Thanks to everyone who responded--you've given me food for thought. Subaruguru, I've given the Revel F30 some consideration. The Revel dealer near me in Chicago only has the M20 on display right now, so I haven't auditioned the F30. However, I'm moving into a small space and am concerned about positioning a large floorstander--not to mention that such a speaker tends to dominate visually in a small room.(The girlfriend unfortunately has some input here.)
I've got Linn 5140s right now, which I think are a good value for full-range speakers, but I need to downsize a bit. Also, I'd like speakers that are a little faster and more articulate, which leads me to mini-monitors. They just seem to have more detail and their sound tends to float, whereas as the sound of a large floorstander seems anchored to the floor. However, it's really hard for me to give up the bass. Very hard. I heard the B&W 805s with the admittedly small B&W 2500 sub, and I was a bit underwhelmed, although I was impressed with the impact of bass transients for such a small set-up. |
No, the Dynaudio has the best midrange and top end and I have combined it with the Velodyne HGS-15 and it is awesome. I chose this combination over the Contour 3.3 and the Confidence 3. ( And many other speakers ) The 1.3 Se is the best sounding Contour in the line up. The Revel is good too but I am partial to the Dynaudio's slightly more analytical sound. I could be happy with any of these speakers. But I have already stated my stand on the A/V choices. Dale |
Hmmm...why not get the Revel F30 and forget the sub? Clearly the best midrange of the group, and prodigious bass for the
money (<$3k discounted)... and they cohere pretty well in the nearfield, too. A lot of speaker for the dough. Good luck. |
I just have a question, how is sound of a pair 1.3SE plus a pair HGS-10 subwoofers compare to Dynaudio 3.3? or a good monitor plus a very musical sub compare with good floorstanding speakers? I thought a good sub can be adjust to fit different rooms, how do you think? |
Get this... My buddy has a pair of $25K Dynaudio Consequence speakers which were the TOP of the line Dynaudio before the Evidence came out, as his L/R for Music and Home theater. Needless to say, with the 1000 watt amps, he does not need a subwoofer.
I think he gets good enjoyment out of his music AND his home theater as well. I agree the experience would be different if he used Dynaudio 1.3SE's But... I doubt it would be any better! |
At the most I would agree that really good 2 channel speakers might be overkill for HT, but I would never say they won't work. I have the Contour 3.0's as my fronts in a dual-purpose system and it works great. I upgraded to these from the NHT 2.9's - I'd say my music enjoyment went WAY up while my HT enjoyment didn't go up near as much and it probably went up as much as it did from the improved quality of the center channel. Even so, great speakers aren't wasted in a HT as far as I'm concerned - surround sound for HT is way advanced over music surround sound at this point, and great speakers with a great source really add to my enjoyment. -Kirk |
Mcne,
Good reply! I guess that I would have to agree in this case that Video is NOT the priority. It is a frustrating experience to mesh a fine 2 channel setup together with a home theater system but it can be done.
Although I don't understand the argument that good 2 channel speakers don't work for video. |
In response to BWhite, it may have more to do with what I expect out of home theater and what I expect out of music.
I have my audio system on one side of the house and my video system on the other and they DON'T mix. I like my video to be much more meaty and boasty, clipping of chunks of explosions and filling the room with a surrounding experience that I would never want with my music system.
I know that many people want the same sound picture with their video but I don't use it for that. Music is the higher call. If I were to switch my 1.3 Se's into the video system I would not enjoy it. Nor would I enjoy my video system speakers in my music system. I spend too much time tuning my music system to waste it on video. I understand that there are some great "music" DVD's out there ( with pictures even ) but I just ain't there. "Different strokes for different folks". I just made that up myself.
I am a little opinionated. Dale |
Soundwatts, I was just guessing on why you would draw such negative conclusions on the 805N's. I was running a Levinson 331 with Audio Research LS22 pre. I used to own a CJ Premier 11a and PV12. The B&W's really tightened up and extended nicely when I went to the Levinson. |
Steel, The Matrix series b&w are better than the Nautalis series. The matrix was more natural with less roll off on top. The Revel would be the best pick in a speaker like that they are very fast crisp and clean. And the bass is impressive for a little speaker. They arent the most attractive speaker on this earth but they sound amazing. Good Luck |
comchenry the components upstream are an lp12 with benz glider cartridge a wadia 6 cd player and conrad johnson premier 8's with a cj pv11 preamp |
Comchenry, just out of curiousity, you felt the PtoAc 2.5's overwhelmed your 13x26x14 room? I would think that is a pretty large room and fine for the 2.5's. Just curious. |
Mcne! With all due respect, what the heck are you talking about?? Tell us why a good music speaker is bad for home theater. I can not wait to read your reply!
I know the three speakers in question intimately. They are all quite different sounding, and each has its own virtues. I think the baby Dyn's are the best of the three.
The 805 LOOKS the best but has basically NO bass, going from memory, it is rated to about 56Hz which coupled with the metal tweeter makes it a very clean sounding, fast, punchy speaker, with great focus and precise detail. The Revel M20 is a bit dry, crisp, yet seductive. The M20 looks lame and I don't like the tweeter adjustment at all. The Dynaudio has a little smearing going on in the lower frequency ranges which is to be expected since this little speaker produces impressive bass output -- rated at 37Hz.
Anyother two/way to consider would be the ProAc 1SC which my friend is a GREAT little speaker! You have to hear it to believe it. |
Dynaudio 1.3 SE's are definitely not for home theater. I would only consider them for a music-only system with good electronics. I choose them over the BMW 80whatevers and the Revel whatevers ( in my price range ). But for home theater I would have choosen either of the other mentions. |
Just to thump my chest I have speaker which for the right LISTENER betters the three.I just got a pair of Ehodin Model 17's.Horn loaded tweeters with highs,mids,imaging,soundstage
and evreything the others got except the Bass.You can run 'em on most tubes but they will take power if you throw it at 'em.I will probably keep 'em even if I go back to a large floor monitor as they can be stuck close to a rear wall and still sound good thus are a great second room second system speaker.Heard 'em by chance while in FLA and got a $2600 list pair here for $900.They are hard to find but worth a listen. |
Wow. Could not disagree more with Soundwatts input. I have not heard the Dyns but I owned 805Ns and compared them to the M20's. The 805's are wonderfully musical and involving. I sold a $4500 pair of Proac 2.5's to buy them because I loved the sound and the 2.5s bass overwhelmed my room a bit much. The bass on the 805s is substantial and tight. It does not fill a large room like the larger Proac's but for a medium sized room (mine is 13X26x14high) it projects a wide and deep stage. I will say that when I heard the M20s in a direct comparison with the 805N's I was very impressed. Extremely transparent and forward but very clean and pure sounding. The 805s almost sounded dull by comparison!
My amp is a Levinson 331 and preamp is Audio Research LS22 and a Naim cdp3.5 cd player with MIT Cable. Perhaps the difference in upstream components is what makes the difference between our very different opinions. |
heard the dynaudios and the 805's. the dynaudios sounded nice if a bit rolled off on top compared to the b&w's. however the b&w's sounded awfull no defined bass and forward and bright. I own a pair of b&w matrix and think they are superior in every way to the n805 and dynaudio 1.3se. more laid back than the 1.3 while having more top end extention better defined bass than the new 805. |
