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Atth: Rega Ara owners

To all the Rega Ara (or even R1) owners, I wonder if you'd please give me your mini 'review' of the sound characteristics of these relatively inexpensive speakers. This question stems from another thread I started in the Digital section regarding kit upgrading in which i gleaned some good information from posters. I am, however, still last-minute debating what purchase direction i should take, as i will be buying used (ie. no return; hate reselling items).

Having said that, in my setup at the moment, the Aras, although fast speakers, seem a little thin in the lower midrange/upper bass. They are not particularly airy sounding speakers, but have relatively good upper frequency response, given their modest cost. They seem somewhat veiled in the midrange, but still have a good boogie factor (they're quick; they bounce nicely to the music, for lack of a better description at the moment).

This, of couse, is how they sound in my system. I would like to hear from other ARA owners on what they feel the speaker's character is. This might help me establish a better baseline from which to decide on what to replace at the moment (cd player or speakers).

Your help is always appreciated.
loose
loose OP
239 posts
 
No ARA owners out there?
rar1's avatar
rar1
1,771 posts
 
Hi Loose:

I have owned the Rega Aras for two plus years. I purchased two NOS pairs from Arcadia Audio and used them in two separate secondary systems ... one system driven by a tube integrated (Prima Luna P2 with a Rega Apollo CD player) and one system driven by an Outlaw RR2150 solid state, 2 channel receiver and Cambridge Audio Azur 540 DVD player. Speaker cables for both systems were QED Anniversary XT.

I found the Aras to be musically coherent small speakers and not particularly deficient in any one area. They work best in small rooms and near walls. The amount of bass was more than I expected from such a small speaker. Pleasant sounding speakers that have a nice sense of warmth and detail to them. You are right that the speakers have a good boogie factor.

Two months months ago, I decided to do a major upgrade with my Prima Luna PL2 based system and I purchased a pair of Spendor A1 speakers. Big upgrade ... improves on all the good points of the Aras, especially with vocals. This is not a criticism though of the Aras ... the Spendors cost 6X as much.

What is your system set-up and what are the Aras doing/not doing?

Regards, Rich
loose OP
239 posts
 
Rich,

I drive them w/ a modified sugden A48b with a rotel 971 cd player. MIT interconnects (for now) and Ecosse speaker cables.

There is also an inexpensive Energy sub in the picture, but it's not always being put to use. I have it connected via speaker cable; the speakers are running full range and when i use the sub, i have it set to a 70 hz or so at the crossover. (I often turn the sub off, depending on the music).

What I'm noticing is that there is not enough 'air' or sense of space and the midrange is a bit veiled. HF could extend a little further...Also, the lower midrange is sort of thin.

so, I want:
more midrange clarity
more body in the lower midrange
more sense of air/ space
more HF extension.
a bit more punch

The amp is warm and robust sounding. Not the last word in resolution, but it does everything reasonably well. Despite its modest power rating, it is able to drive most speakers to which i've had it connected quite well. Not sure about the sensitivity of the Monitor Audio GS20, but the amp had them running pretty nicely at a local audio store.

Beyond that, the CD player, from my own experience, is a bit 'blasé'. It's a bit dry sounding, flat even. The treble can be a bit edgy and the bass is there, but does not have the best definition. Boring-sounding CD player. It's more or less neutral and DOES have a black background; it's just not 'exciting' like some other players.

Having said that, the CD has done well for me in higher end systems, the most recent of which was a Unico integrated and pair of Neat Mystiques. It also did well when i had a Bryston 4B st, a Nakamichi pre and a pair of NHT 2.5i (not to mention a whole slew of other speakers and amps). Therefore, despite its shortcomings, i do not believe the CD player is the biggest issue at hand.

thoughts?

Stephen
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