Spendor S8e, Dynaudio Focus 220, VA Grand Mozart


Help! I have a new dedicated Media Room 13.5 x 14.5 with 10 ft ceilings. I'll be spliting my time between music and movies. I listen to rock, pop, acoustic and jazz (Tears for Fears, Aimee Mann, Sinead O'connor,Queen,X,The The). I have a $5000 budget for a 5.1 set up; I'm looking for some guidance taking my needs into concideration Here's my set-up:
Anthem amv-30
Anthem pv5 5x300 amp
MMF-5 turntable
Marantz DV-9600 universal disc player (SACD,DVD-A,CD, DVD)
theb2826

Showing 3 responses by aktchi

Bartokfan: If you read sallie's comments, she does not place the Spendor as superior to the Tyler. She;'s says ? If push came to shove, my PERSONAL decision is spendor by a WEE TINY MARGIN". Make ot it you will.

I finally read the review. What she says is something like this: If you divide up the sound spectrum into parts (lower mid range, mid bass, etc) then Spendor gets more of these right. However, in toto, she finds the Tylers more magical or special or whatever the adjective is. Still, she does seem to prefer the Spendors. Make of it whatever you will.

What I found really odd is that in the same issue she has a review Acoustic Zen Adagios, which are priced similarly. She gave them a glowing review as well. However, in neither review she says a single word of comparison. I find that baffling. Frankly, this diminishes my trust in the reviewer.

If someone is interested in Spendors, they should consider Harbeths too. The two companies had the same BBC roots and similar history and philosophy, but Harbeths has remained more faithful to that heritage. The Spendor founders' son eventually quit Spendor and joined Harbeth.
Kw6: Have you had a chance to compare SP1/2e and S8e side by side? I have been curious about how Spendor's classic and new lines would compare at similar price points.
Kw6:

Have you ever had a chance to compare Harbeth and Spendors?

If you want to reproduce music with lifelike dynamics and levels one should really be looking into custom horn systems.

Do you have any specific models in mind? What would be your thought if it was important to listen at both lifelike volumes when one can but also low volumes when one must (late night, big city apartment)?