New Speaker Conundrum - Vandy's, Spendors, Salk, Ascend - Mainstream or ID


I am very lucky to be close to Audio Connection and John has outfitted my entire rig over the years. I am currently running Ares/RP-7 to M-180s - always liked Mark's designs and he/Nick are so approachable over at Rogue.

I used to run 2CE IIs for the longest time and loved them and I thought I would give ID a try and landed a pair of Double Impacts - which I love.

However, I have the upgrade itch and I am in two minds on whether I want to go back to Vandy's or look at Salk/Ascend.

I have narrowed down my list to Spendor D9s, Vandy Treo CTs, Salk Soundstage 8s and potentially the Sierra Towers. I am going over to Johnny's this weekend for another listening session with the Treos and potentially Quatros.

I have always looked (more likely lurked) on these forums over the years for advise - unfortunately never posted :(.
cptkaos
I'm real familiar with Salk, and currently the SS 9.5 is the "best" Jim is building.  

They don't have much in common with Tekton, I've heard the Tektons several times.  

From a build quality standpoint, you won't find better fit and finish than Jim's speakers.  I can absolutely state that without question.  The drivers you get for the money, also great values.  

I like the SS9.5, i've owned the SS8.  Personally I think the SS10/12 is the best Jim has built.  Or, I should say they are my favorites.  

The Song 3 Encore to me is the absolute best value in the line-up.  The SS 9.5 has a more complex cabinet, and the open back which to me is nice as it does add some spaciousness if you choose to run it that way. But, I do think the Song 3 Encore gives 85% of the performance.

I don't dislike Tekton as I totally get why people like the sound.  Crazy good dynamics, room filling sound etc.  I won't get into that, I will say that build quality the Salks stomp all over Tekton. (That isn't to say Tekton is a bad build, it's more a reflection of how good salks quality is).

I also really like Vandersteen, the Quattro is a really great sounding speaker if you take the time to set them up right.  

The SS8 is really good, awesome midrange and highs.  I do they they lacked a little punch in the bass department given the number of drivers and size of the speaker.  The Song 3 encore and SS 9.5 have a little more kick down low.  The SS10/12 however capture the mids and highs with a bigger, better bottom end.

Jim/Dennis M did an INCREDIBLE job using that Be tweeter in the 9.5 and others and somehow having it be nice and smooth and detailed without being bright.  I typically do not like Be as a driver, but Jim managed to use it's strength without getting the typical brightness that I find in other Be driver speakers (like the Persona's). 

One thing Jim and Dennis strive for, and frankly I think do a great job with is building a coherent sounding speaker from top to bottom. 





@dep14 - thank you so much for the detailed explanation - it just made things a little harder for me in a very good way :). I have to agree with you on the Tektons - they are fast/dynamic - however I have a feeling as I age I am looking for something outside of their unique house sound (which I think is still great).
Based on my auditioning of the BeAT and Encore, I'd endorse everything dep14 says about the SS 9.5.  Unfortunately haven't heard the other models he mentions.  Take a look over at the Salk forum on AudioCircle.
cptkaos,

The Canton 3 DC (brand new - discontinued) are being sold on Accessories4Less dot com. A German speaker that has been favorable reviewed by Stereophile and others. Stereophile had them rate Class A if that matters to you. Canton is one of the largest speaker manufacturer in the world.

There is no way to audition them and even though reviewers have given them high marks as a truly reference caliber speaker they simply do not have the distribution network in the USA. So for many audiophiles such as us there is a problem with the lack of distribution possibly affecting any resell value.

For me at 62 years of age I was looking for my last speaker and to get off this audio merry go round. I believe that I found such a speaker with the Cantons. When Stereophile review them they were $16K a pair, then they dropped to $10K and I recent bought mine for around $3.5k shipped from Accessories4Less (A4L). 

On the A4L website they have both the Canton Reference 3.2 DC for $6k shipped and the Reference 3 DC for $4k shipped. The 3 DC just went up in price but the only difference between the two is the tweeter. But for me $2k more for a different tweeter wasn't worth it. I love these speakers. The free shipping for 108 pound for each speaker and no taxes swung the deal for me.

Because I am not worried about resell also help me with my decision. If resell is a concern and you are still trying to find the next best thing after this you might look in another direction. I find them to be tremendous value for a truly Reference Caliber Speaker for $4K shipped.

Hopefully this will prove helpful on your journey to making the right decision for your audio needs.Please keep us informed.

Peace.


I suggest that you go to Brooklyn and visit Bache Audio and listen to his speakers. I went a few weeks ago after listening to them at the NY show and I have a pair of Tribecas on order. 
I have Quad 57s and Audio Physic Tempo Plus speakers and was considering moving up the Audio Physic line (Midex or Codex). I was looking at speakers that were three times the price. And I have had Theils, ProAc, Verity, Rethm, Coincident, and a few others.