Imaging

Hi Johnny,

I find very few absolutes in audio, but in my experience and in general monitors tend to pull the disappearing act better than floorstanders. My guess is that due to the smaller cabinet area around the drivers less sound is reflected that would otherwise give audible clues as to the speaker's presence. But, there are some floorstanders that disappear better than some monitors, hence my comment on absolutes.

That said, there are plenty of floorstanders that do a fantastic job of disappearing in a room and provide near full range performance, decreasing the need for a subwoofer. Some I've heard that do a great job of being heard but not seen that are in your budget range(no particular order): Soliloquy 6.2, Audio Physic Spark III, Joseph Audio RM22si, Silverline Panatella II, Thiel CS1.5(now 1.6), and the Triangle Antal(all but the Thiels should work fine with tubes). Although they are all excellent speakers and share the ability to hide in a room, each is very different sonically so, as always, try to hear as many as you can--but then that's half the fun, right? Best of luck.

Tim

I have three thoughts on this subject, have been considering it awhile myself as I listen around. 1. visual illusion affects the listening experience; small boxes image better because they look smaller and somehow that makes the image illusion more effective. 2. Sizzly tweeters kill imaging. 3. Room placement is probably more important to imaging than anything else. With all this said, the best-imaging speakers I've ever heard were Dynaudios, although my experience is not all that broad. Will be interested to hear other opinions.

i note that some one has just listed a pair of paragon jubilee/jems for 2300. i have owned these speakers for 5 years now and i can't speak too highly of them. see my prior posts on this board and on audio asylum for my comments. i can't figure out why anyone would sell them. they replaced my quad 63's which are now in the attic. these speakers truly disappear and are neutral and transparent. they are not a difficult load for an amp. i run my with a baron or a sonic's frontier. they are very revealing without being bright. paragon is out of business due to marketing problems not design and implementation. check them out.

I think that there is only one absolute in audio: if you are ever unfortunate enough to get zapped by the high voltages of a tube amp, and live, you will ABSOLUTELY never make that mistake again! Happy Tunes!

If you like how Mirage does it, check out their MRM-1 Reference Monitors. I'm running mine with a pair of VAC PA160 mkII monoblocks and they disappear on a daily basis. Well suited for small to medium rooms. I would not, however, recommend them for a large listening room.