Proac D38, Wilson Sophia II, Avalon Ascendant???

Chadnliz, I have heard Vandersteen. I think they sound good. Maybe a little more musical and not quite as accurate as the Wilsons. I think I favor ProAc sound over Vandersteen but the Vandy's did sound good.

Zeeshanb, I agree there is something special about the ProAc's! Out of curiosity did you feel the D38's also made improvements in the total presentation of sound, or did the improvement mostly come in the lower register when compared to smaller ProAc speakers???

Thanks Amfibius and Zeeshanb for your thoughts. It is really strange... you talk to fans of ProAc and they have negative things to say about Wilson. I however tend to agree with Elberoth2 that the Sophia II is a very different Wilson sound. I wish I could compare D38 and Sophia II directly but it seems that that will be very complicated to arrange. Just not sure what to do???

Hello All,

Thanks agian for all the advice. This was a great thread. I just auditioned the Wilson Sophia II against my ProAc D15 to evaluate for tonal differences etc... I've decided to go with the Wilson Sophia II. I plan on taking delivery in the next few days. My final assessment is simple and mentioned above. ProAc and Wilson are both great. ProAc is more musical at the expense of being slightly colored. Wilson is more accurate. Above all else listen for yourself and go with what you like. Also, realize that a more accurate sound does not always translate to a better sound.

Mred, you might consider contacting Mcrheist who made an entry on this thread as he has directly compared D38 to Wilson Sophia II and much preferred Wilson.

Inhisservice, I've heard good things about Von Schweikert but I don't have a dealer close by.

Elberoth2, thanks for the opinion. I've listened to the Wilson's and thought they were great. I'm still waiting to audition the D38's. I'm less inclined to evaluate the Avalon as I am looking for more of a true full range sound and have heard the Avalon Ascendant is a little less dynamic on the low end??? I'd like to listen to the Avalon Indra but at $20K it is out of the price range.

Elberoth2, I am envious of your system. It looks fantastic. Thanks again for the input on the Wilsons. I agree with you completely. I remember the old Wilson sound and never cared for it but the Sophia II's are different...very well balanced, dynamic, and not bright or fatiguing. I really do love the ProAc sound being a current D15 owner. Without being too analytical they just sound good. I'll keep the forum updated when I get a chance to listen to the D38's!

Thanks for everyone's help. I think I've decided to go with ProAc D38. I like the Wilson Sophia II and agree with Elberoth2 on many of his points. I currently own D15 and can only assume that moving up the ProAc line gaurantee's improvement for me. Switching to Wilson is still a risk and at $5K more I want a sure thing!

Mcrheist,

Thanks for your advice. I have not made a purchase yet. The more people I talk to tend to think the Wilson's have a slight edge over the ProAc D38's. I'm not sure and probably will never be sure. I e-mailed a professional reviewer who has listened to both speakers at length and published articles about them as well. Ultimately he said three things that I take to heart. 1. The ProAcs have a musicality about them that is amazing for how they are priced within the market. 2. The Wilsons are more accurate and more true to the reproduction of what is being put through them. 3. You can't go wrong with either speaker as they are both incredible and both highly recommended by many audiophiles around the world.

Taking all of this into account and the fact that the Wilson Sophia II are $5K more than the ProAc D38 I just have a hard time deciding if that difference in cost justifies making the change???

Mred,

I absolutely love the Wilson Sophia II's. I am very happy with my decision. Absolutely no regrets. I would say the only drawback is that my bad recordings sound worse but my good recordings sound astonishing. To me the Wilson's are what speakers should be. They allow the sound to come through without altering the tonal characteristics. The Proacs tend to push musicality (which I admit can be very enjoyable). For instance take Diana Krall, Patricia Barber, Norah Jones, or Cowboy Junkies for example. On the Proacs the female voices are right there in all their glory. With Wilsons depending on the track/album they are at times set back. If you keep listening what you first heard as a slightly muted female vocal actually places the voices more accurately in space. If you concentrate you can actually picture the band/vocalist and hear how far away they are from the various instruments etc. In addition, you can pick out each instrument in the background so concisely. Everything is just more real. These are obviously very analytical attributes but to me it makes listening more fun.

I really enjoyed my time with Proac and realize that the D38's would be in another league than the D15's but I really admire the honesty that the Wilson's provide. Spacial orientation, dynamics, an out of the box flavor to music. When I close my eyes and listen to them the imaging is extraordinary and that sense of being at the performance is magical. Especially with any instrumental recordings. I've never been so excited to listen to CD after CD.

Also, my speakers are set-up for home theater as well. Wow! The impact of movies now are just incredible. Again, I did not compare side by side to D38 but suspect that that the overall design and dynamic capabilities of the Wilson would have greater impact for movies.

I understand hesitancy to leave that classic Proac sound but at least for me what an eye opener type of experience this has been. Obviously these are all just opinions as what sounds good to one person may not be the preference to another. Just like some like their coffee black and others with cream and sugar.

So far the Wilson's are wearing just great with me. I don't think I'll be replacing them anytime soon.

Hope that helps.
Thanks!!