Considering Wilson or Sonus Faber floor standing over my Rockport monitors & Wisdom Sub

Whoa Mark, you are really all over the map here. In the last 5 days you have asked about changing your amplifier, and then phono stage to help try and solve a noise/gain issues. And now you're looking at changing speakers.

I think you would be best served to step back, take a breath, and address this whole thing more logically. I believe that on the one thread we seemed to narrow down the culprit to your Whest phono stage, correct?
I think the best thing to do is to send the Whest back to England for a thorough checkup. Maybe not what you want to hear, but then that is something we all have to consider when buying gear, the service aspect.

As for speakers, you are still all over the map. Wilson and Sonus Faber could hardly be more different from each other. Wilson is very resolving, while Sonus Faber is very musical.

When changing directions, it helps to know which direction you want to head in.
One does not simply say "I want to move, should I move west or east?".
You'll get more helpful advice if you choose the direction.
Say "I want to move west of Omaha, where would you recommend?".

It's understandable to be frustrated with your system when things are not sounding the way you would like them to. Patience will serve you well in the end though. Just buying a whole new system may not resolve your issues, especially if the root cause winds up being grounding issues.
Speaking of which, did you try lifting the ground on your Whest?

Cheers,
John

Listen to the Wilson speakers (both Sophia and Sasha) to get a better idea of their "sound". These are a natual sonic match for ARC gear.

I still remember hearing an ARC Ref5SE w/ ARC/Bryston power amps and Transparent cable systems. Very nice sound and presentation indeed!

John,

Good observation!  But there is an explanation to my craziness.

The amp change option was simply a testament to my open mindedness at solving a problem.  In fact, I am very pleased to be keeping my ARC gear.  The search for the noise in my system was very educational.  I did try lifting the ground to no effect.  Dealing with Whest was great, the CEO contacted me personally and gave me a potential solution that will allow me to make an internal adjustment without sending to the UK for service.  I'll be working on that soon.

The noise issue is not related to speakers.  The noise search was simply to remove a small problem.  The monitors to floor standers is a potential movement towards a dramatic evolution in my system that I would like to try.  If it doesn't happen, no big deal, but the timing may be right as I see several wilsons available in my price range, and virtuality no used Rockports on the market may allow mine to sell well.

Having never owned them, I have long since desired a significant pair of floor standers in my system, and when I saw that I can make a relatively cash neutral move to a watt puppy 7, sophia II, I became curious.  I have always admired the beauty of the Cremona M and the newer incarnation, the Olympica III.

I do understand very well that these speakers are from two very different design philosophies, and that is the point of this thread.  As I am in the 2nd hand market, auditions are challenging.  Though my local Best Buy Magnolia has the SF  Olympica III hooked up to a 75 watt Mac tube amp, and I found a dealer with a used pair of watt puppy 7's not too far from me, so I will be able to listen to them both soon.

So, after this explanation, I would love to hear your thoughts on such a speaker change!


JWM,

I would love to buy a larger Rockport, but alas, they are rare on the 2nd hand market and expensive!  My Mira Monitors may go up for sale, just in case you know anyone!


Audio Troy,

My musical taste is very eclectic.  Blues, Jazz, Vocal, Classic Rock, Contemporary Rock, Electronic, Hip Hop, Classical, Folk. I basically listen to about everything out there with the exception of contemporary mass market country, and heart throb teen pop.  Wilsons have a mystique of hard core quality and innovation that I have always admired. The fact that so many reviewers lose their minds over them, and how Audio Research uses them to evaluate their own gear has me thinking that it would be hard to go wrong with Wilsons.  My mother in law has a pair of Wilson's and a stack of Krell - imagine how well the first visit to her house went for me!  I love that woman!!  My budget is $6500 - $8000.  The SF speakers appeal to me in the way I am drawn to tube gear.  I like the idea of the lush musicality that people speak of and I love the design ( I am a very visual person).

But as of yet, I have not heard any floor standing wilsons or SF.  If you had to add one or two speakers in this price and class, what would you suggest?

Thanks !

Thank you for the explanation Mark. Good luck with the Whest, hopefully it is a easy fix that a simple phone call can resolve.

I understand your logic in thinking of moving from monitors to full range speakers. This would also seem to equate to doubling your amp power as most of the speakers you are looking at are more efficient than the Rockports.

Given your desire to stay with the ARC gear, I would recommend the Sonus Faber speakers, as I think you would get a more balanced sound. Your ARC gear tends to be very revealing, Wilson speakers also tend to be very revealing. That combo may work if you insert some warmer, musical cables/cords (like the Transparent that jafant mentions). However, I would think that the more musical sound of Sonus Faber speakers would mate nicely with the high resolution of the ARC electronics.

As always, YMMV. Happy Hunting!