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Magico S5 vs KEF Blade 2 vs TAD Evo One vs YG Kipod II Sig w/pwr bass

Opinions please. All are Used and are the same very good price but The Y&G are $4000 less which is nice.

KEF Blade 2

TAD Evolution One

Y&G Kipod II Signature w/Pwr Bass module

Magico S5


Would love your thoughts any thoughts on any please! Being all used and in good shape these are all within $500 of each other used price but Y&G and those had highest list but know to be good used deals because they are pretty serious speakers.

I think as far as used speakers in the great value - now less than 1/2 price but still new enough to provide great performance these are some different but pretty serious speakers. Please any and all feedback totally welcomed and is super helpful 

Source: Bricasti M1SE DAC 

Preamp: Parasound JC2 Pre

Amp: Pass Labs X350.5 Amp

IC: Darwin TRUTH Balanced

SC: HiDiamond D8 w/Furutech

PC: HiDiammond P3 (7)

AC: HiDiamond HDX2 

Transport: microRendu 1.4 and full suite of UpTone Audio Premium Power Supplies (2)x LPS-1 and (1) JS-2 LPS - (2) Regens - ISO and Amber and custom Canare DC cables for all / Tellarium Q Black Diamond USB cable and Curious Regen Link

Room is 12 x 23 w/Cathedral Ceilings - 15 Foot a peak 

Music: Assorted Music no metal or loud hard rock anymore really - not much Large Scale classical either but everything else.

Likes: Transparency- Delicate-linear-Dynamic-Fast - high resolution-microscope but not sterile not etched or lifeless - I know there is a fine Line here but I'm looking to walk it and come out on the right side - but real see through into the music - transparent to the source because I love my DAC - there more everything else sound more like my DAC the closer I'm getting to where I want to go as close as possible - image and sound stage lover - tight bass - hate flab - like speed and transparency as my selection choices might speak to

Coming from: Rethm Saadhana V3 speakers which I love and are incredible but want to try something else. 

Love any feedback about matching or equipment matching or one or multiple of these - what you heard at shows or whatever. Love more Info on these.









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kenm10759's avatar
kenm10759
37 posts
 
That larger room is what the Blade needs to sing. And man, they do. Like no other speaker I've heard, when they have the space around them is where they work best and have a remarkable ability to project the most defined soundstage I've ever heard. Depth and width of the soundstage is just uncanny. When I heard the Blade in a smaller room it just wasn't right, and that's where the Blade 2 did better. Both are a critical speaker in that if you have poor quality recordings, you'll know it.

shadorne's avatar
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shadorne
7,477 posts
 
@csmgolf

Good points! I agree with you.

Yes these small changes which are usually attributed to spider compliance are well known. Should the spider dominate the in box designed response - probably not on a good design?

So what seems not to be well understood is that an excellent driver and box design will be quite insensitive to spider compliance. A poor speaker and drive design will be sensitive to the spider compliance. It has a lot to do with the acoustic suspension (which dominates) and the power of the drive motor (magnet and coil diameter).

20 hours sounds about right for most of the break-in to have occurred on some drivers like the $30 one you referred to. I am confident Magico would use much higher spec and commensurately more expensive drivers.

An analogy is towing a trailer. A large diesel truck with a poweful 5 liter motor is not going to be as sluggish towing a trailor as a small gasoline van. In this case the higher torque perfornance of the truck makes the impact of the trailer mass less influential.
csmgolf
897 posts
 
If you read the text, the test was conducted using 40 hertz test tone at a power level to achieve half of x-max. Playing a signal like that will break in the spider at a much greater rate than any music signal that any person would listen to. And still, all of those drivers were showing changes at 80 hours, though they were decreasing at every interval. How many hours of music playing would it take to achieve the same thing? I am not sure, but my guess would be significantly more than that. If you also read in the first link, the responses by the manufacturers state that this happens with all woofers. They make no exception, cheap or not. The Scanspeak 8545 is notorious for this very behavior. It is $175 per driver, so not exactly cheap and it is an excellent sounding driver. One of my current speakers is Meadowlark Shearwater Hot Rod, uses this driver and it sounds terrific within its limits. Every comment I have ever read on those speakers states a long break in time for that driver. It is not because the box is poorly designed. Bad assumption. Also note in the first link that the electrical Q changes throughout the course of the break in. Not just mechanical changes. Both manufacturers said that his measurements are what they see when they measure drivers. There are far too many people that experience the same thing to just dismiss it out of hand as their ears getting used to the sound or blaming it on poor design. 
fsmithjack's avatar
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fsmithjack OP
712 posts
 
Kenm10759 - I thought long and hard about the Blades before pulling the trigger on the Magico's. What size room is yours. I was thinking my room might work but thought it might on the verge of being too small. Your hearing them in both too small and one much better is good stuff. What sizes where they approx? Thanks 
shadorne's avatar
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shadorne
7,477 posts
 
@fsmithjack 

If you review my comments you will see they are not a personal attack but entirely suggestions and responses to factual assertions by yourself who claims, "Houston" we have a problem.

I don't recall suggesting you get ATC speakers, as I dont think that would have been at all helpful on my part. So how this has become "the real matter at hand" in your mind is entirely your viewpoint which I don't share. I don't have a problem with your opinions about ATC. They are indeed the wrong speaker to purchase if you intend to flip them after a year or two. You certainly make a good point there.



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