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I'm never going to hear a megaspeaker in a good room am I?

Was thinking about something. There’s a thread about good $40K speakers which made me think that honestly despite hearing a lot of them at shows, I’ve never heard one in a decent environment. Now, perhaps we can argue:

If it doesn’t sound good anywhere, including a hotel room, is it really that good a speaker?


But let’s not go that route. But I am thinking to myself, in well treated rooms the best speakers I’ve heard were merely mid-range Wilsons and Magicos. I say "merely" because they were under $40k, not because of performance. The two best speakers I’ve heard, in medicore rooms were the SF Stradivari and Snell A/III, and top of the line Vandersteen.

All the $40K + speakers I’ve heard have been at shows, and either very badly treated rooms, or in halls so big the first reflection point was like a mountain echo. Am I ever going to get to listen to $40K+ speakers in great rooms anywhere again??

As a result, I’ve developed a severe bias against the performance of mega speakers, because I only ever hear them in terrible rooms and have not heard one I’d spend money for, and honestly that's unfair to them.

erik_squires
erik_squires OP
16,017 posts
 
  Are you really serious about purchasing such a mega-speaker if you heard it in the right environment and loved it ?

No. I ask this question as an audiophile who likes to listen to all sorts of gear for the fun of it.

My point was that for the average audiophile, the ability to experience these speakers, and feel they command the money is rare indeed.  As a result, if we go only by my experience, megaspeakers are almost never worth the money.  
But what if I could hear them in great environments? Would I change my mind?  That's kind of a similar and complementary question. 


Best,
Erik

shamus2211's avatar
shamus2211
47 posts
 
I'm with Erik, I would love to hear really over the top expensive speakers just to hear them, just like I would love to drive say a Veyron but I would never buy one (nor could I afford either). It's our hobby so it is cool to know what the really expensive stuff is like. Conversely, I love reading posts about how good a $3000 system can sound. I draw the line at $50 speakers, mostly they are that price for a reason and that reason is not economy of scale.
wyoboy
244 posts
 
Maybe it's a good thing you can't or you might experience what happened to me a several years ago.  I went to a boutique dealer to hear some Aerial Acoustic speakers.  He had an amazing listening room with movable walls, ceiling and room treatments that he could adjust to demo all of the speakers he rep'd.  I bought the Aerials after listening to them in a room designed to be the equivalent of mine in size and shape but then saw a pair of Rockport Cygnus speakers (i didn't know the brand at the time) and asked about them.  Of course way out of my price range but i wanted to hear them so he adjusted the room and away we went.  I have regretted that curiousity ever since--best speaker i've heard to date and although i'm happy with the Aerials i still think about that Rockport and wonder...however, besides price being an issue my wife has made it clear our marriage would also be at stake !
erik_squires OP
16,017 posts
 
Hi @wyoboy

You got me a little curious, and I ran into this description of the Rockport listening room:


A combination of RPG diffusers and B.A.D. panels provide the correct broadband reverberant field without coherent specular reflections, while a series of custom broadband and quarter wave bass traps insure bass linearity down to the first octave. This ultimate soundroom is an essential tool in the development of our high-performance, full range loudspeakers, and in conjuction with some of the industy’s finest associated equipment, enables us to elevate the design process to the highest level possible. In this room, the listener can fully experience the true capabilities of our entire product range.


I have to say they said everything I’ve ever wanted in a listening room. :-) Linearity down to the first octave is a real challenge even for most high end stores, let alone most audiophiles and probably the cause of most disappointments.

The Magico listening room is also an extravagant feat of acoustical engineering, as is the Goodwyn's room in Waltham, MA.


Best,


Erik
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,516 posts
 
@erik_squires I guess we haunt the same vicinity. Goodwinn's High End in Waltham is the area's most esoteric Hi Fi store. I have not been in a while. I always got good service because I drove up in a 911 Turbo. If you drive up in a Golf you couldn't get the time of day. Never bought anything from him. 
These store hang everything everywhere because they sell it and you need to buy it if you want your room to sound good. Total and complete BS (IMHO). You use enough to do the job and no more adding a one set at a time. This can be done inexpensively with acoustic tile. The stuff Goodwinn's sells is hopelessly overpriced but his clientele are extremely wealthy and they do not care or know enough to care. They are the set it and forget it crowd.  
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