New Proac Tablette 10 - same size as LS3/5a

Since I got them on stands this afternoon, the SQ has improved considerably. They were poor on rock and electronic music yesterday but they awoke tonight! I was absolutely staggered by the improvement in just a few hours.

The bass is now amazing for a small speaker even though I have yet to fill the stands. And this is only after around 12 hours run in. Proac's staff say that they will get much better over the next few days and improve steadily for two months after that.

The listening experience in the autumn/fall should be spectacular. The Regas seem to be the perfect partners!

 

Glad you all are getting good results with Tab 10's. They are (IMO) the most rockin' of the son-of-LS3/5A speakers out there.

Sadly, I'll be exchanging mine for rosewood P3ESR's, but only 'cos I can't really afford to keep both. My listening these days is (by thirds, approximately): rock, jazz, acoustic music (baroque, folk, Indian classical, etc.) ... I crave the addictive midrange truthfulness of the Harbeths more than John Bonham's bass drum kicking me in the knees (which the Tab 10's do!!) ...

Dang, there are some great shoebox-size speakers available now!!

 

If you want Rosewood P3ESRs, contact David Wren (aka Hifi Dave) of Radlett Audio. He has a pair of ex demo on offer - Radlett Audio Bargain Basement - specialising in sensible hi-fi . Shipping costs could be a problem but they've been on sale for a while so he could be open to an offer.

 

Thanks for that!!, but I already have a pair on order via my local Britaudio boutique. They're giving me 100% trade-in on my 10's (purchased there only a few months ago.) Were I living in the UK though, Radlett would likely be my destination for audio kit (seems they have most of the stuff I dig already!)

 

You have a very generous dealer. Those P3ESRs are tempting as I love classical music, especially chamber music and lieder. My wife would not be pleased. I'll probably add a set of Harbeths, probably when Rega update the Elicit-R, at some point over the next couple of years. Auditioning will require a lengthy trip to Radlett Audio which, rather confusingly, is quite far from Radlett in Hertfordshire.

ETA - The Sigs would probably hurt your knees more.

 

Yeah, they give 100% exchange for a more expensive upgrade, within 90 days or something. (I'm a long-time customer who's spent thousands there trading around in an extended bout of audiophilia nervosa so, they may give me some leeway. )

On any music with voice or acoustic instruments ... the Harbeths just rule.

 

This is one of the threads that inspired me to get a home loan of a couple of small monitors.

l chose the T10s over the P3 when l had home loans of these speakers, however in some ways The Harbeths in some ways were the best speakers l have had in my room... however the musicality, dynamics, bass, imagery and ability to go loud of The T10s won the day.

Another bookshelf monitor l would like to try is The Kralk BC30, it is LS3/5A type which is to be rumoured 90db and is supposed to sound quite superb, as some one else pointed out there are some GREAT shoe box speakers around now.

 

That's just not physically possible, unless there is no bass at all, even with against-the-wall placement.

 

Man I’ve been checking out their stuff, that BC30 looks amazing as well.

 

A chap l know has them says they are very easy to drive, also The Tab 10 goes very loud indeed.... hard to believe l agree.

 

Just a quick question....distance between them and how far away do you listen to them etc how are your Tab 10's set up folks?

 

Speakers are 6 feet apart, placed on stands close to wall. No toe-in. I sit 9-10 feet away in an office chair. They sound fantastic. Have tried toeing in and pulling them out, but I like them best in this configuration.

 

Anybody else?

 

My Tab 10 Sigs are 2m apart, slightly toed in. I sit about 2m away on my sofa.

They are on Atacama HMS1-TS600 stands. The HMS1 stands were developed in partnership with Proac. The TS600 is designed for the Tab 10s and speakers of similar dimensions.

Driven by Rega Brio , they fill my 6m x 4m lounge easily with lots of bass. With well recorded CDs, the volume dial rarely goes beyond 12 o'clock.

 

I was wondering if anyone has a option on listening to the Tablettes 10s (either versions) at low listening levels? This is something I'm always searching for, but don't always find.

 

I often listen to my Sigs at low levels, especially at night. I live in a town house with neighbours' lounges on the other side of the walls. The set-up is the same and the clarity is superb. It helps that the Brio is an excellent amp and its volume dial is very sensitive.

 

That's great news. I also have a Brio amp as well, so I'm pleased to hear that this is the case.

 

Proac's technical staff advised against anything more powerful than the Brio with the Tab 10s. It can deliver the maximum 50 watts that Proac specifies for them.

The Tab 10s sensitivity is stated as 86db, at least 3db more than P3ESRs, LS3/5as etc. The Sigs can go very loud with the Brio and benefited hugely from the Atacama stands. The Harbeths could struggle with the Brio in a large room.

Only a few watts are needed for moderate listening levels so they are tube friendly too. I can't understand (with my engineering degree) how a tube amp would improve their performance.

 

+ 1. I have the regular version and definitely find them enjoyable at low volumes. Also agree these are a far better option than competitors like the P3ESR and LS50 for lower power amps. Tried a few combinations with the T10s and ultimately hit paydirt with a Sugden A21 Signature.

 

Is paydirt a compliment or insult? My guess is the former. Do you get high volumes from that amp? It was one of the options that I had considered.

Sadly, I no longer have a Sugden dealer within easy reach of where I live. I'd love to hear a Sugden a21a with LS3/5as from Graham Audio, Falcon Acoustics and Stirling Broadcast. That could be a sublime system in my bedroom.

 

I too listen to my Tab 10's at low levels and they sound superb.

l listen to them with 3 different amps;

1. Vincent SV237MK- 150WPC

2. SONY TA-F770ES- 90WPC

3. Virtue Audio Sensation M901 ( Battery PSU) 44WPC

Like them on the end of each amp.

 

Definitely a compliment. The Sudgen/ Proac combo is sublime. Would be careful though matching the Sudgen with other LS3/5as unless they share specs friendly to low power amps. I have Harbeth P3esrs in my bedroom and tried the Sudgen with those, but the combination—due to the lower sensitivity and impedance of the Harbeths—wasn’t nearly as good. The Brio might be a better match wth Graham/ Falcon/ Stirling.

Also, to answer your question, volume is not an issue with the Sudgen/ Proac combo.

 

That confirms what I had guessed. Alan Shaw of Harbeth recommends amplifiers with 100 watts or more.

I like the idea of pairing modern versions of "classic" amps and speakers. I was particularly thinking pairing the a21a with the Falcons which have specified impedance of 15 ohms. The impedance of the Grahams and Stirling Broadcast V2s is 11 ohms so they could be fine too.

 

Wasn’t aware of the specs for the Grahams and Stirlings. Would love to hear those with the Sudgen at some point—I’m sure both would be stellar.

 

Be careful with those powerful amps. Proac warned me against using as over 50 watts with them

I was also advised by the technical dept to ignore expensive speaker cables. The recommendation was to use simple 99.999% multistrand and avoid silver. Such cabling is used in the Tab 10s to deliver the superb sound quality

Rega and Quad gave me similar advice on speaker cable and interconnects. The Apollo CD player manual even recommends standard interconnects and to upgrade to an exotic interconnect (such as my Rega Couple 2) later.