Help needed with understanding different speaker sounds...

[admin_exported]

Hi All, I have two systems and 4 pairs of speakers to try between them..

1. Wharfedale Diamond 10.1's - can sound a little boxy and muddled, bass is there but may be coloring the sound...

2. Wharfedale Evo2-8's - wonderfully smooth and silky but can sound a little 'small' with seemingly no bass - that is until you put on a track like Kanye Wests 'Love Lockdown' and realise there is loads which goes suprisingly deep, it is just not prominent...

3. Quad 11l2's - very focused and detailed with very tight bass, can sound a little bright...

4. PSB Image B25's - great sound spoilt by what seems to be bloated bass

I have tried these on two sets of electronics in different rooms and they seem to have similar characteristics - NAD C515 / 315 and CA 540v2 Amp and CDP...

Now my conundrum - what constitutes good sound? Am I expecting too much with the kit I have? I like bass but not too much of it hence the standmounters - I know it should be what I like but what should I expect?

I am loathe to buy more kit sight unseen (and unheard) very little to dem at the bottom tip of Africa!

Any thoughts, wisdom, ideas greatfully accepted!

Anthony

 

[Anonymous]

Especially when it comes to bass, room acoustics and speaker positioning is everything. Some speakers might be less sensible to positioning, but at least you should move your speakers around a little before making a final judgement.

As for matching speakers and amps, in my experience there's only one thing that really matters: That the amp has the power the speaker needs. Some speakers can do with anything; others needs a lot of watts to do their best.

 

[Anonymous]

What constitues good sound ?

How about ... what pleases you, brings a smile to your face, sets your toes tapping, has you enjoying the music not indulging in some audio based navel examining.

 

[Anonymous]

If ive got to pick out of the speakers you mentioned, then it would be the wharfedsles or quads.

Get some good stands, play around with their positioning and some chord SS cable, then you will have a good sounding balanced sound from them.

 

[Anonymous]

I recently was tasked with choosing a system for my 94 year-old Gran .... and found a similar view to you on the Wharfedales .... ended up with some Monitor Audio RX1's which were more together and musical.

Good sound .... that is when your system makes you want to listen to it more - it grabs your attention through some facet of the sound that means you want to flick through more and more music - whether that is favourite tracks or whole albums ..... you should know when you find it - we all have different preferences - but the above is often true when we find what we want.