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The only thing I would say about Raidho is you need to give them space to breathe and that tweeter is very delicate. It won’t make your kids sick but it can be ruined easily by them and Raidho does not offer grills. That being said, most amazing soundstage I have ever heard when they are set up perfectly. $18K for D3 v2 is a fine price. You may want to reach out to Raidho and see if an upgrade is available and how much it would be. otherwise, Blades! Vivid Giyas! Joseph Audio Perspectives! This is choice! |
MBL 120 might work great for you. They have a fantastic soundstage. DeVore Orangutang and Vivid has been mentioned already and I agree that they are great. Borresen 01 might work if you can accept standmounts. Two names I haven't seen that I think are worth checking out are Aequo Stilla and Boenicke W11. Might be harder to find. https://www.aequoaudio.com/ |
You definitely have to audition the ProAc K6. I have had mine for 4 years (bird's eye grey, high gloss and no bullet holes) and they are absolutely superb. I have the same size room as you. I'm a member of a local audio club and just about every speaker imaginable is represented in our group including top end Focal, B&W, Vivids, Maggies, JBL, Dynaudio and DALI's. Our members keep coming back to the K6's for best sound. They are indifferent as to SS or tubes. I have the Octave MRE 220's and the Jubilee Preamp. They love all types of music. I noticed that ProAc released an special edition K6. Enjoy the hunt! |
Was searching myself in this price range and just placed an order for the Audiovector SR 6 ($25k). My room is much larger than yours and the Audiovector R 3 ($10k) may be sufficient. Definitely not for every taste and system but they are very fast, transparent and engaging. Can check out my comments here and I’ll update when I receive the speakers (probably several weeks away). https://taww.co/post/190767431622/quick-take-audiovector-r3-sr6-arrete Cheers, TAWW |
I will soon be selling my Vivid Giya 2s. Feel free to PM me. They are epic.I am moving up the Vivid chain. I can get them to you well within that price range and at that price, they are very hard to beat... From: "SoundStage! Hi-Fi | SoundStageHiFi.com - Vivid Audio Giya G2 Loudspeakers / www.soundstagehifi.com"; ❝The Giya G2 is not only the best loudspeaker I’ve ever reviewed, it’s the best loudspeaker I’ve ever heard. It may be the best loudspeaker in the world.❞ https://hivelighter.com/published/85a49ce0-dec7-4542-9437-5bb0f522ff5e/index.html |
I would look at Kaiser, Wilson Benesch, and Raidho. The best of their speakers under $30K are stand mounts but all are amazing products. You could also look at Vivid. The Chiara is the best sounding stand-mount I have ever heard. I love the Raidho tweeter (used to own the X-1s) and Wilson Benesch and Vivid have technically advanced cabinets and unique drivers. |
Guys thanks so much for all the thought provoking suggestions. Some more details about My listening or that I listen to a variety of genres of music including jazz come, classical, ambient, techno and folk/Celtic/medieval music. Right now my system consists of a audio HD he9 preamp, denafrips terminator dac, dual bryston 4bsst2 amps. The most intriguing speakers to me right now Are the YG, Joseph perspective, vandersteen, legacy, And the Yamaha and nS 5000. I am located in Ontario Canada so most of these speakers are not available for audition. I am also open to some of the panel speakers you guys are recommending and will look into them. |
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My room is 12x16x8 ft. Looking for floor standers.))) With a multiple of 2 and close to a square room, I would suggest going asymmetrical. Then you can easily deal with the uneven bass response the room dealt you with the Analog Room compensation adjustments of the Vandersteen Kento or Quatro as the solid performance solution. Best, JohnnyR |
Hope this is a fun process for you. I second the idea to narrow your options based on what your room is used for--and kid-friendliness. Another consideration is the kind of look you want--in other words, do they dominate the space or do they also fit in with what else is around. And, simply, do you like the way they look? If I were buying a speaker for your size of room, at your budget and assuming it's also used for other things, I'd buy the Harbeth 40.2s. But that's just me--there are many good choices depending on what you like and the needs of your family. |
That's a huge price range. That's like saying I am looking for a car between and Chevrolet and a Mercedes. Which one would be best. If you choose soft dome tweeter, they could destroy much easier than beryllium. Ribbon would also be as fragile. How old are your children? Perhaps build a chicken wire fence around them or wait until they get older. |
Go to your dealer and get a pair of Maggies. Take them home and listen to them (your dealer will set them up for you.) If your gear is not top notch, you will probably not like what you hear on the Maggies. This is the sound of the GEAR, not the speakers. If you don’t care for them, it really does not matter what speaker you buy. It will be a box or electrostat and distort and cause listening fatigue. You may also find that most all "better" speakers today are about 6' high. Wonder where they got that idea??? Remember that your room is the most important part of your system, so work with your dealer to make sure it is at optimum listening quality. Most of all, enjoy the MUSIC. That is what this is all about. Cheers! |
A lot of good suggestions. Not knowing your musical and listening preferences or your associated equipment, I'd suggest Vandersteens as a general suggestion (Quattros or perhaps even a used Model 5A), and one no one has mentioned are Nola speakers--their Metro Gold References should work well in your room, especially good with tube amplification. But they have ribbon tweeters, not sure if you want the kids poking their fingers around those. |
It is not clear whether you are doing a wide-ranging search from scratch, or whether you have narrowed your interest to a certain type of speaker or type of sound. Are there other none sonic requirements, such as those dictated by limited options on placement of the speaker, no top heavy models that might be a danger to children, size of speaker, etc. Also, success with certain speakers require particular types of amplifiers, so it would help to know what you have and whether or not changing amps is a possibility. The following list offers a wide array of speaker types and sound, but, I like them even though few of them actually fit my ideal: Panel speakers: Magneplanars--any model in your price range and tolerance for size will deliver room-filling, realistically scaled soundscape. Sanders Sound (electrostatic/dynamic hybrids that deliver a lot of dynamic punch. Soundlab-great electrostatic speakers, but they are huge in size. Conventional Dynamic speakers Any Audio Note model in your price range. If it is desirable to have the speakers in the corners, Audio Note speakers are designed for that placement. They are in the very warm and musical sounding camp, not the lean and "detailed" sounding camp, but, unlike some other warm speakers, they don't sound sluggish. DeVore Orangutans -- in the warm and mellow camp. YG Acoustic Carmel-- very much NOT in the warm and mellow camp, but, with the right electronics, they deliver the goods--very good with instrumental timbre. Vandersteen Quattro -- kind of a Goldilocks speaker -- not too lean and analytical, not too warm. SoundKaos 42 -- a two-way speaker that utilizes a full/extended range driver with a ribbon tweeter on top. A very musical sounding system. Unconventional Speakers: Charney Audio -- Shockingly good for the money single driver speakers. This is the only implementation of a single driver that I thought did not have problem areas that made them ultimately unacceptable even though the dynamics and liveliness of this type of speaker is incredibly appealing. They don't deliver really deep bass, but, everything else is done quite well. The sound depends on the choice of driver--I personally like the AER driver. Custom Design: Deja Vu Audio -- Deja Vu Audio is a Washington DC area audio dealer that also makes its own electronics (all tube) and speakers. $30 k is at the bottom of the custom-built range, but even the bottom is really quite good. Most speakers are made utilizing vintage drivers, typically a large dynamic woofer, a compression/horn midrange, and dome tweeters. |
Most 30K speakers are huge by comparison (think room dividers) and are very heavy. Shipping costs are many hundreds of dollars, and likely will require help to unbox and set them up Also it sounds like this is a shared room. Many uber high end speakers need to be well out from the front wall (~ 6ft+), so just keep those things in mind when deciding what to buy hth |
smod! There is no dynamic loudspeaker as tough and durable as the Sound Labs. Literally you can not blow them up and they can go VERY loud. They are also harder to hurt physically than dynamics. Your 3 year old can kick them all he wants. He'll break his foot before he hurts the speaker. Quads were very fragile and gave ESLs a bad rep. There is no and I mean no dynamic loudspeaker that can come close to matching the Sound Labs for shear accuracy. Distortion is an order of magnitude lower and there is no cross over to screw up phase relationships. Room acoustics are much less of a problem because Sound Labs are dipoles so they do not radiate sound to the sides, up or down. There are much fewer loud early reflections. Don't believe me. Read the reviews. Ask Atmasphere and Audiokinesis. If you add subwoofers down the line you will easily hit 110 dB. They are right in your price range. Once you hear them you will never look back. You will die laughing at people who spend $250 K on Wilson's. |
Go to sanders sound website, and speak directly with the designer/owner you will pleasantly surprised at how honest, and knowledgeable Roger is. He has a 30:day in home trial, if your not satisfied (YOU WILL BE ASTONISHED) send the back. He is one of the premier designers/owners/inventors of the Sanders sound speakers and amps. the Sanders Magtech amp (stereo) or his brute force Monoblocs will satisfy your every need, there is not any speaker the Magtech will succumb to, a little pricey, but they are truly world class. invesigate his website and reviews. The amps will drive even the most demanding speaker. Read the MBL sanders review, even a Carver sunfire was partially owned by the MBL radiostrhaler monolith speakers. as soon as I get the scratch, I’m going full Sanders sound audio, they are that good! |
Peter Breuninger has been reviewing the world's best audio gear for many decades, and recently he reviewed a $15,000 speaker that he says is a "breakthrough" speaker and the best he's heard. You can see his review here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ma7dvPyr5T0 I contacted the Chicago dealer today, and he said they offer a 60 day money back guarantee. |
@smodtactical I see you are still on the hunt for speakers. Last year, we spoke of the Yamaha NS 5000 and your audition at Kennedy HiFi and also the Personas. I may still get the Persona 9H for another room but in the next few months I will be putting some cash down on the Yamaha. That speaker finally came to the USA and it was available at a local dealer for me to demo. Your comments on the NS 5000 helped me make the effort to do an inconvenient drive and have a listen. It was a crappy demo room but I could hear the potential in the speaker. I may do a home demo to confirm my feelings or maybe just get it without the home demo. Thanks for the correspondence on this. |
