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I need to be wowed

Next month I'll be starting my hunt for new speakers...new to me, at any rate.
And I will be obsessed...

What I've got:
Arcan Alpha 9
Plinius Integrated 2100i
Analysis plus 12's bi-wire
and shortly HT Pro MK2 IC's
and a *DOUZY* of a room:
http://www.geocities.com/sundaesundaesundae/audio.html
Oh, that room.I think that's the key....I learned early on how much room interaction plays in sound.

I listen almost strictly to classical music....small ensemble/piano/violin/but yearn for large scale to sound
wonderful too. Also listen to acoustical classical/folk/female singers...

What I want:Tonal quality most important....I tend to like laid back/dark sound but needs to be involving and have intensity...
and oh, yes....they must come in black.
What I don't want: Bright tweeters!

Just for comparison I had wanted to hear some stats but have been told there was no way bipoles could work with
in my room....although someone suggested Innersound Isis ....and Gradient(out of my price range)..
I had also been intrigued for a while by Newforms but the fact that most who own them feel the need to do
mods bothers me....I want to own them....not build them...

Any suggestions will be much appreciated!

allegro12
allegro12 OP
51 posts
 
Zaikesman....
That seems to be the consensus regarding dipoles..I'm not only locked into 2' from wall to front of speaker..
they just can't be placed *anywhere * other than where my present speakers are....
..so I'd better just not audition them.
It's always a shame to fall in love with something you can't have.

When I bought my present speakers (PSB 6T's) I was replacing 12 year old (gulp) Bose...and pretty much bought
the first speakers I heard. Then I replaced a crappy Sony recever and CDP and realized I was in a whole new zone..
I've been fighting the PSB's ever since (I find *them) objectionable...
bright/harsh...shallow/thin sounding...although imaging is great and piano music is really quite nice...
rbirke
144 posts
 
I think that this one may be the speaker for you. MSRP is 2400 or so. I don't usually go wild for Thiel speakers(although they always sound pretty good to excellent when I hear them), but the 1.6's were performing well out of their price range. I heard three songs -- a late career Sinatra tune, an electronically enhanced version of some Indian music (lots of synthesized bass), and a Robert Johnson blues song from way back. All sounded wonderful -- intimate on the first and last tracks, lush and huge on the second. And the pair I heard was black.

I was in the store to look for a pair of Revel F50's (a little more than 3 times the price) and while I didn't change my mind about what I want to buy, I was pretty blown away by the 1.6. The salesman had them set up with solid state Mac gear, so I would expect the Plinius to do very well. He just got the speakers a week before and he was showing them off to everyone who came in.

Check them out before you buy anything else.

I don't work for Thiel and I don't usually rant about products.
tweekerman
473 posts
 
Allegro , the ML's ascent sound good with a big amp. but for alittle more you can get the quad988. the other speaker worth researching is a california lab company called VMP check out their Ribbon Monitor 1 $1600. by the way B&W, Vanderstein, Paradim, Maggie, do not impress me no matter how popular they are. talk to fellow audiogoner Sedond about VMP. good luck
kdmeyer88fd
15 posts
 
You should try to listen to some Dynaudios before you make a decision. I have listened extensively in a friend's home to Dynaudio Contour 1.8, which new would be substantially above your price range, also the Audience line which costs less (and looks less, and sounds less...). You wonder about B&W: I ended up with B&W CDM7NT which I found smooth and detailed but too bright until I gave them 200 watts of very mellow B&K power amp (source is Arcam CD72, pre is British Fidelity 3B), tubes might be a different story but I don't want to go there...I don't think I will keep these for a long time...for the type of listening you describe and for your space I think you might really like Dynaudios. Sonically they are extremely transparent, lifelike, and detailed; never harsh, never grainy. The soundstage--how to describe this--they don't give a sense of a "stage," rather the instruments are just positioned all over the room--in too small of a room it is almost disorienting. Visually very slender, unobtrusive. Not terribly efficient. Good luck.
postmodpm's avatar
postmodpm
29 posts
 
I enjoyed my Sonus Concertos for a long time. The ACI is a major improvement in so many ways while still maintaining a very similar type of rich tonal balance. The Sapphire IIIs are really amazing speakers. I'd strongly recommend giving them a try.
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