"05-02-15: Sboje
The only complaints I've heard about the Andra speakers regarding system matching is that they don't sing without powerful amplification, but everyone says the high end of them is sweet. Maybe it's a better gamble than the Wilson?"
You can do what you wish. Its your money. But I highly recommend taking a different path to achieve your goal. The speakers you are looking at are very revealing, and not all that forgiving. When you say that the speakers will sing with more power, that can be true, but its only 1 small piece of a much bigger puzzle. For example, you can find 10 different amps that have enough power to easily drive your speakers, but all 10 will sound very different. At this level, component matching is everything.
You talk about gambling. Buying new components is always a gamble. You really need to look at the odds. The best example I can think of is a roulette wheel. You can either play black or red where the odds are somewhere around 50/50 (I forget the exact odds). Under that scenario, you have a respectable chance of winning something, that's why the pay-off is so low. The way you're going about putting your system together, is something different altogether. It's like betting on just 1 number. The odds are winning are very low. You really want to try to improve your odds or you're going to be very unhappy.
"I know this may sound somewhat foolish, but the high end audio landscape has changed remarkably. At my local place, they have 3 rooms. Room 1 has Rockport Altairs with TWO different stacks of electronics worth $200K each. In the smaller room #2, you have Rockport Aviors with probably $60k in electronics. In room #3, you have stuff I can't stand to listen to. I don't blame them for catering to the rich; they make a lot more money that way. I feel like the only way I win in this market is by buying the used gear of people who have a lot more disposable income."
I wouldn't judge the entire audio industry on what 1 store does. But, to get at the heart of the matter, the reason you feel the way you do has nothing to do with you being rich or poor, or even who the target market is for expensive goods. The magazines never tell you this, but the level of difficulty goes up the more revealing and specialized the gear becomes. Generally speaking, its much harder to put a system together based on a pair of Wilson's than it is to put one together around a less costly speaker that is not as revealing and works with a much broader selection of gear. Once you gain more knowledge and experience, you'll be in a much better position to make better choices. That's why I can't make any type of recommendation in your case. I just have to little to go on, and it wouldn't be fair to you if I just guessed.
The only complaints I've heard about the Andra speakers regarding system matching is that they don't sing without powerful amplification, but everyone says the high end of them is sweet. Maybe it's a better gamble than the Wilson?"
You can do what you wish. Its your money. But I highly recommend taking a different path to achieve your goal. The speakers you are looking at are very revealing, and not all that forgiving. When you say that the speakers will sing with more power, that can be true, but its only 1 small piece of a much bigger puzzle. For example, you can find 10 different amps that have enough power to easily drive your speakers, but all 10 will sound very different. At this level, component matching is everything.
You talk about gambling. Buying new components is always a gamble. You really need to look at the odds. The best example I can think of is a roulette wheel. You can either play black or red where the odds are somewhere around 50/50 (I forget the exact odds). Under that scenario, you have a respectable chance of winning something, that's why the pay-off is so low. The way you're going about putting your system together, is something different altogether. It's like betting on just 1 number. The odds are winning are very low. You really want to try to improve your odds or you're going to be very unhappy.
"I know this may sound somewhat foolish, but the high end audio landscape has changed remarkably. At my local place, they have 3 rooms. Room 1 has Rockport Altairs with TWO different stacks of electronics worth $200K each. In the smaller room #2, you have Rockport Aviors with probably $60k in electronics. In room #3, you have stuff I can't stand to listen to. I don't blame them for catering to the rich; they make a lot more money that way. I feel like the only way I win in this market is by buying the used gear of people who have a lot more disposable income."
I wouldn't judge the entire audio industry on what 1 store does. But, to get at the heart of the matter, the reason you feel the way you do has nothing to do with you being rich or poor, or even who the target market is for expensive goods. The magazines never tell you this, but the level of difficulty goes up the more revealing and specialized the gear becomes. Generally speaking, its much harder to put a system together based on a pair of Wilson's than it is to put one together around a less costly speaker that is not as revealing and works with a much broader selection of gear. Once you gain more knowledge and experience, you'll be in a much better position to make better choices. That's why I can't make any type of recommendation in your case. I just have to little to go on, and it wouldn't be fair to you if I just guessed.