Hello, I have an opportunity to buy VERITY AUDIO PARSIFAL but not sure what the folks on the ground think about them or what to look out for since their pretty old. The reviews seems to be good, but compared to speakers now days, not sure if $6K is money well spent. Can someone help me with pros and cons compared to buying maybe another another brand for $6K?
I listened to the Parsifals a fair number of times back in the day. My impression was pretty consistent: Nice, refined sound, pretty boxless, smooth, soundstaged imaged quite well, and pretty evenly balanced from top to bottom. So, high quality. My minor gripes are perhaps idiosyncratic, but I found them tonally a tad bland and "gray" so they never totally engaged me. But others swooned over them.
I've owned the Parsifal Encore (latest version) prior to the Ovation. You can look at them as mini monitors with dual subs if you wish. High quality very refined sound (to refined for some). It's been years but if you PM me I'd be happy to chat about them. I also know a guy in New England that has a beautiful pair in Maple that is considering parting with them. Verity makes excellent speakers that have great detail with little to no fatigue to my ears. Perhaps this relates to something that is missing for Prof but I don't find them "gray". Hey @prof I'd say if they were dressed they'd wear a tuxedo. Does that make sense to you?
Totally depends on your tastes/system. When I heard them at a show I thought they excelled at imaging, soundstage, natural sound, disappearing act. Bonus is that they’re tube friendly. Probably not the best choice if you’re looking for hyper-detailed/aggressive treble or for heavy metal/rap, etc., but other than that they’re outstanding speakers IMHO and competitive with most anything else at that price level. Hope this helps, and best of luck.
If one is continually growing and looking for better, in all the right directions.... rather than more of what one has had before (the circular repeat), then Verity is definitely one of the ways to go.
It's been hard to identify models researching online, but here's the serial no. PM10492. I called Verity and they'll get back to me on Monday with the exact model..
Great responses.... I’m currently listening to Bose 901 VI made in 2018 in a downstairs basement with concrete walls, and they sound great... Should these Verity’s blow me away?
What kinds of music do you mostly listen to? I have not heard them but from the description sounds like they may not be the most dynamic things out there. When they are described as "I'd say if they were dressed they'd wear a tuxedo" sounds like they would not be for me but someone with different tastes may be perfect.
Based on price point, i narrowed it down to these two; VERITY PARSIFAL and Totem Wind Floor Standing. Can someone chime in on their opinion of the two? I listen to rock, jazz, POP, and sometimes RAP, so bass is important too. I’m driving these with MC501,s...
The tuxedo comment is more that they are precise and do imaging and coherency in a very complete and refined way. They are dynamic especially if you have some power behind them, as you do. The guys at Verity should get back with the exact spec of the speaker. I've owned several pairs of Verity speakers and they keep great books.
The earlier models of the Parsifal were two complete units and the bass unit could be turned with the drivers to the front or back. The current Anniversary like my Othello’s are rear firing only. The rear firing woofers just require different thinking in terms of set up but don't cause any issues once you get placement right.
Is the sound from Parsifal’s still excellent compared to current days speakers in the $10-$12K range? I hear the sound is a little flat and i’m one to think technology may have passed Parsifal’s prime. I won’t have an opportunity to listen to compare is why all these questions before i pull the plug on buying something. I thought about Totem Winds but not sure if they’re better or worse..
Roddy I didn't find them engaging at all. No emotion, I just felt like I wanted to take the blanket off them. Aaudioimports has teh Wilson Benesch line of speakers. They are so current, with the best technology I have ever seen. Not talking about plasma drivers or some diamond covered tweeters,,,, They have the prices on the website so you can check it out. Way to often people would ask " is the bass any good." Well the bass is cleanest, fastest and more realistic then I have heard.. Best Jim
heard them back then in some high end shows (never owned them)... quite nice but not outstanding... pretty expensive for the performance they afforded was my over-riding impression
for that type of speaker joseph audio and proac and reference 3a were better performing and better values
I have owned a truckload of speakers in the last 30 years, including Parsifal and Fidelio.
Parsifals ate the best I ever owned. They are refined and revealing, and great with tubes. If you find them bland, it may be because you are using them with bland amplification or cables...
They sound very, very, good right out the box! Musically, the separation in sound makes it sound like a 5.1 system, plus the voices are amazingly true to the singer. The speakers bass has a nice thump and they’re very forgiving when it comes to lack of room acoustics, especially in my environment. As you probably know, they have a beautiful finish, mines black, and they’re somewhat heavy to move, especially once you put the spikes on. It comes in two crates which requires removing screws on front panel and it sits on rollers making it easy to slide out. I’m still experimenting with spacing from the walls and sitting position. Right now, it appears that it does require a large room, but again, i’m still experimenting. I can’t recommend them to the masses yet, but in time i’ll be able to expound on them a little more once i’m finished experimenting with the staging..
Interesting as I just heard an original pair of the Parsifal speakers like 20 years old now. Bland no way, so musical without fatigue. Bass integration was a very slight issue. Beautiful wood grain, very beautiful. We compared them to the Aescendo 9s that we had literally just removed from the shipping boxes $16K. They are a better sounding audiophile speaker then the Verity but I kept asking myself, the mid range of the Parsifal was so beautiful in the long range would I tire of that? I also was wondering how much better the Encores would be with the better tweeter? In some ways more engaging then my Vandersteen 5As.
I enjoyed my Parsifal’s quite a bit. They are one of the best speakers I have owned. For my taste, better than Avalon or Kharma. But I came here to stress that they are not tube friendly. YMMV.....Perhaps other Verity models, but not the 89 db, 4 ohm Parsifal’s.
Hello fjn04 - hopefully I am not jumping on the OP's thread as this may actually help him with his question as well. Can you please elaborate on why you liked the Verity over the Avalon's and Kharma's ?
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