So I am trying to remember back when it all began for me. I have always been a fan of music since I was in 1st grade if I remember correctly, but I believe that the turning point for me into sound quality was around 1992 when someone that I worked for at the time had me go up to his apartment one day and wanted me to listen to his rig. He had a pair of ACOUSTIC RESEARCH HOLOGRAPHIC IMAGING M 4.5 FLOORSTANDING SPEAKERS and started to play the Stevie Wonder tape or cd of Innervisions and kept commenting on "stereo separation". I had no idea at the time because I was completely blind to it (no pun intended). So anyways he told me that he'd sell the M4's for cheap and I ended up buying them from him to go with my Realistic reciever, and that's where my audiophile journey began. So the AR's were the turning point for me and got me intrigued. It was shortly after that when I found a high end stereo shop in my area called Sound II in Dartmouth, Ma. So after a few visits to Sound II, the guys there (Al, Steve and Leo) were very kind and explained a few things to me about entry level to high end audio. Shortly thereafter I was introduced to NAD and left the shop with a second hand Nad integrated amp that was there on consignment. I tend to ramble on so I apologize. A big hello from Fall River, Massachusetts! 🇺🇦🇺🇸🤜
Which pair of speakers changed your Hifi life?
*** I am not trying to create a debate or a quarrel with anyone. My discussions are purely having a talks and to express one's experiences. Also to learn fellow audio lovers passion. Please do not disrespect with hurtful words or expressions. Please be more forgiving and understanding in this discussion thread. Thank you." ***
Hopefully one day, someone would say "Mon Acoustic speakers were the turning point in my Hifi life". 😃
My 2ch-audio journey began when my uncle bought his BOSE system at his home (don't even know the model or never really heard it) in early 90s. Bose was rear and expensive in Korea(South) back then. So I started my own system with Bose Cinematics 2.1. Then moved on to Goldenear Triton 3, then to Triton 1. But more utilizing the speakers for AV set ups, not 2 ch stereo.
When I had my first house, I bought a pair of Revel M105 speakers and I think these are the pair that really changed my audio life. My initial paring with M105 was Yamaha receiver. Then I tried goofie set up with center speaker 3.1 to see if it improves vocal in the songs I liked. We went through many combinations of system set up. I ended up with Chord Electronics set up.
I still own them. Always struggle time to time, whether to sell them or not due to the number of pairs I own(out of a guilt). I cannot argue how many pairs of shoes my wife owns. I pair them with NAD M10 (version 1) for my bedroom since my wife likes the warm and well rounded sound, and 80% its white design aspect.
So what are the speakers that have impacted your life?
Thiel CS 3.7. I have a pair of 3.6, However their stage and sound isn’t as good as the 3.7. Ended up buying a pair of Thiel pcs bookshelf speakers recently and now I am selling my 3.6 and Classe. Any models pre 3.6 were light on bass. 3.6 was a little better but things got way better after 3.6. Soundstage and a more balanced sound throughout the line up. Thiel PCS have more bass than the 3.6 at comfortable listening levels. I had to kind of crank the volume to get the same bass out of the 3.6. After hearing the 3.7 at a friends the 3.6 just do not compare and have sat for a while now, hence now I’m selling them and the amp till I get my hands on a pair of 3.7. |
JBL L100 It was summer 1970, best friends older brother invited us to listen to his new stereo. Big Marantz receiver, Dual 701 turntable, and the L100s. Changed my life. I have been chasing the sound ever since.
For some reason the L100s seem to get a fair bit of criticism and yet they’re also held in the same type of acclaim that some hold vintage Tannoys. To my ears the original L100s remain a classic loudspeaker. Every time I hear them I’m slightly taken aback at how they could have made a box speaker this good, this transparent way back then. I think it’s also telling how no one has compared the originals to the more recent versions released by JBL.
The speaker that changed my life was part of a portable record player system back in the 1970s. It was playing loud and distorting like hell on some crescendos but... there was something about that sound, that timbre that permanently changed the chemistry in my brain that day. Like yourself, I think I have been chasing that sound ever since. I just didn’t know it. |
My first exposure to real hi-fi was my uncle's system with Acoustic Research AR-2a (or 3a) speakers. That started me on this audiophile journey. Then it was my Boston Acoustic A60s. And then many speakers after that. The ones I loved the most in that time, that I actually owned, were my original Von Schweikert VR-4s. They were pretty magical in a large living room in a pre-war building in the Bronx. Perfect room for them. But that was many many years ago. Now the room is smaller and doing my best with various bookshelfs (LS50 Meta, Nola Boxer) and always on the hunt for something new. That's the fun part. |
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Apogee Calipers! I bought them back in 1986 $1,695.00. upgraded from JBL-166's $500.00. Opened up the sound stage in terms of clarity,depth,dynamics. As if a damp cheesecloth veil was lifted off. I can sit back close my eyes and imagine the room of the recordings. The space in between the performers whether a Classical opera house, jazz night club, or rock recording studio. No reservations or regrets to this day. |
Threads getting old and so am I. Used to dream about big box Infinity, didn’t have the space, equipment, or cash. Things changed, I bought a late model set of IRS Beta thinking they were a statement piece and ahead of their time.. I still do. Fed well and maintained the sound is still relevant in my opinion. Cheers |
Maggies changed my life for about 20 years a few years back then it changed again when I discovered the newer Ohm Walsh speakers which were like Maggies or even Quad ES speakers with better dynamics and that work in most rooms better. More recently, KEF ls50 metas have made their impression on me and the latest and greatest KEF speaker technology will likely keep their newer products on my radar as well for the foreseeable future. I could probably easily live with a pair of latest and greatest KEF Blades, but those would require a larger investment in speakers than I have currently. Wouldn’t mind having a pair of very small Maggies around in the future still either, just as an option in certain cases. Others that come to mind I have heard but not necessarily owned that have influenced me in unique ways: Magico mini (overall sound from a standmount off a really good front end), mbl 111 (most realistic live-like presentation ever, similar to Ohm), Fritz Carerra (sound, value and versatility), Klipsch Legacy line (reasonably affordable higher efficiency designs) , Vanatoo ( overall design and features in a most affordable package, I do own a pair of these....everyone who can afford a high-end system should also own a pair of these just for fun), and the big Harbeths (very clean midrange, lovely articulate vocals). Spatial Audio open-baffle speakers also impress me in general whenever I hear them. |
For me, it was the incredible good fortune that a pair of immaculate aDs 910s practically fell into my lap here in S. Arizona. They arrived when the seller delivered them to my house because he worried the stands might be damaged in shipment, and he lived @ 2 hours away. The 910's are everything a music enthusiast could want. Deep, impactful bass and luscious mids/highs from the domes. 93db efficiency. They don't need a lot of power but gulp up all the current I can throw their way. I am eternally grateful to that very generous man! |
This is definitely a fun thread. I've owned many pairs off speakers, but the game changer for me was when I spent the ungodly sum of $1,200 per pair for DCM Time Windows in 1980 (the equivalent of $4,500.00 today!) and they opened my ears to spatial, clean and defined sound. These days I have a few kits in different locations: I love the KEF LS50s in a small space, the Bower & Wilkins 705 Signatures in a medium space and my ultimate babies: The Bowers & Wilkins 702 Signatures for larger spaces--best of I've heard. I still have the Time Windows--they're in my garage as a reminder of how they started me on the HiFi high-end journey I have enjoyed for nearly 45 years. They're warped, probably not useable, but every time I see them I think of a young man listening to music in a new light and I smile every time. It looks like everyone on this thread has a similar fee-good story....that's why music is so amazing. |
Wow what a cool question. I would like to go back and listen to all the speakers that I thought were the best when I bought them but...sigh can't do it. So here goes, I scraped together money from selling anything I could when I was 25 and I bought some M & K speakers with a sub. OMG I was in heaven. Until I got married and my wife said those speakers look kinda weird. She made me sell them She was miss PR so I did whatever she told me....some of you can relate.....she then bought me a pair of 2ce's vandersteens. Those were great but......later on after the divorce..I sold those vandys and bought a pair of Maggie 1.6's . OHHhhhh they were so good that i thought I would never sell them.....but ....actually I didn't sell them I had the 1.6's speakers Gunned. I was in heaven with them until I moved to a Florida House ohhhhh the (the house) was so bad when it comes to room placement. That I finally gave up doing the maggie dance and bought a pair of QLN 3's. I may never sell these QLN speakers ......but I really miss the magestands in the proper room. BTW I did not sell the Magnestands, I gave him to a friend who also lives in a Florida House and he loves them but.....he likes Klipsch now because he feels the room does not really interact with the klipsch speakers like it does with the magnestands |
Altec Lansing Bias 550 I have been enjoying them for the past 20 years+. Plug and play. All in one. Positioning, amplification, cabling, inputs, never a problem. Connected to a CD player or other digital device. I consider them my headphones of loud speakers. I listen to them for hours at a time, never find them fatiguing. Klipsch Forte II Purchased from a friend 20 years ago. Kept them in the closet until recently. Originally found them a bit harsh on the top end. Replaced some components with the help of Crites. Now, I put them into use in the yard. Lively and fun. I have a few other speakers but, those two stand out for me. My ultimate replacements for these: Wilson Audio Alexx + Klipsch Jubilee
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The first time I heard ADS L810s, they blew my mind in a stereo store in Bowling Green Ohio. I later picked up a used pair in Chicago and absolutely loved them for many years. Now my martin Logan Summit ex electrostatic speakers are my last and favorites.
Along the way I heard some speakers made by a local company called Chicago speaker works and they were really nice as well. |
Luthier speakers They include a filing Integrate a trumpet, with everything and its
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Wilson X-1 Grand SLAMM. I never owned a pair, but when I was young and returned home after college I went looking for a new stereo to move into my place with. Knowing nothing back in the late 90's I randomly walked into the first stereo shop I found myself walking by in New York City, which happened to be Sound by Singer. Straight out of college I obviously could not afford anything in there, however a nice salesman let me listen to a few systems, one of which was a pair of Wilson X-1 Grand SLAMM speakers hooked up to full Krell kit. Before that the nicest hi-fi I had heard was my parent's KLH Model 20 stereo and my buddy's Onkyo integrated with some Cerwin Vegas. I never knew that hi-fi could sound that good. So that started me on my audio path. So, to answer your question the Wilson X-1 Grand SLAMM changed my hi-fi life, because without having heard those, I probably never would have gotten into this stuff as deeply as I have. |
In the early 2000's as I was making my way into Higher End Audio I replaced my OHM Walsh 4's with a pair of Unity Audio Fountainhead Signatures and they really moved me. I used a Musical Design 100 WPC Amp with them. I kept those until a few years later when I landed a pair of Genesis V's (placed in my dedicated listening room in my basement) which I had up until this past December driven by my VAC Renaissance 70/70 which I still have. + |
The K horns were one of the hardest builds that I ever did. They were so heavy that each move was a real event. Funny though, many of the speakers that I have owned turned out to be heavy. Many of them were game changers, but my curiosity turned into amazement many times over. It wasn't just one set of speakers that had a huge effect on me, it was many. |
I'm running a pair of SK corner horns (which I bought, didn't build) right now powered by 2 SET Watts. I just came back from the Pacific Audiofest and there was stuff that sounded better (but not a lot) and there was a lot of stuff that cost more than a luxury car that I wouldn't trade for. What an amazing design.. still. |
My first pair of speakers were horrible. They were made by JohnZeer and that is all that I remember. Because of them, I went the other direction and came upon plans and drivers for the Speaker Lab K. They were a bitch to build but I had a high school wood shop at my disposal. I won't tell you that they were the best speakers that I have ever owned in every way, but I had never heard/felt bass like that in my life until then. Very little distortion in the bass, and the mid and treble horns gave an immediacy to the sound that I never forgot either. |
@boxer12 - thank you! |
@tomcarr / Good for you, Enjoy! |
Going back over the speakers I used to own I came to the conclusion that none of them were so great that I’d not pass on them for something else. Granted, some were eye (ear) opening and helped to broaden my audio horizon but when push comes to shove, I have to say it’s my current speakers, the JBL 4319 monitors. I’ve had my ups and downs with them, sometimes wondering what the heck could be wrong, but in the end, it’s always turned out to be either the recordings limitations of something else upstream of them. If any speaker warrants the description, garbage in, garbage out, it’s these. Like a true chameleon, they wait for something to happen upon and then assume the character of what lies underneath. There has honestly been times when I’ve been floored with what they’re capable of. They don’t click off any of the audiophile boxes, having a broad front baffle and that utilitarian look in their design and build, but in the end, it’s all I’ve ever asked for or needed. All the best,
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