PMC vs. Salk Sound Speakers. Which is better?

I think Bigkidz hit the nail on the head. Whether you like PMC or Salk, it's possible to make either one sound good or bad by using ancillary equipment not suited to them. And it's just as possible for a $15,000.00 preamp and $25,000.00 amp to make a speaker sound bad (or good) as it is for a $1500.00 preamp and $2000.00 amp to make a speaker sound good or bad. Depends on the implementation of the components and if there's something about them that doesn't suit the speaker (or vice versa).One example: if you have an impedance mismatch between the output impedance of the preamp and the input impedance of the amp, then it's likely whatever speaker you are listening to them through isn't going to sound good. Interconects and speaker cables also provide plenty of opportunity to make or break how any speaker sounds. Either the Salk or the PMC (or any speaker) could sound very good in one system and sound like crap in another. Rooms and placement are another way to showcase your speakers or destroy what they're capable of. So when someone says this brand of speaker is great but that one is crap, what kind of system and room are they listening to them with/in?

Cmon Audiozen...your not going to stop there are you.I am sure Jim appreciates all your doing here for him???
I may dissagree with PMC pricing but they have good SQ.

In my opinion Salk's new Silks are atleast $1500-$2000 over priced. So I guess he is starting to charge for his company name as well.

Never heard Salk but have been a avid PMC user for 3+ years. As good as the PMCs are they are seriously overpriced. My model is the OB1i, a nice 3 way floor stander that IMHO represents the best value, if possible, in the I series. When I purchased them the list price 3 years ago was $7500. They now list for $8500. About 2 years ago PMC introduced a step up model from the ob1i, the pb1i. It consists of exactly the same drivers and cabinet design but with a extra woofer and more height to house the double woofer array. I was interested in a listen but stopped dead in my tracks when learning this new model lists for 5 thousand more than the ob1i! This is for 1 extra driver and a little extra cabinet. The overall benefit of the extra driver is a more bass but for 5k. I ended up buying 2 used JL Audio Fathom f110 subs and a Bryston 10B sub crossover to augment the ob1is for less than 4 thousand. The bass is now light years ahead of the pb1i and a lot less cash.

So after this long rant in a nutshell PMC sound great but they have to reign in prices. I am not saying switch production overseas but at least make the factory more efficient. As a side note the materials and assembly quality while very good in not great.

First, I have to agree with Dodgealum, this thread was pointless. Audiozen certainly got a rise out of a few people but I doubt anything was accomplished.

I've never heard PMC speakers but based on Vapor1's link to the PMC crossover, I'd definitely have to pass, especially at their asking price. I doubt there's more than $50 worth of parts on each board and they're obviously very low quality.

As for x-over design, I agree with a few others posts, the fewer parts the better. I'll take a simple 1st order series x-over with a minimum of parts any day and I absolutely hate the use of resistors. Usually, that glassy glare and sizzle you hear in the treble(mids too) is caused by those nasty resistors.

I also agree with many of Bigkidz points including the one about "price of a component means nothing" and I certainly didn't find it to be as "stupid" as this thread started by Audiozen. Frankly, I've heard countless speakers and components over the years that carried 5 and 6 figure price tags that sounded like crap and I've heard just as many audio toys priced at fractions less that put them to shame. So... often, the price is meaningless!

Finally, I've heard Salk speakers a few times under "show conditions" and have always enjoyed what I heard. I've never owned any of Jim's designs but have chatted with him and he seems like an intelligent designer. I'm not a huge fan of ribbons but he seems to get the best out of them. As for the cabinets, they really are beautiful and overall quality appears quite high.

Well, I've wasted enough time on this "stupid" thread so I'm outta here!