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Top monitors 3K - 6K range

Hello all,

I am looking into some flagship monitors and I'd like some help/recommendations. I don't have a single sound I like and my tastes in music are pretty diverse too. Currently I have a few nice speakers including Harbeth SHL-5, B&W 805N, Magnepan 1.6 and PSB Imagine B. These speakers are all pretty different and I do like them all. I have owned Sonus Faber Cremona Auditor M which somehow did not do it for me, amazing imaging but a little thick. Also I have had the Merlin TSM MMI which was great but my amplification is SS which seems to cause some restrictions.

My room is 12x16, speakers on the short wall. I do tend to like a slightly warm sounds but I also love dynamics, pinpoint imaging and sexy looking cabinets.

I am currently looking into:

B&W 805D
Totem Mani 2 Signature
Dynaudio C1
Focal Micro Be
Usher BE-718
Volent VL-2
Evolution MMMicroOne

Any recommendations? Am I missing anything?
128x128michaelkingdom
johnnyb53
3,510 posts
 
Sounds to me like the Dynaudio C1 is the one to get--the easiest to live with, as it has the most seamless top-to-bottom coherency, realistic midrange, and no single frequency range that calls attention to itself as you get with the Usher beryllium tweeter. Over time these features that "stick out" distract you from the music. I suspect that with the Ushers it would be all about the tweeter. With the Dynaudios it would be about the music.
shsohis
119 posts
 
Joseph Audio Pulsar gets my vote.
yashu's avatar
yashu
196 posts
 
Great post Michael. Especially enjoyed your feelings on the C1, and I do agree.

Have had mine MKII, for a few months replacing Proac response 2.5. I was amazed how a monitor could sound this impressive especially replacing a floor stander. Proac was also a wonderful sound, but I think I am enjoying these quite a bit.

Must admit did have to get accustomed to the change after so many years living with the "British sound".

Louis
michaelkingdom's avatar
michaelkingdom OP
153 posts
 
I purposely left out which speakers I kept because I didn't want it to affect the way that I was describing the sounds. In the end, I did end up keeping the Focals simply for the fact that I like the way they sounded more. All analysis aside, they just fit better the type of listening that I do. The C1 is perhaps the statistical winner in my comparison but that was derived from listening habits that were outside of my normal path. On a regular day, with my normal habits the Focals are a much better fit. I find it amazing that the BE tweeter is not considered legendary because to me it is the single most dynamic driver I've ever heard - yet...

I am thinking of trying out some 805Ds to see how they match up.
kzhtoo
222 posts
 
Thanks for the unbiased, insightful and intimate review, Michael. I enjoy reading it. It deserves a new thread.
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