[stymie miasma]

I haven't heard a great deal of high end speakers, but a friend and I were both very impressed by some AvantGarde Duos which were powered by Electrocompanient monoblocks if memory serves. Listening to a live disc of Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds sent shivers down my spine - that was fun

 

[Andrew Pielet]

It has to be the Meridian DSP8000. I was first amazed by Avantgaurd Duo's, powered by Viva Mono's, but the Meridians were somthing special. The Meridians are active w/ DAC in the speaker. It was UNBELIEVABLE.

 

[Nisbeth]

Hmm. Top 3 (In no particular order):

- B&W Nautilus 802.
- KEF Reference 205 (Probably the best looking)
- B&O Beolab 5 (Yes, it is a B&O!)

/U.

 

[Calanctus]

Quote:

Originally posted by Nisbeth Hmm. Top 3 (In no particular order): - B&W Nautilus 802. - KEF Reference 205 (Probably the best looking) - B&O Beolab 5 (Yes, it is a B&O!) /U.

The B&O Beolab 5 got a very positive review in a UK hi-fi mag recently (I think it may have been Hi Fi Choice). They said it had really good bass, neutrality and ease of use. I think the main criticism (and it was a mild one, given the context) was that the speaker is not the height of transparency, in audiophile terms. Still a very nice speaker.

The Kef Reference series DOES look good! I like the sound of the Ref 201s (never heard a higher end model in this series).

 

[SuperGiraffe]

The Dynaudio Evidence (Master) was very impressive to me, driven by an all Krell system. As you might expect, the power and bass was incredible, but more surprisingly, the system had quite a nice touch and truly holographic imaging. Its tough to make speakers over seven feet tall "disappear," but Dynaudio did the trick (or at least made it seem like the sound was not coming from the speakers at all).

Back in reality land, I was always impressed with the sound a friend of mine's dad got with a simple Onkyo (receiver and cd changer) system with the old Klipsch Heresy IIs. What a great sounding little speaker! Without a doubt one of the best sounding systems I've heard in an actual home.

 

[jefemeister]

I heard the Revel Salons over in Deleware once. Those things were sweet. They had an unreal off axis response and undeniable time/phase dominance over everything else. Of course, those were really among the first high-end speaker i had heard and the memory may be better than the reality. I would love to sit down in front of a pair again to see.

As far as sheer beauty, Amati Homage hands down. Well, maybe the classic Nautilus. I've never heard either.

Cheers,
Jeff

 

[RobertR]

JBL hartsfield fed with marantx model 9 amps and 2 track ampex tape.

on a smaller scale ARI bookself crossed over to Janzen electrostatic tweeters.

I have a pair of maggies model 3 but they cant equal the sheer power of the JBL's

 

[kwkarth]

The Revels I heard were wonderful. The Wilson Grand Slams were awesome. The Altec Model 19s at the AES were darned impressive. The Bose 901's in the 70's were impressive, but the one time I was actually fooled into thinking that there was a real live trumpet player behind the screen was when I was listening to a pair of Magnapan Tympani IV's playing a Sheffield Labs Direct to disc recording of Harry James called King James Version. I could have sworn there was a live trumpet player behind the right speaker. I had to go behind there and look for myself. Thus began my love affair with Magnapan speakers....

 

[Calanctus]

Quote:

Originally posted by kwkarth the one time I was actually fooled into thinking that there was a real live trumpet player behind to screen was when I was listening to a pair of Magnapan Tympani IV's palying a Sheffield Labs Direct to disc recording of Harry James called King James Version. I could have sworn there was a live trumpet player behind the right speaker. I had to go behind there and look for myself. Thus began my love affair with Magnapan speakers....

Jonathan Valin said something very similar about the same speakers in a recent issue of The Absolute Sound. It makes me want to audition Magnepans again. I did hear the 20.1s for about 5 minutes once, and recall that they sounded very sweet.

 

[4fatcatz]

So, what other speakers have struck you as "classic" over the years? And what was their greatest strength (midrange, bass, soundstaging...)?


Accustat's (Spelling?) Never owned them but hung out at
Stereo stores all the time. "Speed" was my initial attraction.

Spica's Wide soundstage, great mids/hi's...no bass though.

Current models include Meadowlark Kestral II, and Thiels (cant remember model but I was impressed with its smoothness)

Both offer wide, holographic imaging when used with good tube
amps.

 

[gloom]

Thiel CS 3.6, via CAL CDP, and Krell amping.

Modestly priced compared to some named here, but they simply oozed emotion. Music played through them touched my heart in a way that no other speaker I've heard could. Their organic sound was pure, jawdropping magic. I literally cried while a couple of my favorite tracks played. I felt elated, but tears streamed from my eyes. A curious reaction, but a marker of the speakers' powerful effect on me.

 

[Trawlerman]

Quote:

Originally posted by chadbang snip..... The greatest MIDRANGE I ever heard for vocals was on a pair of speakers made by Chartwell. (I later found out they used the same KEF drivers as Rogers and Spendor - which I've actually never heard!)

These would probably be a pair of BBC LS3/5a right. Chartwell was one of a handfull of companies that were licensed by the BBC to manufacture these speakers.

There is a great following of LS3/5a speakers and there is a website and a Yahoo group dedicated solely to these.

I hope one day to pick up a pair of these highly respected speakers. At the moment i'm using Quad 77-10Ls and Spendor SP3/1s which are modern day equivalents and have agreat deal in common with these original LS3/5a monitors.

 

[rickcr42]

yeah the LS3/5a sounds great if used for the purpose designed it was for

nearfield listening (100 hz bump up and a gradual dip around 3khz or so,would make awsome computer speakers)

they pretty much set the standard for mini monitors along with the I.M.Frieds which were flat and meant to match up with a sub for the bottom octaves for top to bottom cohesion

damn shame how the mass market has taken the same concept to "surround sound in a box" (five crapty spkrs and a thud box) and convinced the average consumer to bite thinking they got a bargain (anyone say Bose?)

 

[Ctn]

Holy mother of Speakers (aka god)

Holy mother of Amps

 

[Calanctus]

Quote:

Originally posted by gloom Thiel CS 3.6, via CAL CDP, and Krell amping. Modestly priced compared to some named here, but they simply oozed emotion. Music played through them touched my heart in a way that no other speaker I've heard could. Their organic sound was pure, jawdropping magic. I literally cried while a couple of my favorite tracks played. I felt elated, but tears streamed from my eyes. A curious reaction, but a marker of the speakers' powerful effect on me.

The Thiel 3.6 speaker seems to have a very good reputation. It's apparently the oldest speaker in the current Thiel line, having lasted so long because it sounds so good, and some people prefer it to the 7.2.