Thiel CS.5

get a good used pair of Thiel 2.2 for a grand

I have auditioned the .5, 1.5, older 2.2's and the 2.3's. I must say the the 2.3's were the best and the 2.2's close but different. About the .5's. The drivers in the 1.5 are a rather big upgrade over the .5's. the sound is much more natural than the .5's which sounded congested and somewhat thin in its reproduction of the music. My humble opinion is for the money you would be better off considering a good used pair of B&W 805N (Nautilus)$1400-$1500 or even the B&W NT series. They are open and much more accurate in their reproduction of the music and about as effecient as the Thiel's if not a bit more. With so many more options at the $1400.00 dollar mark and esp. on the used market (alot of good deals if you do your homework and keep checking till you get the right deal) its hard to pay retail for something new. I setteled on a pair of the Classic KEF 104.2's which were very smooth, detailed and effecent (94db). Good luck in your search...

Regardless of what you spend of them new or used, the CS.5 are an outstanding value, i've owned a pair and upgraded to the 22's. If they have a weeknesss it would be that they are fairly small and low to the ground and you may want to consider stands with them. Sound Anchor makes attractive and functional stands for them. All Thiels need a fair amount of power (200wpc into 4 ohms) and will reveal any weak point in your system system. You must have good electronics all the way around as well as good cables or they just will not sound great. Like the previous reviewer stated, MIT cables work well with them.

Good luck

I just sold a pair of thiel 1.5's here last week mint 1yr old for $1150.00. If your a shrud shopper you won't pay that price for those speakers. I haven't demo'd the .5 but the 1.5's would fill up a small room no problem. As a rule thiel speakers are best when given a little breathing room. Would recommend MIT cables for technical reasons. Unfortunatly to technical for me to understand.