I have Harbeth 30.1’s and they sound beautiful. In fact the big complaint about them is that they lack bass. Maybe so but I am not a big fan of bloated bass either. I am 63 and these are awesome speaker. I do have a small REL sub (T-5) hooked up when I feel like I might need a little more bass to round out the system. These are incredible speakers. Mine are set up in a small 9 foot by 12 foot room and the bass is not boomy at all. Ina bigger room like yours those speaker will really shine and definitely not have too much bass. The mids and highs are incredible and what I really am a fan of. I forgot to say I have Dynaudio X12's and Dynaudio Contour 1.1's. While both of these are great speakers the Harbeth is much better. The Dynaudio Contour 1.1's do not have the clarity in the mids and highs as the X12's. They are more boomy in my small room and why I went with the Harbeth.
Speakers for aging audiophiles - What's with today bass emphasis ?
I'd love to pick your brains on a issue and possibly a suggestion
My system has 2 sources, a Logitech transporter and Thorens 126 MKIII / SME / Supex. Ampli recently changed to a Musical Fidelity M6si. My listening is 80% streaming and 20% vinyl. It's mostly classic and prog rock but also acoustic jazz and classic chamber music.
I have an issue with my current speakers setup: Dynaudio BM6 passive.
I have been using those for some months now and find that while they are satisfying in terms of scene, detail, resolution they are exceedingly strong in the bass (say 50 to 200 Hz) and not adequately balanced in the middle / treble, say from 1k Hz up. It seems as though the bass player stand in front with a big amplifier and everyone else is back in the stage.
I have changed the amplifier to the Musical Fidelity but while I am happy with that I did not see much change in respect to the issue I am describing.
I relate this issue to 2 causes:
1. Today's recordings emphasizes the bass unrealistically. Let me just give you an example. I recently bought Steve Wilson remix of Marillion "Misplaced Childhood". Great work. The mix is shining but compared to the old vinyl I have got you get this feeling of too much bass. Bass quality is great, well defined, solid, no complain but just too much of a good thing.
2. I am ageing, over 60 now. It is well know that as you age your sensitivity to the high frequencies falls down
Given those factors I'd like to change speakers to get something that:
- Is very open on the highs
- It's very analytical
- Does not over emphasize basses
- Bookshelf
- Ballpark cost 2 - 2.5 K
Can anyone make suggestions ? I was inclined to the Harbeths M30 but read several blogs where they say they do emphasize the bass. Maybe Dynaudio Special or Focus ? How about Totem Sky ?
I don't mind spending a few more bucks to get what I want / need.
Thanks a lot everyone.
Mark.
My system has 2 sources, a Logitech transporter and Thorens 126 MKIII / SME / Supex. Ampli recently changed to a Musical Fidelity M6si. My listening is 80% streaming and 20% vinyl. It's mostly classic and prog rock but also acoustic jazz and classic chamber music.
I have an issue with my current speakers setup: Dynaudio BM6 passive.
I have been using those for some months now and find that while they are satisfying in terms of scene, detail, resolution they are exceedingly strong in the bass (say 50 to 200 Hz) and not adequately balanced in the middle / treble, say from 1k Hz up. It seems as though the bass player stand in front with a big amplifier and everyone else is back in the stage.
I have changed the amplifier to the Musical Fidelity but while I am happy with that I did not see much change in respect to the issue I am describing.
I relate this issue to 2 causes:
1. Today's recordings emphasizes the bass unrealistically. Let me just give you an example. I recently bought Steve Wilson remix of Marillion "Misplaced Childhood". Great work. The mix is shining but compared to the old vinyl I have got you get this feeling of too much bass. Bass quality is great, well defined, solid, no complain but just too much of a good thing.
2. I am ageing, over 60 now. It is well know that as you age your sensitivity to the high frequencies falls down
Given those factors I'd like to change speakers to get something that:
- Is very open on the highs
- It's very analytical
- Does not over emphasize basses
- Bookshelf
- Ballpark cost 2 - 2.5 K
Can anyone make suggestions ? I was inclined to the Harbeths M30 but read several blogs where they say they do emphasize the bass. Maybe Dynaudio Special or Focus ? How about Totem Sky ?
I don't mind spending a few more bucks to get what I want / need.
Thanks a lot everyone.
Mark.
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- 97 posts total
First let me say I've been in the audio business with a brick and mortar facility for over 40 years offering clients outstanding choices for speakers at all price points. We continue to provide a state of the art environment for auditioning speakers which also serves as our home base for custom design and installation. Most of what you're reading here is misinformation offering little meaningful input towards you goal of finding a nice pair of speakers for your system.
Disregard comments like "the only good two way speaker is a 3 way speaker" which is absolutely ridiculous. Find a local dealer who can offer you an opportunity to do some real listening. A dealer that does more listening (to you) than talking. Take along music with which you are familiar. Ask for the possibility of an in home demonstration. Look for well established speaker manufacturers with significant R&D resources. Do your homework but most of all trust YOUR ears. |
Banyanbull, good points you have made. I used to sell high end audio and more often than not people's tastes in speakers varies. There was not many 100% conclusions on which was best. There were many times I would be surprised on what a customer would prefer, you just won't know until you listen. Don't worry about what others think too much, a lot of good input to consider but in the end your ears will be the final arbitrator. . |
vtvmtodvm LP discs are the product of a 1948 compromise that traded fidelity for ...Every engineered product is the result of compromise. The CD is the product of a compromise that traded high frequencies for the cost benefit. CDs convey a dynamic range > 30 dB better than vinyl ...In theory, that’s possible. In practice, rarely. In fact, newly released LPs often have greater dynamic range than their CD counterparts. ... sealed speakers will provide a smoother and more natural bass falloff than ported reflex speakers, but they won’t extend as deeply.Not necessarily. You might want to give a listen to something like an Infinity IRS Beta system before you insist sealed speakers don’t reproduce LF as well as ported. It’s all about the implementation. |
- 97 posts total