Are you close to NYC or NJ ?
Looking for a warm sweet speaker
That images great and resolves without etched treble. I love the british sound, but want something a little more modern sounding. The big Harbeths sound good to me, but the price is just out of my reach. Any American brands that you could suggest? In this day and age it’s getting harder to find brick and mortar dealers or even by appointment dealers that stock the type of speakers I am looking for it seems.
I have analog and digital sources.
I have analog and digital sources.
71 responses Add your response
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These Spendor D7s are not American but British. This dealer is in San Antonio. https://www.gcaudio.com/products/spendor-d7-speaker-system/ |
Yes I had given some thought to the Spendors. Years ago, when I first got into hi-fi the dealer that I worked for carried Spendor, Harbeth, KEF, Rogers and Quad. I always had a fondness for SP-1's. The vocal range on the best british monitors always sucked me into listening even if I had other things to do. The Silverlines with the DynaAudio drivers are are interesting, as some of my favorite designs over the years used the Dyna drivers. Thanks for the inputs so far. I may have to bit the bullet and spend a bit more to get what I really want. |
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Accuracy is more important than "warm and sweet"! A pair of the old Carver Amazing Platinums will kill any of the above mentioned speakers! And now Bob Carver has come out with a tall line-array coupled to subs that challenges all the ultra-expensive speakers (Wilson, Magico, YG ...) for a fraction of their price! |
A used pair of Spendor SP100 speakers would be just what you’re looking for. They don’t come up that often but when they do you can get a good set for around $2000. I had a pair for over 15 years before finally parting with them last year. The SP100 is full range, detailed and dynamic. It is similar to the Harbeth 40.2 but a fraction of the cost. |
Hmm, maybe I'm using different terminology than you are, but when I think 'warm' that tends to make me think of a rather smoothed treble response instead of a resolving one. For resolution without harshness it's hard to beat Revel, especially the new Be series, though I'd call them neutral and not warm. When I think 'warm' I think the original Elac Debut series, Wharfedale's Diamond line, or the new JBL L100 Classics - a forgiving slightly 'old school' sound that gives up detail and emphasizes the midbass. Dynaudio and B&W may be worth looking into for you, I'd consider them to be on the warmer side of neutral. |
"Yes I had given some thought to the Spendors. Years ago, when I first got into hi-fi the dealer that I worked for carried Spendor, Harbeth, KEF, Rogers and Quad. I always had a fondness for SP-1's. The vocal range on the best british monitors always sucked me into listening even if I had other things to do. " I think the tweeter in the D7 and D9 allow them to meet your requirement of 'something a little more modern sounding', but you still get the classic British sound. I've never heard the D7 but I own the D9 and it has an amazing mid range along with a detailed but non-offending top end and has excellent bass/punch. |
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"Steakster563 posts06-10-2018 1:50pm "Etched treble = dirty power. Fix that first. No reputable speaker company would spend their time, energy and $$$ in manufacturing & marketing a defective product. Just like a professional recording engineer wouldn’t allow etched treble on a master. But, a speaker company would release a speaker that is very sensitive and responsive to HF music signals. Dirty power is most easily heard in the HF, but the entire musical spectrum is affected. If you’re currently using a power conditioner, it isn’t a good one." Sorry but please spare me the rhetoric as too your ideas as to why I hear what I hear. I have been involved with the highest levels of audiophile systems since the late 70’s. I haven’t been actively shopping for the past 5-7 years so I was attempting to get some opinions from like minded people. Far too many of the highest praised modern audiophile speakers with metal tweeters are just etched and hard sounding to me. I simply prefer a bit of sweetness and body vs the nth degree of detail in my systems, which is why I prefer quality tubed components personally. We all have choices to make in assembling our systems. There is room for everyone’s wants and desires in this hobby. |
Read this thread before bed last night and was going to come back and say the same thing as “steakster” did... Glad you’ve been around (we didn’t know that) but I don’t think he said it in any certain way, maybe just passionately informative. Although, I agree with you about a lot of modern speakers and metal tweeters, I also belive what “steakster” is saying to be true. So maybe there is someone else interested and reading that should know that clean power can and will remove noise and distortion that will calm a sensitive ear. I have VERY sensitive ears and moving to newly ran dedicated lines, as well as a new/better power filter did good for me. That’s not to say I didn’t still needed a soft dome sweet speaker. I do. But even on those, unclean power can cause my ears listening issues. If you like the big harbeths, how bout 30.1(or .2) w/ a swarm of subs by Audiokinesis. |
mckinneymike .....The Sonus faber Olympica 3 would fit the bill. It does most things right and the treble region [soft dome] is very detailed..but.. at the same time..non-fatiguing. Bass is very articulate and fast..and can go low,but, not sub low. Mid-range splendor that will make you want to listen all night long. With the right set-up and recordings,it can also throw a soundscape second to none. They are also in your price range used. Good luck with the search... |
There's a nice pair of Harbeth M-40.1's under your budget listed on Audio Mart and located in Michigan. This is my desert island speaker. Very easy to drive, full bodied, warm, yet detailed. https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649442789-harbeth-401-loudspeakers-in-natural-cherry-with-stands... |
The Swiss brand Boenicke are a speaker worth checking out if they are available in your area. They have this unique balance of naturalness and warmth whilst losing nothing in detail. Extraordinary speakers. The Boenicke/CAD room in Munich was one of the best sounding to my ears. What I have heard of some Proac speakers also seem to fit your criteria. The models with the ribbon tweeter sound gorgeous. Of the US brands I have heard the Avalon Ideal might work, it sounded terrific when I demoed it, and I felt had a more British sound for an American speaker. In Munich the Joseph speakers sounded very good too and seem to have a sound along the lines you describe, though the source in that room was a lovely reel to reel which would have helped. |
Modern KEF speakers are NOT warm and sweet. If anything they are lean and somewhat bright by the OP's definition. Don't laugh - I suggest - Magnepan .7. They are warm and sweet in the right setting :) To my ears much more laid back than the older models. Vandersteen speakers comply with the definition, at least at the lower end of the range - 2CE, 3's. |
