Oh good, so you have had extensive listening time with both the A5 and the Swan's. Can you please give a breakdown of your impressions as to how they compare?
Thanks OP for the insight, I enjoyed reading it. I would like to hear from whoever it was that has heard these as well as the A5s. Just a general comparison of strengths/weaknesses would be great.
I used the Swans paired with a Keces DA-152 DAC. That and my DT880 600ohms are enough for me to stop my audiophile journey.
Unfortunately I have not heard the A5 to compare and I was coming from a Creative I-Trigue so it was quite a large jump. Great for music, not so much for movies but hey thats what a subwoofer is for.
I've had a pair of these for about a month now, with my uDAC as a source, and I absolutely love them. They are warm, detailed, and have a huge soundstage for sitting only two feet away. They also fill my (small) living room with sound.
I'd be real interested in knowing this too. I've got computer desk set-up that I'd only be able to get 36" away from the speakers with 36" space between the speakers (on either side of my iMac).
I'd be real interested in knowing this too. I've got computer desk set-up that I'd only be able to get 36" away from the speakers with 36" space between the speakers (on either side of my iMac).
Mine sit about 26 inches apart and something like 24-30 inches from my head when I sit my computer. They sound great at this distance and project a three dimensional sound that's very transparent. This is in the living room of my apartment, which is maybe 14'x14'. They easily fill up the room with sound with the volume around 9 o'clock. If I go past 10 o'clock, it's borderline uncomfortable to sit in front of them and I start to worry about my neighbors.
So basically they are good for near-field listening and for sitting anywhere in a small room. They blow away the bookshelf speakers I've been using with my home theater for years.
I have the older Swans M200 Mk II and am very happy with them. I wouldn't consider anything else for my computer. These speakers do not sound like computer speakers, they sound like true hi-fi speakers. Very detailed, no boxy character and they give no hint of being "small" (which I guess they really aren't small.. that's the only negative - they are fairly large). I normally have the volume set at 10:00. These are hooked to an M-Audio Revolution 5.1 sound card and it works fine for me. The speakers are lacking in deep bass but the mids and highs are superb - very natural. I got them when they were on sale at The Audio Insider about 2 years ago, for $189. That was a great deal.
It is fascinating to see how information propagates through the internet. The Swans are fantastic speakers but it seems as if every speaker has to be asked to be compared to the AudioEngine speakers. Why is everyone so crazy over the AE speakers? Anyone that has heard them unbiased and actually compared them knows they sound unnatural, boxy, and are sonic-ly inferior to many speakers in the same price range.
I've had the Swan M200 MKIII for a little less than a week. I have them hooked up as such Foobar > W4S DAC-2 > Lyr (pre-amp) > Swans.
I have also hooked up the Swans directly to my Hifiman HM-601, the combo work well together though I do prefer the Swans + DAC-2 combo overall.
I will try the speakers directly hooked up to my SACD player this weekend.
I don't have much speaker experience but I couldn't ask more out of a computer speaker rig. They don't sound like boxy computer speakers.
I haven't heard the AudioEngine speakers. I do agree with another poster in that there is a slight veil. Maybe I've been spoiled by the air of the orthos
.
I've been using the stock interconnects but I'll have some Blue Jeans Cables coming in today.
I use the speakers during the day and headphones at night. It's a great combo for those of us living in apartments that cannot use high-powered amp/speakers due to thin walls. The Swans do get plenty loud, esp with the Lyr acting as a preamp. I don't necessarily need to use the Lyr but I prefer the volume control of the Lyr over the stiff small knob of the Swans. I like to think I'm getting some tube flavor with the Lyr placed in line with the speakers but it's subtle.
I'm using the Blue Jeans Cables ICs. Haven't experimented with the more expensive ICs because of the length of cable I would need from my DAC to Swans. They sound pretty good with the Blue Jeans ICs.
I'm using the Blue Jeans Cables ICs. Haven't experimented with the more expensive ICs because of the length of cable I would need from my DAC to Swans. They sound pretty good with the Blue Jeans ICs.
The W4S DAC-2 does pair up well with the Swans or my headphone amps. Nothing but love for the DAC-2. Plenty of detail and great soundstage with no hint of fatigue or harshness. I have noticed improvements with better ICs connecting the DAC to my headphone amps. I live in any apartment so I don't listen to the Swans at loud levels. The WireWorld ICs are less bright than my Blue Jeans ICs so some top-end harshness does not exist with the WireWorlds. However, for the money, Blue Jeans ICs are hard to beat. The Swans also sound pretty good hooked up to something like a iPhone or portable player.
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