Ref. 3a , GMA & Tyler compare ?

I've never heard the Ref. 3a or Tylers, but I own a pair of Callistos. Back when I was auditioning "bookshelf" speakers I went to as many places I could to audition. B&W, Paradym, Von schweikerts, used Revel M20s, a few others I can't remember. All sounded very nice and I'm not trying to rag on any of these companies. I was lucky enough though to have a friend with a pair of GMA Europas, which I had not even heard of before. I don't know much about describing the differences, but it was not subtle. Granted, I listened to them in a home set up, but they were definitely not paired with what I would call great equip, nor set up in well dampened room etc. IMO the audio shops had better amps, sources, and cables etc. than my friend. That sold me on GMA. I found a demo pair of Callistos and haven't looked back. I still feel after a year or so, that I made the right choice. I suggest you try as hard as possible to audition a GMA product before buying anything. You may or may not like them, but they're definitely worth it to try them out!

Saki70,

Newbee is correct. I'm speaking of the Tyler Taylo Reference Monitors, not the Linbrook. I think this is a fair comparaison as the retail price is similar.

BTW, the tweeter in the DeCapo sure looks a lot like the one in the Tylers. I don't know the brand or model, but the do look similar. The Reference 3A mid/bass driver is proprietary and has gotten excellent reviews over the years. They use this same driver in their $4500+ speakers too. It is basically responsible for the R3A sound. Many would consider it a step up from the driver used in the Tylers.

My room is irregular in shape, but the main part of the room is about 12'X 15' with a ceiling height ranging from 6.5' to 7'. My listening seat is nearly centered in the room and the tweeters are about 7' from my ears. The front of the speaker is 31" from the wall behind the speaker. The speakers are nearly 7' apart measured at the tweeter. Speakers are on 24" stands putting the tweeter at about 3" below ear level in my setup.

I have not heard the Linbrooks or any GMA speakers, so I can't comment on them. I can tell you that the DeCapos can be successfully paired with almost any amplifier in a room the size of yours. They will also have plenty of bass and not require a subwoofer for most people.

The potential saving on amplification, along with the typical price of a pair of used DeCapos makes them a great bargain. Mine are the non-i model which sell for about $1000 for a nice pair.

Enjoy,

TIC

>> 05-17-06: Newbee
>> Contrary to what Bombaywalla sez (and I don't note that
>> he sez he has actually listened to Linbrooks)...

Just to clear the record, Newbee, I "ASKED" - there is a "?" at the end of that statement I wrote in my post. If you missed it, read my orig post again.
If you want to have a discussion (& not an argument!) then quote people the correctly rather than twisting their words to the derogatary.

Bombaywalla,

Sorry I caused you offense, however I thought your statement about the Linbrooks implied that you had heard them and that you found them soft and warm - then tried to create an anology to tube amps from the 70's and 80's. I find it easy to avoid such ambiguity by simply saying right up front, as I did in this post, that I have or haven't listened to a speaker. There are too many folks commenting on stuff they have never heard, let alone hearing it under controlled circumstances where in reasonable conclusions could be drawn.

That you find the Calisto's not to be bright as described by Drsaid could be 1) that they are not bright, 2) that you have heard them with amplification which was carefully chosen to reveal them at their best, or that you heard them in a room for which they were carefully chosen, or far more likely you just like their sound and find that sound to be ideal.

Recommending them based on you personal opinion is fine as well, but IMHO drawing conclusions, whether or not you put a ? mark at the end of your sentence, about what the sound of another speaker may be, is not. It can easily lead folks astray.

First off, the GMAs are not "bright" sounding speakers IMO. They are *more* bright than the Linbrooks, however.

The Linbrooks are not "warm tubey sounding" speakers either. They are warmish but they are rare in the way that they don't mask the detail of the music. They are also incredibly fast and dynamic.

As for the question as to whether the guy auditioning with me bought the GMAs... The answer is "no." That said, he definitely liked them plenty (as did I). Like I said, it all comes down to individual tastes.

Good luck,

---Dave