Tone, Tone, Tone !



I was reminded again today, as I often am, about my priorities for any speaker that I will own.

I was reminded by listening to a pair of $20,000 speakers, almost full range. They did imaging. They did dynamics.They did detail.

But I sat there unmoved.

Came home and played a number of the same tracks on a pair of speakers I currently have set up in my main system - a tiny lil’ Chihuahua-sized pair of Spendor S 3/5s.


And I was in heaven.

I just couldn’t tear myself away from listening.

Why?

Tone.

The Spendors satisfy my ears (MY ears!) in reproducing music with a gorgeous, organic tone that sounds so "right.". It’s like a tonal massage directly o my auditory system. Strings are silky and illuminated, saxes so warm and reedy, snares have that papery "pop," cymbals that brassy overtone, acoustic guitars have that just-right sparkle and warmth. Voices sound fleshy and human.

In no way do I mean to say the Spendors are objectively "correct" or that anyone else should, or would, share the opinion I had between those two speakers. I’m just saying it’s often experiences like this that re-enforce how deeply important "the right tone/timbral quality" is for me. It’s job one that any speaker has to pass. I’ll listen to music on any speaker as background. But to get me to sit down and listen...gotta have that seductive tone.


Of course that’s only one characteristic I value. Others near the top of the list is "palpability/density," texture, dynamics.

But I’d take those teeny little Spendors over those big expensive speakers every day of the week, due to my own priorities.

Which brings me to throwing out the question to others: What are YOUR priorities in a speaker, especially if you had to pick the one that makes-or-brakes your desire to own the speaker?

Do you have any modest "giant killers" that at least to your way of thinking satisfy you much more than any number of really expensive speakers?



prof
I agree tone rules. Who cares what else a speaker can do if it doesn't sound tonally realistic?
I've owned a string of British box speakers over the last 30yrs - a pair of 3-way Heybooks, 3 pairs of Proacs, 3 pairs of Harbeths and now 2 pairs of ATCs.
Tonal 'rightness' and realism has reached a pinnacle for me with the ATCs. The Harbeths were very good, but not really neutral in the bass and a bit 'sleepy' sounding dynamically - where the ATCs have far superior bass IMO and are alive with realistic dynamics.

I think the little SCM19 I own should be much more popular given their quality of reproduction (tonal accuracy and dynamics) - they need a powerful amp, but watts are cheap these days. Does anyone in the world build a more seriously engineered 5-6" mid-bass driver than the one ATC build for the 19's (and scm20's)? - that thing weighs 9kg and makes up half the weight of the speaker!

The active ATC SCM100s I'm listening to as I type this are another level again. Neutral, but marvellously tonally robust and realistic with terrific dynamics. They can play the big stuff with ease but also sound wonderful with delicate acoustic material. Probably the end of the road for me.  

Wharfedale builds some of the best speakers on the planet regardless of price. The oldest speaker company in the world, and totally vertically alligned they build their own everything down to the internal wiring.i still have my Diamond 8.1 the first budget speaker to use Kevlar drivers, their tone is very similar to the Quad Esl 57's. The Diamond 225's reputation is well deserved, outstanding drive units, I just bought the D330 a killer little Floorstander, Spendor I feel has tone science down very speaker companies do, all the Wharfedalea new and old have it...

Well, certainly the spendors Don’t have the scale, slam and drama

Of the big Thiels.  But speaking just on tone, the Thiels are also

Fantastic.  I think they are more neutral, but also let through the
Golden tone of my CJ tube amps, The end result that I love their tone too.

But I can still find the spenders a little bit more Seductive tonally.

at least for a while, and then I go back to the Thiels.

are actually currently my Joseph audio perspective 2 

speakers which are the champions in tone.