Feedback QLN Prestige Three Speakers Requested

Are you able to get good bass when you crank the volume? I have the HS paired with a Willsenton R8 tube integrated and the bass is tremendous when you let it rip, lets say 5-10% before clipping or between 9 and 11 o’clock on the dial depending upon the song. What can be really confounding about the HS is that at lower volumes the bass becomes much less noticeable due to the prominance of the highs and mids which stay full sounding regardless of volume. You really have to push the tubes to get the bass. It’s a great low volume speaker due to all that detail, but it won’t shake the room. I imagine you’d need a really muscular Class A or AB design to get the low end at lower volumes.

It seems like your bass problems have continued despite moving to the QLNs, which makes sense since its still the same amp. I have a new preamp coming, I’ll be able to test the HS with my SimAudio W3 later this week and see if that gets better low volume bass results. The Sim isnt a Wattage monster, 240 watts into 4ohms, but its a high current design with a massive 1.1 kVA toroidal transformer.

@soix @arafiq - Thank you! I'm very happy with my purchase! 

@grislybutter - That's sort of my hesitation with subs. It just sounds like getting a sub dialed in is painstaking and not guaranteed. Just hesitant to take that plunge, but I could be convinced otherwise. I was perusing the Axpona feed on LinkedIn and heard an impressive demo of what appears to be a new company -https://www.lchaudio.com/. What I heard was impressive and sort of seductive. 



@perkadin - I'm glad you brought this up. I am able to get the bass going on the Dynaudio HS with my 100 watt tube amp, but I really need to crank it to a level where my wife is guaranteed to ask me to turn the volume down. SUPER BUZZ KILL. But marriage is about compromise, right? 

As for lower volume listening, I've spent many evenings transfixed with the Dynaudio HS speakers. The treble frequencies can be sublime. I just felt like I was missing the bottom end. Over time, I realized I wasn't satisfied. 

The QLN speakers are, overall, more balanced with my current amp. You lose some upper frequency detail, but I'm ok with that.

What new preamp are you getting? 

that LCH sub looks interesting, but pricey for sure

(and I know I should not judge a speaker by its web site but it’s pretty flaky)

Hah, I knew it was a lower volume issue!  Its exactly the same for me.  It's like that fabulous tweeter and midrange frequencies eat up all the available power and the bottom octave falls out, which never happend with my Contour 1.1's and the R8.  Probably it's because the 1.1's arent as good at lower levels, everything is diminished in scale including the mids/highs, and they also have a much smaller bass port which helps retain some of the punch.  Since the 1.1's are moving to a home office setup, I have a Linn Classik coming that I picked up here on Audiogon.  Ironically, the Classik and 1.1 combo is the first higher end system I had ever heard and got me interested in Dynaudio years ago, so it feels like I'm coming full circle in a way.  I never forgot that punchy rythmic sound, its quite a pairing.  

Anyway I'll temporarily use that as a preamp with my old SimAudio W3 and see how that works w the HS.  I just can't see myself moving fully away from the R8, there is something magical about tubes and that amp in particular.  And I'm probably being overly critical of the bass from the HS, its still there, just not as full as I'd like.  If I like it with the W3 I can always find a used Linn pre and then have the R8 side by side with the Sim/Linn stack.  Or sell the Sim and go with a beefy integrated since I tend to prefer fewer boxes.  Lots of options.  

As you can tell I'm not into overly analytical systems and prefer smoother, warmer tones along with weighty, punchy bass, but it doesnt need to go particularly low.  I'm in a townhouse so subs and big towers are out due to neighbor concerns.  The R8 has plenty of punch, but to get there I need volume, and then the highs and mids will be too loud and I'll get complaints.  So I kinda know exactly what you mean. 

@perkadin - You know EXACTLY what I’ve been wrestling with! It’s that lower volume listening one does in the evening before retiring for bed. I’ve loved listening to those hypnotic mid-range and treble frequencies, but coming away feeling like something was incomplete. With the tube amp, the HS had a holographic quality that was especially appealing. I’m not quite getting that with the QLN, but I’m still preferring the more balanced delivery.

@soix - Well... You were right! I got the LTA preamp set up today and moments into the music it was clear the system had taken an enormous leap forward over the previous tube amp I was using. My jaw dropped!

I’m happy to say that I feel all the glowing reviews for the LTA preamp are legitimate. It’s arguably the single best upgrade I think I’ve made.

@grislybutter - Posting a photo as you requested as soon as i figure out how to do so!