Thiel CS3.6 and Aerial 10T Comparison

My experience was owning original CS7s, deciding we were going to downsize and selling these, purchasing Dynaudio Contour 3.0 and then regretting every minute of it after about a week. The Dyns were eventually replaced with CS6s, which remain my main spekaers in the large system. The CS6 is still an excellent choice and Jim Thiel hasn't replaced it, yet.

I'm in somewhat of the same boat. I had owned the Thiel 2.2 for 5 years, and upgraded to the 3.6 about 8 years ago. I've been pretty happy with the 3.6. I've toyed with the idea of changing the speakers to something else for the past two years. One of the reservation I have is what if I ended up liking the Thiels better? Granted, they are not the best speakers out there, but for the money, the Thiel 3.6s are hard to beat.

I spent quite some time at HE2006 listening for replacement candidates that are under $20k. I've narrowed down to three for further auditioning: 1/ Verity Parsifal Ovation ($20k); 2/ Usher Be-10 ($14k); 3/ Hyperion 968 ($7k). It just happened that a dealer in Massachussettes has all three in the same store and have comparable equipment as well. So on my next trip there, I am planning on spending some time for some serious auditioning.

Heard the 3.7 at the show. First, they are ugly as hell. Second, they didn't sound half decent. (the price will most likely be around $10k.)

FrankC

I owned 10Ts for many years. You do need a clean and very powerful amp else the bass will overwhelm you. I don't think they have the dynamics of the newer Thiels and many modern speakers. You may consider waiting for the new CS 3.7 or possibly Avalon Acoustics. Goodluck.

I would audition the Aerials before I purchased them - I was disappointed by many other speakers (trying to be nice here) before I returned to the 3.6 - They allow me to really enjoy the music, without having to worry about the "next best thing", or another brand...

the 10t is one of the loudspeakers that is definately a music lover's speaker. if you have a big and evergrowing music collection and want to enjoy all of it, its a great investment. if your goal is the have a time/phase accurate speaker as an end-all, stick with thiel.

IMHO, the 10T's might be more dynamic and the 3.6's more coherent. I think both benefit from plenty of high quality power. Both excellent products, just a matter of personal preference.

If accuracy of timbre, phase and timing are important to you, keep the Thiels.

I have a pair of 10T's and recently toyed with the idea of moving to Thiel. I ended up staying with my Aerials because, in the end, my 10T's are not the weakest link in my systme. The drivers are newer in the Thiel's, that may make a difference, depends on the sound you are looking for. The 10T's are a very romantic speaker that have held up well over the years.

Hi there,

I have Aerial 10T's and I would summarise them as being a music lover's speaker. Mated with a powerful amp, they will never offend, and will give you countless hours of pleasure. The only downside I can think of is that they are may be not the highest resolution speakers ever made. I'm sure a more modern design with beryllium or diamond tweeters will give you a bit more high frequency extension.

Every time I listen to Thiels I find yes they are dynamic and impressive, but cold and uninvolving musically.
YMMV

Cheers
Mick