Which ones should I choose? Tannoy Kensington Gr or B&W 804 D4


Dear Bro,

I'm in a dilemma about which speakers I should take, Tannoy Kensington Gr or B&W 804 D4? I dont have chance to audition those brands at the same dealer so plz give some advices. I'm going to pair speakers with MC 8900. My room is about 19 sqm (3.5m x 5.5m).

One more thing, are Turnberry Gr Speakers much difference from Kensington Gr.

Thank you very much

Steve

stevevn

Tannoy, of course :)

I’ve heard a lot of Tannoy speakers, including Turnberry SE at a friend’s. I’ve owned a lot, including Kensington SE, but have not heard the GR series Kensington nor Turnberry. Of note, the Kensington model is where they start using the special pepperpot / alnico divers - almost 10x more expensive if you look at replacement driver costs! These models have a more vibrant, rich midrange and provide more "jump factor". In the right system they "breathe" better and music just flows effortlessly. The Kensington midrange in particular, is quite spectacular. The 10" alnico driver just NAILS the midrange, at the expense of some bass power.

The downside is that the alnico/pepperpot’s treble isn’t the smoothest on record - you’ll need *some* care in gear matching to not push it over your comfort zone. If you pile on bright & harsh components (I mean, why would you though) you’re gonna have a bad time! Quite frankly the cheaper ferrite/tulip drivers (a more recent design) may be easier to tame up top.

Interestingly, Tannoy once did a VERY limited run of Turnberry LE with the Kensington alnico driver! They wouldn’t have done that if it wasn’t the better overall musical driver.

Whatever you decide, match them with two REL subwoofers.  They need to be large enough and dialed in to avoid over driving the bass.  Bass frequencies fall like a rock with volume.  Having subwoofers, will allow them to fill in the bass frequencies at lower volumes.  

Like I said before there is no love for B&W on this forum. 9 out of 10 times there spoken against! Maybe one guy likes them. what does that tell me?  Mine must go 

@brunomarcs 

Trust your own ears and listening impressions/reactions. It has to sound right to you. This is regardless of what others may say or believe. This approach has served me unfailingly well.

Charles