Hi,
I’ve auditioned both A4 and A7 before going with D7 for my main system (love them). I don’t recall now which electronics were used in the demo (it was about a year ago), but if I had to guess it was likely an Ayre integrated amp and a CD player of similar quality, so arguably electronics at slightly higher quality level then the A series Spendor speakers (ie, the electronics were not a bottleneck in the demo).
My listening preferences are blues, jazz, rock, country so wide spectrum.
I am considering A7 for my secondary system later this year. I have SA1 in my office system, so yeah, I’m pretty much a Spendor guy.
A4 and A7 sound similar, as you’d expect, but A7 just gives you "more" of the Spendor sound. Fuller sound, better bass, but tonally very similar.
One notable difference between the A7 and A4 (apart from cabinet size) is in the ports that they use. The A4 and A2 use a less sophisticated tube port on the back that is typical of what you see in ported speakers in the price range. But the A7 uses a linear flow port near the bottom rear that is closer to the better port used in the D series. I don’t think the A7 uses the same port as the D7 (D7’s port is optimized in some ways), it is a downgrade from D7 in that respect, but still an upgrade over the simple tube port used in A4 and A2. There may be some interior dampening advancements also that A7 has over A4, but don’t quote me on that -- but there are many professional reviews on each where that sort of stuff is discussed, so you can research further.
The result of the differing ports will be better and more coherent (tighter) bass with the A7 vs A4, perhaps easier to place regarding rear wall distance, etc., but I’m not an expert on that placement aspect. I know there is a Stereophile review of A7 where they discuss some placement aspects. With my D7’s, I do need to space them out a couple feet from the rear wall or I get too much base.
Size wise A4 and A7 are pretty close. A7 is just a little bigger than A4, but closer to A4 size than to D7 size if I recall. Room size will play a role as well. A4 will do well in smaller room; A7 in slightly larger room. For that matter, I listened to A2 as well and even that one sounds really good with ample bass. If it were me, I’d go with whichever my budget allowed. Stepping up to the D7 is an altogether higher level IMO due to the improved tweeter among other things. But there is another poster here on A’gon who auditioned A7 and D7 and chose A7 as better sounding, so lots of room for individual preferences, as with everything audio.
Good luck, great speakers.
I’ve auditioned both A4 and A7 before going with D7 for my main system (love them). I don’t recall now which electronics were used in the demo (it was about a year ago), but if I had to guess it was likely an Ayre integrated amp and a CD player of similar quality, so arguably electronics at slightly higher quality level then the A series Spendor speakers (ie, the electronics were not a bottleneck in the demo).
My listening preferences are blues, jazz, rock, country so wide spectrum.
I am considering A7 for my secondary system later this year. I have SA1 in my office system, so yeah, I’m pretty much a Spendor guy.
A4 and A7 sound similar, as you’d expect, but A7 just gives you "more" of the Spendor sound. Fuller sound, better bass, but tonally very similar.
One notable difference between the A7 and A4 (apart from cabinet size) is in the ports that they use. The A4 and A2 use a less sophisticated tube port on the back that is typical of what you see in ported speakers in the price range. But the A7 uses a linear flow port near the bottom rear that is closer to the better port used in the D series. I don’t think the A7 uses the same port as the D7 (D7’s port is optimized in some ways), it is a downgrade from D7 in that respect, but still an upgrade over the simple tube port used in A4 and A2. There may be some interior dampening advancements also that A7 has over A4, but don’t quote me on that -- but there are many professional reviews on each where that sort of stuff is discussed, so you can research further.
The result of the differing ports will be better and more coherent (tighter) bass with the A7 vs A4, perhaps easier to place regarding rear wall distance, etc., but I’m not an expert on that placement aspect. I know there is a Stereophile review of A7 where they discuss some placement aspects. With my D7’s, I do need to space them out a couple feet from the rear wall or I get too much base.
Size wise A4 and A7 are pretty close. A7 is just a little bigger than A4, but closer to A4 size than to D7 size if I recall. Room size will play a role as well. A4 will do well in smaller room; A7 in slightly larger room. For that matter, I listened to A2 as well and even that one sounds really good with ample bass. If it were me, I’d go with whichever my budget allowed. Stepping up to the D7 is an altogether higher level IMO due to the improved tweeter among other things. But there is another poster here on A’gon who auditioned A7 and D7 and chose A7 as better sounding, so lots of room for individual preferences, as with everything audio.
Good luck, great speakers.