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Hales owners discussion

We may have lost Mr. Hales to professional audio and the factory to history, but these are still fine speakers. I'm curious how others have their's setup, what tweaks they've found that offer improvements to the sound, etc.

Currently my Revelation Threes are ~3.5' from the front wall and 4.5' from the side walls. This is in a volumetrically large space (330 sq. ft.; volume unknown). Setup in a smaller, rectangular room (215 sq. ft.) they were 4.5' from the front and 3.5' from the sides. Straight Cardas method.

On a raised floor they were better without spikes; on a concrete slab the spikes are a must.

Mine are also toe'd in very little. Maybe 20 degrees. I listen in nearfield, btw. Now they're 7' feet apart and 5 feet from the listener. Before it was a 6' triangle.

Anyone tried anything radically different that worked? Mass loading, cones, etc.?

Oh, for reference my system is SF Line 1, McCormack DNA-1, CAL ALpha/Delta for CD, AP Oval 9, HT ProSilways and Illuminati D-60, plus various cones, weights, etc. What others are feeding their Hales with would also be of interest. Thanks in advance for any feedback.
fpeel
fpeel OP
455 posts
 
What size space do you have this system in, Junkyard? Sounds like a very nice set up.

I often consider trying tube amplification with the Hales, though something like the Sonic Frontiers SFM-160 or VAC PA-160 are the most likely candidates. I really like the flexibility the latter amp provides; looks like it'd be a good first tube amp.
junkyard
4 posts
 
The room is roughly 14 by 28,with a 20 foot vault in the middle of the room. The T-8's are in the room about four feet, and about three feet from each side wall. Toe-in is minimal. I have heard these speakers being run with BAT solid state and tube amps, and they do sound great. I just don't anything gets as "black" as the Boulders. Additionally, these amps are so fast that the dynamic capacities of the speakers are really sharpened.
daveyf's avatar
daveyf
2,912 posts
 
Currently using the Hales signature 2's. Driving them with a Jeff Rowland model 8. Would it be a good idea to upgrade to another model or change the amp to a tube amp?
stereokarter
185 posts
 
Tube amps, dollar for dollar, with my Hales (T5's) are the way to go! Mine is Audio Research VT100 Mk.II. I consider the Hales to be "forward" or even a touch "hard" in their presentation and the tubes (though no junkyard tubes) have corrected that. When I get my beloved Scott LK150 back from re-jacking, I'll give that a listen too!
bozo's avatar
bozo
93 posts
 
I own a pair of Signature One Designer Reference, I drive them with VAC PA 160 Mono Amps/Triode Setting. I used to have a Classe 700S amp. With the SS amp I would become edgey and quickly tire of the music. The tubes while not best in base control ( but better than I thought )were quite good at smoothing out the mids and highs. I cam listen for hours and never tire of the sound. I have owned many speakers and find for overall these rated the best in total satisfaction.
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