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Advice on choosing speakers

Hi all, first some background... I am a music lover first and foremost. I have resisted the urge to upgrade my system for many years now (1973 MA6100 integrated, 1975 4-way XR7's, and a KCD-20 CD player that were all bought used) - but I am getting ready to take the plunge. I plan to buy all new components end-to-end. I believe that the first step is to choose appropriate speakers, and then select source and amplification to match. I listen to a variey of music, and understand that finding speakers that will do all styles well will be a compromise. I listen probably about 40% to acoustic instruments and vocal (bluegrass, folk, country and jazz) and 60% to rock music in a large room. I do not have a specific budget, but let's say less than 10K used. My four criteria so far are:

1. Speakers that are sufficiently detailed and nuanced to reproduce the intricacies of acoustic sound; true audiophile quality sound.
2. Able to handle the attack and low end of rock music at high levels of volume.
3. Have aesthetic appeal - this is entirely personal taste.
4. Made by a company known with a L/T reputation for standing by their product from a parts/service/dealer perspective.

So far, I have listened to very few speakers. I liked the look, clarity and detail of the Nautilus 802's for example, but found then lacking in low end and perceived ease at higher volume levels with rock music. I will next audition the N801's. Am I barking up the wrong tree here?; can you recommend your favourite speakers that will give me that detail and trasnaparency while being able to produce a "wall of sound" at higher volumes?

Thanks in advance for your help!
matt_lane
thorman
1,262 posts
 
You must remember that if your going to plunge into an expensive loudspeaker you must be able to feed it quality amplification. Most highly reguarded loudspeakers will tell you right away whats downstream,so keep that in my when you set a financial goal in buying a system. Once you've plunged $5-10k on speakers they won't be happy with a $500 amp. Try not to buy too much at one time, but have a long term plan and stick to it.It may take you a bit longer but in the end you'll be thankfull you did.Hope that makes sense...Be patient and good luck!
sedona
144 posts
 
Take a look at Tyler Acoustics, Reimer Acoustics, Aerial Acoustics and the new VMPS RM30. All speakers are made in America (Aerial's cabinets made outside USA) and all four companies are run by people that stand by their product. What I also like about these companies is they avoid the MK I, MKII, MKIII fiasco - which (to me) means they don't change the design of their speakers directly after they release a product.
raquel
841 posts
 
Hi Matt:

I can propose two speakers at different price points, both of which I own (I know them well):

(1) Vienna Acoustics Mahlers ($4-$5k used; $9,800 new):

The Mahlers have a lot of finesse for the price. They are very transparent and image extremely well. They can handle a lot of power and go extremely loud cleanly, with the most powerful midbass I have heard short of big Wilsons. They are voiced to be a bit warm sounding, which bothers purists, but in my system, it really works. While they are efficient at 90 db./watt, each speaker has two 7' mid/woofers and two 10" woofers per speaker and they produce a lot of mid-bass energy, thus requiring high-quality, powerful amplification and a judicious choice of speaker cables to control the woofers. The woodworking on Vienna Acoustics speakers is about as good as it gets in hi-fi and they tend to get high marks for aesthetics.

Here is the webpage for the speaker and webpage to three reviews (I find the Audio Magazine and Stereophile reviews to be accurate and informative):

http://www.sumikoaudio.net/va/prod_mahler.htm

http://www.sumikoaudio.net/va/idx_awards.htm

(2) Revel Salons ($9k-$11k used; $19k new):

The Salons use 4th order crossovers and go even louder than the Mahlers (that means incredibly loud). They convey a lot of detail and are very accurate, having little coloration -- they sound like what they are fed. Their bass performance is accurate and not exaggerated. At +/- 86 db/watt efficiency and dropping to 3 ohms in the bass, they require powerful amplification that is stable into low impedences. More so than the Mahlers, they really need power to open up. They are otherwise very transparent and open sounding, but having 4th order crossovers, do not image as well as the Mahlers. The styling is somewhat unconventional, but is very much liked by many. Here is the webpage and the two best known reviews:

http://www.revelspeakers.com/products/overview.asp?ID=1

http://www.stereophile.com/loudspeakerreviews/96/

http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/tas131_revel.html

Both of these speakers do rock incredibly well and have finesse. Both are also lovely with simpler music, as they are very transparent and natural sounding. I would say that both are all-around performers. While the Revel has more potential and is the better product, I actually prefer the Mahlers in my systems for rock. All of those drivers move a ton of air and create a slightly fat midbass -- incredibly fun for rock. Speakers like Kharmas, Avalons and Veritys are more coherent and more transparent, but they offer no speaker anywhere near these price points that can really do rock.

Assuming that they are set up right, fully broken in, and used with the right ancillary equipment, either of these speakers would be extremely competitive with the B&W's you are considering and any other speaker at their respective price points, especially when it comes to rock. They are both also still in production and have respectable resale value. As for the quality of the companies behind these speakers, Revels are made in Orange County and are part of Harmon International, a publically listed company that also owns JBL, Infinity and Mark Levinson, and is known to stand behind its products. Vienna is an Austrian company that seems to be quite successful and well run, and its U.S. distributor, Sumiko, is one of the strongest hi-fi distributors in the U.S.

Good luck.
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