2. speakers
  3. 160622-20253

Poor Fritz

There’s no better value and no one as willing to make bespoke speakers out there than Fritz and these forums treat his speakers as if they cost $200K.
They don’t. They are remarkably affordable and yet potential customers put him through the absolute ringer, asking for custom features, going through 2 or 3 models of home auditions and maybe not even buying any of them.

Look, you buy what you want to buy, but I think not enough credit is given to the man or his speakers in terms of the overall value proposition and I think this is a disservice overall.  If you write a 5 page review, please keep this very much in mind that you are not reviewing Wilson or Focal's flagships.  Maybe he doesn't deserve quite the same scrutiny.

erik_squires
tkukielk's avatar
tkukielk
9 posts
 
Did anyone have a chance to listen to both Fritz speakers and the new Philharmonic BMRs: http://philharmonicaudio.com
It seems they are competing in the same class so it would be interesting to read how they compare.

b_limo's avatar
b_limo
2,277 posts
 
Just for the record, that Ara kit is $1900 with the BE tweeter, not $1400. You’re also getting a 6” SB Scoustics driver vs a 7” Scan Speak Driver. I’d rather have an understated, rectangle box built and braced like a brick, with gorgeous Veneer on it than some trapezoidal, orange peeled Chinese cab. And then there’s Fritz’s crossovers, which are awesome, which you can’t build because your not awesome.... Fritz uses probably close to $100 in no rez for his 2 Cabs, that kit
comes with cheapo filling.

Another thing to consider is resale.  Fritz speakers don’t come up often but when they do, they hold there value really well.
And have you ever punched a screwdriver through a driver screwing them in?  Insta extra port!  When you start damaging $400 tweeters during assembly your saving go right out the window.

Come to think of it, your right Kenjit, Fritz really should be charging more.
decooney
2,046 posts
 
@b_limo 
fwiw, I like those particular 7" ScanSpeak mid-woofers quite a bit, used them another custom rebuild recently. Very musical sounding. The new owner of these custom built speakers really likes them a lot.  

Agree, Fritz could charge more.  The return comes from his customers and their regular referrals and great praise.  Seems like it's a Win-Win as you well know - as good as anyone does. Thumbs up, cool setup u have. Keep us posted on the new Belles after 250hrs :)   
erik_squires OP
16,130 posts
 
FYI, the 7" ScanSpeak mid-woofer are in fact 6.5" and they are among the best in the world.  Not only are they very good sounding in the bass to mids, they also have amazing extension in the right cabinet.

There’s a reason why they’ve appeared often in statement products. Also, in case anyone is trying to gauge them by the specs, the specs lie. The measured frequency response is actually better than spec, a fact I’ve confirmed with a couple of speaker makers with the ability to measure.

Best,

E
hilde45's avatar
hilde45
4,974 posts
 
@cd318 put it very nicely:

At the end of the day Fritz speakers will have to compete with other makes at similar price points. I'm sure that Fritz will be very aware of this. It's probably in his head morning noon and night.
My guess is that Fritz is no longer that worried. He has been in business, successful, with people still talking about and buying his speakers for, what, 30+ years? I'll be lucky if anyone talks about what I do 10 or 20 years from now, let alone 30. 
More to discover