I've heard the D7 and it is outstanding.
Need feedback on loudspeakers
Hello All,
I have been researching a lot about loudspeakers lately - their measurements including sensitivity, impedance, phase, etc to make sure that they match in my system. Also had a chance to listen to a couple, but yet undecided, since I am not able to listen to all of the ones I have shortlisted below. I have a very short list of criteria for the speakers:
Sensitivity more than 88db
Nominal impedance 8 ohms and minimum not dipping below 3.5 ohms
Go down to about 27-30Hz
Price range is about $7k new/used
The loudspeakers that I have short listed are:
Spendor D7
PSB Imagine T3
ProAc D30
PMC Twenty 24
Tannoy Definition DC10T
Revel F208
Focal 1038 (used)
Could also consider the following, but not sure if they would match in my system because of their nominal 4 ohms impedance:
Sonus Faber Olympica III (used)
ProAc D40R (used)
Audio Physic Scorpio 25 (used)
PMC Twenty 26 (used, but has low sensitivity)
I love speakers that have the sound image starting about 2-3 feet behind the speaker front face, throw a wide image and disappear completely. That is what my current speakers do. My room is 15 X 18 X 8 and the speakers are placed very precisely (5feet from back wall and 3 feet from side walls) to achieve this imaging. I have a few panels to tame the sound in the room. My amp is Parasound A21 and I have an excellent Promitheus TVC. Current sources are able to effectively drive the amp and the speakers, without any issues.
I have listened to PSB Imagine T3 and Audio Physic Classic 20, and found that they image per my liking.
I know I have listed too many speakers. But would love to hear from owners of these brands on the "vocal characteristic" of the loudspeakers, now that I have provided a brief explanation of my preferences. There is no denying that the best way to seek a set of speakers is to audition in person. But sometimes this is not possible. Please provide your feedback, as much as you can. Thank You in advance!
I have been researching a lot about loudspeakers lately - their measurements including sensitivity, impedance, phase, etc to make sure that they match in my system. Also had a chance to listen to a couple, but yet undecided, since I am not able to listen to all of the ones I have shortlisted below. I have a very short list of criteria for the speakers:
Sensitivity more than 88db
Nominal impedance 8 ohms and minimum not dipping below 3.5 ohms
Go down to about 27-30Hz
Price range is about $7k new/used
The loudspeakers that I have short listed are:
Spendor D7
PSB Imagine T3
ProAc D30
PMC Twenty 24
Tannoy Definition DC10T
Revel F208
Focal 1038 (used)
Could also consider the following, but not sure if they would match in my system because of their nominal 4 ohms impedance:
Sonus Faber Olympica III (used)
ProAc D40R (used)
Audio Physic Scorpio 25 (used)
PMC Twenty 26 (used, but has low sensitivity)
I love speakers that have the sound image starting about 2-3 feet behind the speaker front face, throw a wide image and disappear completely. That is what my current speakers do. My room is 15 X 18 X 8 and the speakers are placed very precisely (5feet from back wall and 3 feet from side walls) to achieve this imaging. I have a few panels to tame the sound in the room. My amp is Parasound A21 and I have an excellent Promitheus TVC. Current sources are able to effectively drive the amp and the speakers, without any issues.
I have listened to PSB Imagine T3 and Audio Physic Classic 20, and found that they image per my liking.
I know I have listed too many speakers. But would love to hear from owners of these brands on the "vocal characteristic" of the loudspeakers, now that I have provided a brief explanation of my preferences. There is no denying that the best way to seek a set of speakers is to audition in person. But sometimes this is not possible. Please provide your feedback, as much as you can. Thank You in advance!
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- 70 posts total
FWIW, I demo'd the Sonus Faber Olympica III and PSB Imagine T3 side by side and from what I heard, there is no comparison. Not that more money necessarily means a better product, but the O3 tweeter and in-house developed cross-overs, technology, construction and design truly set it apart. A local audio store helped me with the comparison. Both speakers were hooked up to Bryston amp/pre amp set up (not sure model), set at same sound settings, and played the exact same digital FLAC playlists from opera, Movie soundtracks, vocal jazz, instrumentals, rock, rap and metal. I spent about an hour with each pair. Without a doubt, the O3s had such a tremendous presence with wide soundstage, open sound, clarity and precision that the PSB just couldn't keep up with. PSB makes a good speaker, but not great when compared to these from SF. They sounded muddled and boomy, with a decided lack of depth and dimension, The vocal clarity wasn't there, and the midrange was cloudy sounding. I don't pretend to know about the technical side of sound and how to sonically compare and describe the differences--you just have to sit and compare for yourself. I owned pair of SF Venere 3.0 for about a year and a half, and knew I wanted to stay with this brand at least for now. I liked the sound of the Venere, and these were my first foray into better quality speakers. My set up is 18X15 room with furniture that acts as acoustic treatments, one James 15 inch subwoofer EMB-15 I believe, KimberKable and preamp/amp from Marantz 8801/8807. Obviously not super high-end equipment to drive these, but I want to get to know the sound with what I have first, then change things up a bit. I did end up purchasing the O3 from classified from this site (The seller, suspect1977, was tremendous by the way). I can't tell you how happy I am with these speakers--a logarithmic improvement in sound. I think the Marantz amps provide enough power, and to my ears, sound as good as I remembered the Bryston sounding. A big jump in price, but everyone has their pressure points and desire to improve just a little more...These speakers will be with me for a while, and I'll explore different amps or cables along the way. PS> If anyone cares to suggest upgraded amp/preamp pairing with these speakers, I'm all ears.:) Since I just blew a wad of cash on these speakers, lets keep the price range say 8-10K? For NEXT YEAR... |
mr_bill, Thanks for the info. I am planning to do a road trip to visit some dealers in the Chicago area where I can actually listen to the D7. In the same trip I plan to cover some ProAc and PMCs as well. cholera, Thank You for the detailed feedback between T3 and O3. I did like the O3s, though they were a bit o the warm side - nothing wrong with that. But it is their nominal impedance that bothers me. Having a TVC, I have to be very careful of matching loudspeakers in my system. It is funny that on another forum there is a post where a poster liked the T3s better than the O3s. So I feel it is a matter of preference. Hence I have decided to make the road trip to listen to as much loudspeakers as I can. Ultimately I have found that unless a dealer room is not properly treated or speakers are not correctly placed, you will not find what a loudspeaker is truly capable of. Even after listening to quite a few loudspeakers, I come home and find that my current loudspeakers do a fine job. I am sure, if I get any pair of the speakers I mention above, then they would sound fabulous in my room when I carefully take time and place them. It is the "flavor" of sound that I want to nail and settle down. I have the Parasound A21 amplifier and have been much happy with them. I recently changed ALL my cables (except power cables) to Clear Day. |
For $7K, you may be able to get into a set of the new Legacy Audio Signature HD, which uses "the same Dual Air Motion Tweeter System and 7" midrange as the Focus SE".
If you are going to Illinois, you might want to visit them in Springfield. http://legacyaudio.com/products/view/signature-se/ I have a set of the old Signature IIs from the 1990's, and it is difficult for me to go into an audio store and listen to any current speakers in that price range from Dynaudio/Sonus Faber/Focal/PSB/Revel etc., and feel like I would be upgrading very much. Last Friday, I was able to audition a set of Dynaudio 3.4 at an audio shop in Austin, and they had a better defined mid range, as they should because the Signatures have old poly woofers, but had nowhere near the bass extension of the Legacy Signature IIs. We then hooked up a set of the Sonus Faber Olympica 1, and they were ok, but I think I may prefer the Dynaudio "house sound". |
- 70 posts total