686 or M5? HELP!

[mattc76]

Hi,

I've just home demoed the B&W 686 with my NAD C352 amp. Much better than my MS 902i's, warm with loads and loads of bass (almost too much) but its tight and fun to listen to. I'm slightly concerned that they lack detail at slightly lower vols (<8 o'clock). The guy in the shop said that changing my relatively cheap gale symphony 400 thick copper cable to QED silver anniversary xt HE believes would noticeably improve detail and slightly reduce bass - but I was a bit sceptical. They were massively dynamic and entertaining to listen to I have to say.

Anyway now I have the EPOS M5 being demoed as we speak. First impressions - where's the bass? (campared to 686) but more detail and clarity and brightness!!??

Hmm really not sure what to go for. I'm leaning towards the 686 'cos they're small, compact, look great and are an obvious upgrade, but the eposses sound so detailed....

Matt

 

[drummerman]

Personal preference here but imo there's no comparison and I would without thinking twice go for the Epos. They have good tweeters but if you find them grating perhaps stay away.

I would suggest you listen to a pair of Rega R3's. A small, compact and beautifully made floorstanders with twin bass drivers and front ported. It'll give you the M's clarity with more bass that never booms and is unfussy about positioning.

Dont try and get the sound 'right' with cables if you dont like what you hear in the first instance. Just use them afterwards to fine tune a well matched set-up.

 

[mattc76]

drummerman - thanks. I know you rate the M5's highly (from other threads!) but I'm finding them just a bit too thin. Treble is very clear and detailed but they seem to lack the real lushness, depth, and punch of the 686 - the guy in the shop did say that they could probably do with a bit more running in (the M5's demo set) which I'm trying to do now, but is the overwhelming lack of bass that I'm getting straight away going to change? and is the treble going to tone down a bit? Anyway I've got them till Tuesday to try.

Incidently I asked about demoing (at home) the RS1's (which I thought were very bright/harsh and a bit flat and undynamic in the shop with my amp) and he steered me away (despite them being almost £100 more expensive) saying that for what I like (punch, drive, dynamics etc) they would not suit me AT ALL. He was a very nice guy actually, very helpful etc.

Cheers, Matt

 

[mattc76]

Incidently they did show me the B&W CM1 - an amazingly good looking little speaker, pointing out that they would have more clarity and detail BUT they are about £500 quid!! - hmmm....tempting....

 

[Anonymous]

[quote user="mattc76"]the guy in the shop did say that they could probably do with a bit more running in (the M5's demo set)[/quote]

The M5s do take quite a bit of running in (a couple of hundred hours IMO) and will open up significantly at the lower end. However, if you're prioritising "lushness" in the bass department, you might want to look elsewhere.

 

[crusaderlord]

I have the Epos M5's and also tried the RS1. Epos has much more clarity and detail than the latter. I also thought B&W needed higher volumes to sound good from my testing.

As to your comment on thin bass sound. At first i would certainly agree - i have had Epos M5 for 3+ months now and they are now much better than when i first got them.

Also and this is quite important - i also had the Silver Anniversary XT cable but this is a very treble orientated cable in my opinion which is detailed but lacks smoothness, and i was never quite happy with it. When i sold it and changed to copper based Chord Silverscreen which is not much more at £6 per metre i noticed a massive improvement it was smoother all round and the bass was a little better.

Finally i would have been happy with this set up with my Arcam A70 but eventually i picked up an Arcan FMJ A32 which has 100w power and now the Epos M5 sounds fantastic.

My summary is - Epos are amongst the very best speakers at this price but they need the right cable - copper based is best i feel and also they do like a bit of power driving behind them. I love them and would probably keep them for a long time even though i am tempted by moving to £800 level speakers at some stage given my upgrade to the cd and amplifier i made. If you have the NAD 352 amplifier then you should find Epos a good match i would have thought as that amplifier can punch quite hard from when i auditioned it myself.

 

[drummerman]

[quote user="mattc76"]
Incidently I asked about demoing (at home) the RS1's (which I thought were very bright/harsh and a bit flat and undynamic in the shop with my amp) and he steered me away (despite them being almost £100 more expensive) saying that for what I like (punch, drive, dynamics etc) they would not suit me AT ALL. He was a very nice guy actually, very helpful etc.

Cheers, Matt

[/quote]

I certainly would'nt recommend the RS1 if you want warmth but the 3's are a different speaker altogether and certainly not flat and undynamic! They are obviously a Rega dealer so do yourself a favour and check them out if you can. Other than that I can only re-iterate what I and others suggested in this thread. The CM1's are decent speakers too and in a different league from the 686.

 

[mattc76]

My main worry about the 686's is the low sensitivity (discussed frequently elsewhere). Is my NAD amp C352 gonna have enough power (80W per chan) to get them sounding at their best??