I think I could just spec my needs and ask you people some advices but somehow I wanted to make a little story too. Might be long but please check it out. Also forgive my imperfect english.
My musical life started young, with my dad in the 70s would on friday evening have some beers go into our basement, kneel alone in the darkness and sing "I talk to the wind" with king Crimson or listen to some great Terje Rypdal jazz or Pink Floyd. That was here in Quebec but very British in the bands playing. I always had for granted that a stereo system sounds great. I got older and everything changed around 1990, started playing guitar, started to get recording material, early studio sound cards, 8 tracks tape recorder. I started making music, inspired buy Red Hot guitarist somehow and started recording lots of tapes and giving to friends. Music was an important thing to discover too, and I manage to listen to a lot of realworld studio recordings and got interested in other stuff. I have tried many instruments, played didgeridoo, drum, guitar, bass, piano. Since 2 years ago I would throw some money to instrument or pofessional computer sound cards only.
Then i got some money and started to look at audio stuff, here on this site and a bit around too. I had at the moment that old same technics sa 303 dating from the 70s, vintage Technics speakers, some little cerwin with 7' woofers that i liked and my Sony MDR 7506 for my mixing of albums. So 2 years ago got some more money and decided to get a "good" audio system. I was such a noob back then despite all my musical knowledge! So let me make you laugh about me.
Like i said, I always was given for free good audio and many cheap systems I heard sounded decent to me so I tought lets just put litlle bit of money and get some stuff I will keep and give my daughter when she reach the age to leave home. Sounds nice ! I then called my sister: "Sister, Im giving you my cerwins, yamaha ca-2010 or tachnics 303, wont need that stuff anymore, getting the great sound now! new modern hifi sound!"
So I searched internet for a good canadian speaker brand. First I stumble upon is Paradigm. I started with internet reviews, checked the price... they had it at a shop nearby. I went and said to the seller: these are narrow ! The guy then explain to me the new era and sees that I have been disconnected from anything audio for all my life, thinks Im such a noob I'll probably never be able to fault these paradigm anyway. He recommands me to get these, i listen for an our: marantz reference amp (great stuff), accoustic room, high def audio and dac that I never heard before. Im impressed, never heard so much details, usual stuff. I buy it (monitor 9) get a budget marantz 7.1 receiver take that home thinking that a watt is watt.
At first i was excited, the speakers had some details for sure but... And so the but started and frankly it never ended. I contacted a paradigm tech and he pointed the problem: speaker needs at least 100w of clean power. Took me a while anyway to figure the meaning of clean. I was also very annoyed at how bright the thing was. Spent a lot time reading posts around here and realized the pairing thing. I needed a warm amp to tame those highs. Well I then got a Nad 275bee. But still the speakers never seemed to involve me anyhow into the music. I then got an arcam DAC, no success, then got a turntable, and phono pre, no success there neither, upgraded to better cartridge ortofon 2m blue, same thing. Got better cables, no difference there. It must be the tweeter I tought. Need a soft dome. My budget was getting low so I ordered a pair of Boston A26 higly rated here. Listening and no magic at ll again.
I went many time for diner at my sister house, she was playing proudly that old system of mine and it was in your face, sooo much more musical. A tube amp ! That must be it ! Last fall I tried musical paradise mp 301 tube amp, then things started to be awhile but finally I started to look again. Different tubes ! I have tons of tubes laying around and spent 3 months swapping tubes non stop. At least the last part was pretty fun. Last week for my birthday had a party and my sister coming. I made her listen to a bunch a tubes, turntable, dac, preamp, power amp, the Boston, the Paradigm. But obviously I knew, because I felt it in my guts, the sounds could get pretty detailed, pretty bassy, but the musicality : absent! She said: not impressed ! I couldnt comment, cause deeply I was not either. She said to me, it must be the wood vibrating. I though of it but... I finally got it all in my head and the only thing that came to me is : THE WOOFER SIZE?
Could it be that stacks of small woofer dont have it like one bigger woofer. I enjoy most of the vintage speakers and it seems to be the woofer that is different. Went to a more professional audio place, listened a lot to focal, dynaudio, logan and totems. I think i dont like small woofers stacks, there seems to be something undefined or odd about bass. Totem with a 2 way seems to nail that part. First speeker that got me goose bumps at the shop was the totem sttaf but when the bassy part of the song kicked in, I felt left behind, clearly not enough music filling in the room . Tried the hawk but the goose bumps were gone despite the speakers left me wanting to ear a lot more. So here i am, undecided. Can i get a large woofer bookshelf these days? Should I give the Hawk a try at 3000$ can. How can i restore this involving sound of the pas and just add the definition of hifi gears. Decoding the reviews here it seems that they use the word "fun" or wathever or the kind of speakerrs I like, but cant be sure.
Should i just stay away from small woofers? And to add to the problem i really dont like sub, its a never ending tuning problem and wont make my mids vibrate. I saw some Harbeth, looked vintage but expansive IMO. So can someone wiser then me please enlght me on the problem ? What is the speaker for me? Did anyone took that path and found a way?
Room : 14x15, amp nad 275bee, electro, rock, classic, prrog, some pop too. 3000 US $ would be my maximum budget.
My musical life started young, with my dad in the 70s would on friday evening have some beers go into our basement, kneel alone in the darkness and sing "I talk to the wind" with king Crimson or listen to some great Terje Rypdal jazz or Pink Floyd. That was here in Quebec but very British in the bands playing. I always had for granted that a stereo system sounds great. I got older and everything changed around 1990, started playing guitar, started to get recording material, early studio sound cards, 8 tracks tape recorder. I started making music, inspired buy Red Hot guitarist somehow and started recording lots of tapes and giving to friends. Music was an important thing to discover too, and I manage to listen to a lot of realworld studio recordings and got interested in other stuff. I have tried many instruments, played didgeridoo, drum, guitar, bass, piano. Since 2 years ago I would throw some money to instrument or pofessional computer sound cards only.
Then i got some money and started to look at audio stuff, here on this site and a bit around too. I had at the moment that old same technics sa 303 dating from the 70s, vintage Technics speakers, some little cerwin with 7' woofers that i liked and my Sony MDR 7506 for my mixing of albums. So 2 years ago got some more money and decided to get a "good" audio system. I was such a noob back then despite all my musical knowledge! So let me make you laugh about me.
Like i said, I always was given for free good audio and many cheap systems I heard sounded decent to me so I tought lets just put litlle bit of money and get some stuff I will keep and give my daughter when she reach the age to leave home. Sounds nice ! I then called my sister: "Sister, Im giving you my cerwins, yamaha ca-2010 or tachnics 303, wont need that stuff anymore, getting the great sound now! new modern hifi sound!"
So I searched internet for a good canadian speaker brand. First I stumble upon is Paradigm. I started with internet reviews, checked the price... they had it at a shop nearby. I went and said to the seller: these are narrow ! The guy then explain to me the new era and sees that I have been disconnected from anything audio for all my life, thinks Im such a noob I'll probably never be able to fault these paradigm anyway. He recommands me to get these, i listen for an our: marantz reference amp (great stuff), accoustic room, high def audio and dac that I never heard before. Im impressed, never heard so much details, usual stuff. I buy it (monitor 9) get a budget marantz 7.1 receiver take that home thinking that a watt is watt.
At first i was excited, the speakers had some details for sure but... And so the but started and frankly it never ended. I contacted a paradigm tech and he pointed the problem: speaker needs at least 100w of clean power. Took me a while anyway to figure the meaning of clean. I was also very annoyed at how bright the thing was. Spent a lot time reading posts around here and realized the pairing thing. I needed a warm amp to tame those highs. Well I then got a Nad 275bee. But still the speakers never seemed to involve me anyhow into the music. I then got an arcam DAC, no success, then got a turntable, and phono pre, no success there neither, upgraded to better cartridge ortofon 2m blue, same thing. Got better cables, no difference there. It must be the tweeter I tought. Need a soft dome. My budget was getting low so I ordered a pair of Boston A26 higly rated here. Listening and no magic at ll again.
I went many time for diner at my sister house, she was playing proudly that old system of mine and it was in your face, sooo much more musical. A tube amp ! That must be it ! Last fall I tried musical paradise mp 301 tube amp, then things started to be awhile but finally I started to look again. Different tubes ! I have tons of tubes laying around and spent 3 months swapping tubes non stop. At least the last part was pretty fun. Last week for my birthday had a party and my sister coming. I made her listen to a bunch a tubes, turntable, dac, preamp, power amp, the Boston, the Paradigm. But obviously I knew, because I felt it in my guts, the sounds could get pretty detailed, pretty bassy, but the musicality : absent! She said: not impressed ! I couldnt comment, cause deeply I was not either. She said to me, it must be the wood vibrating. I though of it but... I finally got it all in my head and the only thing that came to me is : THE WOOFER SIZE?
Could it be that stacks of small woofer dont have it like one bigger woofer. I enjoy most of the vintage speakers and it seems to be the woofer that is different. Went to a more professional audio place, listened a lot to focal, dynaudio, logan and totems. I think i dont like small woofers stacks, there seems to be something undefined or odd about bass. Totem with a 2 way seems to nail that part. First speeker that got me goose bumps at the shop was the totem sttaf but when the bassy part of the song kicked in, I felt left behind, clearly not enough music filling in the room . Tried the hawk but the goose bumps were gone despite the speakers left me wanting to ear a lot more. So here i am, undecided. Can i get a large woofer bookshelf these days? Should I give the Hawk a try at 3000$ can. How can i restore this involving sound of the pas and just add the definition of hifi gears. Decoding the reviews here it seems that they use the word "fun" or wathever or the kind of speakerrs I like, but cant be sure.
Should i just stay away from small woofers? And to add to the problem i really dont like sub, its a never ending tuning problem and wont make my mids vibrate. I saw some Harbeth, looked vintage but expansive IMO. So can someone wiser then me please enlght me on the problem ? What is the speaker for me? Did anyone took that path and found a way?
Room : 14x15, amp nad 275bee, electro, rock, classic, prrog, some pop too. 3000 US $ would be my maximum budget.
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