I was obsessed for about three to four years ago trying to find the right speakers as an upgrade from my old rig. My base system was Revel Performa3 M105s driven by a Rogue Hydra Power Amp and with an Ayre K-5xeMP Preamp, Marantz NA-11S1 DAC and a Rega RP3 Table.
The speakers and the table were the weak links in the chain but the Revels were very, very good for the money and I was struggling to find a speaker with better imaging and detail.
I listened to every speaker I could find that was up to 60% above my target budget of $10K and I have a very systematic approach with a series of tracks I use for screening. It is decidedly possible that I ruled out products because of bad setups and irritating sales people. One was the audiophile embodiment of Comic Book Guy from the Simpsons. Another told me "my tracks suck" during a demo and a third interrupted my dinner and when I politely told him I was eating and would call him back the next day he kept me on the phone ranting about purity of sound for almost 15 minutes. I finally had to just hang up on him.
I finally narrowed it down to four models that will remain unnamed (I make speakers now and would prefer not to criticize other companies products). Range in price for in-home demo was $6K to $12K. Got them in my room and none worked though one, "with a long break-in period" was promising. It sounded great but didn't deliver the soundstage I heard in the store. The rep assured me that if I just let them break in, the soundstage would come together. It did not. Six months later I traded those speakers for a PS Audio DSD, and four months later I started my own company and developed my own speakers. .
Lessons are, you need to know how the speaker is supposed to be optimally setup. Most manufacturers will tell you this. In my case that was the fundamental issue. These speakers needed 3' from the back wall and 9' of spacing. My room at the time allowed for 18" of space from the back wall and 6' of spacing. Retailer was a jackass and should have told me that. He new because it is clearly communicated by the manufacturer.
What is the break-in time and is it longer than the return window? If the break-in period is 500 hours, move-on.
Take copious notes about tracks. Listening memory is 2-4 seconds at most. Taking very detailed notes about what you hear is the only way to compare speakers. If you are comparing two or more speakers at the same time, find optimal placement for both. Label it and make sure that you only do critical listening in the optimal location. I put little masking tape Xs on the floor.
Avoid Q-Sound tracks. Optimal placement for Q-Sound is usually much more flexible than normal tracks. Take Amused to Death, the Immaculate Collection, etc... out of rotation for setup.
Keep in your rational mind. We may want to like a speaker more than another because of the way it looks or we like the brand or the rep is a good guy or gal. Stick to your notes and if something isn't working, accept it and move on.
That is my advice. Be smart about it and be willing to return things. It may cost you a few hundred $$$ in return fees but that is better than eating 50% of the value of a speaker. Learn from my mistakes.
The speakers and the table were the weak links in the chain but the Revels were very, very good for the money and I was struggling to find a speaker with better imaging and detail.
I listened to every speaker I could find that was up to 60% above my target budget of $10K and I have a very systematic approach with a series of tracks I use for screening. It is decidedly possible that I ruled out products because of bad setups and irritating sales people. One was the audiophile embodiment of Comic Book Guy from the Simpsons. Another told me "my tracks suck" during a demo and a third interrupted my dinner and when I politely told him I was eating and would call him back the next day he kept me on the phone ranting about purity of sound for almost 15 minutes. I finally had to just hang up on him.
I finally narrowed it down to four models that will remain unnamed (I make speakers now and would prefer not to criticize other companies products). Range in price for in-home demo was $6K to $12K. Got them in my room and none worked though one, "with a long break-in period" was promising. It sounded great but didn't deliver the soundstage I heard in the store. The rep assured me that if I just let them break in, the soundstage would come together. It did not. Six months later I traded those speakers for a PS Audio DSD, and four months later I started my own company and developed my own speakers. .
Lessons are, you need to know how the speaker is supposed to be optimally setup. Most manufacturers will tell you this. In my case that was the fundamental issue. These speakers needed 3' from the back wall and 9' of spacing. My room at the time allowed for 18" of space from the back wall and 6' of spacing. Retailer was a jackass and should have told me that. He new because it is clearly communicated by the manufacturer.
What is the break-in time and is it longer than the return window? If the break-in period is 500 hours, move-on.
Take copious notes about tracks. Listening memory is 2-4 seconds at most. Taking very detailed notes about what you hear is the only way to compare speakers. If you are comparing two or more speakers at the same time, find optimal placement for both. Label it and make sure that you only do critical listening in the optimal location. I put little masking tape Xs on the floor.
Avoid Q-Sound tracks. Optimal placement for Q-Sound is usually much more flexible than normal tracks. Take Amused to Death, the Immaculate Collection, etc... out of rotation for setup.
Keep in your rational mind. We may want to like a speaker more than another because of the way it looks or we like the brand or the rep is a good guy or gal. Stick to your notes and if something isn't working, accept it and move on.
That is my advice. Be smart about it and be willing to return things. It may cost you a few hundred $$$ in return fees but that is better than eating 50% of the value of a speaker. Learn from my mistakes.