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Own many mid-game speakers or a few end-game speakers.

After I got hooked into this hobby I started to have a small collection of speakers each in the $5k-$10k ranges that have various tonal quality and unique characters from each other. It doesn’t feel one speaker is absolutely better than another and they all have their own personalities, and I quite enjoy these diversity for different type of music I listen to (or hearing the same music expressed very differently which is always fun) and I’m always tempted to add more, for example, I recently get excited about Klipsch and want to try their horns which I do not have had any experience of.

But, these things quickly add up and could become endless pursuit, especially consider speakers differ not just in response curves but also in dynamic, decay, sound stage and details that are all hard to emulate with software. I’m trying to limit the max spending I have on speakers. I’m wondering what’s the perspective of upgrading v.s. buying into more diversity in this game. A few questions I have for you is, say you have $60k in budget on speakers new/used and you have infinite rooms (no amp/source), how would you allocate it (from buying 5000 Homepod Minis to one B&W nautilus) and why?
bwang29
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
If I had $60k to spend on any speakers I wanted, I would give Eric a call and ask how good he can build me for that budget or less. It would probably wind up being a pair of all-Be Ulfberhts. But he is working on something better so you never know. Even what he is working on I seriously doubt would eat the whole budget. 

Anyway, as to your question, that's the answer: One. I never ever in my life have listened to two things and felt like it could go either way. Always one was better than the other. Usually not by all that much either. Once I hear the better one, that's what I want. All indications are we get just the one go-around, and it don't last forever. Music being important to me, why would I want to waste one minute listening to something that doesn't sound so good when I have something better? 

For me its all about quality. Quantity rides shotgun, at best.
douglas_schroeder
3,281 posts
 
Do you diversify with one genre of speakers, or among genres of speakers? 
erik_squires
16,041 posts
 
Buddy, come over to the dark side, where for the price of a pair of Wilsons you can have built and tried 10 pairs of speakers, learned a great deal, and maybe met interesting people in the ER room.

At some point in your audiophile career you will see how much money you are spending, while gaining little traction.  You are in effect paying a lot of money to learn things about your tastes and products and science and human perception.

Doing all of this, in addition to the pride of making things yourself, is done much better as a maker, than shopper.

Best,


Erik
dweller's avatar
dweller
3,781 posts
 
I want the opposite with a great pair of super efficient speakers (think Klipsch Cornwall IVs) and many high-quality amps of different types. Low-power 300B, single-ended tube and solid state, monos, etc. As for your question? I'd go with the best sounding speaker I could afford. No substitute for accurate sound (at least, sound YOU like).
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