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Proac 2.5's-something not quite right- ideas?

Ok Audiogoners I've just recently required a pair of Proac Response 2.5's.
My system is Ayre CX-7,Ayre AX-7-using custom made balanced interconnect (tried Cardas Golden Ref.happy with this)and Vantage Marina Speaker cable(bi-wire)-my old speakers were Proac Studio 150's.
My sound before was excellent-worked with my wide musical tastes,subtle and detailed when required and enough oomph when playing Rock or Electronica.
Typically I though my speakers were the weak link and have always wanted to hear/own 2.5's.

What I am hearing with the 2.5's is a jump in scale of presentation and more air/detail around instruments,on certain recordings it sounds really great on others something is missing,the smoothness and clarity I associate with the Proac sound.
The second problem is the scale of the bass,it may just take adjusting to and whilst it doesn't sound overpowering in terms of the overall recording (vocals/details etc. are still there)it really does seem too much for home listening-more like a gig or club experience.
If I put the 150's back in,the bottom line is they sound more musical overall.

I don't believe it's my room which is large-18 feet wide by some 30 plus feet long-I have 3m high ceiling -whilst speaker placement makes a slight difference (I've been messing about with that)it is not a major influence on the general effects.
I've also tried ceramic tiles on my carpet with the speakers on top-again not a major difference.
Everything in my system has been checked-the speakers are set up per instruction and the replacement effect of the 150's proves nothing is amiss imho.

I have several theories as to what might be wrong-the only previous owner only listened to Jazz and Classical and not at as loud levels as I do-the speakers have not been used in the last two years.
So if run in/break in is a factor (I've only got about 8 hours on them)can I expect the missing resolution to come into focus?
Can I expect the bass driver to change?- since perhaps it has never been fully tested with fast/deep modern bass.
Does my increased listening volume mean more break in was required anyway?

My biggest fear is the scale of the 2.5's is not to my taste and that they are so revealing that I am hearing a grain in some recordings that I didn't hear before.

I've read enough about these speakers to know some how I'm not getting what I should and I instictively know on many of the tracks and CD's I'm playing that I am not getting the enjoyment I was before despite some more space and detail.

Thoughts?
ben_campbell
ccurightd6ac
1 posts
 
Hey ... just by chance passed this thread (searching the net for some info about ScanSpeak 18w8542 - used in ProAc studio 100 ) ... but reading your xperiences i want to tell that it is my xperience that you dont get the same overall sound from the Studio series as from the Response series ... the Studio's are much more neutral/monitor alike. I really like the Studio series very much, - close to the best i know in their way of reproducing ... and ... allthough big respect for the work done ... i could not live with the Response series without using a loooots of energy to find players and amps that would mach.
But ... since you talked about an upgrade of the Studio sound i can only recomend that you listen to ProAc's Future series, - when i listened to it i experienced the same overall sound as from the Studioes just that it was much bigger ... test it if you get a chance ..
All the best ...
Bjarne C ... Copenhagen
extrastrong
2 posts
 
I have been talking with number of people.I have never been to England. I was told there rooms are rather small. And proacs are made in England.And that proacs like smaller to midsize rooms.Proac 3.8 can be put in lager rooms. I use Audio Research CD1 cd player, classe ssp25 preamp and classe ca400.Proac 1.5 speakers. Kimber Kable XLR,interconnects and Kimber Kable biwire speaker cable.
ben_campbell OP
1,169 posts
 
An update where I am with the speakers now a few weeks down the line.

Firstly as I stated above, a little patience on my part would have been prudent because it does take a little time to take in and live with changes in your system.

I believe now the 2.5's are better than the 150's but I have to say the Studio 150's are a speaker I could have lived with and aren't as far off the 2.5's as I expected them to be.

I believe the clarity issue actually now to be a volume issue.I believe I wasn't playing the 2.5's loud enough-part of the reason for this is the numerical readout on the AX-7 which I think throws a visual distraction into the equation and the other is the scale of sound from the 2.5's-presenting such a bigger soundstage probably made me nervous to listen to them at the right levels. I've also moved in the last 10 months which makes me a little nervous about annoying the neighbours-I stay in a tenement flat(apartment).

Yes the bass is on a scale I'm not used too but the speakers are either running in or I'm adjusting to the sound because it doesn't irk me as much as it did and sounds more balanced.

The key moment came when I put the 150's back in and let them run in for a couple of days (I was auditioning them for a potential buyer-who bought them)-some of the differences I thought I had heard (more tuneful controlled bass,more clarity) weren't in fact there-I had by this time adjusted the volume slightly when listening to the 2.5's.

There are other aspects to consider I do believe the positioning of my speakers could be better but it is a little awkward with my room set up.
Over the next week or so I am going to put my system back on Audiogon.

Thanks very much to everyone who posted on this I found quite a few of the comments useful and insightful.
gunbei
2,327 posts
 
You're warming up to the 2.5s, that's great news Ben!

Also, be aware that your seating distance will play a big role in the perceived bass response. It could be that the Studio 150s and Response 2.5s require different distances from the listener to produce similar bass response.

My speakers are roughly 2 meters or 6.6 feet apart, and I sit about that far from them. I use a rolling chair and I find that if I back up the bass increases. Too far and it becomes unnatural.

I like the distance I'm currently using which may be considered nearfield. The bass while not as extended seems to have better tone, and the nearfield imaging is intoxicating.

Have fun!
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