Floorstanders - £1,500 max. Advice, please...

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Andrew Everard

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6th.replicant:Surely this is the type of 'device' that features in Andrew Everard's blogs..?

Nah, don't do the kind of parties where they have chocolate fountains...
 
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Anonymous

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plastic penguin:maxflinn:

just spotted these at sevenoaks 6th , wilson benesch square 2 .. £1250 ?? just thought id mention it ..

Ooo, don't tempt me. Do I love Wilson Benesch? you bet I do - not sure whether they'll sound any good with Leema though...
wouldnt have a clue about them pp , i read the whfi review though , a bit surprised that for the money they cost , that they are so prone to tumbling over
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why only three legs ?? no good in my house ..

perhaps they took theyre styling from this

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wilson benesch trotter
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......
 
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Anonymous

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plastic penguin:maxflinn:

just spotted these at sevenoaks 6th , wilson benesch square 2 .. £1250 ?? just thought id mention it ..

Ooo, don't tempt me. Do I love Wilson Benesch? you bet I do - not sure whether they'll sound any good with Leema though...

Well, the Naim Nait 5i didn't have enough grunt to drive them, at least to my ears.
 

6th.replicant

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Been cleaning/checking some old loft-dwelling kit before handing over to a relative.

Just for a giggle, I hooked up the speakers - standmounts on Soundstyle Z2s - to the CD37/A38/P38. OK, so their sound is not as pure and is a tad 'small' but IMHO they have more 'going on' in the mid-range, especially bass, compared to the Argon 3Ls.

I'd love to say they're a pair of vintage classics, but no, just a 4-year-old pair of Wharfedale Diamond 9.1s, which, after a quick Google, can be found for c. £100 new.

The Argon 3L's RRP is c. £2,300.

Umm...
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Anonymous

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Musicality versus hifi? Detail retrieval versus less detail/range for a less offensive listen?
 

6th.replicant

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igglebert:Musicality versus hifi? Detail retrieval versus less detail/range for a less offensive listen?
Well said, but also, I suspect, the difference 'tween metal tweeters/drivers vs paper-type? What does Spendor use for the A5/A6?
 
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Anonymous

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Spendor use EP38 for their midrange drivers. This is a plastic polymer that they've created inhouse. I think they use another called EP39 for their bass drivers.
 

6th.replicant

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igglebert:Spendor use EP38 for their midrange drivers. This is a plastic polymer that they've created inhouse. I think they use another called EP39 for their bass drivers.
Thanks for insight.

Whatever exotic composite Spendor may use, it sure ain't metal.

Hmm, methinks I've learnt something tonight - be wary of demo'ing speakers with metal tweeters and/or drivers.
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caddyhound

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Please keep going as we are all agog! I reckon the FB1i's will give you what you are looking for but looking forward to the review.Good luck.
 

6th.replicant

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caddyhound:Please keep going as we are all agog! I reckon the FB1i's will give you what you are looking for but looking forward to the review.Good luck.
Cheers! Yes, methinks the FB1i is very promising 'on paper'. And I really hope that the dealer's D18s have been properly run-in - I've read that the D18's low-frequency bass response doesn't really kick-in 'til c. 300 hours?

FWIW, I'll update on Fri eve.
 

6th.replicant

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Kevin Stephens:If the tweeters in my Monitor Audio GS10s are anything to go by you may find the GS20s worth a try
Thanks for the thought, but I'm really after floorstanders' low-end bass for when playing classical music.
 
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Anonymous

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6th , have you heard monitor audio rx6s ? i know they are a class below what your looking at , but they aint half bad to my ears , and they are very bassy ..

edit .. im getting a bit carried away here whilst listening to my fledgling rx6 system arent i
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...

pmc , spendor , proac etc would eat them for breakfast wouldnt they
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6th.replicant

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Demo'd ATC SCM40, PMC FB1i and ProAc D18 on Friday. Liked the dealer, Paul Green Hi-Fi (PGHF) in Bath, very much - friendly, helpful, knowledgeable and not pushy in the slightest. And they made me a cuppa char.
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Found the PMC FB1i to be too forward, with synthetic- and bright-sounding brass instruments and strings during jazz and classical - Retrospect Trio's Purcell: Ten Sonatas In Four Parts SACD was rendered a screeching horror.
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The FB1i also lacked appropriate bass extension.

Felt that the ATC SCM40 merely offered more of the same, albeit with slightly better bass extension and a smidge more mid-range detail. And erk ahlors, what a munter! Remove the grille and it looks like some lash-up from Mad Max.
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The ProAc D18? Mmm, now we're cookin'. At last, a speaker that, IMHO, challenges the Spendor A6? Via the D18, Julian Bream's guitar sounded like, well, an Jos‚ Romanillos-made guitar and not some tinny, factory-built buzz box that costs 50 quid. The D18 also has a wee bit more texture and depth during rock, electronica and soul compared to the A6, but perhaps that's because the former can be, and was, bi-amp'd? And this pair of D18s have clocked up many hours of run-in, hence the bass extension was also impressive...

For example, the extremely deep bass synth during Massive Attack's Flat Of The Blade was delivered with impressive ease - it was subwoofer-esque and dramatic, but not overpowering/unbalanced.

However, when playing Murray Perahia's Goldberg', the grand piano sounded 'small' through the D18, compared to the A6's authentic sense of scale and timbre. Although, the demo room at PGHF is not ideal - it's a tad wee, with a large window-area and office-type partition walls (ie brittle and thin). The fellas at PGHF acknowledge that the acoustics are lacking, which is why they've offered me a home demo with their D18s over a w/e. Very tempting.

Meanwhile, later today (Sat) I'm going to investigate the Totem Forests that Igglebert discovered. And I've already been to the bank, just in case...
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Anonymous

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You sound like me, so many speakers just seem too bright! I'm surprised the FB1s lack the bass extension you want though, but they're great fun with pop.

Good luck with the Totems. No idea what they sound like but they seem to be very highly acclaimed.
 
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Anonymous

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Can,t go wrong with the beautiful Spendor A6, does everything you want.
 

6th.replicant

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Eureka! The Totem Forests "are in the house".

They. Are. Freakin'. Awesome.

Real 'keepers', for sure.

Cheers for the clue, Igglebert
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Stunning separation; amazing detail but without any hint of sibilant vocals or a bright/artificial top-end; loadsa mid-range oomph and texture; superbly integrated subwoofer-esque bass extension when/where appropriate; awesome 3D-like soundstage - the whole room is simply alive with beautiful sounds
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But perhaps the Forests do deserve a cable upgrade? Methinks a decent 100% copper 'multi-multi'-strand would release even more detail and texture?

I recently heard the vinyl version of Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life via an amazing setup. Can't remember brands (all very obscure) or model names but the TT looked like an aluminium fetishist's wet dream, while the amps and various other 'boxes' resembled prototypes made in a garden shed. Anyway, because Songs' is an album that I've owned and loved since its release and this fella's setup sounded so incredible, I simply sat there and sulked while grinding my nashers with envy.

As I type, I'm listening to Songs' via the Forests/CD37/A38/P38 - and I ain't jealous any more
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Many thanks to all who offered advice.
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6th.replicant

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maxflinn:very good 6th
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, any chance of a few pics
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Don't have a scoobie how one posts personal pics on the interwebbings, but here's a brochure pic of the type/finish currently pumping I Am Kloot's Sky At Night into my sitting room:

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Yoiks, can they do loud! Yet, they're a relatively wee 87cm-tall. Beautifully made, too.
 

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