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Audioengine A5+

I recently purchased a pair of Audioengine A2 speakers for work that quickly became the catalyst for purchasing a pair of the A5+ speakers for our family/play room. We just use an iPod or iPhone source, but I have connect the speakers directly to my Pioneer Elite SACD player several times in my main listening room (living room) and have been blown away with the result. On certain recording I am certain that I could fool most people into believing they were listening to my Focal 836v speakers as long as it wasn't an A to B comparison where the difference becomes very obvious. On other recordings they don't hold up as well and sound strained at louder volumes. I had a friend over and was listening to Saint-Saens Symphony No.3 "organ" and he kept looking at my receiver to verify that the little speakers were honestly responsible for everything he was hearing. The low organ note reproduction is really impressive in my room. Overall, this is a re,cording that is too much for them at volume, but on certain passages they perform almost beyond belief. I could easily consider them in combination with my SACD player to be a true audiophile system.

One of these days the smaller A2 speakers will come home from work for a date with the Pioneer Elite just to see what they sound like with a real source.
mceljo
jriden
6 posts
 
I'm open about being a dealer. I mention it all over the place.

That's just a natural extension of a passion for Audio. It doesn't make me narrow minded or sneaky. I don't think what I sell is necessarily better than what you already bought. So now that's settled, let's move on.

I have an orientation -- offering the best performance/price (P/P) ratios I can pull together. I also deal other stuff, not just Audioengine. I have the iFi line from AMR and just added acoustic treatments from Acoustic System International. More to come.

Past systems include tube preamps and amps from first Rogue Audio and then PrimaLuna, with Joseph Audio RM7si Signature monitors. All entirely respectable but not even close to the P/P of the Adam Audio A7 or the Audioengine A5+.

As equipment cost rises the P/P drops off and at some point unless you're wealthy it doesn't make sense to spend above a threshold. I think that point is well under $5000.

I would love to listen to everything. But we all have limitations of time, budget, and location, etc.

And yes it's about cost and the sound. Unless we're all together and have everything we're discussing present to listen to, how could we ever resolve what is "best" anyway? Besides, there's personal taste in the equation so it's non-linear.

What I can tell you is if you have a couple grand to spend and you want new equipment that sounds wonderful or you want to make whatever you already have sound astoundingly better, I can help, no matter what you spent.

Or we can just chat about what we have tried and learned.
johnnyb53
3,510 posts
 

07-20-13: Jriden
What's the matter, A5+ not expensive enough to sound good to you? Have you blind tested against the Focal?
Right now the Focal XS Books are $299/pair on Amazon, at Crutchfield, and probably at most authorized dealers. That's $100 less than the AudioEngine 5+. So it's definitely not a price snobbery issue.
intermediatic's avatar
intermediatic
72 posts
 
hmm… boy i wouldn't agree with that there, jriden.

i went from a $5,000 system ta $20,000 system. it's not a subtle improvement at all. one is not bad, but will eventually be fatiguing. the other will knock you out. will a $50,000 system be better? yeah probably will.

i've got some audioengine p4s in my office. they are ok, for sure. looking for something better though. i'm sure it's out there, even at a few more dollars.
johnnyb53
3,510 posts
 
The desktop system that operates at a level far above anything else I've heard is the Mini-Maggies, and at $1500 it should. The transparency and jump factor has to be heard to be believed.

It's not snobbery or price-related perception; it's unequivocally better in every way.
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