Nuetrality be Damned...

sonus faber...they have soul !!

Well if it's warmth you want, have you considered a pair of refurbished Quad 57's? You might go so far as to bob the feet so they sit down closer to the floor, which warms them up even more. Mmmmmmm.

Maggies are beloved by many for their musical, engaging, open sound - and deservedly so. Dynamics is not their strong point, and here amplifier matching plays a critical role. Their freedom from boxy colorations is quite refreshing.

I have an extremely low tolerance for boxiness, so while there are a a number of box speakers that I'd call warm (Spendors and Vandersteens come to mind), there aren't many I would recommend.

The dipole Gradient Revolutions are non-boxy, and are a bit on the warm side, and very much on the musical side. They trade off some efficiency and bottom end extension for superb pitch definition. Incidentally, designer Jorma Salmi used Quads as his reference speakers.

The Heil Kitharas are another warm and musical speaker, with higher efficiency and deeper bass than either the Gradients or Quads, but they trade off some pitch definition in the bottom end with their ported woofer.

The Audio Physic line is also voiced warm and sweet. There is a distinct family resemblance up and down the line, so if you've heard one model you can reliably extrapolate.

If you want to explore up into the big buck speaker range, the MBL line is rather warm sounding (in particular the megabuck Radialstrahlers), as are Sound Lab electrostats. The Classic Audio Reproduction T-1's are rather warm sounding for a high efficiency speaker.

Disclaimer - I sell Sound Labs and Gradients.

Best of luck to you in your quest!

Well this is an interesting point. Certainly the "neutral" ear bleeders of yesteryear have been improved upon but some still remain. I have owned warm forgiving speakers and would pick them any day over neutral if that term in the context you use connotates etchy with a focus on a tipped up treble to realize more apparent detail in the music.

I currently am listening to Merlin VSM-M. These speakers are NOT by definition warm and forgiving. But they can be if the music is. They are just truth tellers. Some don't want too much truth and that is a valid choice. But with proper set-up these speakers are non fatiguing, emotive and can make well recorded music come alive in the listening room. I believe Bobby P, the designer also is a big Quad fan as well. So am I.

Well, whatever you buy, I hope your pushing them with tubes.

I remain,

JM Labs is musical. But If you're looking for something a little more laid back, Vandersteen 3A sigs or Von Schweikert VR-4 Gen IIIs fit the bill. The VR-4 is a little dark sounding, and has excellent low bass, in it's price range.