Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic. Read 110300 times.

Bemopti123

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #20 on: 6 Mar 2010, 10:49 pm »
Like cars, they know how to design / build stuff.   :drool:

Hopefully with better reliability. 

avahifi

  • Industry Contributor
  • Posts: 4682
    • http://www.avahifi.com
Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #21 on: 6 Mar 2010, 10:53 pm »
Salk HT-4 speakers.  The final version will be displayed for the first time at the coming AKFest the first weekend in May.

Frank Van Alstine

golfugh

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 858
  • Dead Can Dance - Into the Labyrinth
Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #22 on: 6 Mar 2010, 10:56 pm »
Magico M5, without a doubt the best I've heard.

hibuckhobby

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 641
  • On a search for audio nirvana
Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #23 on: 6 Mar 2010, 11:01 pm »
JM Labs Grand Utopia w/all Audio Research
gear at the Audio Research Factory.  Second
would be the Watt/Puppy 7's at the same place.
Properly set up in a well treated room they are
both just spooky good.
Hibuck...

cryoparts

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #24 on: 6 Mar 2010, 11:02 pm »
Sonicweld Pulserod (at CES two years ago, and every day since)
Martin Logan Statements with VTL at CES a while back (were at Caesars Palace).
MBL, two and three years ago at CES (not this last year).
Magico at CES 2009 (not this last year).
Big Wilson's with Lamm at CES 2010.

However, all were "systems".  A great pair of speakers does not a system make.

Peace,

Lee


satfrat

  • Restricted
  • Posts: 10855
  • Boston Red Sox!! 2004 / 2007 / 2013
Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #25 on: 7 Mar 2010, 12:07 am »
Vandersteen 5a and Salk HT-3 have impressed me the most, especially the 5a's. But there are so many loudspeakers I'd love to hear, so many systems out there, it's mindbogling the variations that can be put together that it's nearly impossible to pinpoint the finest loudspeaker w/o taking into account the rest of the chain. But so much fun trying,,  :D
 
Cheers,
Robin

JP78

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 740
Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #26 on: 7 Mar 2010, 12:14 am »
(in no particular order)

- Apogee "The Apogee" (tri-amped with Boulder I believe)
- MBL 101e (though I believe this was paired with 4 of the enormous MBL monoblocks)
- VMPS RM/X (biamped with four Spectron monoblocks)

I've always loved the transparency of planar/ribbon systems, but the above examples were the only ones that kept that with true-to-life dynamics.  To each their own. :)
« Last Edit: 7 Mar 2010, 05:46 am by JP78 »

Big Red Machine

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #27 on: 7 Mar 2010, 12:53 am »
HT4 today.  Definitely the nicest speaker I have ever spent a day with.  There are plenty of great speakers out there I am sure, but for me these things are scary good.

doctorno

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #28 on: 7 Mar 2010, 02:11 am »
MBL reference
Proac D38
Pipedreams, set up right, ..you have no idea..forget the shows :lol:

There are so many great speakers but these guys do it with panache and love.

Karl

TONEPUB

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #29 on: 7 Mar 2010, 02:15 am »
GamuT S-9's, my current reference.

The YG Acoustics Anats, pretty darn close
MartinLogan CLX w/Gotham Sub
Verity Audio Lohengrin II's
Avalon Sentinels

And the Wilson X-2's that I heard at Dave Wilsons house.  Everywhere else, no big deal, but Mr. Wilson himself has a fantastic setup in his house.

cryoparts

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #30 on: 7 Mar 2010, 02:21 am »
And the Wilson X-2's that I heard at Dave Wilsons house.  Everywhere else, no big deal, but Mr. Wilson himself has a fantastic setup in his house.

Ah, forgot to list that system.  Yeah, there is some amazing sound in that dedicated room at Dave and Sheryl Lee's house...

Lee

coke

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #31 on: 7 Mar 2010, 02:41 am »
I have intentially avoided listening to speakers that I can't afford, and because of that, my Salk HT2-TLs are the best speakers I've ever heard  :thumb:


rodge827

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #32 on: 7 Mar 2010, 02:52 am »
Carfrae Little Big Horn  :drool:

Driven by custom made Audio Note gear.

Very Niiiice!!!! :D



« Last Edit: 1 Dec 2011, 01:57 am by rodge827 »

mshan

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 480
Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #33 on: 7 Mar 2010, 03:07 am »
Kharma Ceramique, Vandersteen 5, and Rockport speakers I heard at Stereophile show in NYC years ago.

hometheaterdoc

  • Industry Participant
  • Posts: 451
Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #34 on: 7 Mar 2010, 03:30 am »
Von Schweikert VR-11

I liked the Evolution Acoustics MM3 at RMAF a couple years ago.

The TAD room at CES this year was pretty darn good.

lonewolfny42

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 16918
  • Speakers....What Speakers ?
Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #35 on: 7 Mar 2010, 03:54 am »
Ahhhh....speakers...I like speakers...because without them, I couldn't hear the music... :wink: :lol:

They come in all sizes and shapes - I've heard many....and so many brands...makes your head spin. :o

Back in 2008, at RMAF , I heard a really good pair that I really enjoyed. Not the biggest, nor the smallest...but just right. :D

The Kaiser Kawero loudspeakers....



A few review comments...they have a better way with words...

The LessLoss Audio Devices room featured a pair of Mastersound Marconi 845
mono tube amps driving a pair of German-made Kaiser Kawero loudspeakers
(approximately $50,000/pair).  Interconnect cabling was by Echole.  Each of the
Mastersound amps uses two 845 tubes for a total output of 50 Watts.

It was design of the Kaiser Kawero speakers that impressed me the most.  From the
front, the Kawero looks like your every-day 95-Kilogram two-way speaker utilizing a
ribbon tweeter.  It is substantially more than that, however.  On the rear of the
speaker are a second cone midrange and the cone bass driver; the reflex port is in
the bottom of the speaker.  The RAAL ribbon tweeter can be positioned
independently of the rest of the cabinet so that midrange imaging can be optimized
without compromising high frequency dispersion.  The midrange unit on the front of
the speaker is usable down to 70 Hz!  This is remarkably low for any midrange driver. 
According to Rainer Weber, Technical Director at Kaiser GmbH, the speaker was
designed to keep the entire vocal range free of crossover problems.  The Kaiser
does not use a metal plate to mount its single pair of WBT binding posts on the rear
of the speaker.  It sets the binding posts in a wooden plate, a different type of wood
than that used in the cabinet.  Kaiser believes that this reduces resonance problems
that could affect the incoming signal.  A smaller wooden ring is inset into the top of
the speaker where the ribbon tweeter plugs into it, for the same reason.  The overall
design is best described by the word “fanatical.”  As Rainer pointed out when he
showed me the Kaiser’s shipping crates, “Our shipping crates are better built than
most manufacturers’ speaker cabinets.”

You know something is right when you play Mahler's Symphony No.2 through 50W Mastersound Finals 845 SET monoblocks and not very large Kaiser Kawero 92dB-sensitive speakers and experience an image of tremendous size and weight that effortlessly captures the essence of the symphonic experience.

I totally agree.....a really great sounding system.... :dance:

TomS

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #36 on: 7 Mar 2010, 04:01 am »
Yeah, Chris I couldn't make up my mind to even post a favorite, but  the Kaiser speakers in that system had to be among the very best for sure.  Definitely one for all seasons. 

lonewolfny42

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 16918
  • Speakers....What Speakers ?
Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #37 on: 7 Mar 2010, 04:06 am »
Yeah, Chris I couldn't make up my mind to even post a favorite, but  the Kaiser speakers in that system had to be among the very best for sure.  Definitely one for all seasons.
And if you remember Tom....they were in a very big room...and sound was not a problem...sounded very good... 8)

rpf

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #38 on: 7 Mar 2010, 04:10 am »
Quad 2905s (I haven't heard any of the large electrostats: Soundlabs, etc., would really like to).

Peak Consult Empress


There are others I've liked a lot: Von Schweikert VR7s & 6s in a multi-channel setup; Maggie 3.6s; JM Labs Utopias; and more, but the first two are the standouts.

SlushPuppy

Re: Name the finest pair of loud speakers you have heard
« Reply #39 on: 7 Mar 2010, 04:29 am »
Wow, what a tough question. So many speakers I haven't heard..... Of the ones I have, probably Magnepan 20.(?) and Thiel 3.(?) at the House of Stereo back in the early to mid 90's in Jacksonville, Florida. The Thiels were almost perfect in the room they were playing (amazing bass for their size), but the Maggies playing Pat Metheny "Secret Story" damn near made me cry. I never wanted a loudspeaker so badly in all my life, and I owned Acoustat 1+1's at the time, which were pretty darn good. To this day it's my dream loudspeaker.