Bookshelf / Standmount Speaker Decisions - Page 3

I will be auditioning two or three different speakers from Fritzspeakers.com in my home in a couple of weeks, unless I get itchy and buy something from audiogon.

Koven here on head-fi is one of many who recommend Fritz.  He advertises on Audiogon, has for years.  He has a few fery favorable reviews out there as well.

We have spoken a couple of times, and he is a really nice guy who breathes speakers...

I am really looking forward to the audition.  Fritz will actually come over and set them up in my room, on my Peachtree Nova, and we'll check them out.  Two or three weeks later, I get my speakers, if we decide to work together further.

I've auditioned the SE1 and the S10, but not the S1 yet.  My feeling at the time was that I liked the ERA house sound just a bit better, more laid back for the ERA vs. a bit more forward and bright on the Paradigms.  The description of the Fritz speakers that I have heard make them seem more in the ERA vane, and with truly high end drivers - scanspeak 6.5" mid/bas and scanspeak 9300 tweeter - $1000 retail just for the drivers!  I will get to the S1's next.  There is always the off chance that I'll just find a deal on audiogon that I can't pass up, and take a chance.

OK, I heard the Paradigm Signature S1 yesterday.  Now I get it - it is a truly lovely sounding speaker.  I also heard B&W 686 (standmount), 683, 684 (Floor Standing) which were all great, but a bit compressed to my ears.  In the same room, I heard theParadigm Studio 20 and monitor 7's.  The studio 20 was pretty niice, but that same slightly dry and brittle top end.

Next room, I heard the Paradigm Signature S1, retail at $2K, or twice my budget, the Signature S2 at $3K.  Both were wonderful speakers.  If I could find the S2 at a good used price, I'd probably do that.  I'm pretty sure I'd be looking for a subwoofer eventually with the S1, which raises the price significantly.

I also heard the B&W CM1 (Standmount) and CM7 (Floorstanding).  I really liked both a whole bunch!  The CM7 is at least 90% of the S1 at half or less the cost.  The CM7 is much more lush and full than either, and delivers the subwoofer range acceptably well.  I am strongly considering the CM7 or CM1.  CM1 would eventualy require a subwoofer also.

I also heard the Vienna Accoustics Hadyn, Mozart and Bach at Best Buy.  The Hadyn was the standout to me.  Both floor standers were a bit compressed or boxy sounding to me.  I also heard a couple of unremembered Definitive Technology and Martin Logan speakers that were not my cup of tea.

Fritz (Fritzspeakers.com) is supposed to come over this week or next.  I am considering getting a demo pair of the CM7's to have available in the audition mix.

Funny!  The ML Motion 2 or 4 are the ones I termed "unremembered."  I recal them being too bright for my taste.

On the headphone front, I've really settled in with the D7000 / DacMagic / Dynalo combo for the long haul.

I spoke to Fritz again yesterday.  All things being equal, if I can afford it, and I like the sound, I'd like to buy speakers from him - he is just plain a great guy to talk to.  He also seems to hate metal dome tweeters...

Fritz and I will get together next week.

Well, I have a pair of Fritz' Grove Tower's in my family room, hooked up to the Peachtree Nova.  They are on extended loan.  I like them, so far.  My lovely wife tolerates them, which is about all I'll get...

They do not seem to roll off on the highs as the Carbon 7's are reported to do.  Fritz sold his demo pair of Carbon 7's before I got to hear them.  He'll make me a great deal on the demo Grove Towers, roughly $1250 or so, vs $1650 or so for new.  A few dings, not the exact color, and the baffle has had a couple of sets of drivers in there, so not a retail perfect pair, but fine, and sound great.

The sound:

They have a silk dome 1" tweeter from Morel, and a Dynaudio clone mid-woofer with a cast frame.  The high end is quite detailed, not overly bright.  Quite airy.  The mids are lush, and the bass extends down to 31.5 hz strongly, and loses quite a bit at 25 hz, virtually silent at 20 hz, other than port noise.  In actual music listening, in my room, imaging is good, but they don't "disapear." I think it is more of a room issue.  I really wish I'd gotten to hear the Carbon 7's as a test of imaging.  The Groves have lots of punch and impact in bass and mids.  This after my first listen.  I'll have more impressions later.  So far, possible keepers, but not sure yet.  Something from Fritz very probably will be the keepers.  His voicing is spot on for me, has craftsmanship is excellent, even on the demos, and he uses silk dome tweeters, which I like.  The only metal dome tweeters I've heard so far (not that many) that I think I could live with long term are in the Paradigm Signature S1's and S2's, and to a lesser extent, the B&W CM series.  Everything else that has caught my ear has silk domes.  That's it for now...

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrarroyo 

Glad you are liking the Fritz speakers, how about some pictures!

I'll work on that this weekend.  Even for his demos / design mules, they are quite lovely in a medium dark redish mahogany stained real wood venier.  I'm liking them more, and he has offered to split a pair of outriggers with me.  He is really making this an attractive deal.  I plan to go down to Best Buy tonight, and listen to the Vienna Acoustics Beethovens and Haydn's again, as they were the most local ot me viable competetion.  I'm really toying with bringing a pair of Hadyn's home for the day with Best Buy's 7 day return policy, though I don't feel quite right test driving that way.

Here's some photos.  Fritz' speakers usually use magnetic grill attachment with the magnets under the veneer.  These have the usual pegs, a nod to my 5 year old pistol of a daughter!

Finish is a hand rubbed medium dark mahogany.  They've been around a bit, but look great from about 5 or 6 feet away.  Come to think of it, so have I, and so do I...

I've experimented with position a bit more, and with another pair of speakers in the room.  The room and placement is the imaging issue, I believe.  The speakers themselves are great.  The drivers are Morel silk domes, I think the MDT 32S, and I believe Dynavox LW6004, though I'm not sure yet.

Rear ported, single binding posts, bass down to 31.5 hz, then pretty much goes away - a bit of volume at 25 hz, and a weeze at 20 hz.

Apologies for the photo quality - iPhone pics...