First round of auditions disappointing


Well, I finally got out and did some actual listening over the weekend, and I can see that I have quite an adventure ahead of me.

I listened to the Focal Profile 928, Polk LSi15 and a couple of Martin Logan's (Vista and Vantage). The Focal was by far the worst of the bunch; as a matter of fact, it was downright awful, and at a price of $5K for the pair?????????? Good grief...

The Polk LSi15 was better, but far and away from what I expected, given the good press. I use to own Martin Logan Sequel II's, and liked them for their midrange qualities. The newer Logan's were pretty nice, but far too dead in the dynamics department. Very nice rendition of vocals though, and great soundstage presentation.

The more I listened to the typical box speaker, the more I believe that design won't satisfy me. My wife, who is really not "in" to music, commented to me that the Focal sounded "like a box," so there you have it.

I'll probably have to wait until CES, because there is little in the way of "high end" in my area.
seadweller
I own a pair of JM Lab - Focal 918's and they sound wonderful. They are not boxy at all. TAS recently reviewed these and they received high accolades. IMO Martin Logan speakers don’t even come close to the emotion of a Focal. Also, since I like deep bass I added a Rel subwoofer. It mates really well.

Sounds to me that you did not audition them in the correct environment and with the correct equipment. See if you can get an at home trial. If you don't like them, you can return them if the store has a good return policy.
Thanks everyone.......

Boa2 - You hit the nail on the head with your comment that box speakers "sound too sequestered with respect to conveying the sparkle and energy of the event." That's what I'm looking for, the sparkle and energy of the event. Nearly all of the conventional speakers I've ever listened to lack that sparkle and energy. Nearly all of them are reticent.

My VR-4's, for example, would reproduce the crack of a stick against the rim of a snare drum in a way that sounded like a pillow was in between the microphone and the drum. The representation was there, but that sparkle and engergy (CRACK!) was missing. A plucked bass hung out in space forever, so things sounded sloooow. Bass drums were rendered with a "poof" instead of a solid "punch," and drum solos lacked that crisp, leading edge attack. They sounded this way in the showroom, and in 3 different environments with varying amplification, so it was a character of the speaker itself.

Perhaps I'm wrong, but I wonder if speaker designers are afraid to depart from that typical "audiophile" expectation of sound. That "warm" or "lush" presentation. Over the years, I've heard many, many speakers, that while voiced differently, had an overall laid back presentation. I don't mean to sound degrading, but my $30 PC speakers image like champs, so perhaps I'm trying to get "outside the box" (no pun intended).

I agree with your list of speakers that won't satisfy me. When I sold my VR-4's, I fell out of my chair when I saw just how many companies are now building conventional, multi-driver systems. How much can you really do with this design, aside from distinctive voicing?

I seem to gravitate towards two speaker designs, horn and planar. I loved my Logans and Magnepans, but they lacked punch and dynamics. I loved my Altec 19's, but they were far from being refined. I guess I'm looking for something that might not exist, so I'll have to take some time and determine just what compromises I'm willing to make.
By the way, a couple things I will do:

1. I will audition the new Von Schweikert designs
2. I'd like to audition the Gallo Ref 3.1, just for curiosity sake, given the amount of good press and customer reviews they have received
That's why I mentioned Green Mountain Audio. They do not sound like a box speaker, instead conveying the crack of energized music. A used pair of Continuum 3s would be in your budget range.

Zu Definitions would also meet your requirements, but I doubt that a used pair could be had for $4-5K.

I hear that Pi Loudspeakers are very good. I've not heard them myself.

Finally, if Klipschorns are not an option--they take up no space in the room--you might consider a vintage pair of La Scalas. You will want to do a few modifications to them, which are easy to do. We had a pair mated with an ACI Titan subwoofer, and not one person who heard our system ever knew that we used a sub, the sound was that seamless. Including modifications to the speakers, the entire package would run you around $2200. If mated to the proper amp, you will have the sound you're after.
I'm very interested to hear more about the La Scalas. My only fear is that a "vintage" horn system (even though it's offered as a current model) might not provide sufficient detail, although I have read that the midrange in the La Scala is out-of-this-world....

They would certainly work in all but the largest spaces!