Thiel Owners

tomthiel
Thank You for assisting altx. Impressive,  that model CS2 is the most popular Thiel Audio loudspeaker.
Happy Listening!

So happy to find thoughtful and wise Thiel owners/community... I am hoping to get a bit of advice. My 1st pair of Thiel speakers were the model 2 2 (no point, I think is correct). I could never afford a decent amp so, I "moved up" to the model 3.6 driven by an upgraded McCormack DNA 1 with the larger toroidal transformer, balanced inputs and just about every other option that Steve offered as of last year. I have been very pleased with the sound. The 3.6 reveals every tiny change made in electronics, cables, etc. I have been able to tune my system based on what I am hearing through the 3.6 system. So, as I am reaching the end of my working life (48 years as a middle school teacher) I have saved enough $$$ to "move up" again. I am considering the model 3.7 that is perhaps 4-5 times the cost of the 3.6. No expectation that the 3.7 is many times "better" than the 3.6. My question is, how might the 3.7 be an improvement over the model 3.6? The only time I heard the 3.7 was probably 10 years ago being driven by Ayre electronics. I was not impressed as the the system was far too lean, although the Thiel clarity, articulation and soundstage were mostly present. Should I hold tight or go for 3.7s? Thanks in advance.      

I had the 3.5 and got last year the 3.7. I can argue both ways: the mid and highs of the 3.7 are superb, but the bass and extended bass can be improved with subs. They're improvements that shine in a large room. Now, it all depends on the room. If your 3.6 work for your space and more importantly, you have learned to like them for what they are, and all the drivers and xo are good, any change to a 5,6,7 or 3.7 will involve a trade off. Proceed with caution, and clarify your goals depending on your situation. By tailoring my 3.5 by going with tri amping, replacing some drivers and carefully applying dsp, I was able to approach the listening experience of the 3.7 using the 3.5 in the space they were located.

Thielrules, It seems your takeaway is IF you spend all the money on tri-amping, finding which drivers to replace or update with limited available resources, and (to some of us, compromising your signal chain by) using DSP that's not commonly done in most higher-end audio systems, only then will a 3.5 "approach" the sonics and performance of a baseline 3.7.  Even if his 3.6 is X% more-evolved than the 3.5, it would seem the 3.7 would be an easy replacement recommendation with an appropriate room acoustic?

Yabe1951, I have been powering my 2.4s with a custom SMC upgrade to my McCormack DNA-0.5 for a decade now.  We designed the upgrades for synergy with Thiels, including a scad of current drive into low impedances.  The pairing is perfect.  A recent amp shootout confirmed how well this amp sounds compared to the best-regarded amps of today in the $5k-15k range.  I can confidently say your amp will never need replacement for purposes of better sound!

yabe1951
Welcome! Good to see you here. Thielrules and sdecker offers sound advice.  In order to determine if the upgrade via a pair of CS 3.7 is warranted, seek out another audition. 10 years is a long time between demo time. 10 years ago Ayre had not invented the Twenty Series of gear.  Much changes.  Either way you go, retain your 3.6 or purchase 3.7, McCormack amplification  is a sonic match.  Several members of the Panel,  here and on other Audio forums, enjoy the McCormack brand.Keep us posted on your Audio journey.
Happy Listening!