[samspotting]

Is the a5 just a version of a2 that can fill a bigger room or is it worth upgrading even if my room is dorm sized for the increase in sq.

 

[mamba315]

I think the A5's sound a lot better, even in a small room. I had the A2's for about 3 weeks before upgrading to the A5's. I am happy with the switch, primarily due to superior low-frequency reproduction.

The A5's produce a much bigger and more defined bottom end, which is to be expected when you go from a 2.75" woofer to a 5" woofer. The A2's would sound congested when thrown lots of sound in the 100-500hz region, which is a pretty wide (2+ octave) range. The 50-100hz range lacked punch and volume. However, I should note that I felt like the A2's handled musical material in the higher frequencies very well. Vocals, trumpets, and flamenco guitar are some examples in music that the A2's handle extremely well (given their size and price, naturally).

I EQ'ed out the infamous A2 low-midrange hump which helped a lot with the congested sound in that region, but it still lacked overall impact down low. After awhile my ears adjusted and it sounded good, but I'd already decided to upgrade since I wanted the best full-range sound possible (all the way down to almost 20 hz when paired with a sub). Accurate full-range reproduction makes ALL music better, but it was especially important for me since I listen to a lot of "electronic" music, for lack of a better term. The A2's alone don't do that genre justice.

I also like the iPod charger and audio-in ports on top of the A5's, which is a nice feature you DON'T get on the A2's. It's very convenient to play music off my iPod without having to disconnect my computer first. I don't always want to deal with the noise, power consumption, and start-up times of my full desktop, and it's nice that I don't have to dig around in the wire nest behind my computer every time I want to hear something off my iPod. The A5's with my Martin Logan sub can produce a very large and amazing sound... sometimes its hard to believe its all coming out of the tiny little iPod on top of the left speaker.

 

[h.rav]

A5 offers more detailed, clearer, bigger presentation. A2 is still a very good set though. I really like the small form factor of the A2, but I like the A5 Bamboo a lot more...

 

[samspotting]

Well I bought the A5's and indeed they are more detailed and much bigger.

A2's with my super pro dac cannot beat the a5's by themselves. I am excited for how they will sound once my compass arrives.

 

[classicalguy]

What is "more bass?" Are you asking whether they play lower frequencies? Are you asking whether they have higher sound pressure levels (louder)? Is the bass faster. More tuneful. Your question reminds me of that movie where the guy was bragging about his amplifier because the volume knob went up to 13.

By the way, I've never heard it, but I'm certain the bass goes lower and plays louder. I'd be surprised if it didn't sound better in every way. But it's bigger and more expensive.

 

[samspotting]

indeed, playing from these speakers I feel that the sound is much bigger even though it might not be louder. Also, it is very detailed even without a dac, something which the a2 performed poorly without.

The a2's had this distinctive detailed but small sound that came out of them. The a5's are definately different.

I no longer feel the need for a bass to play the lower frequencies, these speakers just rock.