$3000 stand mounted speakers?
Another +1 for Fritz Carrera 7 BE. I think they run around $3.5k now. My favorite so far in my 15.5 x 10.1 ft room. Here's a binaural recording of them which may give you a 10% sense of how they sound in real life. https://youtu.be/6QkXYPAVUNY?t=125 |
I have always had EL34 amps and stand mounted monitors, since 1978 when I had the original Rogers LS3/5a and a Marantz 8. Have been through many combinations through the decades and some years ago settled in on the ProAc Tablette Anniversary driven by a Primaluna HP Amp. About three years ago, I entered a similar quest thinking that I could take a step up from the ProAc. I listened to the Harbeth P3ESR and liked them at the dealer, but side by side at home, I thought the ProAcs were better, primarily in soundstage, imaging and tonal quality of female vocals. I then decided that I would have to go beyond the $3k price point to get a step up. I listened to the Joseph Audio Pulsars, and was really impressed, then they came out with the graphene version, which I heard, but not side by side to the original. I knew I could live with the original version, so I went on a quest to find a used pair of pulsars. Joseph audio does not have a big dealer network, but I was impressed enough with them that I was willing to buy without a home demo. Over the period of ~3 months, I found two pairs in the 4K-5k range, but missed out on them to other buyers. So how does the story end? I listened Maggies and bought them. But, you know the audiophile story: talk to me again in 2-3 years and I might be looking for a good stand mounted monitor in the $5k range. What did Harry Chapin say? “All my life’s a circle....” |
Thanks Meiaflask. Your story of your journey has good information for me. Looks like my initial choice of the ProAc Model 10 or upgrade to the Model 10 Anniversary is still a solid choice for me. Its 10 ohm rating is easy on tube amps and slightly better bass is a better match than the Harbeth P3 I thought about. I’ve used my Seas Froy mk3 speaker kit w/ 3 different EL34 amps over many years and it has worked quit well, but it’s time for a change. I like the look of the Tablet 10 very much and would like to ask what you get w/ the Anniversary version. BTW Meiaflask, My amp is the Mystere IA-11 by PrimaLuna. It’s more dynamic and punchy than a PL w/ the glorious EL34 midrange. So you comparison is important to me. Thanks Taww. The other speaker I’m most interested in from this long thread is the Dynaudio Special Forty. I’m wondering if it may work w/ tube amps, and it seems like it may be a better speaker for Bryston amps or similar according to your assessment. |
Tekton Impact Monitors. Incredible speaker and value. $2k delivered. Check out the review. https://hometheaterreview.com/tekton-design-impact-monitor-bookshelf-speaker-reviewed/ |
