@wimpydaschund,
I own the new Tannoy Legacy Arden powered by a Pass Labs XA30.5 and a McIntosh C2300 preamp. Let me know if I can help with any specific questions on them. I've copied a review I wrote over on AK below with my thoughts.
Speakers I’ve owned recently include a restored pair of KEF 107s and the
Spatial Audio M3. I also have a pair of Onix Strata Mini’s in my
semi-vintage home office system.
I sort of lucked into a pair of the Legacy Arden back in October and to
be honest, they weren’t on my radar up to that point. I was about to
sell my Spatial Audio M3 (Turbo S) for the new Spatial X5 which feature a
pair of 12” powered sub drivers. I loved the M3’s sound and open baffle
design, but my room is so hard to get decent bass response out of. The
listening area is only 14’x 17’ (in a 14’x 40’ main room) but has a max
ceiling height of 18’ and open on one side to the entire rest of the
house (including a second floor). In order to support the M3s, I
employed a pair of 15” sealed subs and an SVS AS-EQ1 sub equalizer.
One thing that interested me in the Arden design is the 15” dual
concentric design and its trio of front mounted ports. Since my set up
is on the long wall of my room, I have plenty of width for a large,
wide, speaker that is not too deep. Most of the modern “living room
friendly” designs are narrow with a lot of depth…not to mention rear
ported.
I have the Arden’s placed with their backs about 18” off the front wall
and toed in so the axis crosses about 3’ in front of my head. This
yields the best sound stage. I’ve experimented with them in many
positions including flush to the wall and pointing straight ahead. This
placement yields more bass, at the expense of sound stage in the sweet
spot. The speakers are about 11’ apart and 11’ from my listening
position.
The overall sound of the Arden in my system is best described as
coherent and “full”. There is a weighty sound throughout the mid bass,
and lower bass that has rendered my dual subs obsolete. I’ve since sold
off the subs and EQ which helped justify the cost of the Arden’s. I was a
little concerned about the ability for a 1” tweeter to blend well with a
15” woofer, but my concerns were unwarranted. The sound throughout the
frequency range is sublime.
One of the professional reviews I’ve read on this Arden describes the
overall sound to be on the warm side of neutral. I would agree with this
assessment, but would add it’s more forward than laid back, which is
how I would describe the KEF 107. The Arden does not present a
hyper-detailed , clinical sound. It is definitely on the lush side of
the spectrum, but do not take this to mean the sound is mushy, instead,
think of it as scale. There is a thrust and weight in the room that I’ve
not experienced with any other speaker. There is no listener fatigue
after long listening sessions. The danger in that is that I find myself
sitting for longer periods than is healthy, so it’s self-loathing,
rather than listener fatigue that forces me to grab my mountain bike and
get out of the house.
Tune-ability.
Between the ported vents (which can be plugged), and the adjustable
treble energy and roll off crossover, the Arden offers a lot of
flexibility depending on your system’s front end. I experimented with
both and have settled on no port plugs and tweeter adjustments at level.
One caution I would provide prospective buyers of the Arden is to
closely consider the other gear in their system to ensure synergy. All
of my listening is some combination of digital (CD, SACD, streaming).
All are run through a Musical Paradise MP-D2 Mk2 tube DAC, a McIntosh
C2300 (tube hybrid) pre amp, and either a Pass Labs XA30.5 (solid state)
or VTA ST-70 (KT-66 tubes) amps. I can easily tune the overall sound
with tube swaps in the DAC, and to a lesser extent the C2300. Both amps,
at 30 and 35 watts respectively, drive the Arden with ease. The Pass
provides a higher damping factor that result in more defined edges in
the lower frequencies, where the ST-70 provides a slightly finer grain
sound in the mid and upper frequencies (smoother if you will). Both are
staying in the system, and I swap them frequently depending on my mood.
If forced to choose, I’d keep the Pass, and will say I believe SS amps
make for a safer pairing with the Arden. YMMV.
If I imagine a worst case scenario front end for the Arden’s it would be
a vintage Dynaco ST-70 running EL34 tubes, an older Conrad Johnson tube
pre, and a vinyl rig. I feel this combination would be like adding too
much salt to a properly cooked meal. I feel Arden’s benefit from a
little extra detail from upstream components. For tube guys, think more
NOS Telefunkens and less NOS Mullards.
Nothing in life is perfect, and neither is this Tannoy. For the price, I
would expect a wood finish that rises to the level of cost. They are
beautifully constructed and (book match) veneered, but essentially come
“ready to finish”. They provide a tin of wax, but it is not a suitable
finish for long term protection. I tossed the wax and applied 4 coats of
Watco Danish Oil. I suppose the upside is one gets to pick the final
color and sheen. Heck, you could stain these in a JBL L100 orange stain
if you wanted.
Both the spikes and feet provided are pretty basic and not befitting the
price. That they’re constructed in Scotland, and not China is likely
the main justification for the cost. I ended up making my own feet with
threaded studs and hockey pucks (don’t laugh, they work). If Tannoy is
going to cut corners, I’m glad they chose inconsequential, non-sonic
areas like supplied footing and expensive finishes.
On WAF.
My wife has either said nothing, or downright criticized the speakers
that have come through our home over the years. This was partially due
to the fact I was teaming them with the aforementioned subs. “I hate all
those boxes in the room”. I thought for sure she would hate the bulky
looking Arden in person. I was smart enough to show her photos of
beforehand. When I removed the M3s, subs, and put the Arden’s in place
she walks in and says “These look nice, they look like furniture.” I
was shocked. As they say… happy wife, happy life.
If you have any specific questions that I can help with, fire away.
