No love for Legacy Audio

I had some Focus 20/20 (not SE) a few years ago and really liked them, but they were huge and really too big for my space.  They were just a tad on the bright side and a little over the top in the bass department.  They were well worth what I paid for a pre-owned pair, but I moved in the direction of smaller speakers and a bit warmer sound (KEF, Harbeth, and Stirling).  Besides the fact that they felt out of place due to their size, they just didn't have enough room to "breathe" in my smallish listening space.  Too close to the sidewalls and corners.  Not the fault of the speakers, just not a good match for my room. 

I'm actually surprised that so many 'gonrs are exclaiming that these speakers are SO BIG!

The best speakers I have heard are almost always quite large. This includes many types.  Maybe its a psychological bent that bigger is better, but I don't believe so. I usually listen with my eyes closed anyway.

I listened or tried to listen to the Legacy Room at RMAF '19 which I think had the Aleris playing.  There were so many listeners that I couldn't wait around, so I never did get to even though I went back several times.  

@nitrobob mentioned Miller & Kreisel, wow that brought back memories.  That sub-woofer satellite system was amazing for it's size. Kicked my butt.

Regards,

barts 

@mikekollar Excellent post, spot on.

I am a Legacy Focus XD owner. So, without getting to much into the "no Love" aspect of this thread, I will just say this: As to footprint and weight. To me, a non issue. I mean what is another 2 or 3 inches wide and 3 to 4 inches deeper in a 17 X 20 room for instance. And as to weight.... well if it ends up being the speaker of choice then placing it once and leaving it there for 5, 10 15 years or more, who cares. I think this may have to do with getting ones head wrapped around the physical size change from the previous speaker. I owned a pair of B and W 702 s2 speakers after reviewing them in my own room against the Ascend Sierra towers (nice speakers also) about 3 -4 years into those and I was ready to upgrade. Unlike others, I found plenty of reviews of the Legact Focus. They were all positive and more than a few had them as completely over the top great. It is true, very few retailers. In Washington state, one dealer and nothing ever in stock. Then one day, I found out they had the signature SE on the floor and I drove 45 minutes to audition them. For about an hour with my own music I was able to hear them. Fell in love with them and this store had plenty to listen to. So I had made my decision and a few weeks later, a pair of the big brothers to the signature came on the market at a great price and one quick sale of the B and W's later, the Focus XD was on its way to my room. At first, yes, they look big and takes a bit to get used to, about a week and then all of a sudden, they really dont look that big anymore. About the sound..... All I can say is wow!!! When we got them all hooked up and put on that first piece, it ended and my son and I just stared at each other and started laughing. They are just that good. I an 2 years into them now and happy as a clam. The tweeters on these are incredible and the detail is stunning. Great controlled base and just an experience that is a show stopper whenever someone new comes over to listen. Very happy and when I am ready (which means 5 to 10 years when i have nothing better to do, will probably order the Legacy Aeris, just because..... I can. 

Any size speaker is easy to ship. First, take notes while unpacking. It will make packing months or years later much easier. BTW, only a complete idiot would throw away the original shipping cartons.

Strap each box to a pallet or both to a large pallet.

Set up an account with a place like this (what Legacy uses):

Echo Logistics

And Bob's your uncle.

BTW, not all Legacy speakers are big. As I type, I'm listening to a pair of Legacy Classic HD speakers. Speaker and listening position have been optimized. Preceded by reasonably priced, well matched components. Smaller room. The sound quality is sublime. Right now listening to Supersession; LP purchased over 50 years ago when I was in high school.

Like OP, I am a Legacy owner and wish more were posted about them. Obviously, they are indeed large and heavy, very big footprint, hard to pack, and nearly impossible ever to ship for sale or trade. I use the Signature SE because I would need 9' ceiling for the Focus. Bought them because they are fully enclosed, no port, not sensitive to placement, and they go lower and flatter more naturally than anything else in their price/size range. They are also US made and provide good advice on fine-tuning for the customer's listening environment.

That said, being designed with a peak at 35Hz and a steep rolloff below, the Signatures (including Focus) still need subs for the (to me) essential Octave Zero. 

Now, as for the decline in quality of posts, censorship and the rest -- I  don't know the story and can't comment except to say that I miss several very useful commentators who were once here and now departed for reasons unknown to me. (I had assumed that maybe MC had been shamed out by the Kevin Deal Raven demolition, or that maybe the overt Tekton flacking was deemed too brazen, but just guesses on my part. Never saw OldHvy, etc, doing inappropriate salesmanship, political ranting, threats, etc, so no idea why he and others named are no longer to be found. Nor why whole threads, rather than simply individual offending posts, would be taken down. There was plenty of useful info in some of those deleted threads). Oh well, somebody needs to make the rules, so we freebie users need to take it as we find it.

"Honestly I have not seen a vast amount of posts on Legacy speakers. "

Type in 'Legacy Audio'.

You will.

"I'm sorry you missed my point. "

Sounds like your point is you don't like it here.

There's a really simple solution to that.

Both TAS and Stereophile have reviewed speakers from Legacy - positively.

It seems like you want these speakers and are looking for someone to tell you it’s ok just listen to them if you like buy ‘‘em if not audition something else

Show me one time in the last 10 years. I’ll show you where the thread was either shut down, closed, erased or most of the post erased, and not a single word said by the moderators..

Do YOU know what a "Cooler" is? You know like in "Roadhouse". Their are bouncers and their are coolers. AG needs "COOLERS". It has WAY to may bouncers.

I'm sorry you missed my point. Let me make it clear. Threatening MEMBER is a firing offence. If moderators can't get a grip without threats they are WORTHLESS!

There are NO exceptions. I know how people get paid, Ostracizing paying members and contributing members is NOT a way to grow a business. Have you seen the sales? Do you wonder why? I do. Like I said I've been with the same group for 25-30 years and reading HERE for over 15. It's just lately, I like a little more substance than which end of the RCA do I plug in.. 

MORGUE-Gon is a better name.

No it's not a reflection on the OP at all. 

Legacy is still BIG though.. They aren't thick enough. I like mine THICK not wide. 44-20-99 is a good figure. I like that B......ASS..

On the other hand

"It looks like you’re creating a self-fulfilling prophesy."

No but I will get a response from the horses mouth, not the knee jerk reaction of his staff. There was 15 of us that wanted a little clarification of who ran the joint and what was the mission statement of his company.. 

Most successful companies want positive feedback from it's patrons about its staff. AG gets some really low marks in the REAL world, not AGs world.

24 posting members posting under 3 different names does not show GREAT strides in the wake of it's crappy post as of late. I'd rather listen to Yoko Ono and play with a wild tiger that had a hangover.

This place use to be fun, Eeyore's-ville dude!! Ok I'll go over "BEST" now.. 

O-----kay!

I have all Legacy so I’m of course going to tilt their way a bit. Came from Miller Kreisel to Ascend Acoustics... then Legacy. I have the complete gig. Legacy Focus Se’s, Marquee Center, Phanton surrounds, Deco rears, 4 of their Foundation Subwoofers and 2 of their new IV Amps. I tried Tekton Double Impacts but sent them back. Too much going on in that tweeter area for me and balanced or not they just were not as detailed. Not even close. I’m thrilled with the system. Recently went with a Lyngdorf MP-40 processor and the finished product is incredible. I just wish everyone could have a listen to this system. Whether it's idling along or Movies @ reference wise... or Video concerts at 112 db. wise, its captivating. Absolutely no ear fatigue. None. My favorite part is watching people’s faces during the concerts, or during the movies. I always ask. "Too loud"? "Anybody want it turned down a bit?" Everybody is always " hell no" . My wife and I entertain and put on a show once a month. Cant want for the next one ! It’s worth every penny to me. And to me at least... I have made a very very good choice. Each his own. There are tons of great products out in this world, but Legacy is a player..

Honestly I have not seen a vast amount of posts on Legacy speakers. I really was fishing for why people liked what they had better than Legacy. I feel like I have seen vast numbers of posts on about 5-7 other speaker brands but very few on Legacy. So I probably led in a not great way but my intentions were not sinister or intended to be any more than just curiosity and a desire to learn about other products. That’s it. 

I find the premise of this thread quite odd.

There are thousands and thousands of forum members and a vast amount of posts regarding Legacy Audio.

What led you to make such a statement as a thread starter?

Well, fsonicsmith, it’s obvious that I have totally misunderstood the purpose of this forum. I thought it actually was a place I could go for opinions about equipment and things I don’t know as much about. I apologize for being so naïve. You know a lot of people here talk about getting run off for one reason or another. You can add pathetic questions and comments as yet another. 

I've always found the "No love for....?" phrase amusing. To me it is a somewhat pathetic plea for help The folks that use this phrase don't feel confident in their own choice of gear and need corroboration and moral support from strangers. 

Someone mentioned Kenjit above. He used a different plea for attention-the purposefully provocative statement hoping to stir the pot and in the meantime draw attention to himself. 

And then there is the old standby of some ridiculous and meaningless intro such as "Holy smokes!" or "I have finally achieved audio perfection" or the like without any disclosure of the product or real topic so that the author has in fact created click-bait. 

All pathetic in different ways. 

twoleftears honestly this is pretty much the only forum I have paid much attention to so I can’t say about other forums. It simply occurred to me that Legacy is not as popular as SF or Magico or several others on this forum and I wondered why. Really I am wanting to get a better feel from other people who have heard these other speakers so that I can make more educated decisions if and when I upgraded. That’s really my only agenda. 

backdoor,

I owned the Focus speakers before they came out with the SE version. It must have been 10-15 years ago.

ozzy

There are several other audio discussion forums.  Would you say any brands of speaker that are neglected here get more love elsewhere?

Ozzy how long ago did you own the Focus?

I have seen this on several occasions when a thread has gone off the rails.

Show me one time in the last 10 years.

@helmholtzsoul ,

Admin
Audiogon Official

This thread is in jeopardy of being closed if the comments continue to be rude and off topic.

There you go. That was March 1, 2022.

Man, you are way too high strung. Not making a lot of sense, either.

rocray,

It seems that this has been going on for quite some time, and I'm afraid that this trend will continue forever.

ozzy

  Censorship is a tool for the weak.  It allows for one side to “prove” they’re right,by only showing one side.  If I say 2+2=5,and I cancel every answer that is 4,eventually every one will only see 5 as the answer.  

A couple of my threads were removed because of a "few" disrupters. Instead of just warning or deleting the offenders posts they cancelled the whole thread! I think the original thread poster should have more control of their own thread.

BTW, I owned for a while Legacy Focus. They were good but I wanted something truer to soundstage reproduction. Perhaps their newer version has improved on that.

ozzy

Quite a bit of speaker snobbery around these parts.

Klipsch gets put down like it is a discount house brand, Tekton (though not by cup of whisky) gets slammed. And if it is any brand that is sub $6K people look down their nose at them.

I spent $15K on a pair of QLN speakers I sent back because my $5K Raven CeLest towers and QLN Sonora sounded better.

Cannot wait to see what heads out to the trash man after my GoldenEar BRX get here along with ML Motion 15X for the office, both getting an audition....

Like Dan Wright said, If it sounds right, it is right. No matter the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

I heard them once at a show and thought they were a little brash, like crossover speakers from home theater to two-channel audio.

And @fuzztone is right: there's no love on this site for quite a number of very interesting speaker manufacturers.

@sc2 +1 on the Elon help!

Yessir. No love for Alta Audio either. BFD.

"I’ve NEVER seen the moderators speak up and contour the discussion if it starts to go south."

I have seen this on several occasions when a thread has gone off the rails.

I have the Aeris, they are great, Big?.. not really, about the same footprint of the B&W 802D’s which these replaced...a bit taller 60". Sounds much better to me!

The mods are easily offended... it’s a shame, they do a disservice to the forum anymore... we come here for opinions good or bad that’s the joy of interaction, so what if it’s off topic, offensive? My skin is thick.....maybe Elon could help us out.

Steve

Ok my bad. The French speakers are not 16k. They are about the same as signatures. Sorry. 

One other comment. The French speakers that are mentioned above are roughly $16300 which is not too short of double the price for the signatures. I would think they should sound at least somewhat better. 

Interesting comments. Seems like I may be late to the this forum party as it appears its heyday is in the past. Unfortunately. 
soix I think Feinstein wrote a very nice review on the signature. He said they were the finest sounding speaker that ever graced his sound room. For what it’s worth and I think I got the right reviewer. 
Also I do own a pair of the signatures. And that is a lot of my reason for this post. I don’t have a huge room for my gear and I never thought their footprint was over the top. They are 109 lbs each. But there are other speakers out there that approach and even exceed their size. I guess I am a little surprised that many of you commented more about their size than about their sound. Like I said. Interesting. 

By all accounts they make some really nice and high-value speakers.  What amazes me is that I can’t recall ever reading a published review of a Legacy speaker.  That probably accounts for a lot of the reason they’re not discussed more here and elsewhere. 

op the major problem with legacy is a limited number of dealers 

wew have sold legacyfor years the signature models are awesome

+1 jerryg123

From what I see most of the old guard I use to read have passed away, QUIT posting are suspended or they can’t post. I use to read, georgehifi, millercarbon, almarg, GK, tvad, oldhvymec, kenjit, oregonpa, and about 100 other ones.. From what I see Audiogon is literally Audio-erased 85+ % of the great posters. The part I don’t understand is simple tools would have avoided the whole mess.

The "ignore option"

"Closing discussions" I’ve NEVER seen that one. You bring up the WRONG name in "start a new thread" it will be closed.. Something is broke all right. I’ve NEVER seen the moderators speak up and contour the discussion if it starts to go south..

Close or erase the whole thing SEEMS the be the easiest thing to do.. It’s not the right thing to do, but it’s AGs way.. Being a human myself, this site treats some like super humans and some like sub humans, but equality across the board. LOL it just doesn’t happen.

My buddies scold me for even posting here. I figure if I don’t, who will write what I like. I guess it’s up to ME to make me happy..

Red and Scotty both were on the horn last night from Finland of all places. Great supplies are warehoused there.

Scotty said a lot of what they are fixing was messed up from the inside out, NOT the outside in.. He had a big smile on his face. The Fins have the parts at a reasonable price.. FREE. They just have to transport them. That can be tricky.

After this post the number of posters will drop to 24. :-)

Remember from the inside out. Kind of like AG. The posters aren’t the problem. Who’s erasing the post and discussions is.. I know the truth hurts..

Legacy is BIG. I don't care for them..

I almost bought a set to replace my tektons. Thanks vinylvalet. But the tektons were a bit more balanced from top to bottom. Legacy certainly looked nice and I like the speaker. I may yet own a pair someday.

I agree they don’t get the respect they deserve but if you pay attention, 90% of the posts talk about the same speakers which are the trendy speakers of today. If you suggest anything else, you’ll likely get ignored. There is a lot of momentum. Same with DACs for example. Reading here you would think Denafrips was God’s gift to hifi. Although God has now sent Holoaudio.

Jerry

I heard the Focus Legacy and Signature SE's for a while powered by very good equipment. They were nice, but they are enormous, heavy, speakers. Then, I heard the Apertura Edena speakers. They not only sounded better in various ways than the Legacy, they don't have a giant footprint. 

My worry about Legacy speakers is how impossible they'd be to fit in my space and also, if I wanted to sell them, how hard they'd be to ship.

Probably because they aren't manufactured by Tekton...

I had the opportunity to hear the Focus SE a couple of weeks ago and I really liked them. These were heard with no subs and they still grabbed you by the cajones and didn't let go. Clear, articulate and powerful. 

There are a lot of brands that do not get much love here as there are only like 25 people who post here.

Really a small forum. 

"What is it you like better about the ones you are consistently raving about. Thank you. "

 Who is constantly raving ?  Let me guess, you own Legacy speakers ?

Heard them at AXPONA many times, they sound excellent but very big.  The Calibre stand mount is a superb near full range speaker.  With passive radiator and thrilling resolution it is what the Buchardt S400 wishes it sounded like.  

I heard the Legacy Sigs a couple times at AudioDoctor Dave's place. They are quite special. I just don't have the room for them.