Spendor – To Dry?

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Hi, I demoed the Spendor A5 speakers on Saturday with my Cyrus 8XPd amp.
The sound was crystal clear and there was a solid distinction between instruments... however the overall sound seemed a bit thin or dry.
I then tried the cheaper B&W CM7 speakers. These were not quite as clear but seemed to provide a richer sound with a stronger bottom end and a more musical blend.
Is there anything you could recommend that has the clarity of the A5s but the warmth of the CM7s??

Thanks,
Conor

 

[Anonymous]

Dynaudio speakers are popular with Cyrus owners.

 

[chebby]

PMC GB1i (about the same price as A5's)

Rega RS5 or RS7 if you have a Rega dealer nearby.

 

[Anonymous]

I use A5s with Kandy - the combo is not dry at all. It is quite lively with great clarity and definition. The thing with Spens, just like WHF said, you need to listen for a bit to appreciate them. Home demo is recommended. They are not 'in your face' but are amazing for decent listening sessions.

 

[Anonymous]

It almost sounds as if the Spendors were revealing your amp's sound a bit by that description. Try the Spendor A6 if you want a bit more bass bloom. Dynaudio tend to sound very dry indeed to me. Proac speakers might be worth a look if you can cope with a brighter treble.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the advice so far!

Didn't realise that amps need to be burned in the same way as speakers.

My amp was brand new so maybe that could have been part of the issue?

 

[Bodfish]

If the amp was boxfresh too then I'd definately wait a couple of months before deciding on changing anything.

As far as the A6 goes, I can't personally report 'bloom' in my system

 

[Anonymous]

There is no way of proving "burn in" on amps, as soon as the amp has been left on for a few hours you are hearing it at it's best. i can appreciate how speakers can definitely improve but not amps. I think it is more you getting used to the sound of the amp.

 

[Anonymous]

Bodfish:
If the amp was boxfresh too then I'd definately wait a couple of months before deciding on changing anything.

As far as the A6 goes, I can't personally report 'bloom' in my system

Compared to the A5 the A6 sounded like they had more bass bloom to me.

 

[Bodfish]

hi fi newbie:There is no way of proving "burn in" on amps, as soon as the amp has been left on for a few hours you are hearing it at it's best. i can appreciate how speakers can definitely improve but not amps. I think it is more you getting used to the sound of the amp.

From a Bryston manual:

'Each and every Bryston audio product undergoes an extensive quality control "burn-in" procedure. Following a complete operational checkout, every amplifier is placed on a test-bench and run for 100 hours at full output (one-hour on/one-hour off for additional thermal stress), with a high frequency square-wave input and a capacitive load. This extremely rigorous burn-in quickly "matures" components and weeds out any potential premature failures.'

This isn't unusual. If there wasn't something in it why would they advertise the fact? It isn't really a great marketing point is it?

 

[Anonymous]

I think this is confusing the concept of burn-in changing the sound versus burn-in testing for component failure before shipment, something that can save a manufacturer a lot of time and money.

 

[jc.com]

igglebert:I think this is confusing the concept of burn-in changing the sound versus burn-in testing for component failure before shipment, something that can save a manufacturer a lot of time and money.

Either way, if the amp's working, it's working. The components should mature, whether it's done during manufacture or in your living room. Of course, if a manufacturer does this, it means you shouldn't really notice a change at home.........unless there's a "proper" way to burn in to change the sound?

 

[Bodfish]

igglebert:I think this is confusing the concept of burn-in changing the sound versus burn-in testing for component failure before shipment, something that can save a manufacturer a lot of time and money.

Not really confusing, that's why I bolded out the bit about the component 'maturing'. The whole piece is talking about two processes and I think we'd all comend Bryston for a 100 hour soak test even if was only to prove reliability - not many places you get a 20 year manufacturer guarantee these days!