Meh.
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Wilson Benesch speakers are stunning. I have heard a number of models multiple times, with a variety of amplification, and have a few friends that own them. They are the speaker I would choose if I upgrade from my ProAc D-40r. Their cabinets have a very low noise level; a quality that has to be heard to be properly appreciated. What model(s) are you considering? |
A buddy of mine had a pair of WB stand-mount speakers (Sorry, I don't remember the model....) They were reminiscent (at least to me) of Rogers LS3/5a with more bass authority. (Which makes sense). They definitely had the "British Bump" in their tuning. If you enjoy the BBC sound, I think you'll love them. I do remember him saying they were rather power-hungry for what they were. Lovely speakers. Very easy to listen to.
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Jperry, The model I heard which did some magic was a Curve. I will buy used for sure as these things are way pricey for me. Funny thing is I heard this brand at a dealer, at a show and at another friends home and thought -okay but no magic. That all changed with the last home session. Heard something really quite extraordinary. Now I gotta have it!!! |
I have heard the Curve and its replacement the Vector. I have heard a few systems with Nagra amplifiers, one with a Starke Class D amp , and one with Luxman SS power. They all sounded very good. I have not heard them with tube amps. They do an impressive disappearing act which I think might be related to their low internal noise. Good luck with your search
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I home-auditioned two from their range. Review here- On certain types of music the Endeavour was the most extraordinary speaker I have heard in my room. Absolutely stunning and almost unbelievable in what it brought out from the music. It had a downside but that’s written about in the review too. My recommendation as with all speakers is to home demo prior to purchase. |
I am a Wilson Benesch dealer and the result is, I have had the privilege of listening to them side-by-side with Vivid, Perlisten, Focal, Harbeth, Zu, etc…. When you get them in an AB with any speaker not made from an advanced material (fiberglass, carbon fiber, aluminum, cast phenolic resin, etc….) the difference in sound and presentation in terms of soundstage is radical. For my taste, Wilson Benesch and Vivid produce the best speakers in the world and I chose to make my speakers out of Carbon Fiber and Fiberglass for this very reason. Get them into an AB test and you will hear why they are deemed elite. This doesn’t make the presentation and listening experience of other speakers bad. It is just different.
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Step up @millercarbon and tell us what WB speakers you auditioned… |
The ones that sound great. The complete list is here: . ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ haahaaa Best post ever, Folks think just bc Wilson’s name is splattered all over Stereophiles front page news all the time past 20 years,, = they MUST be great speakers. WEll I got other news. Look the only thing Wilson’s have that my Seas Thor’s ~~did not have~~~ are some added big 10 inch woofers. Other than that, Wilson’s are no better than my old now RESTINPEACE Thor speakers. Tweet+ dual midwoofers = Thor Wilson tweet/dual Midwoofers/dual 10 inch woofers. woofers, = Wilson Thors $2k. vs Wilsons, $10k -$20K-$100k - 500K -900K. Do the math. If you want to pay $$$$$$$ for some paper or carbon 10 inch woofers, go right ahead, The only thing left of my Thors are the 2 W18’s xovers,, which are detined for the trash can, cost me $300+ each one. Bet Wilson uses whatever caps. Of course Stereophile aint gonna talk about the caps. |
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I wouldn’t want anyone to get the idea that you don’t know what you are talking about, again. Wilson Audio is not the same company as Wilson-Benesch. Wilson is American made, WB is UK manufactured. Both build exceptional speakers with inert cabinets and curated drivers. Neither are terribly tube friendly. |
millercarbon
The ones that sound great. The complete list is here:
Nice non answer. Your safest bet was to say nothing, but you never fail to disappoint when the expectation is absurdity. |
Wilson Audio is not the same company as Wilson-Benesch. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oh brother, this world is more odd by the minute, 2 speaker companies with the same name... ,, weird, one needs to change their name. Someone is playing copy cat, btw I hate the *british sound*, aka The B&W sound, , warm to the point of muddy, Wilson USA is less muddy vs classical british sound.
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i own wb precision p3.0. i run it with ayon and vitus. i think midrange is really nice bass ok highs ok. i like to listen to music not analyze it. ive heard dynaudio c4 contour 3.4s. spendour d9. magico s5 mk1. magico s5 is better. highs are very clear but bright. in my room it would be ruined by reflective seurfaces |
Why is it that those who know least have the most to say? Wilson and Wilson Benesch are not the same company. There is not really a thing called the "British sound". As Ghasely says, there are many British speakers and they sound different. Listen to ATC for example and compare them to Harbeth. |
If you haven’t heard Wilson Benesch speakers, assuming you know what they sound like because you have looked at a picture, read part of the website and maybe read a review or two is foolish. There is nothing typical about WBs sound. The crossover approach, and where use the isobaric bass system makes a difference. The Carbon Fiber cabinets and damping approach are what truly set WB apart and what causes the cabinet to disappear. Many people who have not really taken the time to explore these more advanced materials in speaker design don’t believe it makes a difference. It does and it has far more of an impact than you would guess. regarding bass and treble with WB, their frequency response is shockingly flat. Treble is not as bright as other speakers and you need to select your amps accordingly. Bass is extremely tight and refined and simply is not boomy. If you like a big, flabby bass sound, WB is very much not for you.
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That is an excellent question!It happens all the time here. Maybe some of those who like to provide their opinions on unheard equipment could weigh in so we could understand. coralkongHow and WHY would anyone post an opinion on something they have no experience with? |
I own a pair of Wilson Benesch Square 2's. I've been a fan of British Speakers and have owned a number of them over the years. The speakers I own, are very fast reacting to inputs, and are very precise with vocals and horns. Base response is quick if not "big", so if you like alot of bottom heft, these are not the speakers for you. Some adjustment in speaker placement make the addition of bottom end available, however my room does not permit alot of these options. They are clean and precise, clarity is a good word to describe them. The speed of the drivers can make these speakers difficult to add Subwoofers into the system. I can't speak for other Wilson Benesch speakers as I have had little long term experience with larger units in their catologue. Hope this helps.
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Happy New Year to all of us and let's all stay safe and well in 2022......I thought that I would add my opinion and that's exactly what it is my opinion. I was the owner of a pair of Wilson Benesch Square 5's until May of last year. I had them for 5 years so I can say that I do know and understand their sonic properties. They are a well engineered speaker using incredible proprietary parts and distributed by a financially stable company ( from what I researched ) that will be or should be around for a awhile. That point is important to me as a consumer if I ever need to sell my piece or I need repairs. The Square Five's were in beautiful glossed walnut in which the British do a great job with. I really enjoyed them for the time that I had them. The list price I think was around $17,000 USD and price as well know is not indicative of performance. However, this should give us a refence point if you will. The bass was good and you could follow it through the music. It was not the best that I heard but was good for my 16' x 22' room and them being placed on the short wall. The mid range was smooth and nice and with detail and kept the speaker's voicing in place. the tweeter was good for the most part but could be a little strident at times but as was noted ; these speakers do not take fools kindly as it will reveal your upstream components. I was using top of the line Accuphase separates along with the top of the line Cardas Clear Beyond cables. I personally was not a big fan of their totally carbon speakers as in my opinion it lacked that '' musical warmth '' that I like in my music. It seems to me that is where speaker manufacturers are going these days in using man made and very inert materials for their speakers enclosures. I don't know to me it looses something ( could be a mental block on my part ) So, they are nice speakers in my opinion and if I were to go back to Wilson Benesch line the only ones I would buy would the Act which through the years now comes with a hefty price tag in which I think that are other speakers I would chose which suit my tastes ; and that's exactly what I did. I think that there are better speakers out there for the money and have a much better re-sale value here in the US. So nice speaker that I enjoyed my time with but not a good value here in the US, but they have a good distributor now in the US as that was a issue in the past. |
Tsumi- Now that is a scary juxtaposition! I can not say the WB model you picture is my idea of a thing of beauty. If it only was available in Red!
Garey, That feedback is exactly what I hoped to read here. Thanks. Older ACT models sell for about $5k it seems. Sounds real said the "Newer" models were the way to go. How new is new? Yesterday I heard the Square 1's and they were pretty darn good in a crappy room. $2,500 used. $5k new. Not sure of age.
I am a value buyer and I just ordered a pair of Fritz Carrera 7 BE speakers. They are a two way, standpoint speakers employing a series type crossover. 7" mid-woofer revealator from scanspeak and a Satori beryllium tweeter from SB. At $3,300 new they define the word value. I have a REL X5 sub for lower bass. This will be a quite a shift for me from the big 15" Tannoys at 200 lbs each but there is a 30 day trial so time will tell.
Happy New Year!!
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“Good heavens!! And I thought Tekty had the patent on the crayola franchise! Or did someone have fun with photoshop?”
WhooooooShhhhhhhh …. The sound of reality barely missing your cognisance Whilst the nod to modern marketing WB Color options are a not to my particular taste they are still a Porsche 911 in a questionable Color scheme The Tekton are a 1970’s Trebant hand brush re painted in a $5 leftover pot of paint |
@chorus congrats on acquiring the Fritz Carreras, great value for the money. |
I have the latest Fritz Carrera BE speakers in mahogany finish. I actually did a detailed comparison between the Carreras, Harbeth m30.1 and Proac d2r a few months ago. You can find my review in the members review section. let me say this speaker trumped my M30.1s, not something I was expecting going in. The midrange and bass will improve quite a bit after 100 hours or so. |
