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Home demo. ProAc D48R and Spendor D9

I am in the process of a home demo. of the ProAc D48R and Spendor D9 from different dealers.
The ProAc guy says it is well run in and the Spendor guy says only about 90 hours on them.

First off, love the D48R so far, midrange to die for & the bass, lots of bass, perhaps a tad too much. Not sure yet, vocals , treble from that ribbon is exceptional.
The Spendor in comparison is not bad at all, I think a bit better definition in the bass, not as full as D48R , seems just as deep, but more tuneful to me. The midrange is OK , it seems to lag behind the ProAc only just. The upper midrange/treble to me is a bit of a let down. For example acoustic guitar seems slightly less crisp, less involving compared to the ProAc.

Question for any D9 owners out there, how long did they take to fully run in ? I assume I am not hearing now what their final run in sound will be like. Will the midrange/ treble open up more, like D48R more, or is the ProAc ribbon tweeter that much better ?
seadog77
itzhak1969
515 posts
 
There is no perfect speakers ,there are some strengths points for D48 that are better than the D9 and there are some strengths for the D9 that are better than the D48 , There's always compromise when choosing the right speakers for you.
From what you are describing I think the D9 integrated better than the D48 in your listening space.
seadog77 OP
15 posts
 
I’ll be purchasing the Spendor D9.
It is just a better speaker in my room, with my system and my music taste. 

The ProAc is still clearly a very fine speaker, however I just preferred the D9 for my needs.
kalali's avatar
kalali
1,977 posts
 
Sorry if I missed it but what preamp/amp are you using during the comparison?
seadog77 OP
15 posts
 
Naim Audio 252/300.
And I think I was premature with the recent post. The D9 is still running in, today it sounded pretty thin and all bass/ treble. Today the D48R was clearly better.

Very frustrating to try and get a take on which will suit my needs better in the long run.
itzhak1969
515 posts
 
I personally prefer the D48 with the correct acustic treatment you can tune the bass properly . it’s clear that the D9 integrated better in your space but you prefer the D48 sound. Very frostrated indeed...
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