I'm 54 yo and am sure my Volti Rivals are my end game speakers. When I went to my first hifi show in Tampa 11 mos ago, the only very few speakers I liked as much cost 3x + as much (besides the Rivals Greg was playing of course - which did sound great). I realize these were untreated hotel rooms but usually with more or much more expensive amplification.
Have you found your "End-Game" speakers yet? I have. And it feels so good!!!
Yes indeed. Several years ago, the absolutely incredible Revel Salon 2 speakers finally took me off the speaker merry-go-round. I do believe that I'll be taking my Revel Salon 2 speakers to the grave with me. What's your end-game speakers?
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Hales T8 owner here. I’m still searching for an amp and pre that would get the best out of them. I was dissed on the Conrad Johnson owner site ( I was and still am considering a GAT S2 pre) where I was reminded that the speakers are old and that Hales has been out of business for a long time - both true but they still remain a classic for my ears. Guess I’m old too, LOL! |
In 1986, I heard a pair of Vandersteen 2's. I was amazed. I would never forget them. But, I was a college student, and I was no more in a position to buy them than I could buy a zebra from the zoo. My audiophilia then went into a long dormancy, as I happily listened to or forgot to listen to my nice mid-fi set-up -- psb Image T55 speakers with NAD 7240 receiver. Yesterday, two 105 pound boxes were delivered (by a stunningly strong UPS man who carried them from the curb to the porch). Inside the boxes were Vandersteen 3A signatures. My life is changed. 37 years to ponder my opening move. Endgame. |
stjernholm
Those Dali Epikore are special and imho, better than the Kore considering how amplifier friendly they are. |
I am in deep, deep love and thought I would have my reference, a pair of Technics SB-R1s forever and ever. But then... the silverback listening team and I, reviewed the new DALI Epikore 11 in the dream speaker series on my Youtube channel. |
I did keep the Blades, I had them listed on usam, but couldn't find anything else better, so initially I was going to buy a pair of mini monitors to compliment the Blades for late night listening. Instead I took a chance and tried a pair of Mc611 power amps home and the Blades low volume detail and dynamics improved so much that I'm hooked. I expect if I'd had the mc611's when I had some of the other speakers I might have kept them also. Today the Blade 1 with Mac c49, Mc611x2 and a roon nucleus provide the main components of my 2 channel listening. Before the blade / mac combo my frankenspeaker would have resembled the salon 2 tweeter with the Usher mids with the Persona 7f bass making my perfect speaker. The Blades sound nothing like what I liked best from each of those speakers, but have a musical synergy that doesn't draw attention to any 1 spectrum of sound. |
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@steve59 I had some Ushers a couple down the line from yours. I forgot those. LOL Do you still have the Blades? I feel some comfort that I'm not alone but the room is always going to set the limit on the sound. I need to understand that. I have a loft system that I never have any urge to change. The room sounds great. The equipment is nice but less money than the one I can't find deep satisfaction in. |
I completely agree with @bubba12 it is sickness. Once I found God and my current speakers not in that order, it brought order to all my life. God did that is. |
bubba12, I would fit int your camp. At 1 time I had in my basement (all used) revel salon 2, Usher BE-20 DMD, Persona 7f, and I think the Meridian DSP 8000se/up and still landed on the next headliner to come in at a good price. Any one of those speakers was good enough to build a system around, but I wanted that instant synergy and didn’t have the patience or confidence choose 1 to build a system around. Placebo effect or, Ignorance is bliss was such a happy place. Not knowing what I was missing and not caring because I loved the music. A buddy of mine asked what he could do to improve the sound of his system without taking a second mortgage and I told him to have an edible about a half hour b4 listening to what he already has! |
It's really not about the speakers but the sickness. I've had multiple speakers that should have been endgame. Goldenear Triton Ref. Dynaudio Evidence Temptations. Dynaudio C1 Signature. Monitor Audio 300 Platinum. Legacy Aeris. Any right minded human would have been happy with any of them or at least determined the room wasn't allowing total satisfaction. Should have taken more time to enjoy all of them. |
Thanks it is a pleasure to be understood ... Just a precision the minimal acoustic satisfaction threshold exist for all speakers at any price ... Because room acoustics problems are not theoretical problems only but are related to each type and each design of speakers, nevermind the price ... The acoustic problem of a speakers/room relation is not solved the same way for all type of speakers, nor for all size, nor for all price of speakers ... To go to the maximal acoustical satisfaction threshold , not only physical acoustics but psycho-acoustics measures are necessary and we need DSP as the BACCH filters, also we need mechanical control of vibration/resonance and we need a control over the electrical noise floor levels in the house/room/system pieces... There is not a crowd there passed this maximal acoustical threshold of satisfaction ... It is less about cost in money than knowledge... For sure a top system cost more than mine ... Even if i am happy with the minimal acoustical satisfaction threshold ( the adjective "acoustical" here refer to acoustic(s) in the plural not to mere room acoustic ) . I wish you the best for christmas and for your audio journey... 😊
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@mahgister "ENDGAME means that we are so happy passing this threshold of MINIMAL acoustic satisfaction when acoustic problems are solved..." I could not agree with you more! I worked my way through Magnepan 1.7 and 3.6 (when I did not understand current versus power) and Thiel 3.6 and CS5i (when I discovered room treatments and matching speaker size to available space). It seems I value dynamics, soundstage, and nuance; and have made the move to more efficient speakers where I can try a variety of lower power ss and tube amps. I rotate Klipsch Forte iv's and Zu Soul Sixes every few months and it has been a positive experience dealing with different speakers and amps at the same time. My listening space is not symmetrical and the Soul Sixes were relatively easy to place. They are equal distance from my listening seat. The Fortes, not so much. Last night I started over with the Fortes and think I finally got a decent soundstage with them. The right speaker is 18 inches from the side wall and 24 inches from the front wall. The left speaker is 30 inches from the front wall with a large opening to its left side. Finally got good decay and some depth of field. So how can I improve the room to enhance the soundstage? Are these speakers end game? I do not think so, but it is a long process and hard to figure out what an upgrade might be. I do know that I will not go back to inefficient speakers with large amps. For my ears, more efficient speakers are the ticket because I hear more sound and less of the speaker and power amp. Thanks for listening! |
@rbrannen "Legacy Audio Focus XD. Thoroughly happy and content. Along with the Wavelet 2 DSP/EQ. I auditioned multiple speaks and for the price point (15k] there are simply no other contenders to get me where I wanted to be. "
I am exactly in the same position as you, I recently purchased a set of Focus XD’s and then a few weeks later the Wavelet II. As I am retired and 69 this was the last speaker purchase i will be able to afford, and it was a good one! Works well with my tube amp on top. |
Boy are we on the same page. You have a great priority list! |
I currently have AMRITA AUDIO REFERENCE STANDARD speakers. They are the best speakers I have owned. I really liked the Alta Audio Adam but at 18k I will never own them. Several offerings from Von Schweikert would also be on my radar when I win the lottery. But I'd be TOTALLY happy with the unbelievably high value and moderately priced Tekton Moab. |
@ucrazykid , The Borresen X3 is only 11k and puts many a fuglyaz Wilson in the dust. The 500k Borresens, Magicos, Wilsons, etc are primarily for dudes laundering dirty money (Don't feel bad if the crooked fat tabby cats in this biz told you they've got a bigger Mr.Happy 😁). A music lover whose pockets ain't all that deep could be very happy with the X3 and all the trickledown it got. |
My current speakers will probably be my last. First off, they are heavy as heck! The flight cases could be used to bury me in. As I am getting older for some reason, I keep buying heavier equipment, maybe I am subconsciously craving the end game to this long journey. And... they cost more than I should have spent! They are the Clarisys Minute Planar speakers. ozzy |
Like many year, I’ve owned & enjoyed many different speakers over a long period of time. Like a few others here, I’m now really enjoying the Volti Audio Rivals. They effortlessly sound more like live music than any other speaker I can afford & they don’t require high powered heroic amplification like many other speakers to play loudly & sound great at the same time. I’ve heard several of the fine speakers mentioned that sound tight, clean, detailed etc but for myself, sound more like good hifi than live music is my standard of excellence & what pleases me. Check them out if this is what you like too. |
Took a break for many years, and had been fairly happy with a cheap but surprisingly good pair of epos bookshelf speakers, and my 30 year old Aragon 4004mk2/18k preamp driving them. But got a minor audiophile craving recently and sourced a pair of new old stock 805s bookshelf speakers, and it’s checking all my boxes. So far. |
I had a pair of Alons for 25 years that were great and I had to replace the paper woofers about 8 years in. I liked them a lot and changed quite unexpectedly just before Covid hit because I came across a close out deal on a pair of brand new KEF R500s for $1700. I improved their sound dramatically by tossing the spikes/discs KEF gives you and put Symposium Segue platforms under them that really focused the sound and cleaned them up. I don't like buying Chinese made speakers but they were at least designed in Britain and they have better bass (and overall detail) than the Alons but when you are very close (changing records) because they are not open at the tweeter level, don't sounds as good for a few seconds when I walk away. There are always tradeoffs. Because they make their own drivers and have tremendous economies of scale the value is undeniable. To get a noticeable improvement I would probably have to splurge for an $8K (list) or more pair of speakers, probably discounted to around $5K or more. I enjoy improving other parts of my system and trying to get the maximum out of the speakers, which is impossible in my non-dedicated listening room, but that is the never ending journey. Only changing one thing (especially inexpensive things like vibration control) enables me to judge the improvement, which often surprises me how much or little the sound was improved. Admittedly, I probably have allocated a much smaller % of my total system investment in speakers than the vast majority of 'Goners, but you can only degrade the sound when you go down the signal path, and I've spent about 50%+ on my turntable/cartridge/phono stage/Townshend platform/wall shelf/Hexmat eclipse mat. I have listened to a much more expensive pair of KEFs and didn't hear much of a difference. I was told the demo room did not have a good enough amp to get the most out of them. I considered a fairly big upgrade to Vienna Acoustics (close outs) who was leaving the US market, and even those, I was told (by an honest salesman at TMR) that I might not like them as much and I could return them, but the trial cost of shipping would have been $600 (can't remember if that was for 2 trips or one). I guess I have 20 years to go on these KEFs.....although you never know. With the platform upgrade to the speakers it really makes me hesitate. |
Interesting comments, of course I have no idea when my game will end. That a said, I love numerous speakers around the house, JBL, Mirage and others with my current favorite main entertainers being Sonus Faber Olympica II's with an ancient M & K 12" active subwoofer. I've considered replacing that sub unit but it fits in and works seamlessly in the room with the Oly's. The Oly II's fill the family room nicely, provide hours of beautiful listening, especially with vinyl or SACD's, along with a wife who wears hearing aids yet loves how they look. The no boxy fine Italian craftsmanship captivates her. If these are my end game speakers I can live with and enjoy them until then. Since I no longer work in the HiFI business I think I can stick with the Oly II's indefinitely and enjoy the variety of some of my buddies amazing systems as well, each with its own sonic favors. I feel extremely fortunate to have found the Oly II's here on AG years ago and currently experiment with less visual components like tubes, cables and sources often discovering a tweak here and there that is fascinating... These bits weigh a lot less and don't require an entire system rebuild or room remodel to get things right. Grateful to be enjoying a fantastic life long hobby and the music that can delivered to my ears. Hoping you all can appreciate the same... I am satisfied. I feel speakers are such a personal, multi factorial, and situational choice. Will there be a speaker upgrade? It's tempting after listening in on some of my buddies systems... Yes, No , Maybe... |
