BEST LOW VOLUME FULL RANGE SPEAKERS?

I gave up on B&W Nautilus series for exactly this reason ... they DEMANDED big watts to let them breathe ... opening up music by factors ... when often I simply wanted to enjoy what they could do without big sound ... simply not possible. Got rid of them, bought subbed Taylo Refs ... of course, that was in 2000, I think, which is code for "a long time ago"

Graphic equalizers usually do more things whong than right. Because the signal has to pass through so many bands of equalization it vails and colors the music in a big way.

Properly designed tone controls concentrate on a small part of the spectrum that makes the most difference. Some manufacturers are also using a tilt spectrum control that acts like an equalization see-saw. It boosts the bass while attenuating the treble or vice versa. I think that the new NAD Masters series integrated amp is selectable between traditional tone controls, tilt, and tone defeat.

When speakers have to be placed in less than ideal locations in a room for livability/WAF reasons the tone controls can be really useful to make the bass a little less congested when it is dictated that the big @ssed speakers will go a little closer to the wall so that decorative knick knacks are not obstructed.

Trelja,
I have the DNM PA3S amp and the 3Dsix pre (I'm not sure there are any other sixes in the states at this time) along with all DNM cables and I use the Resolution Audio Opus 21 into the 3Dsix via DIN to DIN (this bypasses the VC of the Opus)
I also have a Nottingham Dais w/12'anna and 47/Miyabi cart.
This all terminates into a pair of John Tuckers 102db Exemplar Horns.
(I have used the DNM gear in many different systems and with many combinations of non dnm gear...while it clearly works best as a system it is excellent in many contexts...as long as normal rules of component compatibility are adhered to)
For sound...I would refer you to the Art Dudley reviews done in Stereophile as he does a much better job of describing the sound than I could. Keep in mind however that the preamp that he raves is two levels below the 3Dsix

Simply put they play music...and from a completely black background. This super low noise floor is perhaps one of their keys to great low level performance.
I suppose it is the sense of immediacy and the spot on tonality that most impress me.
With the right speakers they are about as good as it gets IMHO.
The 3Dsix may be the best pre-amp I've owned...I've owned many :-)
The unit has a world class headphone amp and an excellent MC phono stage that is not embarassed by either the Wavestream Kinetics or ASR Basis exclusive phonostages.

The downsides are the obvious power limitations (22w) although they play more like a tube 22w than SS.
They completely miss the mark with US sensibilites around audio...no remote, they are small, they are plastic, increadibly light in weight and of a...let's say retro looking design....did I mention they are plastic! I love all this about them. and they are absolutely a form follows function design. As a result of the above, along with the general lack of awareness of the product and it's excellence in the US, they have not proven to have good resale.
This is good or bad depending on which end of the transaction you find yourself.
This is actually what got me started with DNM a few years ago....I bought one of their old pre-amps for a song and was blown away by what it did -vs- the multiples times as expensive pre I was using at the time.

Obviously I'm an advocate and my experience with Denis and Martin Moorecroft has been stellar...along with Jeff Kalt of Resolution...who BTW is a great source of knowledge regarding the design behind the gear and the gear itself.

If you find yourself in the Bay Area stop in

Now if I can ever find a pair of Rhedeko 175's I may never come up for air.

Mitch, a GOOD graphic equalizer would probably serve an audiophile well.

The only trouble is that I've tried a few when they were more in vogue, and the results were always less than good. They simply took many good things away from the music (dynamics, slam, liquidity) and added just as many bad things (noise, distortion, harshness, brightness). I loaned a friend one about a month or so ago, with the proviso that if he liked/loved it, simply consider it a gift. I told him to expect poor results. We talked not even a day later, and he let me know it was utterly awful.

This sort of goes along with my opinions on preamps, I've yet to hear one that sounded better than no preamp. The best of them still do what I just described, only to a far lesser degree. Of course, anyone spinning vinyl or needing to correct other flaws certainly can make a case for using a preamp.

It would be interesting if a company offered a GOOD graphic equalizer. I'd be game for an audition. The Cello units from the past were supposedly on that level, perhaps someone can chime in with what their impressions were of them, as I have never heard one.

When Jadis introduced the Orchestra Reference, they were making a statement in the way of tone controls. It took some guts, but they aren't a company that with the herd mentality. They haven't put them into anything else in the product line, and have since introduced another JOR model sans tone controls. I will say that I found them worthwhile, and was not afraid to be considered part of the great unwashed by having them. I liked them a lot, and they often came in handy when the wife or friends wanted to hear some boom boom woof woof ala what the rest of the world considers good sound.

I've heard Quads that at low volumes were the best sounding speaker I've heard..(actually at about any volume) also very nice with classical music.