Tannoy Canterbury, KEF Reference 5, Fyne Vintage Twelve, SF Serafino

As a KEF Reference One owner, if you go that direction it might reveal the limitations of your preamp. A good preamp is critical for good sound. I am not very knowledgeable about home theater gear, but a maybe investing in a higher end AV preamp/processor would give you the flexibility and sound quality that you are looking for, and then add a small lower cost amp for the center channel. 

The older I get, the more I start to notice how big of an influence the room makes to my sound. Don't get me wrong I love tweaks and swapping cables and such. But unless you have your room sorted with treatments, it probably makes a bigger difference than any modest gear upgrade. 

Factor in the part where you watch movies and Netflix, that room correction is going to be very helpful. Probably more so than the differences between a quality AVR versus stereo integrated. Some room correction is better than others though, I think Dirac is one of the better ones up there with Anthem. 

I would be concerned about any pair of main speakers if I couldn't get a matching center channel, or at least a pretty close match from the same brand. Not sure all the speakers on your list offer that. 

Canterburys should be fine in that room. In general, the Tannoys / Fynes are room friendly due to the dual concentric drivers and controlled dispersion. If you do run into issues, going closer (mid-field or even pseudo-nearfield) works well with these speakers, and can help. As always, bass response will come down to positioning of speakers and seating. You also get a little more control over bass with Canterbury’s adjustable venting. I guess I don’t fixate on room & treatments as much as others since Tannoys are more easy-going here.

The 15" drivers like Canterbury will have a tighter, smaller sweet spot than the 10" and 12" drivers. If you can't always sit in the sweet spot you'll be better served by a 10". Maybe even the dual 10" like Fyne 703.

The NAD "M" series class D amps are excellent. Their digital preamps however - not so much a fan of those. But then I don’t do HT or the room correction stuff - just pure 2ch.

Thank you!

I saw a McIntosh MA12000 on sale at a local dealer. Think going to get that one. 

How do you feel about SF Serafino/Amati G5 vs Tannoy/Fyne. I have a hard time finding a Tannoy dealer here in NYC, but I'll keep looking.

How do you feel about SF Serafino/Amati G5 vs Tannoy/Fyne. I have a hard time finding a Tannoy dealer here in NYC, but I'll keep looking.

Couldn't comment on the SF's - it's been ages since I heard one, and it wasn't at the level of what you're looking at. Beautiful speakers!

I wasn't sure if you were looking to buy used Tannoys - on new ones, the drivers have been made in China since 2020-ish. Cabinets made in ???. The Scotland factory was closed down. I haven't yet heard one of the China-made Prestige Tannoys. The prices didn't go down with this significant change in manufacture, either (you can get Kevin Deal's made in China scratch-and-dent leftovers at a *slight* discount). So honestly I'd stick to used Tannoys or new Fynes if going that route.

Fyne is much better value than Tannoy. I would also look at KLH model 5 and Monitor Audio https://speakerchoices.com/

I have Kensingtons in a similar size room with one REL S/812.  I loved the Canterburys when demoed, but the dealer thought they might be a bit much for my room, though I must say they really energized the dealer’s listening room.  I often wonder…though I do love my Ks.  

I have Kensingtons in a similar size room with one REL S/812. I loved the Canterburys when demoed, but the dealer thought they might be a bit much for my room, though I must say they really energized the dealer’s listening room. I often wonder…though I do love my Ks.

@cantorgale Well it’s not so simple. Canterbury throws a bigger image with more energy for sure; very impressive. That said, the Kensington has its good points too. C’s sweet spot is rather small, probably because the 15" woofers are somewhat beaming at the crossover frequency. The smaller dual-concentrics seem to have a bigger sweet spot. On top of this, the K is particularly coherent and beautiful in midrange. In more modestly sized rooms, the K is a real banger. And you don't need to raise or tilt K up to get them at ear level. K even had me thinking Tannoy’s modern 10" alnico might even be the sweet spot for midrange - but then I heard the DC10A’s (supposedly with the SAME driver as K), and didn’t like it at all. Bright and aggressive...

I did the upgrade from K.SE to C.SE years ago. Then again to C.GR. Love my Canterbury’s - but miss the Kensington’s at times ;)

Also, the C.SE is a little on the dark side, and benefits from Super-Tweeters more than most (the Tannoy ST has very noticeable output in the audible treble range). This was rectified with the C.GR revision - they don’t need ST, IMO. Or if you do use them, you should dial them WAY down to the lowest settings. I couldn’t stomach K.SE w/ ST, unless the source was tape with some significant HF roll-off.

Tannoy was really wild with the different voicings across their models. Honestly that’s one point which gives me pause on exploring Fynes (besides their prices) - I look at those 700 and F1 series cabinets, and it makes me think of that DC10A.

@mulveling Thanks for a very thorough post. I’m sure you’re right re comparative sweet spots. I wasn’t able to A/B Ks and Cs at the same dealer. (Although I remember distinctly disliking the GRFs. Didn’t have that Tannoy midrange “magic” to me.). Met a Tannoy guy at AXPONA a few years ago. He suggested the smaller K driver was the “sweet spot” in the range. Consistent with your observation about K’s sweet midrange.

Interesting comment re STs also

All I know for certain is that my journey from Focal to Harbeth, back to Focal, then Rockport, and now Tannoy has me a confirmed fanboy for the Tannoy house sound

(Although I remember distinctly disliking the GRFs. Didn’t have that Tannoy midrange “magic” to me.).

That's funny, because the GRF is basically a repackaged Yorkminster SE - same specs, driver, and porting - and I felt exactly the same about York SE as what you wrote about GRF (haven't actually heard a GRF yet). The bass was amazing, though - even better than Canterbury. I remember wanting to wave a wand and get York bass with Kensington midrange. 

@mulveling I couldn’t A/B the GRFs with the Ks bit the dealer had smaller Wilson’s. Sasha’s I think.  They really didn’t sound much different at all from the Wilson’s - pretty clinical and not at all the warmth I had heard from my Mini Autographs and which I was trying to find in a larger Tammy.  I knew I wanted off the Focal/Rockport/Magico merry go round.  They had a pair of Turnberrys, which although too small for my room did sound more like Tannoys than the GRFs.