amphion loudspeakers

[music_man]

imo the higher end ones argon3 and above knock it out of the park. the owner is a true gentleman to boot. i understand many audiophiles would not be used to this type of sound and may dislike it. as a recording engineer for passive speakers these are how music should sound. on that note their main business is pro audio. i can understand this would nt many's choice of sound but i can tell you this is how it should sound. well, i am not telling anyone how to hear i am just saying these are very true to the source. bad source will sound rotten. great source and it is surprising the detail and soundstage. i would certainly check these out if you are in the market and in your price range. unfortunately very few home audio dealers. they cannot sell these because most non recording folks are not used to this type of transparency. you can chime in bash them but i feel i know why. just not used to this. little known brand outside of studios.

 

[motberg]

I am looking at these - but good to note that the Argon 3 has been updated to Argon3S with a passive radiator in the rear instead of a port..
http://www.amphion.fi/en/products/argon3s/
 
This model is very high on my list as a must-audition for my next speaker upgrade (I am stuck in a small room).

 

[music_man]

they are super true to the source. which is what i am used to as an engineer. many would not like them for that very reason but they might not be able to put their felings into proper words. remember, these are studio monitors just with a nice wood finish. which is indeed a great wood package. they did a great job on them. honestly i feel the argon 3 is better. i had to get the 3s though because they are sold out of 3 already. i am not a big fan of radiators but it being aluminum works very well anyhow. very pleased with these. in some ways they are better than $54,000 speakers! pretty amazing.

 

[motberg]

Thanks for the information... I think there are some of the old version Argon 3 still available here.... I need check that...

 

[music_man]

i was just wondering who is your dealer. i se you are in thre different countries. btw, i especially love mx and i really like going to china too. my company has a fancy airplane i can still use. compare them but i say if you can get the3 go for it. especially at a discount maybe. one thing, as with any high end speaker you cannot box these in. they should be on stands at least 2 feet, preferably 3 feet from any boundaries. even if you stuff them in a cabinet they are good but they will sing if setup right. these are not expensive because they are made in finland. if they were made in usa or germany for instance i bet these would be twice the price. even at that they can flat kill many 10-15 grand speakers. that is if you can get accustomed to this sound. i compared them to b&w 803 d3 and they slaughtered them in my pinion. the amazing thing the metal tweeter is very smooth. every metal tweeter i ever heard is right in your face. i seriously hope you try these. i have an agenda though i must admit. the owner of amphion is so nice and his speakers are so good i just want to help get the word out.
.

 

[motberg]

i was just wondering who is your dealer. i se you are in thre different countries. btw, i especially love mx and i really like going to china too. my company has a fancy airplane i can still use. compare them but i say if you can get the3 go for it. especially at a discount maybe. one thing, as with any high end speaker you cannot box these in. they should be on stands at least 2 feet, preferably 3 feet from any boundaries. even if you stuff them in a cabinet they are good but they will sing if setup right. these are not expensive because they are made in finland. if they were made in usa or germany for instance i bet these would be twice the price. even at that they can flat kill many 10-15 grand speakers. that is if you can get accustomed to this sound. i compared them to b&w 803 d3 and they slaughtered them in my pinion. the amazing thing the metal tweeter is very smooth. every metal tweeter i ever heard is right in your face. i seriously hope you try these. i have an agenda though i must admit. the owner of amphion is so nice and his speakers are so good i just want to help get the word out.
.

Hi... no problem for the "agenda" - your comments are very much appreciated. Thanks again!
 
I live mostly in China... a few extended visits per year to Mexico.. and then a few weeks or so visiting the homestead in the USA... before I moved to China, I lived in Mexico about 10 years... really nice people, weather - and especially the great cuisine !!   ....also Spanish is a LOT easier to learn than Chinese...
 
I went to an Amphion dealer in Tianjin last year, but they did not have the Argon 3 at the store... but I got the distributor contact info... I can probably listen to them in Guangzhou if necessary. There is a pair available online which may be some older show samples, well discounted.. and I contacted the seller a few weeks ago and he said they were still available and new. Another friend I met here on HF also highly recommends the Argon 3...
 
I have the room for 1 meter from the front wall... no problem... now I am using Mark and Daniel "Ruby" monitors with the optional Omni-directional tweeters..
http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/markdaniel3/ruby.html
They sound very good for my music preferences but I think need a bit more distance... even though the main crossover is pretty low at around 800hz ...
 
I have spent the past couple years improving my PC-based front end (in my profile... amp is 250/500/1000 WPC SS), and am considering  pulling the trigger on new speakers. I am in a small 4x4 dedicated treated room - and limited to about 2 to 2.3 meters listening distance (due to bass problems) so I will probably need something like a studio monitor.. I had a personal project studio set up in Mexico some years ago - so have maybe some idea of what the presentation will be like....
 
Thanks again and Cheers!

 

[music_man]

yeah tell me about is spanish is easier to learn than chinese lol. i am really surprised they have amphion in china that is great! i would not be surprised if they have them in mx df. treated rom is key. so many people fail to do that. you will need some auralex behind them. you do not really need a sub with these but it would be nice to have a litle one. i would recommend the mj acoustics ref 100 or 150. expensive in us but cheap in uk. not sure about china or mx. i will not recommend rel because get this, they are made in china. the thing is they are using child labor so i can't deal with that. let's just not discuss that, okay! mj acoustics is what rel used to be. exact same thing as when they were in wales uk. many people do not like those type of subs but i will tell you they are best with the argon. you need a good amp. i recommend you snag a gently used classe cap-2100 on ebay. many of them for sale. don't know why so many but they are rock solid if not already broken. if you put all three of those things together in a treated room the sound will nearly make you cry! of course on good recordings. being true to the source, bad recordings sound horrible on this. they crossover at 1600hz which was a very good idea of them. that is below where the normal dip is and the tweeter can handle it. other speakers can't do that because the tweeter can't handle it. as i said amazingly that metal tweeter is smooth as silk(no pun intended).. if you can get argon3 for cheap and they are almost new it is a no brainer so long as you like the sound. could always sell them anyways but a hassle i know. as i said i prefer the 3 to the 3s even though the 2-18 is a radiator. for home use i prefer the port honestly. so if you can get those cheap that is your deal i think. hopefully you can listen to both and then decide., try to listen with and without asmall sub. you most certainly do not want alarge sub! i would not get more than a 10" 200 watt sub. in a small room to big can be a disaster since these go very low anyways. in fact you may opt for no sub with these. with some slight boundry reinforcement their in room extension is down to 30hz. that is plenty. the little sub just tightens it up. anyways i think you will find these a vast departure from headphones. no headphones period can do what these do. in the studio we always check final mix on monitors and never on headphones. this is odd but it would make mevery happy if you get these and really like them. i feel bad for the owner because they are not selling good in the home market. this is a shame because audiophiles are just not used to this presentation. they expect something completely different. if you record you will see exactly what i mean and these are completely correct. in some ways they wil outdo any bookshelf speaker at any price. some very expensive ones can be more pleasant or have a exaggerated soundstage that is cool but very few can match the reality of these regardless of what they are. i actually find it kind of amazing. they are affordable simply because they are finnish. i said that though. i also said they normally build with vinyl covering. so for them to build these lavish cabinets was nothing short of a feat. someone there knew woodworking. one last thing. don't forget cables! believe it or not these like audioquest. i have the totl on them but some for a few hundred will do fine. pick them up on ebay for half that too.