Tyler/Salk sensible alternatives to Gallos?

Tvad, frankly, when I got the Newforms about five years ago, I never gave any consideration to the height of the ribbon. And I have been happily playing along with them ever since, probably for that very reason. More I think about it, I may already own the perfect speaker for my needs. The 400 watts from the Halcro would really drive these relatively inefficient (91db) speakers better than the 30wpc (albeit Class A) pumped out by the Pass. But then for the house, I can already see a pair of Khorns anchoring the corners. They are in the range of 108db, making the Pass a much stronger partner than with the Newforms. Tvad, really greatful for your suggestion.

Agree with Miklorsmith (totally). They IMO are not a musician's speaker. I spent about 2 hours auditioning them at a dealer and my conclusion was they are fast and open, and can "slam" - which makes for great audiophile WoW factor. Drum solos sounded great. Horns sounded pretty good. But they are not "neutral", i.e. timbrally or harmonically accurate. String quartets sounded very shrill, larger orchestral stuff was just mush. I had high hopes amid the hype, as I thought their looks and size would have high WAF, but I really couldn't stand them.

You may not feel the same way, but I would be wary of buying these before listening to a pair.

Achieving decent soundstaging across a wide listening area requires taking psychoacoustics into account. The ear localizes sound by two mechanisms - arrival time and intensity. Arrival time will inevitably be skewed in favor of the closer speaker if you're off the centerline. So to maintain an acceptable soundstage from off-centerline, ideally you'd want a configuration where the farther away speaker is actually a bit louder than the one you're closer to. Perhaps the simplest solution is a geometric one - namely using an extreme amount of toe-in, like about 45 degrees, such that as you move closer to one speaker you're also moving more on-axis of the farther speaker. Most speakers are louder on-axis than they are off-axis, at least in the higher frequencies where most localization cues come from. Note that most speakers are not designed for this configuration and so most do not really work very well with it. The radiation pattern has to be unusually well-controlled or else the soundstaging or tonal balance (or both) falls apart with this much toe-in. But it's not like you can use less toe-in and get nearly the same results - the tweeter axes have to cross well in front of the listening area if you want that freedom to move side-to-side without the soundstage (and tonal balance) collapsing.

In order to get consistent tonal balance throughout the room, you want the first-arrival frequency response and the power response (summed omnidirectional response) to be very similar. One key here is to look at the first-arrival sound from the two speakers combined, rather than at just one. That same extreme toe-in that gives us decent soundstaging over a wide area can also give us consistent tonal balance over a wide area if the speakers are designed with this as a high priority.

Decent soundstaging across a wide listening area and consistent tonal balance throughout the room are important to me, and I gravitate towards designs that can do this. The Klipschorns suggested by Tvad are among the relatively few loudspeakers that can do both.

Duke
dealer/manufacturer

Opalchip your comment "not...timbrally or harmonically accurate" puts the Gallos down on my particualr dance card. As a musician and student of the sound and technique of great jazz musicians, my goal is to put together a system that is as sonically neutral as possible, or at least one that can be colored as I choose. Hence the tube pre and Halcro amp, whose strengths are transparency and with the guts to drive anything . When I listen to Paul Desmond's melifluous alto, I want to hear what he sounds like - not what the speaker sounds like. As I delved into the possibilities, I discovered the Harbeth's are described as faithful to the sound. This is what I am looking for - along with the soundstage and imaging that the Gallo's are famous for. As I said above, I may already own the speakers I need. The Newforms are well over 6', and seem, to my ear to be faithful - as much as I can tell, never having the honor to hear Desmond, Stitt, Ammons and the like. In my studio, where they can have their space, and driven by the Halcro, I believe I will get that sound. At least it is a good first step. And the Khorns to fill the Newform's shoes in my large living space are a very economical option (used) and will scratch that old itch. Opalchip, I appreciate your musician's perspective.