor, generally on the edges), the only item to mention is that one of the mounting screws for one midrange driver is missing. I took it out and embarked on trying to find “upgrade” replacements, which I did not find, but I ended up losing the one screw.

I have the original boxes for these (one per speaker plus one for both of the plinths, all in excellent condition). The main cabinets sit on wood plinths, which sit directly on the floor. (I put felt pads on the bottoms to protect my wood floors.) This is how John Dunlavy felt they should be used, but some people like to put them on spikes, so I experimented. For a while, I removed the plinths and substituted a pair of Soundocity outriggers (http://www.soundocity.com/products.html), which fit perfectly. If you are interested, I will sell the outriggers for an additional $175.

A local sale (SF Bay Area) is hugely preferred.

Specs:

Woofer (1) 10" (down-firing)

Midrange (2) 6.5"

Tweeter (1) 1" soft dome

Frequency Response 27Hz - 20kHz, +/- 1.5 dB

Dimensions 52"H x 11"W x 14"D

Weight approximately 90 lbs each

Sensitivity 90dB

Impedance (Nominal/Min/Max) 4/3/6.5