I'm in the market for a standmount with a big sound that can work in a samller room yet have a big enough sound for a larger one too. I have amps with plenty of power. A musical Fidelity KW550 and a Krell Kav 400xi also.
I'm particularly interested in The Usher 718be and how it compares specifically to the Sonus Faber Auditor M, Dynaudio Contour S1.4 and possibly the Proac D2.
I wouldn't buy anything until I heard Green Mountain Audio's offerings. I have a pair of Europas and they are pretty unreal. Can't imagine how good the new models are.
ok, just last night I was at my friends house , the one with the revel gems, holy crap does he have his system dialed in !!! it is one of the best sounding systems I have ever heard, just amazing. the fact that you can now buy the gems for under 4 grand is just a steal, they just simply kill anything even close to that price ! you will need a good sub to go with them though, he has the revel b15 and it works really well, I wish the rest of you could of heard what i did, becouse you might not belive it . chrissain
Interesting to finally hear a comment on the auditor M. It seems they haven't really set the forums on fire. Not suprising in some ways as its a lot of money for one 6 inch driver and there are lots of options at that price. For example, for just a little more you can buy some Thiel CS 2.4's. Thats a lot more speaker for your money.
The S 1.4's haven't gone down too well in the UK mostly due to placement issues and the fact that homes have smaller rooms there. The Focus range is very popular though. In the UK now Audio Physic seem to be very popular as well as neat and living voice amongst the more well healed. Usher has only just arrived.
the friend of mine that has the revel gems has them in a small room and they sound amazing, huge soundstage, well beyond the room boundries, one of the better systems i have heard. the rest of the system is belcanto dac3, rogue audio m150 tube monoblocks, revel b15 sub. lots of room treatment also helps . good luck ! chrissain
You mention you have a smaller room, which is never good, even with monitors.
The Dynaudio S 1.4 (I used to own them, bought new) certainly have a big, dynamic, room filling sound - but they have 2 problems with smaller rooms, first the huge rear port in back will cause boomy bass in a smallish room, (40-50hz bloat), and Dynaudios don't open up and sound dynamic and full unless there is some current running through them, which small rooms prevent because of room gain and reflections.
if your room is 16 x 16 or larger, then by all means, I think you'd be happy with the Dynaudios...
The sonus faber is a much different sound... it has much more of its own sonic signature, which I find a bit muddy and warm in general. I prefer speakers that are more clear and transparent, so I am hesitant to recommend sonus faber, but a lot of people like them, so I would just say to listen first before buying with these...
I haven't heard the ushers or the Proacs. Good luck. I've been trying to get big, bold, dynamic and powerful sound in smallish rooms for several years, and I'm more and more realizing that it's not an easy thing to do.
Correction- the ad is up here on audiogon for the TP Minis. For the asking price I would be VERY surprised if speakers could be beaten by even $2500 monitors, or even more expensive ones. They are really something special
The SP Tech's are predominantly US as far as I know, they are definitely a boutique shop at the moment. I have a pair of the Timepiece Minis and they go easily down to 40hz and a bit lower in my smallish room, they LOVE power amps with lots of juice and they can place to concert levels without breaking a sweat. I can't recommend them enough, if you're interested there is someone on Audiocircle selling a pair for $1350, which is an awesome price on them considering their retail is about $2500.
hi , without question the revel gems, you can find them used for under 4,000 these days, I have a good friend that has them and they are still an amazing speaker !!! better than most speakers I have heard regardless of cost, good luck, chrissain
SP Technology Timepiece Minis. Check out the SP Technology circle over at Audiocircle, I have them and can't say enough good things about them, and neither can the owners of them or their bigger brother, the Timepiece 3.0's. Either of these would be exactly what you're looking for.
i agree, there is alot out there with no way to listen to them, what a shame....the vandersteen speakers are on of the great buys in speakers..hope you find the right ones...we all have different ears, eye candy.....good listening..dwitt
Interesting. We rarely see any of those in the uk but there are a few here in Vietnam. Very curious looking things. Maybe I will take a listen...
Interesting to see the pairings the dealers put together in the states. Over here Krell and MF are thought to match very well to Dynaudio and Krell is also often mated with Sonus Faber, the latter due partly to Krells slight percieved coldness and SF's warmth balancing each other out but also because they are distributed by the same companies. This may well be the case in the states too.
So many shops sell limited ranges. I can buy all of my previously mentioned speakers here but there isn't anywhere I can do a head to head shootout.
i can greatly appreciate your interest in the speakers you mention, they are all great manufactures , but having said that, i know many dealers who sell musical fidelity and krell amps, cd players etc., and none of them sell the speakers you mention above. I am assuming, that as with many of us, we want a first rate speaker,but we like there looks. This i say, because no one in more into what speakers look like and how they would look in my room or home, but all the dealers, and i know alot of them, all m.f. and krell dealers sell vandersteen speakers with mf.and jmlabs with krell, also some sell martin logan with krell. I believe the best speaker on the planet with musical fidelity is vandersteen and the other one is wilson audio, although these seem to be above your pricing, except for the vandersteen 2ce signature or the 3 signature...if i were you i would look and listen to these...also i have owned all you mention ,except for the usher, and believe the vandersteen speakers are superior in every way...also one more, aerial speakers are a steal , around audiogon...dwhitt
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