Stereophile review of the $30,000 tekton speakers


We have had many discussions/arguments over tekton speakers in the past, mainly involving a couple posters who thought their $4000 tektons sounded better than the highest price Wilson’s and other high budget speakers.

In the latest Stereophile magazine, they did a review of the $30,000 tekton’s. In this Steteophile issue, they rate these $30,000 tekton’s as class B. When you look at the other speakers that are in the class B section, you will notice most of these speakers range in price from $5000-$8000. So it looks like you have to spend $30,000 on a pair of tekton’s to equal a pair of $5000 Klipsch Forte IV’s sound quality. 
If I compare these $30,000 class B tekton’s, to some of the class A speakers, there are some class A speakers for 1/2 the price (Dutch & Dutch 8C, Goldenear triton reference), or other class A speakers that are cheaper (Magico A5, Kef blade 2).

 

 

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@kairosman      +1       Might be the best way Tekton can increase sales is by criticizing other speaker manufacturers. Tekton is playing the "Blacksheep" role which attracts the DIY/Naysayer and everything is overpriced crowd. Could the Moab have an even higher profit margin(%) over the 801 D4? These are critical facts that will never be released to the consumer. The 801 D4 is superior in every objective way when compared to a Moab but on the subjective side is where Tekton has some wiggle room. Yes, the comment 5/10 Audiophiles could pick the Moab over the 801 D4 could be true, because the more resolving speaker is much more component/cable sensitive. This does not prove anything about the Moab being a better value over the B&W. The Moab might be a fine speaker for the less refined (taste in music/build-parts quality/lesser electronics etc.) audiophile but to directly compare it to a B&W 801 D4 is ludicrous which perpetuates the "giant killer" mythology which Tekton Design is based on.

Speakers all pretty much do the same thing. People choose what they like and how much to pay based on whatever it is that matters to them. Ginormous speakers that cost less than other less humongous designs certainly will have a niche. That’s Tekton. Take ‘em or leave em. Just like any others.  The arguments about what’s better are really pretty silly.   Unless you got something to sell that is. 

"The mid array is a good idea in theory, i.e., the mid range covered by small "tweeter sized" drivers ---> associated IR ---> perceived increase in resolution/clarity/etc. But, in practice, it doesn’t blow other conventional speakers out of the water on above mentioned. What gives? My theory is a suboptimal crossover design for such an array, nullifying the gains a bit." by deep_333 - seems to get to the heart of the most important issue: That Beryllium drivers going down to 770 (unheard of) really ought to have an incredible midrange.  These apparently do not rise to that standard & they really ought to. Crossing over in the lower midrange to 12 inch drivers that are notably boomy (JA mentions the need to have them in large rooms away from walls & lots of talk of stuffing the port to tame the bass from reviewers) makes them decidedly problematic overall. Many measured resonating points as well. The unpriced superspeaker picture on his site may possibly resolve much of this. When it eventually (if ever) comes out.

@dayglow yup, and the underlying dig is that 5 out of 10 audiophiles who like me would still choose to spend $50K on B&Ws instead of $8K on Tektons are audiophools of the highest order given the obvious cost savings for a "superior" speaker. The arrogance and ignorance are truly breathtaking, borderline narcissism actually. One thing I want to share with the community about my eventual choice of speaker after my extensive auditions is that I ended up buying the 804 D4s for less than $12K new from the dealer. It ended up being one of the few speakers that didn't overload my room. The other speaker I had narrowed down the choices to was the YG Acoustics Vantage 3 at $50K. It was a toss up paired with the Gryphon amp I bought between the 804 and Vantage sonically speaking for my ears, the lows and highs are more resolved with the Vantage but the 804 has a more substantial midrange, and for my musical tastes it was a better fit. The D4 version of the 804 is on another sonic planet from the D3 and at the time I purchased it was one of the very best values in hifi for speakers, of course just my opinion lol.