Thiel CS6 to Von Schweikert VR4 JR - Am i Crazy?

You seem confident about your sources so I would suggest another speaker for you to consider - a used pair of Talon Khorus. These are in the $3-4k range on the used market. I was a long time Magnepan 3.3 owner but wanted a more dynamic speaker so I tried the Thiel....both the 3.6 and the 2.3.

These Thiels were both ok but I could not hear what all the hoopla was with Thiel speakers. They sounded too forward at the dealer in an all BAT setup with Linn TT. None of this is bright gear. In my system (all ARC at the time) there was no forwardness but the magic of the Magnepan was absolutely gone. Forget about warmth with Thiels. It's simply not there - I don't care what anyone says. Toe-in, speaker placement, yada yada yada, the warmth is not there. But before I went back to the Magnepan, I tried the Khorus.

The Talons have far more low end extension - absolutely no comparison. There is much more resolution in the treble and somewhat of the Magnepan midrange magic. The Talons are an outstanding dynamic speaker that destroy the Thiels I owned in every way. But keep in mind these Thiels are a "step down" from your CS6. Still, the 3.6 was no huge step up from the 2.3.

If you want to stay with a dynamic speaker try the Talons. I kept mine for my HT system and they are perfect for this. They are a little bigger than the Thiels but not by much. And btw, the Thiel dealer I mentioned was also a VS dealer and I heard the VR4's there. They sounded wonderfully musical vs. the rather analytical Thiel.

John

Thanks for all of your comments. I appreciate all of your opinions and suggestions.

hi bundy, just another opinion - I know you listen to mostly vinyl now so you might be buttoned up there,but to reiterate some posts above, your digital source is not going to get you where you want to be. I disagree with Jafox, I have Thiel 3.6's and my system is warm, Thiels can be warm. I've got CJ premier 14 tubes and Macintosh monoblocks with all MIT cabling and it is a very unfatiguing system, sometimes a bit too far on the warm side, especially with mullard 6gk5 tubes. My meridian front end 200/263 is long in the tooth but very analog like and that is where it all starts. you also need alot of room for thiels to breathe, I'm fortunate that I do. Sometimes I find placing your thiels closer together, say 7 to 7.5 feet warms up the presentation and makes the stage deeper. This is contrary to alot of opinions with thiels, but if your room is not dead on you have more room interaction with a greater spread and a more diffuse and bright presentation - at least in my setup. Good luck with your decision.

Jerry

Thiel 3.6 was one of the warmest sounding Thiels made, quite different than later models, and from the Thiel 2.x series.

If the 3.6 is considered one of the warmer sounding models, then no wonder Bundy is wanting more here. I guess it all comes down to what our reference point is to warmth.

If you live in Minnesota and it's 55 degrees in March, that is considered warm. But people in Phoenix were complaining it was cold back in Feb when the temps were 75.

For me, warmth implies more body and presence in the lower mids with great harmonic richness. There's added weight to vocals and piano notes that are so very lush and rich. This is the Magnepan speaker. This is the Cardas Golden Cross (too much in fact). This is the ARC LS5 line stage and VT130 amp. This is the Manley Reference Dac. This is the Koetsu cartridge. This is NOT the Thiel 3.6 speaker!