[fyleow]

They don't compare to the Sennheiser 650s at all. Okay, they are $1000/pair MSRP so I didn't expect them to live up but I have my Senns being driven by my SB Audigy 2 and no amp. The Quads are Audigy to Pana digital amp.

I blame it on my awful speaker placement though. The speakers sound too "boxy" and I think it's all due to placement. During more complex passages the vibrations (resonance? hell, i dont know. i'm a headphone guy

) are overwhelming and make it sound like crap once again.

Playing it at lower volumes and playing more acoustic songs certainly help but I can tell even with good placement they aren't as good as the 650s. Not nearly as detailed.

Here's a link to my awful picture taken by my camera phone

 

[eyeteeth]

How did you arrive at Quad 12Ls as the speakers you wanted?
I heard the 11L model once.

 

[fyleow]

Quote:

Originally Posted by eyeteeth How did you arrive at Quad 12Ls as the speakers you wanted? I heard the 11L model once.

I was reading reviews for bookshelves around this price range ($1000) and the Quad 11L and Dynaudio Audience 52 were highly recommended. Most said that the Dynaudio was more well rounded with better bass but the Quad did better in the highs and mids so I went with the Quads since I planned on getting a sub anyway. I found the Quad 12L used for around the same price so I jumped on it. Most reviews praise the 11L highly, but the few 12L reviews out there point out that the 11L's bigger brother is more polished and they were better speakers.

They look gorgeous too, the finish really does look like it belongs to a piano.

 

[chrisczarra]

I would definitely agree with you on the speaker placement- it looks like your set up is in the corner of your room(with one speaker right in the corner spot), which is about the worst place to put monitor speakers. If there is any way to move you desk away from the corner and a little further out from the wall, it should help a bit. Monitors need symmetry and free space to image well. And when you get them positioned right, you might find yourself listening to them as much as your headphones.

 

[fyleow]

Actually I've been listening to it more and I'm starting to like the sound. As long as I keep the volumes reasonable they sound pretty good. My suite mates came in and the first thing they said was "turn up the volume to the max" and "max out the bass on the equalizer"

I gave in to peer pressure (well, not max volume but pretty damn loud). It's nice to know that these can be good "party" speakers too. With the bass turned up they still maintain control even at high volumes. I'm planning to get a sub to fix the lack of bass though.

I'm already starting to like the advantages of speakers, I can listen while cleaning my room without tripping all over myself. Yeah, it's not as detailed as the 650s but it sounds good enough to keep me happy.

I actually have no room to move them farther from the wall but once I move back home in the summer to my new house and 170 sq feet room I'm going to put them on some nice stands, get a sub and mess with the placement.

 

[eyeteeth]

When you decide upon best positioning, you'll then need to isolate them from whatever they're sitting on, be that your desk or stands.

Use this stuff for $9
http://www.amusicdirect.com/products...sp?sku=ABLUTAK

I'm sure you can get it for less in a neighbourhood hardware store.

 

[BigD]

To further position problem,
Are those speakers magnetic shielded? They seem awful close to your monitor. Not too good for your monitor...

 

[replytoken]

I would second eyeteeth's suggestion. Or, could you spike the speakers and have them sit on pennies, either felted or tacked to the desk? Any thoughts?

 

[fyleow]

Quote:

Originally Posted by eyeteeth When you decide upon best positioning, you'll then need to isolate them from whatever they're sitting on, be that your desk or stands. Use this stuff for $9 http://www.amusicdirect.com/products...sp?sku=ABLUTAK I'm sure you can get it for less in a neighbourhood hardware store.

No idea if the speakers came with them or the original owner added them in but my speakers already have them.

Quote:

To further position problem, Are those speakers magnetic shielded? They seem awful close to your monitor. Not too good for your monitor...

I have an LCD monitor so I don't think it matters.

 

[mcgsxr]

You are right, the LCD monitor means that you CAN place your speakers the way you have them, but it is no surprise that you are not sure you like the sound that way.

The Quads are a nice stand mount speaker, that need some room around them. IF there is a way that you can get them off the desk, and away from the walls (and each other...) you will be rewarded with a soundstage, and some imaging.

In their present location, they will reproduce sound, but I doubt you will be thrilled...

Great speakers, and a good setup overall too - now you are on the learning curve about room interaction - welcome to speakers!

Mark in Canada

 

[jpopfan]

I'm using a pair of 11L's and I, too, had hooked them up to my PC rig for a short while for kicks (m-audio revo 7.1 to yamaha dsp-a2070). It sounded pretty poor to me. So I put them back into my stereo rig where they're much happier. I've got them sitting on stands which are filled with silica sand, placed about 20" or so away from the back wall, and slightly toed in. They sound great this way. My room's about 10' x 15', and they image fairly well with good (but not overwhelming) bass in this config. I've found that front ported speakers work much better in space-constrained environments, while rear ported speakers need some room to breathe, so to speak.

So I guess the point of this was to say, don't write those Quads off. They need good placement and isolation, as most small speakers do, to really open up.

JB