Thiel Owners

devinplombier

If you have the space and amps then the CS5i will be a great purchase. 

I only clipped the amp on certain tracks that was bass heavy. I was testing my room boundaries so I was playing at a higher db than normal but still not extreme. 

I was using the Pass XA 200.5 on CS 5i . With the 7.2 the XA 200.5 drives that speaker wherever they may want to go. Unfortunately your Classé monoblocks will not be sufficient. They will sound constricted like a horse blanket was draped over them. 

From my experience, the Big Krell FPB series is the way to go with the CS 5i. They come up now and then that have been recapped with service papers. These are the mono amps you want to grab. You will not hear what the CS5i are capable without amps with dynamic head room that push lots of current. I'm speaking from experience once you hear the bottom end of the CS5i there is no going back. It is effortless in the lower register. Not saying the mids/highs are not pleasant. I signal the bass out as there are not many speakers that can go this low and to have the definition the CS5i have. 

Tom told me he believed, after almost 40 years of being introduced to the marketplace, there is not a sealed speaker cabinet that goes lower than the CS5i.

I've been to a few audio sows these past few months, the last was Capitalfest, and there isnt a speaker under 60k Ive heard that I think could replace the CS 5i and I could happily live with. 

When Tom and Thiel Renaissance are underway, and the CS5i comes up for revisions that will be a great day. 

I have two pair. Authentic Brazilian Rosewood which the wood cost more than what the speakers sell for, and black walnut. 

The front baffles are incredible. Speaker over 100k do not have the quality and performance of the CS5i baffles. Maybe Tom can jump in and share his insight. 

Recently I had two well seasoned members come over for a listen on separate occasions. I played the tracks they wanted to hear first so they had their baseline.

Going through a selected playlist I complied of 6-7 tacks i watched them with a confused look on their faces, No words exchanged until the audition was over regarding what they heard. 

When the audition concluded the adjectives that were used by both listeners on different occasions were siimilar. Skipping the audiophile jargon both said it felt like they were in the crowd for a live performance. Thats a mic drop moment as anything else committed doesnt hold weight. 

So CS5i are as hard to drive as big Apogees? How low do they dip?

Amp designs vary greatly in this area and likewise does the nature of the sonic malaise.Amp designs vary greatly in this area and likewise does the nature of the sonic malaise.

Sonic malaise, what a great phrase :)

Some Apogees (Scintillas?) were basically one-ohm loads with dips down to .5 ohm if I recall.

It sounds like CS-5 are difficult to drive in the low frequencies. Are they bi-ampable?

What amps did the Thiel factory use?

devinplombier

What size listening room do you have? Ceilings? 

I'll share a story with you.

in 2001-2002 I went to Nashville to Nichals to audition the CS 7.2. They had them mated with McIntosh Killowatt amps. The salesman was conservative with the volume. I gave him a CD I brought and asked for the remote.

Once track was playing I hit the volume so it was playing at a decent volume around 92-95db. About 30 seconds in the red light started flashing on the McIntosh amps as they were clipping. 

I politely thanked the saleman for his time and left. From this dealer I went straight to Thiel in Lexington. I listened to the same Cs 7.2 but this time with Krell FPB 700 CX amp.It was a completely different sounding speaker. 

Lesson,  the amps are crucial with the big Thiels. 

My reason to push the speakers and get currentt through them is to know the amp is up to the task and if I have enough dynamic headroom to handle transient peaks.