Silverline Minuet "Supreme"

I'm not sure if mine are the Minuets or the Minuet Supremes, but I've had a pair for a few months in a two channel setup. There's much to like about them, but bass extension and physically conveying the feeling of the music are not on that list. Jazz, vocals, small ensembles, most rock and roll sound very good. Orchestral music sounds truncated and like it's coming from a really small speaker.

I'm not sure, but they also may be sensitive to the type of solid state amp running them. I have an Arte Forma and they sound good, clear and detailed most of the time. When I was running a ClassD Audio amp, I thought the speakers sounded smoother and richer. Of course, it may have all been the amp.

If they just had a 6 to 7 inch bass/mid driver, they'd be able to offer a more well-rounded sonic character. But I guess that's why Silverline sells other, more costly speakers.

I think an obvious hint would be that the supreme version has real wood veneer whereas the earlier ones had vinyl covered cabinets.

Perhaps system matching is important, as may of the compliments praise the bass and volume of sound coming from such a small speaker, not just the usual sounds good with jazz and vocal comments that you hear every time a new mini monitor gets well reviewed.

It is possible that the Minuets are just another good monitor with some good reviews - there are many - but hoping they had some genuine magic about the design, especially because they are so small.

My EPOS ELS3's were played for about 30 minutes before I put them back in the box and in storage.

Cwlondon, The Minuets were stacked vertically and the speaker on top was inverted. I never really listened to the solo set of Minuets so I can really comment about their sound.

If you are interested in the whats and whys of stacked Minuets you might call Alan. BTW, I listened in the near field with lots of space around them. I don't know if these speakers would drive a mid to large size room. But what I heard was balanced and very very good.

Of course system matching with any good speaker/room is essential and you can't get 20hz, 30hz, or even flat 40hz bass for free. It costs bigger bucks and bigger speakers/drivers. That's life. :-)

I heard these at the 2007 Stereophile Show in NYC and I thought they were excellent sounding speakers and offered tremendous value. If the Merlins and Harbeths of the world are beyond your budget the Minuets should be given very serious consideration.

Guppy,

In your opinion, are the Merlins and Harbeths better, albeit more expensive?