Advent Corporation’s series of loudspeakers consists of four models headed by the Advent 5002. Like the company’s previous models, they are all two-way acoustic-suspension systems featuring newly designed tweeters that have improved high-frequency response and dispersion.
The woofer of the 5002 resembles the one used in Advent’s earlier speakers. The nominally 10-inch-diameter paper cone (which has an actual radiating diameter of just under 8 inches) is driven by a 1-1/2-inch voice coil whose nominal impedance is 8 ohms. The woofer operates in a sealed cabinet made of walnut-grain vinyl-clad particle board; the smoothly rounded front edges give it the appearance of a wood-veneered cabinet. The speaker can be mounted either horizontally or vertically, against a wall or on the floor. Advent encourages experimentation to find the sonically best location.
The Advent “Direct Report” tweeter is a totally new design with a 1-inch parabolic-dome radiator surrounded by a specially tapered and shaped “phase plate” that is largely responsible for its exceptional dispersion qualities. (Even the mounting screws are recessed to minimize unwanted diffraction that could affect the polar pattern of the tweeter.) The crossover between the tweeter and the woofer takes place at 1,800 Hz, with a three-pole, high-pass filter section that attenuates the signal to the tweeter at an 18-dB-per-octave rate below that frequency. According to Advent, the output of the tweeter is reduced by 21 dB at 900 Hz compared to the level in its flat-response region. This crossover design allows each driver to operate with full effectiveness in its frequency range with a minimum of distortion or risk of damage.
A novel feature of the Advent 5002 is a toggle switch recessed into the rear of the cabinet near the input connectors and protective-fuse holder. In the switch’s normal position the speaker response is nominally “flat.” Moving the switch to background reduces the output in the two-octave range centered at 2,000 Hz. Advent states that this response characteristic allows back-ground music to be played with less sonic masking of conversation.
The sensitivity of the Advent 5002 is typical of acoustic-suspension systems of its size, with a rated sound-pressure level of 87 dB measured at a 1-meter distance when driven by 1 watt. The cabinet is 26 inches high, 14-1/4 inches wide, arid 11-1/2 inches deep, and the speaker weighs about 40 pounds. The neutral cloth grille (which has a molded plastic frame) unsnaps readily for access to the drivers.
