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Speakers sonically similar to Sonus Faber?

I recently demoed the Sonus Faber Venere line (their cheapest, made in china line) and loved it. It was being powered by inexpensive gear (sonos server source, arcam DAC, some integrated elite pioneer). i liked it much better than much more expensive speakers powered by much more expensive gear.

sadly, even venere 2.5 is still a touch out of my price range. my question: are there other speakers that might be sonically similar for a lower price?

some info that might help:

-the speakers in question use a silk dome tweeter and curv cone drivers
-i liked that they were very smooth and dynamic, and also sounded very good off axis and outside the sweet spot
-my listening rooms are not big. 14x17 ish
-my sources are 100% digital
-bookshelf/monitor or floor standing are both fine, just nothing too big

these are some that i've read might be a good fit, but might be hard for me to demo before hand: harbeth P3ESR, KEF LS50, sjofne clue, totem-mani 2

thanks for any suggestions!
tenken
tenken OP
5 posts
 
Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I think it might be hard to demo some of those before purchasing.

If anyone in the DC area has any of the aforementioned speakers, I'd love to give them a listen.
roccl007's avatar
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roccl007
205 posts
 
"In choosing Thiel, to these ears, they are the "richest" sounding speaker to date"
Not sure that THIEL is soft sounding ???????????
bob_rodgers
38 posts
 
I'd throw in the Gemme Audio Tanto, a small floorstanding speaker with great sonics, similar to my old Sonus Faber Cremonas. Gemme has gone out of business, but they'd be easy to repair if necessary down the line, with readily available drivers. They use a pseudo transmission line design and have great bass too. They come up for sale now and then on Audiogon.
jamnesta
155 posts
 
I have the Grand Pianos hanging off a AV receiver in the family room. We listen to the cable music jazz channel all day long...they sound very good even under those circumstances, never offensive. Hook them up to better electronics and you will be rewarded with even better sound. They're also very attractive, compact, and have been trouble free. Current prices make them a viable option IMO.
dweller's avatar
dweller
3,781 posts
 
"Not sure that THIEL is soft sounding ???????????"

'Cmon bubba, it's not the '90s anymore. "Thiels are harsh" is an urban myth in this day-and-age.

I've been listening to Thiel's (1.6 & 2.4 SE) for 15 years.

Thiels are extremely neutral. If the recording is harsh, guess what?, Thiels will sound harsh. If your front end and/or cables and/or amplification are trash, guess what?, Thiels will sound harsh.
Are you detecting a pattern?

Saying Thiels are bright doesn't make you a hip hi-fi guy, it says you are not informed.
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