Lack in harmonic richness

As far as I can recall I had this problem also with the previous speakers (Dunlavy SC V's) but with the Soundlabs it is aggravated.

Welcome to accuracy. Both the speakers you mention are highly respected for timbral accuracy - especially in the all important midrange. Both will have a tight lean low end (DAl's were over damped if I recall and some could even do a respectable job on a square wave - something few modern "impressive but one note bass" speakers can do!!)

If you are finding this sounds "thin and threadbare" then you clearly used to and obviously prefer a more colored presentation with some harmonic warmth. You may need a tube power amplifier on the warm side of neutral. A subwoofer may also do the trick as panels can be lacking in that bottom octave area and that can contribute to a thin sound.

Alternatively - give it some time - listen to your collection and concentrate on how different each recording sounds - the analytical precision may grow on you after a few hundred hours once you realize you can hear more detail when it is not overly warm with harmonics...I know it did for me.

These speakers were a long time favorite of Gordon Holt - so if you can be prepared to accept that your initial dislike is due to your not being accustomed to the taste of such ruthless timbral accuracy then I think this could grow on you...

Enjoy! You have awesome gear - I would not be so quick to change - or to dumb it down with warmth - just give it time.

Two cents...as usual.

BTW - in the above I assume everything is working properly. Given your extensive experience Chris - I simply assume that you would know if something was wrong and producing distortion.

Marty,

Quad 57 - it seems there is a counter example to every example - this Waterfall plot is about as good as they get - ever.

Chris - what you seem to be describing is not a problem "thin or threadbare" but a lack of "air" or an overly "dry" sound. Remember your upper midrange is probably second to none - it probably decays near instantly anbeing very "panel fast" with none of the nasty resonances that are commonly found in other heavier cone speakers.

See this for a good definition of speaker qualitative terms.

Half the problem in audio is getting on the same page with descriptive terms.

If you are not getting enough "air" or "ambience" then you probably have a room and placement problem.

Panels tend to beam (although A-1s are curved and will be less "beamy"). Your previous speaker also tended towards a narrower dispersion. Both could be reasonably be expected to give you a tendency towards less "air" and a "drier" sound.

As some have suggested an EQ boost in upper mid treble or an amp with a high output impedance (tube) will bloom more in the upper midrange/treble (anywhere that impedance rises most).

Alternatively, try getting the speakers to reflect a bit more off the side walls in order to enhance the reverberant (ambient) sound.

Good luck!

Viridan,

Thanks - I was not aware of that - I thought panels often had some of the cleanest waterfall plots period. I'll dig into it further and see what I can find on it. I am not a panel fanatic as I find they lack dynamic range and bass extension but I have deep respect for the quality with which they often produce midrange. I appreciate your correction/comment.