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Any monitors clearly better than Pulsars?

After some recent amp and preamp upgrades, I'm wondering if it's possible to push further on my speakers.

Right now, I'm running Joseph Audio Pulsars, which I enjoy thoroughly. Because I live in an apartment, floorstanders are out of the question, and I know the Pulsars are some of the best monitors around.

My question is: are there any monitors that are clearly head and shoulders above the Pulsars, which might be worth a listen? Budget-wise, I could probably go up to $12k used.

In terms of what I'm looking there, really there is nothing specific. I'd say the same about upgrading from the LS26 to the REF 5SE; I wasn't looking for anything specific there, but the 5SE is clearly better :)

That said, I'd be hoping to find a speaker that is clearly an upgrade. If any other monitor would be a minor step up, or more of a lateral move, then I'm happy standing pat with the Pulsars.
rrolack
andy2
1,534 posts
 
The Pulsar appears to be using the Seas 5.5 magnesium woofer and 1in. Millennium tweeter, both of which are some of the best off-the-shelf drivers in the world. The only woofers that offer better detail than the magnesium are probably Seas new Graphene or Accuton ceramic.  I've used the magnesium in my own speakers and they have a lot of details and lots of bass for its size.
gochurchgo
892 posts
 
What music do those of you who have Pulsars listen to? Anyone listening to hard rock or reggae or electronic?

just curious.
verdantaudio's avatar
verdantaudio
1,469 posts
 
@gochurchgo I will be using Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, New Order, Depeche Mode, Daft Punk and Shiny Toy Guns in demos at Capital Audiofest with my speakers.  The Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff tracks I have sound good but not show demo worthy.   
murphythecat
181 posts
 
no matter how refine the pulsar are, they sound small with no real bass.

Id rather own:
805 d3
Harbeth 30.2

and many others
prof
3,450 posts
 
no matter how refine the pulsar are, they sound small with no real bass.

That may certainly be your opinion, but I'd say it would be quite misleading to people curious about the Pulsars.

They are renowned for their bass output for a stand mounted speaker and for sounding bigger than they are.  People who write show reports - from reviewers to audiophiles on forums - regularly report being stunned at the "size" of the sound and bass depth.
The soundstage review, for instance, points this out:



The bass was phenomenal, and seemingly went much lower than the Pulsar’s stated low-end limit of 42Hz.
The Pulsars imaged and soundstaged better than almost any other speakers I’ve ever heard, minimonitor or floorstander. The manual indicates that the buyer should expect the soundstage to extend about a foot in front of and behind the speakers. In my room, the soundstage began just behind the Pulsars and went incredibly deep and wide; images floated entirely free of the cabinets.

Although, like most minimonitors, the Pulsars didn’t produce life-size images, what they did produce was larger than most -- maybe 80% life-size -- and, like their bass response, could fool me almost completely with some recordings.






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