Joseph Audio: Perspectives and Pearls

FWIW...

I was at my Joseph Dealer's store yesterday dropping my Perspectives off, to be shipped for the graphene driver upgrade.

To my surprise they had the Pearls in the store. Hadn't seen them there before.

They were not playing but were set up closer to the back wall behind them than what I would think is ideal. I was told that the Pearls worked surprisingly well no matter where they placed them, and that they could even be placed closer to the back wall, as they were, without obvious bass bloat, vs some other tower speakers in the store which they have to pull out more.

Not what I would have expected, but that's what I was told.

@prof -- thanks for the note on this. Jeff had said that they were able to be played in a number of different configurations. I know that they are much larger than the Perspectives, but did they seem over the top in person?

Actually the Pearls seemed fairly modest in size and proportion.  Especially for a flagship speaker!   They don't feel dominating at all.  But then, Joseph Audio is known for packing a bigger sound in to smaller speakers.   I can see them fitting in to lots of different rooms without feeling like they are too much. 

I have never done a direct comparison between the Pearls and Perspectives. But I currently own JA Perspective2 speakers. Last year, or perhaps the year before, I went to listen to the Pearls at a local seller's house. The guy was ready to sell them at almost half the retail. I absolutely loved the sound but big boss said no!

My Perspective2's are in a 15x20 room with 12 ft ceilings, and produce a very healthy amount of bass. In fact, some times it seems to get a little too much. I'm adding thicker bass traps and additional paneling for this reason. If the new Pearls have similar bass signature, I suspect the bass might get too much for a 13x18x9 room. They are much bigger when compared side by side with the Perspectives.

The Perspectives fill my room with music and satisfying bass, and honestly, not once have I wished that the sound was bigger or fuller. It's amazing how a speaker with a sleek and relatively small cabinets can produce such a big and immense soundscape.

IMO, as great as the Pearls are, Perspectives are a better fit given the size of your room.

P.S. You didn't mention whether you're looking at the latest version (Perspective2 Graphene) or the older version. I've never heard the older version but from what I understand the new version goes much lower in the frequency range.

Thanks for sharing your experience with the Perspectives. In looking at your system, I noticed that you are running subs in addition to the JAs. I do not have (or plan to get) subs, so that may be a factor in how the Perspectives fit the bill for you. This is not to dispute your thoughts on my room and the Pearls, but it could be a factor. 
 

I am hoping to hear the latest Perspectives tomorrow or Sunday and will certainly report back. Many thanks as always to this great community.