Seeking advice on Speakers that create an intimate 2 channel listening experience
Has anyone compared Magnepan to Martin Logan? Both electrostatic dipole panels but ML took the hybrid approach and uses a traditional box subwoofer for the bass. On Magnepans website they take an indirect shot at ML basically saying they could have chosen that path but didn't think it was optimum. Result - Magnepan is a much bigger obtrusive speaker. But is it sonically a notoceable difference 🤔 |
Another idea, if you push your budget and/or get a good price the Borresen 01 have gotten grat reviews and I've read about many people saying the bass is much better than you would think from the size. I have heard a larger Borresen and they were great. http://www.enjoythemusic.com/superioraudio/equipment/0720/Borresen_Acoustics_01_Monitor_Review.htm |
+1 to Maggie's. With your budget and room you can go pretty high up the product list as well as match amps to them. Do people actually think Maggies are aesthetically challenged? Haven't heard that in 45 yrs in the hobby. At worst, even as if as they are, they disappear in a room - in black. I will say the creme colored panels with walnut looks like a '70s European kitchen. 🤮 |
I personally believe that what you seek would be satisfied by Dynaudio speakers. The new Contour 60i (arriving to the US in August, replacing the highly reviewed Contour 60) may be your ticket. Retail price is $10, 750. If you can find a dealer who still has the Contour 60 in stock then I recommend giving them a listen. About the smoothest sound from mid range to the top end. And with a ton of very good bass. Construction is excellent, from internal to external. Finish is as good as it gets. The gray oak lacquer is stunning and a must see, in person. I have a pair of the 60i on order. Read the review on the Contour 60 by Soundstage Ultra. That review sums it up very well. Best of luck to you. Enjoy the music. |
That is a large space to fill. You will need large speakers and good power. call Jim Salk at Salk Audio. He sells direct and is able to use much higher quality speakers, crossovers and cabinets. Tell him Larry Edwards from Denver sent you. You will love this guy. His $6,000 Song3 Encores sounded better than $60,000 speakers at the RMAF show in Denver. |
I’m not calling anyone out nor trying to begin a flame war but do people really find Maggies, Soundlabs, Matin Logans, Pure Audio Projects and other visually “challenged” speakers aesthetically attractive? They also must come well into a room to sound right. Listen, I think they look cool but I don’t think they look attractive. A Devore O96, now thats a beautiful speaker in both a modern or a traditional interior. A Wilson Sabrina, most find the form attractive in a more contemporary interior. There are plenty of speaker choices that are beautiful to both the eye and the ear on offer without looking like a traffic barrier. |
As the OP can see, answers will vary. I submit my reviews of speakers at Dagogo.com, as a plethora of speakers can sound intimate, warm, precise. Panel, dynamic, dynamic hybrid, horn hybrid, full range, quasi-line source. Yup, all of 'em. Select your genre of speaker well, for it will dictate the goal of satisfaction. But, don't be fooled by thinking any genre can "do it all". Enthusiasm aside, every genre of speaker has compromises, significant compromises. You choose one genre, and you have deselected other, immensely gratifying set of attributes attainable only with other genres of speakers. It's the nature of the activity. Finally, be prepared to spend time and money, perhaps even changing components and cables, to achieve higher satisfaction (if desired) when introducing new speakers. I do not recall a single instance in 25 years of system building where introducing new speakers resulted in optimized sound using the initial system components/cables. |
Make an appointment to go to In Living Stereo. Some of the recommendations you’ve received, man, I just don’t know what to make of some of these, well anyway. Everyone hears differently and the word intimate conjures different things to different people. Some of the speakers recommended are ugly as heck but many speakers might have been purchased immediately following a divorce LOL. My version of intimate is likely different than yours but my first thought is tube amplification and reasonably sensitive speakers. Intimate could mean a nice integrated with an in board phono stage. You might enjoy a Luxman SS integrated with a pair of Wilson Audio Sabrinas. You might also enjoy an Audio Note integrated with a pair of Audio Note e’s. At your budget you could get a Meishu Tonmeister and a mid range version of the e’s. You might also enjoy a Leben cs600x with a Leben phono stage and some Devore Orangutans. Shindo and devores are also an exceptional combo. Take a system approach and purchase your amp and speakers when demonstrated together to ensure you get the “intimate” that you are after. |
Personally I own Vandersteen 5As. I would look for a nice used pair in the =$6K range and sink money into other components that you feel you need. They have a small footprint for a full range speaker. I have not compared them to the newer Vandersteens with the newer drivers. But saving a few bucks the sound would have to be about $10K better. Next if you want a 3D image then go with open baffle speakers like Alon/Nola, Spacial Audio, etc. You tube them and go through the list on of other videos on the side of the screen. If you have a large enough room then you tube field coil speakers. IMO they are the ultimate sound, space, imaging, depth, etc. The mid-range to my ears is the best you can achieve. I built myself a pair but they are no full range yet. Happy Listening. |
Wow what a deluge of recommendations overnight! So overwhelmed. I’d love to hear all of them in my house in a blind listening session but thats obviously impossible! I will include panels - a dealer I’ve purchased from in the past wants me to buy Martin Logan Expression 13a heavily discounted right now would be his choice. Magnepans are better ? But they look a lot bigger? Other brands that peaked my interest are Magico, Vandersteen, Sound Labs, Nola and Bache Tribecas! Interesting so far Harbeth has been recommended the most. Last point, whomever told me about SkyFi Shop which is like 15 minutes from me. Thank you- that may be my best bet as they can bring over several different rebuilt speakers (some of the same brands above come in and out of their shop) at a huge discount to my living room. Its an idea anyway. They have Nola Baby Grand Referemce for 25k, retail was $60k, just an example. |
Logans ask quite a lot of the amp, Quads might be easier to match, particularly the original model as long as you don’t need loud. On another tack the Eclipse TD712zMK2 single driver speaker has its own unique style, another that has limited loudness but very communicative and images very well. Don’t be put of by the specs, if the visual aesthetic appeals they’re worth a listen. |
As soon as you said "intimate" I thought "Harbeth" -- it may be the one thing they do best. And there are stands and then there are stands. Some you’ll like more than others. FYI, I have dozens of floorstanders and none sound as good as my Harbeths, esp at moderate levels and moderate listening distances. https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5177/5563504720_89d1e609da_z.jpg https://audio-database.com/HARBETH/speaker/hlcompact7es-3.JPG https://resonantwoods.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/harbeth-rosewood-stand-200x300.jpg |
Dear aj523, I am in the same situation but in Dubai. I have been listening to music via Audirvana, lossless FLAC files, Ideon DAC, Ideon 3R and JBL P708 (active) studio monitors. The level of musicality, dynamics and accuracy is outstanding on a very low budget (approximately $4.5K) comparatively speaking. I own various speakers, several from German Physiks, Harbeth 40.2 and vintage KEF and B&W, but none of them are here. Thus, yesterday, I took my Mac and the Ideon units and went to YAMAHA. Yes, YAMAHA! I spend 4 hours listening to NS 5000. I was floored. Outstanding speaker with excellent sound reproduction capability, imaging, dynamics and natural sounding. The price I was given was the equivalent of $11K. Excellent finish, and includes its own stands. IMHO, it is very close to 40.2 Anniversary, with better dynamics and looks. Build quality was world class. I respectfully, urge you to listen to it. Must be one of the best speakers in the market today for a relatively reasonable price. It checks all your requirements, except being floor standing. It has its own matching stands. Also, if you can put your hands on an Ideon Ayazi DAC, is worth listening. Great sound is not an exclusive privilege of stratospherically priced units. I have no affiliation, professional or personal, with any of the brands mentioned herein or any other in the audio industry. https://europe.yamaha.com/en/products/audio_visual/speaker_systems/ns-5000/index.html https://ideonaudio.com/product/ayazi-dac/ https://ideonaudio.com/product/3r-usb-renaissance-mk2/ |
Save your money. Get a pair of Audio Nirvana full range drivers and either build your box or pay someone local to do it for you. I have the 15in alinco classics and the 8in neodymiums classics. I prefer the 8s for speed and transients, and the 15s for tone and richness, being super picky though, as both are amazing. About $700 for the 8in pair and about $1200 for the 15s if I’m not mistaken. They are super efficent and I use a 8 watt Set amplifier(300b) to power them. Best imaging and the "fastest" drivers I’ve ever heard.... by a large margin. Sounds exactly what your looking for. Very susceptible to having a good back end though as they are the most transparent drivers I’ve ever heard. Shows all weaknesses in a system. May get some backlash for this due to their price... o well... Commonsenseaudio.com |
Take a trip to Brooklyn and check out Bache Audio. I have the latest version of the Tribeca’s with the Eton woofers. They are built around a wide band driver, sans the whizzer cone, and augmented with a horn super tweeter and two eight inch woofers. The crossover is a simple cap on the super tweeter and a coil for the woofers. I have an Emotive Audio tube set up and mostly play vinyl with my Gyrodec/SME 309/Lyra Kleos set up. Since you mentioned imaging, I do have a pair of Audio Physic Tempo Plus speakers as well as the Tribeca’s. The Tempos have a warm tone and image like crazy. That said, the Bache’s have more of a holographic sound that is more pleasing. I find that the pinpoint imaging of the Tempos seems to make instruments sound a bit flat and small. With the Bache’s, you get the same sense of placement in a soundstage, the difference is that its more open and bigger sounding. If you check out Bache and want to listen further, I’m in your area and can play both speakers for you so you understand what I’m talking about. |
Your inquiry describes perfectly my NOLA KOs. Love them in my smaller room. I use Wilson Audio in the bigger room, which I can’t say enough good things about. But your description seems closer to the NOLAs. For the money you mention, you can get a pretty nice pair, especially if you consider the used pairs they have at SkyFi (your area), and NOLA’s founder/owner is not far from you. (And when you go amp hunting, you may hear me advocating hard for Audio Research, again based on your description). And if you’re in MD and want to hear them, give a holler. No affiliation. |
If you are interested in being immersed and enveloped in the soundscape on the recording, if you want a warm tonal balance combined with superb inner detail, plus an utterly relaxing and fatigue-free presentation that you can listen to all day long and never tire of, then let me suggest SoundLab fullrange electrostatics. They have models in your price range. And there is a dealer in New York, one in Pennsylvania, and one in Connecticut. Two of the three were customers of mine before they became SoundLab dealers. I have been a SoundLab dealer for over twenty years and what you are describing is what they do well, in my opinion. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about them. I have zero interest in making or participating in a sale as I do not "poach" in other dealers’ territories, but there are few speaker designs that I totally believe in, and the SoundLabs are at the top of my list. I am a speaker manufacturer too, and I aspire to make the second-best loudspeakers. I think mine can do what you want, but SoundLabs can do it better. Duke AudioKinesis |
If you are after "floorstanders" you will have a difficult time finding anything better than the Legacy Audio Aeris, or the Focus SE / XD. Either would do well in the large room you have (by volume). But... if you want something that sounds very much like your ESL57’s, the Harbeths (30.1, 30.2, 40.1, 40.2) have a very similar sound with a bit more dynamics and bass - but, with that very life-like, rich sound, when driven by well matched electronics. If you want, accuracy, dynamics, transparency, and detail resolution - you will find it very difficult to better the ATC SCM100’s and above. |
You sir are the most deserving of a set of Magneplanars. That which you seek, but cannot quite put to words, exists in but a few loudspeaker technologies - large dipole panels to be specific. A conventional loudspeaker looks more than a little Rube Goldberg-ish by comparison. There is simply no way a 5" or 6" or 8" cone can compete with the transients and control of a well designed panel. Not to mention the scale and depth of the image they throw. Are they a bitch to locate in a room? Yes, they take up their space. Resign yourself to that. But you will never forget that first time they click. There some things a box just can't do, regardless of cost. It is bound of their technology and acoustics that panels dance right past. This, from someone whose last speakers purchased were a pair of KEF LS50s that I love. |
Goldenear Triton Reference. $10k, built in power subs black piano finish. Spot on imagine wide soundstage. Followed manufacturer’s set up instruction. Had them dialed in in less than an hour....Driving mine with a Carver Crimson 275 and a Prima Luna Dialogue preamp. Best I’ve heard, but I’m country come to city. |
I'll throw a bit of a curve ball and suggest something other than a full-range, floor-standing speaker. For me, the Harbeth C7-es3 at medium distance (about 6-7 feet) provide the most intimate and beautiful listening I've ever experienced from audio speakers. And that includes my Tekton Double Impacts, which are excellent full-range, floor-standing speakers. The C7s are only rated down to 35hz, but sitting just six or seven feet away, I don't feel the absence of a subwoofer. Of course, so much depends on other components and the quality of one's hearing (I'm over 60). But if intimacy and beauty are your goals, you don't necessarily have to go the full-range, floor-standing route. |
Raidho has wonderful speakers that start at $5900 and yes, do go up to $240,000 but the two models I suggested could be purchased in your price range new or used. Like I said, PM me to discuss pricing in more detail. They are really worth your time and the soundstage and imaging are...addictive. They are super flexible in terms of what amps work with them. Avantgarde cannot be sold on-line. Info can be found here but both products are comfortably in your price range. https://www.avantgarde-acoustic.de/en/products/zero-serie/zero-ta-xd.html |
@twoleftears Thank you. I will ask the dealer (SBS) about the Spendor Classic line. @joey54 Thx - you are 3rd person to mention that audio shop. They are only 40 minutes from me so I will email them about the Vandersteens. @geoffkait Hi thanks for the reply but where did I mention wide soundstage and lots of air. I dont even know what lots of air means. Ive never heard a wide soundstage in a lounge, have you?? Oh and do you have any recommendations? @fsonicsmith What points to sterile and analytical? Was it imaging x3? Where speakers disappear -- is that analytical? I said I wasnt looking for fatiguing treble energy -- you've confused me because I've been told the exact opposite by most others that fatiguing treble energy is analytical and sterile. And when you ask if I'm sincere, do you really mean I just don't know what I'm talking about or I'm not telling the truth? Anyway, that being said, any recommendations? @steakster Thank you! I started to do searches but its a bit overwhelming for me and opinions and recommendations change all the time. But yes my current speakers image really well - blows me away; just looking for that and more. Do you have any recommendations for imaging, tone and coherency? @verdantaudio Thx. I thought Raidho caters to the uber wealthy with $250,000 speakers? I'll check out Avantgarde. @marqmike Thx. I will check them out but my fiancee hates stands in her living room but she is amicable to large piano black towers, lol @noromance Thx again! Hows the 200 line? Taking notes.... |
I have an appt in two weeks to listen to the Spendor D9.2 at Sound by Singer in Manhattan. They are still closed for demos.As twoleftears mentioned, the D series Spendors are not the same as the SP100 line. The D7 is prety bright and unforgiving. I've not heard the D9 but exercise caution on these. |
