Reference 3A DECapo "BE" spk a major upgrade??

Sunnyjim I would only say this, first off I've never heard the Decapo i's so can offer no opinion. Second I have read pros and cons for the BE over the original tweeter. So you are probably going to get many different opinions and different conclusions that you will only be left to draw your own by listening there is no other way.I WILL say this, that I found the speaker to be a bit bright when I first heard it which I felt quite confident to be break-in related which was borne out. I auditioned in home for 3 weeks before committing, I have a very flexible dealer :).The Decapo BE can play BIG with remarkable bass for a stand mounted speaker. I am speaking of large scale orchestral music in a large room. They really are quite remarkable in this respect. I have listened with 4 different amplifiers and 4 different pre-amplifiers all with good results and a few combos with spectacular results. I have a subwoofer in the wings but have not felt compelled to try it such is the bass although truth be told, I'm not a bass freak. Very natural presentation and IMO a superb value, YMMV as always.

I DO have a friend that has a pair of L'Integral with the Corian front baffle, purchased used after he heard the Decapos in my place. There ARE differences in the tweeters that are noticable. I find the Decapo BE are more open and transparent than his L'Integrals, with similar coherence and the house sound. Imaging goes to the Decapos as well. The L'Integrals, a floor stander, go lower in the bass. I expect much of the added transparency is related to the BE tweeter. I wouldn't pay much attention to a listening impression derived from a brief showroom audition. Ideally you would like to hear a pair broken in, it takes time.

Tubegroover. Thank you for the comments; they are very helpful and useful.

I recently communicated with Reference about dealers in SoCal area, but they have none, but offer a thirty day in home trial. That is nice, but if you return the speakers to them, you are responsible for roundtrip shipping cost!!

I am sure, after they broke in, they would sound as fine as advertised, but I could also lose $150-$200 in shipping costs from Los Angeles to SOMEWHERE, Ontario should I return them. To their credit, they ship them to customers for free.

Despite this thread, I am beginning to lean toward the Golden Ear Technology model 7 which is $1400 per pair and offers a lot of sonic value; they are also small and relatively light to move around. Another contender is the new Magneplanar .7 also at $1400 a pair........However, who am I kidding, I never met a pair of Maggies that were NOT a pain in the ass to set-up, and also were finicky about electronics. Thanks....SJ

Well it seems you have locked in on a couple of highly regarded speakers Sunnyjim. I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for. I hear you about the Maggies. I DO like them very much but they are fussier indeed. I am also very curious about the Golden Ear lineup particularly at their price point. Good luck and happy hunting!