[Geruvah]

This will be my very first venture into speakers that cost more than $50, so I'm hoping I'm learning as much as I can about these before I take the plunge (and apologies for the long-ish post). In everyway I think the 200b fits my needs perfectly. A desktop speaker that can rival my headphones and IEMs. And man does it look good.

What scares me off a bit is their age. How long have they been in production and how do they compare to other speakers in the same price range? Especially newer ones?

I'm wondering what's their sound signature and why I should choose these compared to say, Fergusun Hill's FH007 (http://www.fergusonhill.co.uk/product_details.php?id=7). Mind you, I haven't and can't audition them, even though I live in Manhattan.

I have an eclectic taste in music, so I'll be listening to things such as solo piano, rock (heavy, progressive, acoustic), electronic (trance, progressive house).

Usually my test tracks would be something like:
Eagles - Hotel California (Hell Freezes Over)
Deadmau5 - A City in Florida (I know. Loudness War. But the bass remains lovely in this)
Ottmar Liebert - Underworld (Binaural album, so it's usually used for headphones)
Ya Gotta Try - Buddy Rich
Barry White - Can't Get Enough of Your Love
Minnesota Orchestra - Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov: The Snow Maiden - Dance of the Tumblers

Thanks for any answers.

 

[MrSlim]

Personally, I'd shy away from something as radical as the Fergies, especially since you can't audition them, an it would be painful to return them if you decided to return them. The Audio Insider has a 30 day return, and are located in the US. Check out the Swan M200MkIII also, there are some very good customer comments about them...

 

[Geruvah]

I'll definitely check them out. I've seen more thourough reviews of the MkIII than the t200b. The frequency response chart looks similar, no?

 

[Xozz]

I've had my swans for about 6 months and absolutely love them. I have pretty similar taste in music and they fit me just fine. Sure, the bass doesn't exactly shake the foundation or anything, but it certainly is enough for any deadmau5 if you value your hearing. As for classic rock and jazz, I think the mk series are probably the best speakers for the price (emphasis on the jazz...its insane). 30 day return policy is pretty nice too. Oh, and they come with gloves 

 
I can't vouch for the t200b's but I'd imagine they're similar to the mk series but improved in some way?

 

[prozach1576]

I don't really listen to anything "hard" or "heavy" on my M200MkIIIs. Probably as far as I go would be like the Smashing Pumpkins or My Bloody Valentine. That stuff definitely sounds great, but it's not really their strong suit. Where I think they shine is in more spacious music where clarity, warmth, and separation between instruments matters more. More than anything, they blow me away with classical, jazz, and acoustic music. Standard rock music is great too, I'd just make the qualification that I like the sound less as I get closer to metal or noise rock. I will reach for my Grados when I want to listen to that. For everything else, though, the Swans are amazing.

 

[Geruvah]

Those last two posts were amazing and helped a lot. Thank you guys so much. I have my HD-650's with my tube amp for songs like that then. I'm taking the swan dive.

 

[BillionPa]

I have had Swan M200 speakers for  many years and have loved using them for every minute. What sound card are you using?

 

[Geruvah]

Quote:

I have had Swan M200 speakers for  many years and have loved using them for every minute. What sound card are you using?

Using my Mac Pro's digital out. I made a thread earlier on how I would go about connecting the speakers (trying to avoid the audio out jack) since it's already being used for my headphone setup but I think I got an answer until I buy a DAC that can probably have more RCA out so I can buy another amp separately for the speakers (if they even make one). http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/532224/how-to-connect-speakers-since-the-optical-out-is-being-used-for-the-headphones#post_7178782