wilson sasha daw or B&W 800 d3 or rockport Atria II or dali epicon 8 or sonus faber amati

I have first generation Sasha's and they are not bright. And I have the inverted tweeter ala Focal-style that has been bitched about for years. If they were bright I would have moved them out long ago.

I'm jealous of those who have newer generation Wilson's.🙄

Just ordered Wilson Sasha DAW and D’Agostino Momentum S250 MxV amp and have not listened to the D’Agostino amp….but I called Wilson and they said they designed the Sasha DAW using D’Agostino S250 amp.

Hope it all sounds good ?

wilson. love them. i have yvette’s. bright and analytical is a common wilson audio myth. they aren’t ...highly musical and a joy to listen to they are. 

Did you make a choice?  I bought the Wilson DAWs and never looked back. Great speaker!  This new generation of Wilson is remarkable there best work yet.  A giant leap forward over anything in their past. 

Speakers are a very personal preference item.  If you can listen to them, then that would best, but sometimes you can't.  All of these options are excellent, but in different ways.

Wilson Sasha Daw - Wilson are very high resolution and revealing speakers (usually using the scanspeak type drivers).  At first they can sound very realistic and you hear every detail, but they require careful matching with electronics because they can sometimes sound too bright and harsh.  It is likely to be just fine with the McIntosh.  Choose these if you want the highest resolution speaker.

B&W 800 D3 - Since I own the D3 series, I am partial to these.  They are very neutral and accurate speakers.  Though, it appears not everyone likes them for some reason.  The tweeter is the most accurate and clean that I have heard.  This could be the problem because it can reveal flaws in other sections of your system.  But they are very realistic and natural sounding speakers to me.  I have seen the D3 matched with McIntosh a lot at shows.

Rockport Atira II - these are interesting speakers.  I have heard them, but they are not my preference.  They are not the highest resolution speakers.  Best I can describe is that they sound slightly creamy and colored, like some of the high-bias Class A amps like the new Krell, Levinson, etc.  They are not very "revealing" or realistic.  It really depends on your personal taste here.  These may not be the best match to McIntosh which is very laid back.

Dali Epicon 8 - these are high resolution and revealing speakers like the Wilson.  The ribbon tweeters can be bright, but with MCIntosh, they should be fine.  They are not as good as Wilson.

Sous Faber Tradition Amati - Sonus Faber are very excellent sounding speakers.  Very natural.  Not as high resolution as B&W or Wilson, but I have loved every one I heard.  I did hear Sonus Faber bookshelves with McIntosh integrated.  You could tell that it was very special and sounded excellent, but it was still too laid back for my personal tastes.  You might like it very much.

If it were my choice, I would probably go with the Wilson because the McIntosh are so laid back in the midrange/highs.  The Wilson's would sound so clean and crisp with the McIntosh, I think it would really shine!  The Dali are okay, but they are just not as good as the Wilson and you wouldn't get all the resolution and tones that the Wilson would provide.

My second choice would be B&W 800 D3.  The B&W might sound more "analog" with the McIntosh, but it could also be a little lush and messy, depending on what wiring you use, etc.  For example, if you use all silver wiring and terminations, it's not going to sound analog and could sound bright and artificial.

Third choice would be Sonus Faber in your list.  The Sonus Faber might give you the most emotional engagement and impact, but it is still too laid back for my tastes (I want attack and excitement!).

My suggestions are all based on your McIntosh electronics.  I have heard Sonus Faber on a older Krell 403e and it was absolutely amazing!  However, I would never match Wilson to this Krell 403e amp because it would just be too bright/harsh (like someone turned up the "sharpness" on the sound wayyy too much).

I have owned Wilson, B&W, and Sonus Faber and listened to Rockport.  I currently have the Sonus Faber Amati Tradition Homage speakers.  I was not a fan of the B&W sound. I thought Rockport for what you get are overpriced.  I compared the Sonus Faber to the Wilson Alexia and felt there was no comparison.  I am glad I ended up buying the SF's.  My listening experience for the last 16 months has been awesome.  Unfortunately, I sold my house and my two channel system so I am starting over.   I have listened to the Wilson DAW but I did not compare to the Sonus Faber.  I am now looking at the Piega Master Line Source 3 as my next speaker.  

Jump on the Rockport Atria 2 ASAP!!!!!!It will sound much better than the others.

For the Sonus Faber Amati Tradition, I actually prefer the Sonus Faber Amati Futura much better.  The newest line isn't always better, and the Futura is more to my tastes.  Just food for thought.  The newest Tradition line, added more treble energy, leaned out the midrange, and are faster and "lighter" compared to the Futura.  It is all a matter of taste, but food for thought.  

I have only listened seriously to two of  the speakers you have listed.  The SF Amati Traditions and the B&W 800D3 both driven by McIntosh tube power.  They were at different dealers under different acoustical setting and different McIntosh equipment.

I thought the B&W’s were harsh sounding and too bright for my ears.  I had difficulty listening to them for more than about 20 minutes because of fatigue.  The sound of the SF’s were much more balanced and appealing to my ears.  They had no harshness and were very musical and well balanced with an excellent soundstage.  Also, my wife did not like the appearance of the B&W’s.

I purchased the SF Amati Traditions which are powered by my Gryphon 300.  I could not be happier with the outcome.  The bass is extremely  tight with excellent attack and decay thanks to the Gryphon. The music has an “airy” quality and the speakers almost disappear in my room. They sound wonderful with all types of music at all volume levels.  The soundstage is wide, deep, and high.  I can listen all day without any listener fatigue.

Of course this is my experience.  Since they are all very fine speakers, I would encourage you to listen to all the speakers you have listed to find the speakers that sound best to your ears. I would also encourage home demo’s of the speakers you like best to know how they sound in your environment with your electronics.

That MA9000 is a NICE piece!

Hi Daniel,
Tough to choose between those; Is there anyway can listen to them first? It's tough to do that, these days, I know. All of those are wonderful!
What is Sweet to your ears is what matters.
I was considering Salk Sound; excellent speakers!
But then I demoed Eminent Technology LFT-8b; I was "done for"! I ordered them!
Check with those you have listed above; they may have dealers who are willing to let you try them for a period of time.
It can be fun; but also a pain in the back side too.