your favorite loudspeaker...

Current fav is what I got: the Galante Rhapsody (dual-concentric, paper cone, 96dB/1/1)

I hope to replace it with somethng big in a couple of years. Here's the short list in no particular order.

Altec VOT
Avantgarde
Galante Buckingham
Tannoy

I'm thinking of building a single-driver/ rear-loaded horn enclosure setup just for exploratory purposes.

 

I had some Pioneer cs-g301w three-ways 12" woofer, really did sound great. I ran them for about 22 years. However, Today I went out and bought some B&W dm604 s3 speakers . Extremely good speakers. But to tell the truth When I hooked them up I side by sided them and the Pioneers still sounded good but not as good as the B&Ws.

 

My favorite speaker is the speaker I'm using now, B&W Nautilus 802's (my wallet is still bruised). I think they're the best sounding speaker I've heard. I would love to hear B&W's Signature 800 properly set up with good equipment, but I'm almost afraid to because I might start lusting for them

Mike, nice choice on the DM604's. Great bass and a nice, warm sound.

 

I auditioned some kef speakers and really liked them. I would have bought them if the dealer wasn't such a dork.

 

Nearfield Pipedreams - 6' towers with two "depth charge" subwoofers - an awsome combo that requires a lot of amplification, but worth it.

 

PSB Stratus Gold i, they do everything faily good, no blaring discrepencies.Good mastering, (Steve's and others) sound just right!

 

.

 

Steve's right, they are JBL centurys

I stole the picture from a Swede:
http://www.solvenet.se/~u-10065/jbl/

Shure wish they were mine.

Here's another nice place for JBL nostalgia.
http://www.audioheritage.org/html/profiles/jbl/l100.htm


__________________
SI

 

Vandersteen 2Ce signature

Dear all,
I currently own a pair of Vandersteen 2Ce signatures which I bought used for $700.00 with stands. Although I hear from many people that they don't think they're that great, I listen to a lot of speaker demos, come home, and decide that they aren't worth X thousand dollars more than the ones I have. It's difficult for me to part with them -- they reveal the improvements I make in other parts of the system and they don't sound "speakery" --I'm no audiophile, but a lot of other speakers, although they sound great, still sound like boxes that are moving air in the room, not like music. Try 'em if you're on a budget.

By the way, what sort of speaker would some of you recommend to a person that likes this type of sound and wants to move up? I'm thinking about Quads. Any suggestions?

P.S. Steve's DCC CD of the Rumblers is a great sleeper if you like surf music or Ventures type stuff. Sounds wonderful, as you'd expect.

Happy New Year to all.

 

Re: Vandersteen 2Ce signature

Wow!?!? I've never heard a bad thing about them before. I think they're great and a terrific value. One of the most un hifi speakers I've heard. If I didn't have my Spendors, I'd probably go for the Vandies.

- Gabe

 

Infinity Renaissance 90's (photos: www.sansui.us in 'My Sansui' section)

Reviews at:

http://www.audioreview.com/Main,Speaker/Infinity,Systems,Renaissance,90/PRD_119649_1594crx.aspx

 

Well, my faves are the ones I've been living with for 5 years now; they still continue to amaze me and get along well with tube gear and the newer Hi-Rez formats. Sadly, these babies are no longer manufactured, probably because they were underpriced for their high quality construction & parts and may have had a low WAF in some households.

Here's a review from the 1998 Audiophilia.

Yeah, I know, these are strange alien lookin' creatures, but talk about a soundstage to die for...!


Cat

 

Re: Re: Vandersteen 2Ce signature

Your'e right Gabe. The reason I like them so much is that they're so un-hifi. I guess everybody is trying to sell you something, but once you've got something you like & trust your ears, it gets harder.
I will listen to the 3A's though. My trouble is that my sweetie brings her friends over and when they see the rig in the living room, including the two monolith-looking speakers I have, they ask her "how do you live like this.", so something even bigger is pushing my luck.

Thanks again to Steve and all for such a great site.
Cheers,
Lushlife

 

I also own the N802s and love them dearly - best speakers I've heard (I liked them better than the N801, though I've never heard the Signature 800s and don't plan to). I have a pair of N804s and a pair of CDM-7NTs which I also like a lot, and in my basement I have a pair of 1986 Klipsch Fortes that can still rock out.

 

Re: Re: Re: Vandersteen 2Ce signature

Ah, the 3A's aren't that big! Seriously, if they ain't broke don't fix them. They are great speakers - buy more music.

Does you signifigant other mind your set up?


- Gabe

 

Currently using ProAc Response 1SC's, but I like me Totem 1's also.
I have owned KLH 17's, Large Advents, Mission 707's?, Magnepan MG1imp's and the above along with Dynaco A-25's.
The Dynaco's are the best value of the bunch, IMO.

 

For those of you with expensive tastes and little money...

I have heard lots of speakers, but have never bought any that were not designed by Henry Kloss. I have three of his systems. The audiophile press was lush with praise for his work when he passed away, but they ignored his most recent speaker models, except for Absolute Sound, which annointed his Ensemble 4 piece system into the High End (for what it's worth).

I have the original Ensemble, which I paid $500 for. I am using it with an $800 preamp and a $1200 power amp. I recently upgraded speaker cable costing $500. Wow! I wasn't hearing nearly all that these speakers can do.

The currently available system from Cambridge Soundworks has a different tweeter and crossover, but I have been told by two people who have heard both that it is very close to the original. It is in the $1500-$2000 class. Now selling for $249, I think. Mandantory are sand fillable, solid stands for the sattelites. You can make stands for the bass units with lumber and spikes. Connect the speakers to the stands with balls of handi-tak. Maximum benefit can be derived from the system's placement flexibility.

Henry Kloss was a rare combination of perfectionist and man of the people. Also worth checking out is his CSW Model 6. A very nice bookshelf system that is now going for $149. I got a demo pair from CSW for $89 on Ebay. They will satisfy up to $500 worth.
Make sure you spend at least about $100 on good sand fillable stands. Both systems need serious break-in time, like good high-end speakers should.

DaveD

 

The Avantgardes are awesome...........So far they are my favorite "big" speaker..........At the CES show the Duos were paired with solid state gear that I was not familiar with, and the room was pretty cramped....When I finally got to hear the trios, I was in heaven. The room was a lot bigger, and they used valves instead of cheesy solid state, sooooooo much better.


-Wes

 

I heard the Wilson Watt/Puppy 7 this weekend... amazing speaker! My absolute favorite loudspeaker (IMHO)

 

Recently heard dozens of speakers. The brands I like are Vandersteen, Dynaudio and the B+W N801. Wound up with Legacy, cause I'm a sucker for midrange. If i had the funds it would be Vandersteen model 5 or the N801's.

 

I love my Paradigm Atoms. When I bought them I was simply amazed by the amount of detail these little $190 speakers were able to muster. I found them to be better than my Advent Mini's and Pioneer HPM 500's by leaps and bounds. And run neck and neck with my bro's Mission 70's. One set of speakers that I surprisingly liked were my Brother in-law's Bose 901 Mark I's. Not the most accurate but very sonically pleasing none the less. Definite contrast to a friend's Mark IV 901's. Those were very harsh, trebly and plasticky. Very fatiguing to listen to and this guy didn't even have a CD player at that time. Ouch.