Its a good Indication of Quad gear in the US by the amount of responses you will see to your post.
Quad S-2
Recently acquired a pair of these speakers to replace my trusty 14 year old Castle Richmond 3i's. According to the manual they need 50 hours run in before sounding their best. I've got about 30 hours on mine to date, but am already really impressed with them and they are a significant upgrade on the Richmond 3i's, which were very well regarded in their day. I haven't owned or heard many speakers in my lifetime for comparison, but these do sound extremely good to my ears and are highly regarded by the few owner reports that I've come across. So, I'm a little puzzled as to why they don't appear to be very popular, at least I rarely see them mentioned on hi-fi forums. I wonder if the reason could be that Quad are not a go to speaker brand like KEF, B&W or Dynaudio to name a few? Or, perhaps more likely, that people, especially those in the UK, tend to shy away from what was originally a UK manufactured speaker that is now a part of the IAG group and manufactured in China? Then again, the answer could be simply that the S-2 simply doesn't appeal to many folk, perhaps due to a dislike of ribbon tweeters?
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Np @moffer. Would love to see your system setup here on the Gon. I believe ProMusica in Chicago carries the S2 and it sounded pretty good when I heard them. Yes, with those ribbon tweeters, try to be as precise as you can. You will be rewarded with excellent sound. I recently purchased the Bosch GLM 30 laser measure, and trust me, I was about 1/2" to an inch off using tape measure, trying to measure 6 feet into the room to the front of the speaker face. With laser measure, it is not only easy, it also places the speakers at perfect distance from walls on back and sides. |
I have heard the S and Z series and eventually settled on the Z1s. It's not going to be a popular because it is not an exciting speaker. It's the type of speaker that you probably won't bring home if you only spend 10-20 minutes auditioning, but the choice would be clear if you really take your time to listen to all of the details and dynamics. It's also one of the more analytical speakers, and at that price point, most people would go for accentuated bass and highs, or focused vocals. But yeah, if people took the time to listen, they will find Quad speakers to be very revealing and satisfying. My youtube vid review of the Quad Z1s https://youtu.be/kEca-2rjLik |
A lot of people are just fed up with Chinese made products of any kind due to poor quality control there, so might be hesitant to buy Chinese Quads. Chinese companies are notorious for buying up well known name brands and running their products into the ground that way. I have been burned enough times on Chinese products, not audio yet, that I am very leery of anything from there, and avoid anything made there like the plague. It makes buying stuff tough, as it seems they make just about everything and anything over there at present. I am looking for speakers now and will be exploring where each and every one is manufactured, considering Chinese made to be a black mark. Nothing to do with being patriotic. I really loved the early Quad electrostatics and always wanted a pair. Sadly since they’re Chinese made that will never happen.for me now. That’s not to say your Quads aren’t great and won’t last forever, just pointing out the trend and reputation of Chinese goods across the board. Mike |
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