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Wilson Audio in the Near Field? w/ Pass Labs?

I have never owned Wilson speakers which I know stir up some debates around here.

It has been years, but in my experience hearing Watt / Puppies (5's to 7's?) with friends and demos, I always thought they sounded pretty darn good, not fatiguing and in particular, imaged well. Curiously, however, I was not as impressed by an early version of the gigantic Wilsons.

For a new system, I am wondering what Wilsons (preferably used) I might use for a console / desktop in the nearfield, as per my recent system link update.

The Duettes seem obvious as they are smaller and Wilson says suitable for applications where it is against a wall or not well placed in open space?

However, I seem to also recall the the "WATT" half of the WPs were originally studio monitors - the Wilson Audio Tiny Tots?

Therefore, they might also work well? Is it possible to buy a used pair of old WPs and sell the puppies?

Finally, another topic of debate but for lower volumes, I would be delighted if Pass amps operating in Class A might sound good for this application. Because I love the way they look and would enjoy staring at them all day, especially a pair of monoblocks but if not notice that the 30.5 gets good reviews.

Thank you for any thoughts, ideas and / or advice and

Happy New Year,
cwlondon
brf
1,715 posts
 
Have you considered headphone?
cwlondon OP
1,210 posts
 
Brf,

Yes, I have several pairs of headphones and rarely use any of them, except Sony MDR SA5000 once in a blue moon as they are lightweight, fast and transparent, albeit a bit thin in the bass.

I do wonder if I might enjoy Stax electrostatics but generally don't want to wear headphones unless absolutely necessary.

Raks, thank you - the audio desk continues to be a work in progress so if necessary (or even if not necessary) will likely rebuild, change and/or move the monitors.

Duettes definitely chunkier than my ATC SCM 7s however as you can see in the photos.

The WATT cabinet arguably prettier to look at however not sure how well they would work given port in the rear?

Any thoughts on Wilsons with Pass Labs?

Cheers,
brf
1,715 posts
 
The WATTs work well with Pass Labs, but don't forget that the WATTs are not exactly small!
skoczylas's avatar
skoczylas
240 posts
 
Beatiful room and interesting system and interests. Just one thought. If you need a small footprint, use nearfield and like sweet mids and low volume listening, have you considered the lower power tube or hybrids, paired with efficient speakers? A first watt, red wine, or decware? Perhaps with sonus faber or zu? Just a thought.
cwlondon OP
1,210 posts
 
Skoczylos

Thank you and oh yes, I had definitely thought about tubes over the years, also given my obsession with midrange and as you point out, low volumes.

However, amoung other reasons I sometimes like to leave everything on 24/7 for convenience and don't want to have to worry too much about expense or maintenance.

To be clear, smaller footprint not necessarily for physical reasons but just to make the nearfield as near as possible.

The high efficiency debate is an interesting one but ever since passing on Klipsch speakers to buy my first set of Magnepans circa 1979 I seem to have stayed in the lower efficiency camp.
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