Need help to select a speaker
Hi Audiophile people,
I need help to select the smoothest speaker of all.
I grew up using Spendor, Rogers, Tannoy, Wharfedale. I was always fan of British silk sound speakers like Rogers LS35.
The harshest speaker that I had was JBL which still has a smooth sound.
I don't have time or chance to listen to all the new speakers but in need to select a near field listening speaker for Jazz, Blues, vocals, Acoustics with maximum details in low volume.
I am looking at both Bookshelf and Floor standing but I should get better sound quality from a Bookshelf speaker in my experience.
Please share your experience and let me know what I should look at.
I am looking at Brand New and under $5K.
Cheers
Mike
I've had four pairs of Dynaudio over the years, from the entry level Audience line to the Confidence 2's and 4's... definitely not a speaker that excels at low volume and not recommended for the OP. I agree with @rocray on recommendation of monitors from Spendor (Classic line), Graham, Falcon, Harbeth, adding Vienna Acoustics Haydn. |
Nothing good about Dynaudio at low volumes. Good sound at low volumes is complex and not related to sensitivity either. There are some speakers with a deserved reputation for good sound at low volumes, Harbeth comes to mind. How your system attenuates volume matters hugely in this equation too. Autoformer volume controls like those from Slagle excel at low volume listening as they are at max current when at high attenuation, unlike resistor ladders. As a rule 90% of the low sensitivity monitors out there with main drivers in the classic 6.5" range sound best with SS amps that thump a bit in the midbass (ie Pass) That is where many fall short at low volumes, they need to be playing louder to come on song and sound balanced. An amp that hits a bit harder can make up for that at lower volumes. Old Tannoy professional system 10 and System 1000 are excellent at low volumes and don't need a ton of power to be on song at low volume. Pretty sensitive too. |
For smoothness and low distortion, it's hard to beat electrostatics. You might consider the Janszen Carmelita passive. Janszen's current lineup are unusual (if not unique) among electrostatic speakers in not being dipoles. As you might expect, the speakers are somewhat directional in the high frequencies. This leads to a somewhat smaller sweet spot (though not head-in-a-vice), and also means greatly reduced interaction with the room, so less trouble with reflections from sidewalls and ceiling. Bass is handled by cone woofers. I use the bigger model, the Valentina passive, with Apollon amps built around the PuriFi modules -- if I'm not mistaken, the same technology used in your NAD M33. I find the combination to be excellent, the best I've had in my many years of owning audio systems. |
