KEF LS50 vs Dynaudio Contour 1.3 MkII vs Thiel 1.6

soix & schubert

Thanks for the quick responses!

soix
Yes, I currently own the 1.6s after owning 1.5s.  The passive preamp was one of those "itches" that I needed to scratch.  Much to my surprise, it is way more to my liking than the internal one in my beloved B60.  Less 'boom' in the bass and better, clearer sound staging. Pain in the rear switching back and forth between sources...but pretty special sound...to me.

schubert
Small group & vocal jazz (live if possible), world music (particularly africa and brazil), folk when I'm feeling nostalgic and, of course, Bach. 
On the cartridge, I had a stock DL 103 and it was better than the Rega Elys or Blue Point Special I'd been using.  Had a chance to get the ZU at a good price and it was distinctly better...before breaking in!  And it just keeps getting better and better.

Thanks soix.  I did try the 1.6s with a couple 100w amps but they were not as resolving as the B60.  OTOH, they were older and probably mid-fi types (Adcom). While I'll probably go listen to the Dynaudios (they're local and used), sounds like I'd best try out a more powerful amp.  I've hesitated to do that so far because I've enjoyed the B60...and had just super customer service from them.

I guess I don't want so much want to replace the Thiels as much as up my whole system's game.  Funny, when I bought them, most of your speaker list was my list. Thanks again for your comments.

Well, lots of great feedback.  Thanks.

I just returned from auditioning the  Dynaudio Contours and learned a couple things.  They sounded as good or slightly better than my Thiels...sound stage a tiny bit wider and precise, sound balance maybe better.  However, a big HOWEVER, the guy had them set up with his main system. Two custom made mono-block tube units & what appeared to be a passive preamp & a Linn cd player.  I know enough to know it's the system you hear, not an individual component.

At my request, he was nice enough to rewire them to a 60wpc receiver so I could hear them with underwhelming components. Wow, everthing collapsed - they sounded flat and un-dynamic.  We both agreed that I need to hear them in my system but I'm now convinced they are not what I'm looking for.  

Then, being the nice guy he was, he re-hooked up his main system and I was totally blown away.  The only change was the speakers he had, some sort of three ways from a small European company who I never heard of using Seas(?) drivers. Best sound I've heard in 20 years...since the SF Stereophile show at the Joseph Audio room.  It delightfully reset my whole idea of what's possible.  One thing I do know, I need to get to some of the local listening rooms (Boston area) and relearn what I thought I knew. Thanks for all the advice!

Off to see (hear) the wizard(s)!

A quick follow up on my rambling last night. The speakers were Penaudio Sara Signatures, a "2.5 way" from Finnland. At 86 dBw/m, they were being driven by pretty light weight tubes (30w?). I'm confused that they could perform with such poise while my Thiel 1.6 (90dB/W/m) apparently need significantly more power to shine. I don't doubt that it's true but is that due to the speaker's specific black magic or tubes versus solid state?

Also, if anyone can suggest other speakers that have similar sonic signatures to the Penaudios, let me know...I am, as you can see, lusting for that sound.

My next step, after two cups of morning joe is to look for more power to explore the Thiels full potential and then, if they don't make the cut, look for a change there.  Onward and upward.

ctsooner - heck, I was about 20 minutes away from Berlin last weekend...:8(  Not in Boston, north near Portsmouth, NH...last stop going north on NH's vast 12 mile coast line.  I go to NYC to see kids from time to time...may check in with you then.

yyzsantabarbara - I would love to keep my B60 but it seems that to give my current Thiels a fair test and be ready for anything I end up doing later (multiple comments like mofojo's & sofix suggest that), it's reasonable upgrade. I'll check out the Benchmark but Bryston has been such a pleasure to work with...once a lightening strike wounded my B60, they repaired as a warranty fix saying the "we don't usually do this"...gee, a real lesson in how to make loyal customers.

yyzsantabarbara  - I had my 1.6 Theils in a near field set up before changing my room and they really worked well. However, it's my home office and listening room and they don't exactly fit on my desk. With my latest rearrangement the space works better but I can't quite do a near field in it.  On the amp side, the B-60 ought to be pumping 120W into the Thiels (4 ohms) but apparently that's not enough.  So my plan, again, is to up the amp power and then go from there.

Funny, when I start getting "the itch" to change things, listening rather than reading reviews has served me best.  When I was much younger, I can remember running thru a bunch of mid-fi speakers based on looking in magazines. Then one day I wandered into a store in Eugene Or and listened to a weird looking set of speakers that sounded amazing.  Turns out they were Maggies and my journey into better sound began.  So it's all ears going forward.

Well - and this is nod to soix - I just happened to find an amp that's more powerful than my B60 nearby (OK...two hours near) and it's now installed. Bryston 4B SST.   So I've gone from 60w/channel to 300w/channel into 8 ohms.  My Thiels are 4 ohms so they're seeing more I presume. 

I've generally categorized my attempts at upgrades as "nope-maybe-yep". The 4B is a definitely a yep, maybe a YEP-YEP.

Thanks soix, the Thiels are now really paying attention to what's going on.  What's surprising to me is that the soundstage is more distinct...don't understand how that works but not going to argue about it...it works.

ctsooner  Looks like we're destined to be "ships passing in the night".  Is  Audio Connection in NYC or NJ?  I get to NYC to see kids regularly so will give you a heads up then.  Still need to find a Penaudio dealer closer than Ontario...or buy a ticket to Paris...they have 'em there...:8)

I thought so, NJ wouldn't work for me as I go to NYC by mass transit. More importantly, it's not an issue at the moment since I've just invested in the bigger Bryston (my third) and won't be doing anything else major until I've "digested" what I have.  

Short version is that I've got zero interest in hearing other amps or speakers at the moment. Frankly, my Thiels sound better than they ever have, not bright at all. While I've heard (& owned) some nice speakers - Joseph Audio, Maggies, Thiels, Linkwitz, etc. - my ears told me that system's sound was the best my ears have ever heard. So eventually, I'll chase another pair of them down to listen to. For now, I've got all I'm interested in.