Hyperion 938,Emerald,Aurum Cantus,JM reynaud,Gallo

Hi Rcduck, I have had the 938s since 2004 and compared them to the Gallos (Ref 3 assume). I have not heard the others you mention. I much prefer the 938s over the Gallo. The Hyperions are smooth yet detailed, image and staging near the top, midrange just natural, very well extended low bass if set up right, excellent with all genre of music, and nonfatiguing over the long term. I felt the Gallos were little etched and harsh in the treble, imaging/staging not as good, and not as easy to listen to long term. On paper, the Gallos are suppose to go lower than the 938s, but I couldn't tell on audition. The Gallos are less expensive I think and comes with built in bass amplifier.

the Reynaud is a very fine speaker, very good midrange, similar in sound to Spendor though a bit better IMO - depending on model of course. I have heard the Trentes and Offrandes...

What Dracule1 mentiones about the Hyperions seem to be very close to what i read about them from reviewers and customers.
And i think i'm going to like them very much.
This speaker also shows the difference between cables very good i read more then a few times, i think this shows how good a quality speaker it is.
Only one person i met on a forum who auditioned them found them raw and upfront???
This was a quote from a European... Do the taste in sound of Europeans is that different to US speaker designs?

I have read many good things about JM Reynaud to, they should especially do well with unplugged type of music was a quote.
but now that i had a good look on their diffrent models i can't see how they could look beautiful in my livingroom, especially to match center and surround speakers.
They seem to have very differnt designs.

It also read that Emerald Physics is a very good speaker if you want your recordings like your sitting in the front row of a live concert.
It gives you that kind of sound it seems.
System matching seems to be more critical with that speakers.
But i would also like my speaker to be able to work as a 5.1 setup for a movie now and then... As the emerald is far from a conventional speaker design, will it work that way?
They don't have center or surround speakers.

From Aurum Cantus i read many different things (mostly from users on forums), maybe a difficult speaker to find a good system match for?

Friday i will go listen to the Hyperion 938 and i hope i will love them very much.
I'm not sure i will be able to go out and listen to the Emerald's and Aurums becausse i would have to travel to many miles to find a nearest dealer.

PS: I'm from Belgium, i hope my English writing is ok.

I will second the Philojet's recommendation for the JM Reynaud speakers. I have a pair of Offrandes, and I find them to be exceptional; especially in regards to the wide and deep soundstage. It's almost like a third-row concert experience.

To me the Spendors and the Reynauds are in a completely different place in the speaker spectrum - the Spendors I have listened to are very good, but more forward and emphasise the mid-range compared to the Reynauds. I am not a Gallo guy, so I can't comment specifically except to say again that the Gallos and the Reynauds are so different that I would guess that if one works for you you won't like the other.

I use the Offrandes mainly for classical, opera and jazz in a somewhat small room with all tube components. They are even better in a larger but not huge) room. I have also spent a bit of time listening to the current Duets. They share many of the same qualities that I love about the Offrandes; just not as much of it IMHO.

Rcduck, Hyperion is having a summer sale 35% off all new products. I believe it includes the 938 and 968, so the top of line 968 might be within your reach. Couple of customers on the Audiocircle Hyperion owners circle site who has had trouble getting replacement parts for the 938, but they are European customers I believe. See http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=63562.0
This issue of replacement parts should be addressed with your dealer, if you have concerns.

Tube amps sound really good with the 938. Some have raved about the Opera Audio Cyber series mono block amps with the Hyperions.