Thiel 2.7 VS 3.7???

Do it! I had the chance, and to make a long story short, I bought the CS3.7. I am gonna cut and paste what I wrote in a Thiel thread in another forum. if you've been researching online, you've probably seen this already.

Went to my closest Thiel dealer few weeks (still an hour away) to hear the new CS2.7, I was hoping to trade in my CS2.4 and get the new CS2.7 for under $5k out the door. Maybe my expectations were too high, or they were just not totally broken in yet. I was expecting them to perform like the CS3.7 with only slightly less deep bass. The CS2.7 sounded just OK, but I was not totally blown away. I am sure I might be able to hear the improvements if I A/B a pr of CS2.7 next to a pr of CS2.4, but it would be an expensive lateral move, not an upgrade I was looking for. Then I heard the CS3.7, it has that same Thiel house sound that I love and sounded a lot better, wider soundstage, better imaging, midrange is fuller, bass sounded with much more authority and obviously deeper extension. The dealer than told the demo pr are over 2yr old that still have the cast aluminum dome top, where as Thiel made a change 2yrs ago, all newer ones are now using stiff composite plastic instead, because Thiel can’t line up the metal dome perfectly with the wooden cabinet. Can someone verify newer CS3.7s don’t have the metal dome top anymore? I still see Thiel lists the top as being metal on their website. Anyway, maybe business was really slow or he really wanted to get rid of the demo, we worked out a deal that I can’t say no to, so I am now a proud owner of my dream speaker in amber wood finish.

I auditioned both the 2.7 and 3.7 at a local dealer while I was shopping for speakers. Both had a very similar tonal character but I thought the 3.7 was the much better speaker. It was more open and transparent, and sounded less congested on complex musical passages. The 3.7 also had slightly more extended low bass response, but the difference was not huge. Both were auditioned in the same listening room with the same electronics. I know there is a significant price difference between the two speakers, but in this case you get what you pay for.

I can offer an opinion;
Recently, I had th epleasure of comparing the CS 2.4SE & the CS 3.7 at the same dealer/same day of demo.

The CS 3.7 is outstanding in every way, but, you will need a room of 20x20, 25x25...etc. The 3.7 will only shine is a very large space, as it needs that room, to open up.

The CS 2.4SE is the same kind of outstanding, only a smaller scale.

I don't know where the "congested" reference pops up from, must be the room or something? My 2.7's are the polar opposite from congested?? Super transparent & open at all volumes. Nothing but ultra clarity is what I get. It's all about the room & setup I guess. I would never even want to upgrade from the 2.7 to the 3.7 if I heard any congestion or muffling or anything even remotely close to that. I have owned hundreds of speakers and have heard congestion & muddiness & darkness etc...etc... Thiel 2.7's are not that for sure. They did sound a little like that during break in, but not at all after. That did take 500 + hours though.

Let me elaborate on what I meant by the 2.7's sounding "congested". First of all, my comment said it was congested on "complex musical passages". Specifically I'm referring to large scale orchestral music. The resolution of individual instruments in an orchestra is better on the 3.7's. The 3.7's simply handle this kind of material better without sounding strained or congested, probably because its dynamic range performance is superior. But that's what you are paying more for.

I should repeat that I listened to both the 2.7 and 3.7 in the same room with the same electronics, so those variables should be mostly eliminated in comparing the two speakers.

It is possible that there was something wrong with the particular pair of 2.7's I auditioned, but I can only report what my ears heard. I'm guessing that if you really like your 2.7's, then you will absolutely love the 3.7's. I do also agree with one of the comments already made that the 3.7's really need a larger room to "bloom".