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PSB - Stratus Gold(i) vs Totem Acoustic - Sky towers

So here's the story. Yesterday I bought a pair of Totem Acoustic Sky towers for 2400$. I am pairing them with my NAD C372 Integrated. I am really enjoying the sound. They seem like a decent step up in realism and accuracy from my Paradigm Monitor 7 v7s. 

Of course, about 10 minutes after i get home and set up, someone posts an add for a used pair of PSB Stratus Goldi's - asking 950$ CAD. I have heard pretty good things about PSB, and like Totem they are a product of my Canadian brethren. 

Does anyone have any experience with either set of tower speakers? I know the Sky's are relatively new, so maybe not too many people have had a chance to sit with them for very long. For the dastic price difference due to the PSBs being used I m wondering if I might just be able to get performance close to or maybe even better than the Sky towers out of the Goldi's considering the pairing with the NAD C372.

Tonaly the Skys seem very transparent, very clean, lots of detail but still smooth and warm with the soft dome 1.3 inch tweeter (unique to the sky towers). They dig deep and give a punchy, solid bass without over emphasizing the lows or mids. Voices sound as close to being in the room with you as I have ever experienced, keeping in mind my only other real comparison is a pair of Paradigm 5se Mk IIs, and a pair of Paradigm Monitor 7 v7s. Both of which suffer from a slight boomy quality to the human voice.

 
rookiophile
schubert
7,386 posts
 
Yes I do . Both .
andrews95
5 posts
 
I recently bought a pair of PSB Goldis for $750. I’m very impressed with these speakers. My father also bought a pair of Audiovector SR3 Avantgarde which he paid $10,000 for. Listening to both setups I would say neutrality and instrumental tonality as well as detail are almost identical. The Audiovector’s sound stage was more refined as was my overall impression between the two, however the Goldi were more engaging. The bass response and sheer presence makes the Golds more involving. I did enjoy the refinement of the Audiovectors but for money, the PSB’s cannot be beat, not even close. My overall opinion is that the PSB’s may fall slightly short to many much more expensive speakers on the market but not by much. When it comes to value, the PSB’s are incredible. I believe the reason for this value is the fact that Paul Barton manufactured these speakers for over 10 years so there is still plenty of supply on the market, as well, they have rather bland and outdated look about them. The PSB’s prove that you don’t have to break the bank with the latest and greatest speaker design. I’ll be keeping them for a while. 
majorc
76 posts
 
If you don't mind me jumping in here, I am the owner of Eminent Technology LFT8bs.  Great speaker but they are incompatible with my quicksilver M60 amps.  My tech whose opinion I greatly respect swears by the Golds and told me to seek out a pair at all costs - said the bass response is better than any subwoofer system he has ever heard. The original gold was reputedly better than the goldi, and there are a few i's  for sale near me - no original golds -so I telephoned psb last week and they told me there is no difference in sound quality at all - just the cabinet and crossover difference. Wondering if any of you have compared the two. 
james_edward
119 posts
 
I have compared the two- unfortunately in different rooms- mine, and my friend’s living rooms. They both sound great, and honestly, when I had my original Golds, I probably did not feed them amplification as well as they deserved. My friend’s Gold i version, in my opinion, sound better probably because of better electronics. Neither is a slouch, I’d snatch up either if available. They kick ass.
andrews95
5 posts
 
They do indeed kick ass. I’m feeding them 300 watts. They do everything really well. The only thing that could make them better and able to compete with a $20,000 pair of speakers is for the highs to be a little more airy. I’ve been able to achieve clearer detailed highs by using silver ribboned speaker cables and also a silver ribbon power cable to my amp. In my opinion, silver cables tend to add more details to the highs. The bass and mids are already phenomenal with these speakers. When you’re able to put them in front of a really transparent system, you’ve got a match made in heaven. You should definitely pick up a pair. 
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