Looking for a Speaker Recommnedation

I'm so happy Bob.  So glad that you love them and will give them a great home.  I know it sound stupid, but when you sell your gear to someone who appreciates it, it makes you happy, lol.  

I finally got my AQ Rockefeller's reterminated and double bi-wired installed. Ah, the Treo's sound wonderful with Atma-Sphere amp and pre.
They totally dissolve in the room.

NYC, yes, you have a killer set up.  Wait until you get that system burned in, lol.  Johnny is as good a set up guy as you will find anywhere.  Keep us posted on break in.  

After many months of waiting, since Thankgiving, my system upgrade is finally done.  The Ayre AX-5 Twenty and Vandy Treo CT is a magical combo.  Johnny@audioconnection is awesome!! Highly recommend going to see him, he came over to my house with Carlos last week and they did an awesome job with setting up the speakers.  I'm approaching twenty hours and the speakers without full break in time sounds fantastic.  The soundstage and imaging is natural and beautiful. The CT tweeter really sounds nice with the Ayre amp.  The mid range is rich, detailed and engaging, I can listening for hours.   I will enjoy the break in period.  

IF it was me by now I would have hand forged biwire jumpers made from all my spouses single lost gold ear rings.....
man you shoulda been named Job....
smile

Wait until you get the speakers up and running.  Like anything, give them a legit break in as they need it every time they are moved.  Listen to Johnny and he'll make sure you get everyone out of them that they can do. You heard how good they sounded in my system. I'm sure they will be just as great in yours.  Happy they went to a loving home, lol.  True audiophiles understand that last statement.

Whoohoo!
I hope to pick up my cables from Audioconnection this week, so I can finally listen to your old Treo's, ctsooner.
In the meantime, I have my recently installed Atma-sphere amps and preamp connected to a pair of Zu Union's. (Didn't need Biwire's).

I have to say they are approaching magical.
Bob

I will be when I get them.  They will be very special for sure.

Thanks Pete. Working with John at AC who is great and a wealth of information. I have a list of the setup tasks from him and I'm sure there will be a few questions as I move along. Have a few things done (crossover impedance, potentiometers/controls set to defaults, approximate placement based on room dimensions). Purchased a laser level and SPL meter.
Still waiting for my cables (should be early next week).

I bet you are excited to see your speakers!

So happy for you getting the Quatro's.  Still waiting on mine as I told them to hold off a bit as I was away for two weeks.  I'm missing my system and than goodness I have some good headphones to use while everything is away getting updates and crossovers installed. 

You will be most happy with the Vandersteens I'm sure. Keep us posted on everyt8ing .  If you need help setting them up and doing the bass eq, let me know as Johnny at Audio Connections will help out Im sure.

@hddg,
Thanks for the information. Will research more into these speakers.

@milpai 
hi, sorry for late reply, was away and busy. I paid USD8,000 for them, delivered at my home in Mauritius, but this is higher than usual since i requested the manufacturer to make it with a walnut veneer for me. His first batches of production are sold out well in advance. They are known in Europe, but really the US are missing out on these ones. Not because his US representation is not well spread that they are not good. They really are exceptional to me, and you would get service direct from the designer/manufacturer if need be (Olle Oliason), very nice guy.
Again, absolutely incredible speakers, but they need some break-in. Let me know if you buy them, i would like your opinion back!!

Thanks. Decision made a while back. Quatro Wood's in my home as of yesterday. Just need my bi-wire cables to show up and we're off...

@fdemello - I'm getting to this one a little late, but I do second the recommendation @bache gave. I never heard of Tekton Design until six months ago, and after a lot of research, I purchased the Tekton Lore and I seriously cannot be happier. Given the specs you provided, the Double Impact might work really well for you at $3k/pair:

http://tektondesign.com/ddimpact.html

Tekton is run by a guy named Eric Alexander, who has worked at a ton of speaker companies and then even Kimber cable. His speakers are also customizable, both from the finish to the components inside. I had my Lore upgraded to use ClarityCap MR capacitors, but Eric offered me options and pricing for using Mundorf caps, etc.

If they are so good, why haven't people heard of them? Well, I have to say Eric isn't exactly a star at marketing. He is a speaker designer and builder at heart. I think you should make a few searches and see what others have to say about Tekton. Best of luck!

Congrats. So happy for you.  Johnny will take care of you as you know.  Set up is key.  Yes Richard is as available as anyone I've ever met in this or any industry. I'll be in shock if you want to get rid of these in the next many years lol.  

Guys, I'm in Nepal for a family wedding for another week or two, but within a few weeks of getting back I'll have my Quatro's painted in Audi Havana Black which to me is gorgeous and had a high metallic look. Ayre is installing my crossovers in my AX-5/20.  Then I'll have Johnny come up to CT to set it all up for me.  This is so awesome hearing how happy fofolks are. Bob have you set up the Treos yet?  Those are going to really sound great.  Been missing them  lol.  Thank goodness I have a nice pair of Noble Savants for the trip. Will be selling these too soon as the upgrade bug has hit for my mobile listening too lol. 

The market moves - he sold a quarter of a million Model 2 - that does not exist anymore so yes WAF and aesthetics have enteeed the equation - but I would put model 3 a sig up against anything at $10 k
above that price point people want Vandersteen or automotive finishes.
the 7cabinet with the carbon fiber is not capable of veneer Hence the paint
Richard is still hyper frugal - pretty much everything earns its way sonically into the product

Though I am glad Vandersteen made a more stylish, well built cabinet, I am surprised by the move.
After all, he (Richard) originally chose to put all his effort into the works of the speaker rather than blinging out the cabinets- Hence, the 1,2 and 3's.
This resulted in outstanding performance at a low price point.
I guess market pressure forced him to make changes.

..just read a post above about cabinet finish.   I had a pro to do cabinet work in the kitchen.....he looked at my 5A's and told be that those speakers are finished the best he's ever seen  ( I have the Kawazinga finish). He offered his opinion without prompts. They are works of art.

I have Vanderseen 5A driven by all Ayre electronics...  When I moved from New Jersey to Arizona, Richard himself led me to set the speakers up properly.  I thought him going that extra effort was extremely valuable to me, and its so nice to be treated so well like that.  John Rutan is another A+ member of this community.  Someone said that the 5's aren't impressive.  The better the speaker the more important the ancillary equipment...electronics, cables...even wall plugs....all make a very big difference.

CooL

do not over equalize !!!!

Nice move
call AC and get the - 3 db x over correct with dip switches and
nuetalize Back to factory settings
for your main amps input imp.
best JohnnyR

Definitely a good decision.

Understood Pete and great advice. Normally.

However in my situation this is how this shook out for me (which led me to make a purchase without hearing every speaker).
Below was the list I had narrowed down my choices down to in my price range (5K <):

Rank Brand Model
1 Vandersteen Quatro Wood (Used)
2 Vandersteen Model 3A Signature
3 ProAc D48R (Used)
4 Golden Ear Triton One
5 Magnepan 1.7i
6 ProAc D30RS (Used)
7 Revel F208
8 Spatial M3 Turbo S
9 ProAc D20R

I narrowed that down further based on the below factors which were most important to me:

1 respected, longstanding company and/or designer
2 ability to be located near front/side walls
3 integrated sub
4 great a low levels


Which left me here:

Rank Brand Model
1 Vandersteen Quatro Wood (Used)
2 Golden Ear Triton One

Narrowed down again based on which company is more likely to provide outstanding support and speaker appearance/WAF (really do not like the look of the GE sock):

Rank Brand Model
1 Vandersteen Quatro Wood (Used)

I had sent an e-mail to Golden Ear with no response. In contrast I have had 3 different issues sent to Vandersteen with a direct response from RV (the designer) himself (even on an issue as innocuous as importing into the US).

I have entered into a private party deal for a 4 yr old QW.  I am sure if for some reason it does not meet my needs I will be able to sell it based on the outstanding reputation and quality of this company/designer.

I know this is a bit anti-climactic but I think I ultimately made a good decision that will work for me.

Thank you everyone for your help. I certainly think I ended up in a better place due to the opinions from the members on this site than I would have alone
 

I'd make sure you went to audition the speakers you have chosen to listen to before purchasing online used.  JMHO, but I have seen way too many chasing their tails and losing money trying to find the speaker they would have found if they listened to a few before getting that 'great' online deal. There will always be 'that' deal used if you decide to go that way, or you may feel for a speaker, having the warrantee is important.  Again, JMHO

Not looking for a bookshelf/monitor style speaker at this point. Thank you

You owe it to yourself to check out the new Watkins bookshelf size speaker. You can have them for about half what you state your budget is. They also have a two week return privilege should you decide they're not for you. The website for them is www.watkinsstereo.com Seriously, check these out before you buy. You won't regret it.

Hi sbrownw - activity is taking place.

I have a line on a used speaker that interests me and is a good deal. Stay tuned.

I have dropped Thiel from the list. 

So, you decide already?

Of course.  I'd love that.  Would be a lot of fun.  You can audition etc, but we'll have to take a listen to the Vandersteen 7's with all the top gear, lol.  It will be an eye opener.  Also will do the Maggies upstairs.

Have a great trip Pete. Hopefully we can meet up at AC

Great list you have.  Not too many and all different tastes.  The winner will come to light for you quickly.  I'm hearing out to Nepal for a family wedding and will be back on the 10th of Feb.  If you are heading out to audition after that, let me know.  Would be fun to meet up as you aren't far away.  Pete

devilboy704 posts07-12-2016 7:18pm@jond, yes I did sell it. It still is a giant killer IMO. The only reason I sold it is "because my speakers are a bit bright" and the INT, as wonderful and "warm" as it is, in the end was still too much of a good thing. Rather than open a whole new can of worms with shopping for new speakers, worrying about selling mine, etc, I chose to keep the speakers and get a new amp. 
-----------------------
Those wouldn't work for me devilboy. Thanks for the offer though. Focusing in on the brands I listed

I have a speaker way under your budget that plays extremely well with the genres you mentioned. My Source Technologies 1.7 SL Reference. Floor standing two way with small footprint. Scanspeak Revelator tweeter and 7" Revelator driver. Built like a tank and has incredibly deep bass with my 37 watt solid state amp! Everyone who has heard it mentions the deep bass.  $5,500 brand new. Spend a little north of a grand and they're yours and save a lot of money. 

Also TEKTON---very good

Bob, what if you kept the speakers for a long time and you blew a driver?  The money you'd get back would be zero as you most probably could never get them fixed properly.  When purchasing components at or above the 10k mark, I don't want to take that chance.  Again, that's me.  I had a DAC that was a 9k DAC.  I bought it used for less than half that and was lucky to be able to sell it for a bit more, but the owner is getting older and probably only will be around for another two years at most and if so, then there will be no one who can work on his products as the design is not the norm.  There may be someone who can.  I get that a great tech should be able to figure it out and replace a component, but what if it got wiped out (seen that happen and thank goodness he was around to rebuild it).  

Like I said, there are some outstanding components from smaller companies, but it is just a larger crap shoot I guess you could say.  That's all.

I will have to disagree with ctsooner on buying from smaller enterprises, as well as considering resale values.
Though everyone would like to have their purchases not depreciate. I think it is an unrealistic way to buy equipment (or anything for that matter).
You should buy what you like and enjoy. If it comes from a small manufacturer, then you understand that they may not be around forever.

Way back I purchased a pair of Tamanton Homonyms, they were nearly identical to the Vandy 2's soundwise. I even met the designer and his family in Williamsburg, Brooklyn- way before gentrification.
Long story short, he decided to get out of the stereo business. 
Those speakers were nice for their time and I eventually got rid of them, but I don't really feel I lost much, either monetarily or enjoyment-wise.
Even if I got the Vandy's, I wouldn't have reaped a financial windfall.
YMMV
Bob

Bache, really?  How could one ever make a statement like that and be taken seriously?  There is no one best.  Not even close.  I guess you don't buy into posts that say that we all hear differently.  I'm not putting the speaker down at all. I personally feel the Vandy 7 mk 2 is the top speaker I"ve heard, but many other would disagree and some would agree.  Others love Magico's and Wilsons.  Rock ports are well liked and respected too.  I'm sure you were just posting tongue in cheek. ;)  All good.

Nice list as you will get a lot of different sounds there.  NONE sound even similar to my ear.  

The Tritons is the best speakers on the planet

After getting everyone's feedback, doing my research and considering other factors - I have narrowed down the list of brands I am considering to a more manageable group below:

Vandersteen
ProAc
Magnepan
Thiel
Golden Ear
Revel
Spatial

Some models only used due to cost

Now to listen where possible

Great perspective Pete. Thanks

Yes the old Meadowlark speakers for the money, were nice.  the other problem I have with some companies is that they discount their speakers.  For most, you think that's great as you can afford them, but in hindsight, it also kills resale value and in the end, most lose money.  Folks are buying and selling audio gear at a rate never seen in years past.  That's what Audiogon, Ebay and USAudiomart have done (in the US and other sites in other countries).  To me, I always cared about resale value and that's why it's very rare for me to purchase gear from mom and pops, along with all the reasons I have shared.  Not taking anything away from what they are building, but they also don't have economy of scale, so how much are we really saving?

Take company A vs B.
A has been in business for well over 25 years and sells a ton of gear that is considered some of the best in the business AND sold for a fair price with pieces that constantly hit well above their price classes.  

B is a mom and pop and has been in business for 10 years, but the first 7 or so were a hobby business.  The owner, manufacture is also the head engineer and marketer.  Using the internet, they market their gear and sell a bit.  They have been great at getting their gear in the hands of the power writers who have great things to say about them.  They have a very loyal base of fans who they sell direct to.  They most often will discount their gear at large discounts, because they can cost it out higher and make it look like folks are getting the deal of a lifetime.  In the end, their gear is selling for where it should sell at a store, but since it's direct and their marketing budget is basically giving their gear to a few reviewers and asking clients to blog and do write ups on various sites, they keep their overhead fairly low.  They give good value for the price.

A has ads in pubs and also offers gear to reviewers.  They may sell their product to the write if they want it at commendation cost (maybe around 50% off).  They are selling many more pieces than B and have economy of scale.  They also are a real company size wise and can pay a lot more for true R&D and have many engineers working for them.

Company A has only a 38% markup and not 45 or higher like some of the other companies out there.  

A doesn't allow their dealers to give discounts on their gear.  If a dealer does give someone 10% off list price, they are taking that from cables or other larger mark up items.  A's gear usually keeps a much higher resale price vs B.  B's gear is marked down a ton at the first sale and most folks realize this and offer even less than the 50% markdowns for second or more sales.

Company A's gear also has brick and mortar stores stand by the gear and allow you to bring it home to listen to it in your system.  they offer all that stores offer for set up and their knowledge.

Where are you getting the best buy?  There are always some exceptions, but I've been around audio for so many years now and I have been fortunate to know so many in the business and to discuss these issues.  I'm close with a few mom and pop engineers too and love some of their gear.  Heck, I love Steve Nuggent of Empirical.  I've had so many talks with Steve about life, woodworking, restorations of homes as well as his take on audio and his products.  I owned his DAC and LOVED it. 

I have nothing against smaller companies, but for many reasons, I won't be purchasing from any in the near future.  Again, that's just me.  I'm as cheap as they come and need to save money to maximize what I can afford. I don't have a large wallet, but as Bob has shared, I do care greatly about having the best sounding gear for the price.  

I dont' pretend to knowing it all.  My posts may come off that way, because it's not easy for me to write in the tone that I'm feeling most of the time.  That's a hard thing to do and most can't.  that's why we often have major disagreements on boards, when in fact it's just banter over beers and we all respect where the other is coming from.  Hopefully when folks read my posts they understand the passion behind them and the respect that I have for most (not all, lol).  Thanks for reading if you have. Pete

As to having visited ctsooner to pick up the Treo's, I can attest to his demand for quality. In fact, he even makes his own furniture (beautiful Mission style), and understands what goes into cabinetry.
Poor Meadowlark, I think they are back again. Unfortunately, stuff happens.

Great info as always

When I bought my Rogers it came down them and a pair of Meadowlark's. It was close. Liked the Rogers mids a bit more.
Would have gone Verity Audio if I had more money at the time

Guys, I won't say which is which so folks can go listen and make up their own minds.  Those are my own thoughts on the speakers.  All my post was saying is that said poster put together a list of speakers that all sound totally different from each other.  Yes, it's obvious that I'm a Vandersteen guy as they do virtually everything and over the many years Richard has been designing, he's realized where most folks don't mind a corner to be cut.  NO speaker is perfect an it can't be right now.  All have to make design choices. To me it came down to which company got their corner cutting right.  

I just didn't want a speaker that was literally turned up at all on top or couldn't be tuneful down below and still move some air.  All stand mounted speakers were off the table at that point.  Hey, the footprint of a floor stander is the same as most stand mounts anyways.

I needed a speaker that threw a realistic and sometimes large sound stage and also had great imagine.  I was coming from Proacs and that's what they are known for.  I personally don't like buying from the huge conglomerates if I can help it.  I'd rather support the smaller companies. I love some of the Audio Research gear, but will buy Aesthetix or Ayre over it since they sold.

As I've said, I also need a speaker that is dynamic as ALL levels and there are very few that ever get that right.  Some of you don't care about listening at lower levels, but I live in a real home and my listening room is a loft. I'm just thankful that Johnny Rutan helped me set it up so that the sound is as good as what I used to have when I had a dedicated room (well 90%).  The one thing I've also learned over the years is that you can't look at a speaker and know what type of technology is in it or how much time it actually takes to make it.  Some companies make their own cone assembly's and send them out to the top driver maker to finish them.  I like this approach as the company can control their sound better than using off the shelf drivers, even modified ones.  Some companies are large enough to roll they own from start to finish.  

When I look at a cabinet (this is the major thing Wilson markets and sells to folks), how's it made?  Does it really reduce vibrations that can smear the notes?  Some companies have a very simple way to brace a cabinet.  Materials are important of course.  One company builds a cabinet within a cabinet AND used damping material in-between.  I make wood furniture and really appreciate a professionally finished speaker too.  I always notice how a company matches their veneer's. Some companies use real wood veneers, but very thin ones like the furniture in the 80's.  Wait til you get see a nick and you'll understand.  I personally have now gone painted on my Quatro's that are being built because I love the color I]m using.  I like the fact that you can order a speaker painted over veneer if you want to.  It gives the speaker a totally different look for whatever room you are matching.  

These are just my own personal tastes and many will disagree.  This is why there are so many speaker companies who come and go.  Many just don't have "it" for the long term.  Many make a great sounding speaker at a fair price, but aren't worth it to me. I loved Meadowlark years ago, but they were literally built out of the guys garage in San Diego if I recall.  You can't give them away anymore and too bad if it blows on you.  I guess that would be one case where stock off the shelf drivers would work best, lol.  

HAHA I knew that Bob - that's what I get for copying :-)

Vandersteen Trio CT - Best of the bunch

You got it bubby...
(BTW- it's Treo)
Bob

You really ought to give a listen to the Revel's. I have a friend who has a pair of larger models and they are great rock speakers, as well as for acoustic music. So I haven't heard the F208's but I do know what Revel's "house" sound is like. Vandy's would be my other choice.

The Revel F208 are probably the best of the bunch .

Psst..Why is it a secret, ctsooner??