A theater horn from the golden age of sound, cast in aluminum and still in demand nearly a century later

Overview

A Western Electric 22A Horn is a cast aluminum brute, 40 pounds, built to project sound with authority. It comes from the era of public address when horns had to fill opera houses and movie palaces with no solid-state amps or digital processing to help. It's often paired with the WE 555 compression driver. Collectors cite that combination as delivering the "Classic Western Electric sound," which means warmth, presence, and a certain unapologetic boldness that modern gear often smooths out.

The 22A Horn on the market today isn't always what it seems. The original design dates to 1933, but many units trading hands are reproductions or replicas, sometimes labeled that way. One listing calls it a "Western Electric 22A Horn (Reproduction)," another a "replica." These versions, like a Japanese-made wooden and metal pair listed at US Audio Mart, can carry very different dimensions (30" x 30" x 32") and prices north of $4,000. The core idea stays the same: a horn built around the 555 driver, crossing over at 500 Hz via the N500C network, handling mid to high frequencies with the headroom that a massive flare and rigid construction provide.

The industrial heritage is obvious. The gray hammer tone finish is there because this was equipment built to last, bolted to theater walls or stacked on bass bins, and indifferent to dust, heat, or the occasional bump from a stagehand. At 22 inches wide, 11 inches tall, and 11 inches deep, it's compact for a theater horn, which suggests it was part of a larger system rather than a standalone unit. Whether it was originally meant for voice reproduction, musical reinforcement, or early sound film is unclear, since the historical record is thin. Its pairing with the 555 driver places it in Western Electric's professional audio lineage.

And yes, collectors are paying attention. Not for the faint of wallet, but not at the stratospheric levels of some full vintage systems either. The 22A sits in a sweet spot: recognizable, functional, and sonically relevant for today’s high-end vintage restorations.

Specifications

Collectibility & Value

Current listings on Audiogon, Reverb, and US Audio Mart show a single Western Electric 22A Horn in good used condition, with some scratches but no structural damage, at around $1,200. That's a standalone unit, not a bundle or paired system. Higher figures, like $4,650 for a pair or $5,500 for replicas, typically involve matched sets, reproduction builds, or complete systems including bass bins. The note "good used condition, some scratches" appears consistently, which suggests these horns were worked hard and survived decades of storage, resale, and re-purposing.

One caveat: reproductions are actively made and sold as "replicas" or "reproductions," so listings need a careful read. The original 22A Horn's material, cast aluminum, separates it from plywood or composite versions. The record has no explicit confirmation that the original 22A was designed exclusively for the WE 555 driver, though market consensus and replica marketing strongly imply the pairing. There's no data on original pricing, production years beyond the 1933 reference, frequency response, sensitivity, or common failure points. Maintenance and repair information is also absent, so owners are left with general horn-driver troubleshooting when something goes wrong.

eBay Listings

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