Revel Salon 2’s (used) or new Magico A-3 (new) ??

Look into IsoAcoustics. I have them on my PL500s. They make a difference, are really well made, and not too expensive. There's a IsoAcoustics thread on Audiogon.

Telescope,
I can understand your concerns regarding amplifier power for the newly bought Revels (congratulations by the way). Your particular Mastersound is an el 34 parallel SET no NFB circuit and has excellent quality output transformers. No doubt it sounds fabulous as you’ve described (within its power limits). It may not not ultimately be your final amplifier choice but it is an exceptionally good designed and implemented low power integrated amplifier. The Salons are revealing the superb sound quality of the pure class A Due Venti🙄. A case of watt quality rather than watt quantity. I’ve enjoyed reading your thread.
Charles

New finishes for Personas will be available May 10...for those waiting

Oglala Oglala,

Thanks! Which exact model # did you get?

I’ve heard Salon 2s and Some Magicos. Further up the Magico line. Not sure which one and prefered the Salons. Both were really good. I would think the line Revel still sells would beat the bottom of the line Magicos. Just bring a heavy duty amp! 
The Personas I heard we’re really good! 

I left the spikes at the place I bought them and haven't been in a rush to pick them up because i'm having so much fun moving them around! I never had a speaker pair that made such an impact with movement. my Salon1's sounded so good with hegel that I got the best I could afford the H360 and happily since i'm running out of money (for hifi) the salon2's also sound great with it. Bright compared to the Mark Levinson 536 but still musical and uncolored. my only acc''s are kimber 4tc and a supra power cord, i have some nordost rca cable for my cd player but all i do is stream tidal anymore or use the built in dac with a coax out from my player.

Oglala Oglala,

Thanks! Which exact model # did you get?

Hi, in that case you are asking me I own JBL 4367s. Cousins of the Revels, despite their obvious design differences they sound a lot like the ultimas. I heard today for the first time at the Lone Star Audio Fest the Magico A3. The setup was seemingly fine (the bass was not a problem), but I did not appreciate them above the many other box speaker in the $10k price point. Granted this was an initial impression at a show. 

... I did not appreciate them above the many other box speaker in the $10k price point"

Some do, even against more expensive models:
https://www.soundstageglobal.com/index.php/product-debuts/magico-a3-december-2017/739-magico-a3-loud...

Sounded much better then the competition at AXPONA  

Spikes are essential with the Salons. When I set mine up, I didn’t have the time to spike them. One week later, when I added the spikes, I couldn’t believe the difference - particularly to the articulation of low frequencies. The spikes now sit on those circular indented things - I don’t hear a significant difference between the indented things and the spikes running through a carpet to the wood floor below. 

I had the studio 2 I think it’s a great sound but the revel really need a lot of power. Current depends on what you are powering them with. 

I’m using the Ayre VX-5 Twenty. Plenty of power at 175W into 8ohms and 350W into 4ohms. I’ve never opened up the volume to it max but at the sometimes ear splitting volumes that I have tried, the Ayre stays completely in control of the Revels.

The OP sold his Revel Salon 2's.

ricred1, do you mean someone sold their revel 2's in favor of the magico A3s?

I'm also wondering this same thing... since both can be had for a similar price (used revel 2 vs new magico a3) I'm curious to hear from those who have some direct experience with how both sound. wouldn't that be the ultimate a/b comparison... sigh... probably will be a while before those two speakers can be compared in the same room/system together.

The OP purchased Salon 2s and no longer has them. No, he didn't get Magico A3s. 

Ah, ok. thanks. Do you know what he replaced them with?

Yes. I don't think it's my place to discuss it, because I don't know all of the details. I just posted that he didn't have them anymore so members wouldn't feel the need to provide the OP recommendations for something he no longer has.

audiotroy
PM sent.  Happy Listening!

I owned the studio 2 get the salon 2 they are a great speaker!

@telescope_trade - Did you end up running the Revels with the Mastersound DueVenti for awhile longer? I'm curious what your longer term impressions were. 

Any more thoughts on this comparison ?

If you didn't buy the Magico A3s you made a big mistake.Magico sold over 750 pairs which makes it one of the best selling Magicos ever.Good luck with Revels though!!

@ebm that was probably before the price jump right 

How is it vs the salon 2 though

telescope_trade:
Hello, it is  2 1/2 years since your last post here!
Do you still have the Salon 2's? I have had my pair now for about two year.s  I love them!  But I have changed electronics a lot since I have had them.  I also started with PSAudio, first the Stellar series with mono amps, then returned and upgraded to BHK Sig Preamp and BHK Sig 250 stereo amp.  I also had the PS Audio Directstream DAC.  It is now all sold and gone.  With each upgrade, the Salon's became sweeter in all ways.  They love powerful REVEALING electronics.  I have two sets of electronics that I Iove. The first is Mola Mola Makua with built in Tambaqui DAC and Kaluga mono amps.  Class D can be amazing.  It was like new speakers.  I heard things I had never heard before.  Bass more dynamic, bigger soundstage, clearer.  Like a veil lifted, to use an often quoted term.
But I also have an Audionet PreG2 and am patiently waiting on my Audionet Max amps, to be used with an outboard Tambaqui DAC.
You might glean that I have two systems; one with the Salon 2's and another with venerable B&W 802N's.
So I am now lastly looking to upgrade the Nautilus 802's and again contemplating the Salon 2's.  Like you, I find them a deal at around 11k.
My other option is to wait and go for a pair of YG's or Magico's that will cost over twice as much used.
My journey also included an Auralic Vega G2 DAC that was better than the PSA, but not in the league with the Mola Mola DAC, and a Classe CA 2300 amp that was again better than the PSA but not as good as the Kaluga's.

All of these thoughts are 'In MY Humble Opinion'.

Interested in where your journey took you, your lasting impressions of the Salon 2's, and what electronics you ended up with.

Can anyone compare the Salon 2's to the smaller but newer PerformaBE speakers?  Are the new Be tweeters different or better?  Is there going to be a new flagship to replace the Salon 2's???

Finally, sick of the criticisms of a dealer chiming in.  Of course he is a dealer, and we are all capable of understanding this.  And about him recommending 'his' products?  How is this different from every Joe and Harry (and myself) advocating what we have?  Dealer replies, to me, are a way of stepping into a shop without traveling.  Isn't that what we want to learn here. other peoples OPINIONS?

Thanks and have a great day!  Ken.

Oh I see it states you sold the Salon 2's.....thoughts please?

fastfreight,

I'm friends with  telescope_trade, he lives less than 20 minutes away from me. He has Audio Solutions Figaro XL speakers. He doesn't get on Audiogon much anymore. 

I had the studio 2’s. The ability to adjust treble and bass was great 

Make no mistake, the Revel Salon 2s are still, after all these years, Stereophile Class A+ Recommended speakers for a reason, they're just that good!!!  These speakers are still an absolute bargain at their retail price, let alone what you could get them for pre-owned.  Recently, I attended one of the very large High End Audio shows, and what they were asking for most of the newfangled speakers was just mind-boggling.  I heard so many megabuck speakers that I though were extremely overpriced.  At the show, for the $$$$, I didn't hear one pair of speakers that could pry me away from my Salon 2 speakers.  The Salon 2s check all the audiophile boxes and is definitely an end-game speakers.  Phenomenal Speakers, from top to bottom!!!                   

Everytime I see audiotroy in a thread he spreads his arrogance everywhere and also tries to sell something. I suppose you may get some advice in there... somewhere but arrogance always turns me off personally. To the OP good luck I like the Revels.

I placed Isoacoustics Gaia feet under my Salon 2's with noticeable improvement.

My wood floors thanked me as well!  I did need to order different threaded lugs

to fit the Salon 2's.  

+1 @kennymacc The Salon 2's are a great value.  Used for around 12k they are amazing.  For a small room the Studio 2's offer much of the same sound....

Due to being down-ported, even in my less than perfect, smallish room, the Revel Salon 2 speakers beautifully disappear. For my room size, I drive the speakers with the very powerful and very high current Hegel H390 integrated amp with astonishing results!!!  The Salon 2 speakers have been around for quite some time now, so they tend to get overlooked in todays market in favor of the newer models that now cost a King's Ransom.  And for that reason, I believe that audiophiles assume that the Salons are no longer competitive in SQ with the current breed speakers, which would be a huge mistake.  The Salon 2s were highly advanced when they were introduced years ago, and (IMHO), a lot of the other manufacturers are just now catching up, but do not  necessarily sound better than the Salons.  These are phenomenal, world class speakers!!!          

yes they do like power and speed!  I drive mine with Audionet Max amps.  In my family room with cathedral ceiling, the soundstage is wide and tall, and they fill the open area which is 35' deep.

I recently upgraded from an Hegel H390 to an Hegel H590 integrated to drive my Revel Salon 2 speakers. Although the H390s sound quality, overall, was fantastic, in the end, the H390 didn’t have quite enough juice to control the Salon’s bass drivers to their full potential. But, the H590 took things to an entirely different level. The H590 is an absolute powerhouse, and drives the Salons just beautifully!!!  With the H590, I’m getting superb, deep, tight, tuneful, controlled, bass performance, at all volume levels. And, the sound quality of the H590 is superb, as well.  Before purchasing the H590, I was worried that I would have to go back to separates in order to get the kind of power I'm getting from the H590.  But, the Hegel H590 turned out to be about as close to separates as I could find on the market that was powerful enough to drive the Salons. They claim that the Hegel H590 was a superb, world class integrated amp, and it most definitely made a believer out of me.  I'm thrilled!!! 

The Salon 2s are superior!!!  The Salon 2s are still one of the very best loudspeakers in the world today and can easily be compared to Magico's or anyone else's top-of-the-line models.  I've heard  almost all of Magico's line of speakers and they are incredible sounding, but so are the Salon 2s.  There's a multitude of wonderful sounding speakers out there to choose from, from a multitude of different speaker brands.  The Salon 2s are a bargain at their retail price.  You most assuredly can't go wrong with the Salon 2s.  The Salon 2s are, from top-to-bottom, a mind bogglingly incredible, World Class speaker.  No wonder the Salon2s have been on Stereophile's Class-A Recommended list every since the day they were introduced many years ago now.  In the past 25 years, the magnificent Revel Salon 2s were the speakers that finally took me off the speaker---Merry-Go-Round!!!        

For a family room that opens to say an eat-in or a  kitchen, I do not think the Salon 2's can be beat for the money.  I amplified with first Classe CA-2300, then Mola Mola Kalugas. Finally Audionet Max's won the crown. Talk about smooth and room filling!  I still use the Mola Mola Makua preamp with internal Tambaqui DAC.

The Salom 2's do like power, and mine benefit from Gaia footers on my wood floor.