I do not claim that Lansche 4.1 is the best speaker in the world.
But with clean and pristine treble out of plasma tweeters and pretty good bass out of 2 10 inch driven by internal active amplifier and high efficiency (99db spec, but I believe it to be around 93db), it is hard to find better speaker with overall merit for my house.
The only catch is that it can stop working since it is an active speaker( plasma tweeter and active bass unit).
But I keep having good communication with Henry Dien of Lansche Audio who upgraded plasma tweeters twice at reasonable cost.
I can happily live with Lansche 4.1 speakers at my present house for my life unless serious health issues happen to either me or my speakers.
How about you gentlemen and ladies?
Had any one of you found the speaker for your life?
If I had to go to live on a desert island and could only take a pair of speakers I could only carry with my two hands: my Rogers LS3/5A's! A TRUE legend!
My Legacy Signature IIIs were purchased using a 16 watt Sherwood 7100 receiver (it killed his 200 watt Boulder amp due to an electrical mismatch with an his tube preamp). Also sounds dynamic with punchy bass using a Yamaha R620 30 watt receiver. Both have good current control of speakers. My EAR 890 can't control the bass on my larger Legacy Focus which have 96 db efficiency. Turns out that they go down to 2.8 ohms in the bass with six 12" woofers. EAR 890 works great on the Signature IIIs with a 3.2 ohm 94 db efficiency and six 10" woofers. Mating the amp to the speaker is essential.
Yes, too many folks equate efficiency to driving speakers. Current and control are key. This is why you can have synergy with a speaker adn amp that 'seems' under powered, but really isn't. You can also have a bad match just hooking up some behemoth amp with a speaker at say 85db efficient. This is why I hate reading threads where folks make real life decisions on gear from specs. It's just crazy. Starting point maybe, but any good speaker designer will tell you to listen to an amp with their speakers before saying it's under powered. Some like specific amp designs like zero feedback etc..., but in the end, it's still personal taste.
shkong78, The Sopra's are rated at 91db with one watt of input, not "super efficient", but more efficient than most. I have them in a 24x26' room and when I'm listening to them at a loud (for me) level, the needles on my power amp dance around the 4.5 watt mark.
I'm 65 years old and have enjoyed a pair of Focal Sopra No2's since they first came out and every time I hear another speaker that I like, they sound "different" than my Sopra's, but not "better", not getting the "hots" to trade.
I haven't heard the new Focal Utopia's yet, if I did, I might consider trading up to a Scala (the largest one I could accommodate). But I'm really happy with my setup, no need to go thru all the heartache of changing components now!
First audiophile speaker purchased was Magneplanar MGIIB. 1980 Several others in between including Acoustat 2+2, Martin Logan Sequel II, and Odyssey. Last speaker is Wilson Maxx 3. 2016 I’m very happy with my system now. It was speakers and room treatments that did it!
Someone mentioned buying some really great big tall speakers with a deep cabinet. And when they die, use one cabinet as a coffin to be buried in. That’s a cost saving idea, but I think I’ll go for cremation so a small bottle will work.
About 10 years ago I discovered Maggie’s and my turnover of speakers rain stopped with the 3.6s. Now being 70 and still content, I will not get back into the whirlpool of can I find better.
Now on it did take some equipment changes to make them truly sing, not to mention Mye stands which were the best bang for the buck ever.
My ears suffer rfom from too many concerts, but I will always remember Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison among all the others. My system is still Nirvana to my old ears.
Only moving to a small home would make me give them up, Shout Out to Elizabeth!
I’ve had my Dali Euphonia ms4s for over 12 years now and there’s still nothing I would change about them. Can I live with them the rest of my life? I probably can but ya never know what the future holds. :)
I've been accused of being a "serial monogamist" with my audio system, up until a year ago, was on a 6 to 7 year journey, swapping out one component at a time, till I arrived at the setup I have now.
I'm 65 and it's likely I'll keep the equipment I currently own now, including the Focal Sopra No2's, but with the improvements in the Focal lines in the future, who knows...
I have an "all digital" source system and it seems that the components which are advancing to a great extent are the DACs, so I might be tempted to upgrade that in a few years.
I've only owned a handful of speakers since I started at age 9 (1969). My current and probably last speakers are Vandersteen Quatro's. I absolutely love them. Every time I hear them with better electronics, they keep scaling to new heights. More than pleased with the speakers as well as the service. Richard V is always there to answer any questions I may have and Johnny Rutan at Audio Connection has also exceeded my expectations. I have plenty of dealers around me, but I'm glad that I was in NJ many years ago as I wasn't even thinking of Vandy's.
Lot's of great choices, but I like speakers and electronics that don't come out with a new model every three years.
Yes! In 1976 I built a pair of SpeakerLab Super K's using plans I bought from Speakerlab. I still have the plans. I purchased the raw components from them and used my Dads garage and table saw to build the bass horns and top units that house the midrange and Tweeter horns. These speakers are a redesigned version of Klipschhorn folded corner horns by a ex-Boeing engineer named Pat Snyder. I was still in collage and couldn't afford to buy them assembled so I did it myself and still enjoy them everyday. I have had two wives that wanted me to get rid of them because they're so big and heavy and have to be in a corner. The wives are gone but the speakers stay. I also have a pair of JBL L100's that I bought in 1972 after high school and getting my first job with my first several pay checks. I use them for my rear surround speakers with the corner horns in front. So I'm almost 65 now and have had my favorite speakers for over 42 years and still love them. I've heard speakers that I thought sounded just as good, but none better. Jim
I thought my Thiel CS2.4’s would be my last speakers, but then I listed to a pair of Audio Physic Avanti 3 and now the Thiel’s are in storage (well, finished attic so not much storage... and I will put them up for sale). Will I live with the AP Avant3’s until I die... don’t know about that, but they are amazing.
Before the Thiels... Dali, model unknown (first real pair of speakers and I worked an entire summer to afford them! I was only 14 years old, so funds were limited) Magnepan MMG Custom built monitors Hales Concept 5 Magnepan 1.6
I lived with a pair of Koss CM1030 speakers since I bought them new in 1978. I recently bought a pair of Magico A3 speakers, which unfortunately I don’t expect to be able to keep for that long.
I still have not given away my Koss CM1030s and I’m having a hard time parting with them.
These threads are always fascinating and underline the subjectivity involved in our choices. There are plenty of speakers others here call their last speaker that I could never live with, and that surely is the case with my speakers for other people.
That also speaks to the fact it's great that we have so many different designs to choose from.
You have had a lot of experience over the years , so which speaker manufacture tickled your fancy at the time ? Have you ever purchased the same manufacture years later
I am a CS2.7 Thiel speaker owner and am a follower of the Thiel speaker forum , if you were to read some of the posts you would find a loyal following that accurately describes the Thiel speaker progress of design through out the years , so the speakers you heard 30 years ago are not the same as the speakers made today . I would guess that if you read other forums discussing speakers made by a specific manufacture that you would get the same type of loyal following and insight into the progress they made over the years .
I think the Thiel CS2.7s will be my last speakers ( being newly retired helps narrow the meaning of last ) , unless I win the Lotto .
Never say never. I've had my Legacy Focus speakers for 20 years now, always improving with new cables and tweaks. I went through Acoustat Xs, 2&2s and Martin Logan Monolith 3s in the prior 15 years. I do not want to revisit electrostats. My next speaker could be a Von Scweikert VR55 (or Ultra 9) or Lumenwhite Kyara or some other $50-60K speaker, maybe used even.
I'm 62 and hoping to live a long time (and my hearing is excellent). I should be able to afford a better built speaker (the original Focus isn't SOTA). The question remains how much better a speaker I can buy for $50-60K when I can afford it in the near future. And, I only want an efficient speaker, no Magico, Wilson, B&W, etc. They are off my wish list. I've also enjoyed some horn speakers but don't think I can live with them.
Indeed I can! I had a pair of Tannoy 15" Berkley's for 30 years. Now I have Sonus Faber Elipsa driven by McIntosh. Absolutely superb in my listening room. I still get chills.
Never say never, I thought at the time I owned the Apogee Full Range that these would be my final speakers....but I was too young to have those as my final speakers, so I bought a pair of Apogee Grands.... But still too young....so now own Gryphon Pendragons, most likely the last high end speakers I will own in this world... When the time comes that I will have to let go...I will be hoping that at "the other side" they have some good speakers as well.....
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