It's been a while since I've seriously listened the Def Techs. Unless things have changed, the gap in frequency response was (to me and to my wife) unbearable. Specifically, the upper bass frequencies seemed absent. The subwoofer worked great and the midrange was nice, but there was nothing inbetween.
I've been a big fan of the Paradigm Reference series. Very smooth throughout but they need a sub-woofer to fill in the very low freqs. Good luck. |
I auditioned the def techs 2000tl against the Paradigm ref 100's, I thought the paradigms to be extremely bright, I found the def techs to my liking and bought them, I have had them a couple of years and still find them the best in their price range, speakers are a matter of taste, don't go by reveiws or what others say, you must listen for yourself and then decide,good luck |
I ran 3 sets of the bp2000 towers and the matching center for years. Also had 2 def tech 1800 subs and 1 mirage bps 400 and a mirage bpss 210 in system . Lexicon dc1 then mc 1 , all on their own Adcom 555 11 mono amps at 600 w per speaker . Strictly for theatre , it was awesome and would not hesitate to recommend . Critical 2 channel is another story . Sandy Gross , owner , designer of Def Tech is a super guy and is really down to earth. They make good value for the dollar speakers. This forum is primarily audiophile and I may certainly get bashed for my comments but I stand by them. Remember , they make bipole speakers for the most part so positioning them at least 3 feet from rear and side walls is critical. Proprely set up and driven with good electronics { not mid - fi recievers} , they can be seductive in that their ability to envelope the listener with a cohesive surround sound enviroment is excellent. Of course , this is one persons opinion. |
Hey peter I a own a set of definitive bp 2000's (300watts-subs)and i think they are great,probably the best that i have heard for the money(aprox$2750.00)with a set of bose 901's for my rears sounds crazy huh? I run a onkyo 919 pro receiver only pro logic(4-channel) In by-pass mode(stereo) they rock, but in surround modes not nearly as good,you see i am running the eq. that came with the 901's and a ten band eq.through the tape loop.I believe if i matched the center,and the rear with a definitive matched set that would probably make big difference.I would like to upgrade to at least5.1 and retain the sound of the equlazition,is this possible?sincerely mark |
Def Tech's Classic Model is The Orginal 2004 with The 125 sub amp,10"woofer,well balanced sound spectrum for MUSIC.Not the latest 2004tl with the 250 watt amp,To much bass and mid bass,good for HT I guess.Check my system..JD |
Samski is right -- listen to the alternatives (preferably in your own home) and then decide. "It all depends on your gear and your ear" (great quote by Thedautch). By the way, just to be clear, I was referring to the Paradigm Ref version 2's -- I can't speak for the earlier version. Good luck. |
For Home Theater usage Definitives are very hard to beat, especially if you shop around and get them used at around 50% of retail. I have been using an all Definitive Home Theater system for years (BP 2004s (Fronts), CLR 1000 (Center), BPX (Rears) plus a Powerfield 1500 sub. This combo works very well especially the 2004 internal subs with the external 1500 sub. I recently replaced my BP10s with the 2004s which was a big improvement, found such a great deal I could not pass them up. So for movies they are great you would be more than satisfied. For music they are very good but not great. I have a totally separate two channel system for serious listening. Comparing is hard because of the price difference between the two systems, so if you are going to primarily use them for HT go for it. Service from DT is first rate. |
Hats off fellow Audiogoners. All of you clearly disagreed with me but were extremely courteous and objective. That doesn't happen on every site. You're a credit to the "audioholic" world ;-) |
I own a pair or 2004 that I got for $325 on Ebay and a CLR center for $300 and you cannot beat them for HT. In fact, I will never let them go. You will need another set for audio other than DT. Maybe a pair of B&Ws for the DTs lack that musical image. |
I'd just assume have Magnepan speakers, even for HT duty. Especially if you crave the bipole effect of the DefTechs. I'd look at the 1.6/QRs for the fronts and perhaps their center and surround speakers if your want 5.1. you could push the fronts with a Krell KAV-300i and it would be plenty dynamic and capable of SPLs that would literally drive you from the room (like 110+dB SPL). But then, planars are my bias. So take that with a grain of salt. I started with Eosone RFS-600's which were dipoles. It depends on what you want. But unless the maggies aren't dynamic enough for you I think they be strong contenders for about $1.6K/pair.
Perhaps more importantly is what prompted you to post this thread in the place? What do you curently like about your deftechs? What you your like to change? These answers may be key. But I still stand my my maggie recommendation. |
My whole HT setup uses DT, i have a set of the 2004TL's for fronts (250 W Sub not 125) a Procenter C2, a couple of BP6's for the surrounds and a Prosub 200.
All in all, i think they sound fantastic. My system is somewhat hurt by the reciever that i use, im looking to go with a amp/pre-amp setup within the next 6 months when some of my finances will be freed.
The only problem i have with them is the accoustics of the room my HT is in, its in a finished basement and kinda wierd. The benefit to having a set of these 2004tls with an extra subwoofer means you can really fill the room with bass. Being bi-polar and rather picky about having thier space, its hard to get them set to where thier bi-polar nature and side firing subwoofers to sound like you want. with an extra sub you can find just the right place to put it and kill all the "dead spots" where bass is concerned.
I hear alot of people talk that they are not great with music, So far i think they are fantastic, however, i dont have an amp/pre setup, im using the reciever. Im a little bit disheartened about this as i dont have the funding alot of people do. Shelling out 1,600 for a pair of speakers is not something i can do very often.
I listened to them at a dealer before i bought them, there were a nice new set of $3000 KEF speakers sitting right next to them, and they have it set up so you can swap from different amps, speakers, players, etc. I gotta say, the 2004TLs blew the much more expencive KEF speakers away. for movies AND music. The KEF's had the tweeter up top in a seperate small encloure. Some people like this set up, but i think it sounds terrible. I feel like a speaker should sound like its doing all the sound on its own, the KEF's high range sounded like it was a completly different source.
Anyways, after spending months looking for a good set of speakers to upgrade to, the moment i heard these i was hooked. I listen to everything Rock, Rap, Techno, Blues, Classical, Country, Bluegrass, alternative, everything. These speakers preform and sound real good with everything i throw at them.
1 Exception however, very hard rock does not play well at high volumes with my system, it could be the speakers, but i would say it has more to do with the Technics SA-TX 50 THX reciever im pushing these with. The poor guy rocks with movies, but does not have the power to handle high volumes of complex music, its little amplifiers just cant control the speakers. Thats why im aiming to upgrade these.
Im sure i can throw an ADCOM 300w/ch amp and pre-amp at these babys and that problem will be GONE! :)
As far as Deftech goes, i think for movies they are simply awesome. Even with my thx certified reciever, my HT sounds better than any theater ive been to.
For music, i think they sound very good as well. Maybe after im in the hobby for longer and go through different amp / pre amp / speaker combo's i will see what other people are talking about.
As far as power goes.... Wow.. these things have an extremly commanding presence. First time i heard them i got a huge grin on my face and did not want to leave them alone
I agree with what everyone else says on one thing though, you NEED ROOM for these. I have mine about 2ft from the back and side walls (no room to do any more), and i think they sound fantastic. As you move them further back and out, they really lose thier capability.
Im not really sure how anybody COULD be unhappy with thier performance. I've heard plenty of speakers that cost 2-3 times as much that diddnt sound as good as these.
OzFly, I think the Deftechs you were listening to were either damage or set up very poorly. the low-mids and high-lows are definatly there with my set. The retailer might not have spent any time trying to position them. I've been in my new house for about 2 months now and i still find myself slightly tweeking thier location.
they need thier space..
they look real sleek too dont they? :) |
4-5 years ago I was looking to replace some old Infinity speakers (sm120). One had a blown midrange and the physical size didn't work with the limited space I had. I decided to go with the somewhat new slim tower speakers. I auditioned quite a few different brands (from the mass media stores). I would hear a speaker that I thought sounded good in the store, would get home a/b vs my infinty's and was not impressed nor could I justify spending $1500-1800 for cosmetic purposes. I auditioned Def Tech's and they were one of the better sounding ones I looked at but I did not think that they sounded that much better (in my room) than the infinity's (remember the one speaker had a blown midrange). They were not the big monster ones with the 18" powered. I think they had a 10 or 12" powered in them. It wasn't until I happened upon a "hi-end" store and came across Phase Technology speakers that I was truly able to put to rest the old studio monitors. The teatro 10's made me question how I could think those infinity's ( along with the polks, def techs, new infinity's, boston's)sounded good. Also the price was $1100. Much less than those others I tested. Granted these speakers should not be considered if you are going for 5-6k used range ( a lot of nice stuff at that range ), but if you wanted to stay in the def tech price range I would find someway to at least demo these speakers. For the price the are very nice. I haven't been looking/demo'ing speakers lately so this is a slightly dated perspective. |
I purchased the BP2006TL`s about a month ago. These are the smallest bi-polars DefTech makes. They were $1k/pr. I was replacing Infinity SM100`s. My living room is 15x16 and I use HT as well as 2ch listening. First off, as HT speakers, they are OUTSTANDING! Truely amazing. This is probably their strongest asset. As for 2ch listening. I was disappointed at first.However, once I moved the speakers about 2 feet away from the back wall(as opposed to about a foot where I initially had them), they definately came alive. I think they are very good, especially their slim design. To sum up;
HT-> definately a 10
2ch-> I`d give it an 7 or 8. Not the best I`ve heard but placement is critical.
Using DefTech`s w/ Sony DB930 DD receiver w/ front speakers(DefTechs) powered by B&K ST-140 Amp. |
I have come to realize that you really cannot realize the potential of multichannel unless all the speakers are the same. This is something that I didn't believe at first, but has become apparent through experience.
If the visual impact is acceptable, get yourself five (count em) brand new MG 1.6, for the grand total of $4000. |
I haven't heard any DT's in ten years so i can't honestly comment on them.
Another brand that does justice to HT and audio 2/multi channel is Monitor Audio.
I ended up making 5 monitors out of kits with Scan Speak woofers and revelator tweeters with Hovland/Alpha Core xovers and could not be happier
I use two powered subs also made from kits.
This speaker setup has seen a lot of audio/h/t gear come and go but i have never even considered changing them, although i did sell my Thiel 3.6's as i liked these better from 40hz up.
I find that i prefer my HT sound much better through speakers designed for 2 channel as opposed to the Infinity and Paradigm set ups i had years ago.
One other bonus to these speakers is that i can move the center channel 7-8 ft back when listening to 2 channel and nothing gets in the way of the music. |
I used to own a Deftech setup, 2004TLs BP6s and a Procenter C2 w/ Prosub200
These sound fantastic, awesome HT preformance
I dont like the built in subwoofers though. They are quality subwoofers, but Deftechs are so picky about where you set them up, that where thier bi-polar arrays sound good is not always where the subwoofer sounds good. I found that even though the 2004TL's had built in subwoofers, that i still needed a seperate subwoofer to fill the room with bass. If i turned off the 2004TL's subs, i noticed no difference in bass. however, if i had the 2004 subs up, and i turned down the prosub 200, there was a great decrease in overall bass.
So over all, i dont think the built in subwoofers are worth it, because they become extremly finicky about placement. The speakers sound great away from the wall, but the bass suffers. Put it next to the wall, the bass is greatly enhanced, but the mids and tweets suffer.
Recently i sold these and decided to go for a monitor size speaker, KEF Q1, and i plan to use identical speakers all around.
You dont want to use a monitor for your right speaker and a tower for your left speaker, because they sound different. Why would you do this with any other channel?
You can have all identical drivers, but unless the boxes are the same they will sound different.
i say ditch the deftechs, go with Identical KEF Q1s on all channels. Im working on that now.
The KEF Q1 retails for about 225.00 each. The 2004TL for 800.00 each.
The KEF Q1 in my opinion sounds just as good as the deftechs without the built in subwoofer, plus the Q1 reaches to 45hz, so it is a full range monitor. Sure you will be missing the subwoofers, but aan external subwoofer will easily compensate for this and you can place it without suffering from harmonic loss from the speaker.
Currently i have a Denon 3803, 2 KEF Q1s, and a Deftech Prosub 200. The loss of bass from ditching the 2004tls was pretty much non-existant.
Eventually my system will be the Denon 3803, 7 KEF Q1s, and Dual DefTech Supercubes.
All in all that will give more bass, better distributed bass, and a hell of alot cheaper than going with identical 2004TLs
Deftechs Rock, they seriously do, but sometimes they are just too picky. Thier subwoofers in my opinion cannot be beat. I have heard velodynes for far more the cost than my Prosub 200, and they sounded almost sloppy compared to it. |
I heard their smallest system - the Cinema 60 - through the basic Elite receiver, right after hearing the Energy Encore system in the same setup and store.
No contest - the Def Tech system was cheaper and far better. The Energy had a little more impact, but was no comparison to the Definitive for clarity - it was like listening to smoothness and detail after noise and clutter.
If the upper line models are anything like this tiny one, this is a great product. |
Has anyone seen or heard the Def Tech Mythos One Towers? I have physical space considerations, and am considering auditioning these. Any comments would be appreciated |
Ron34238
Ive heard those once a few months back. They sounded pretty impressive. I have always liked DefTechs though (even though i just sold 2,500 worth of deftech speaks). I think just about anything they got are pretty good. Not too ssure i like thier 3000tl's though, the seem to miss something. |
