Warm-Smooth bookshelf speaker

[Cycleman]

Well i felt kef doesn't have good vertical stage. I listen them with arcam fmj 39.

I listen pmc with bryston..... And was very dry..... Without harmonics at all. I was dissapointed like i nevr want to listen them again.

I agree that focals are better than b&w.

 

[Andrewjvt]

Well i felt kef doesn't have good vertical stage. I listen them with arcam fmj 39.

I listen pmc with bryston..... And was very dry..... Without harmonics at all. I was dissapointed like i nevr want to listen them again. 

I agree that focals are better than b&w. 

I'm sure the dryness or lack of harmonics was actually a low noise floor or lack of distortion.
Give it time

 

[QuestForThe13thNote]

Well i felt kef doesn't have good vertical stage. I listen them with arcam fmj 39.

I listen pmc with bryston..... And was very dry..... Without harmonics at all. I was dissapointed like i nevr want to listen them again.

I agree that focals are better than b&w.

not sure what you mean there, no harmonics? Pmc designs with bryston are some of the best you can get.

 

[drummerman]

Well i felt kef doesn't have good vertical stage. I listen them with arcam fmj 39.

I listen pmc with bryston..... And was very dry..... Without harmonics at all. I was dissapointed like i nevr want to listen them again. 

I agree that focals are better than b&w. 

not sure what you mean there, no harmonics? Pmc designs with bryston are some of the best you can get. 

Perhaps as far as accuracy is concerned. I understand this may not float everyone's boat.

I do wonder however if the OP should perhaps look at valves rather than SS given his preferences.

Icon Audio do reasonably powerful examples at sane prices.

 

[mond]

MY AUDIO DESIGN (MAD) 1920 speakers might fit the bill for you, these are the speakers that I use. They have a smoothness and warmth to them but can rock out a bit when asked to do so. Although rear ported they are designed to go near to wall and work well in small rooms. You probably won't find a dealer mind, but I imagine you could try and return if not happy, you would have to check. Quite a few reviews out there on them....

Made in England, well built, sound great (the opposite of bright!) Understated look that I like but others may not!

 

[BigH]

Well i felt kef doesn't have good vertical stage. I listen them with arcam fmj 39.

I listen pmc with bryston..... And was very dry..... Without harmonics at all. I was dissapointed like i nevr want to listen them again.

I agree that focals are better than b&w.

I think PMC are quite dependent on the amp, I heard them with I think it was Audiolab and they were clinicial and cold. You really need to try different amps. You can't really compare Kef and Arcam with PMC with Bryston. Was that at the same dealer? Maybe Kef with Bryston would work better? I don't know Bryston. Soundstage could be to do with the positioning and/or room.

 

[BigH]

He is not in the UK.

 

[BigH]

are not just for beginneers, their 800 series are rather expensive, around £20,000.

 

[jaxwired]

Not sure if this was mentioned but I highly recommend trying dynaudio based on your preference for a richer earthier sound. A pair of the older contours would be exactly the rich sumptuous sound you are after.

 

[Cycleman]

Luckily i am not from uk. Too much rain there haha
Ps: i know my english is bad sorry for that. I know you get angry killing your language.

The b&w 800 have small difference with the cm models. That i am talking about... But is another story.

Pmc was cold clinical with bryston. Maybe something else was the problem. Maybe i don't like it at all.

Dynaudio is 4ohm and wants 180watt...is difficult speaker. So better to find something else.

Focal electra is my love... There are some friends saying that is not problem my room for electra. The company says the opposite. If will find out the truth then i will decide what to do with harbeth.

 

[drummerman]

Luckily i am not from uk. Too much rain there hahaPs: i know my english is bad sorry for that. I know you get angry killing your language. 

The b&w 800 have small difference with the cm models. That i am talking about... But is another story. 

Pmc was cold clinical with bryston. Maybe something else was the problem. Maybe i don't like it at all. 

Dynaudio is 4ohm and wants 180watt...is difficult speaker. So better to find something else. 

Focal electra is my love... There are some friends saying that is not problem my room for electra. The company says the opposite. If will find out the truth then i will decide what to do with harbeth. 

Seems like you have made your mind up as you shoot down pretty much any other suggestions.

One thing I would say is that you are coming from a beginner's system and it's tricky to make such a step up in isolation ie. With no supporting components of equal ability. You need to have a plan and ideally know what your system will look like once complete, at least a little bit.

It can get complicated (and very, very expensive )once you start paying a lot for HiFi. No guarantees for happiness.

However, it's good you heard something you like. I hope it works the same in your room.

I concur with jaxwires suggestion of (certain) Dynaudio's though he has vastly more experience with the brand. I once auditioned some active Dynaudio (Focus 110a) and they had a full, warmish balance. It was only the the lower treble that prevented them from being superb imho. Perhaps break up modes of the bass/mid driver rather than a characteristic of the Esotech tweeter but we (Darren and I)were unable to iron this out with the tone controls at the back of the speaker. Still, I felt they had a better tonal balance than the AVI Actives next to them at the time. Others may disagree.

 

[mond]

When space is limited it's important to find speakers that work well in corners or near a wall, some do fit this bill but many more don't. Positioning can be very important to how the speakers will sound so take care with this element! Brands like Audio-Note do work in corners / near walls , as far as I know many speakers like Dynaudio and maybe PMC need more breathing space.... No point buying speakers for a small room and then having to place them 3 feet away from the wall.... you will be tripping over them

 

[mond]

Maybe go for a sealed box design, Spendor do a small sealed speaker, as do ATC and Harbeth?

 

[BigH]

Actually England does not get that much rain, in south-east and east about 600mm a year. Yes the west does get more.

Which country are you in?

 

[gasolin]

Actually England does not get that much rain, in south-east and east about 600mm a year. Yes the west does get more.

Which country are you in?

???

 

[BigH]

If you like the focal electras, having seem images they probably are too large for your room, why not look at some smaller versions, but bookshelf speakers will generally have less bass than large floorstanders. Problem is in a small room you could have lots of bass problems and then you may need to invest in room treatment, such as bass traps. So take into account room size when demo-ing speakers. Different sound may take some getting used to so don't just hear them for a short time.

 

[BigH]

Actually England does not get that much rain, in south-east and east about 600mm a year. Yes the west does get more.

Which country are you in?

???

See #35. I see this forum does not when you reply to a post indicate the correct post number.

 

[BigH]

he b&w 800 have small difference with the cm models. That i am talking about... But is another story.

Are you getting that from the CM marketing?

 

[Cycleman]

About cm & 800 yes. I go to local shop and i make test a to b with the same amp(rotel) and with good room. Ok i have a little more detail but i don't think that worth to upgrade.

Electras bookshelf have a 6.5 inch bass i think isn't problem so much but i am still fear off it cause company says for biger room. For sure in the future i will make my room better but not now. I don't want to be in bigger problem choosing wrong speaker cause i know it will be cost me a lot and perhaps with not good results. But i think there is a way to fit electra in my room.... Thats why i have hope and i still saying about it.

The problem is that is difficult to demo it in my room.here Is not like england. Maybe i must change country

 

[kukulec]

"Ribbon speakers like elac don't have character. i agree about smoothness but they lack in sound stage (intruments aren't so seperated)." - i have an elac, i will buy another, the BS403. I heard: elac fs147, 197, 403, 407, 409, 249.2, 249,3 and some more. what you write is simply not true, actually i doubt you have ever listened a proper ribbon speaker with a good setup. based on what you want, i can imagine that you would enjoy an elac, 244 or 403. compared to your speakers, the focal aria 906 would be an improvement also.

 

[BigH]

About cm & 800 yes. I go to local shop and i make test a to b with the same amp(rotel) and with good room. Ok i have a little more detail but i don't think that worth to upgrade.

Electras bookshelf have a 6.5 inch bass i think isn't problem so much but i am still fear off it cause company says for biger room. For sure in the future i will make my room better but not now. I don't want to be in bigger problem choosing wrong speaker cause i know it will be cost me a lot and perhaps with not good results. But i think there is a way to fit electra in my room.... Thats why i have hope and i still saying about it.

The problem is that is difficult to demo it in my room.here Is not like england. Maybe i must change country

Your local shop has B&W 800s? How much are they? I hear they need high power amp like the Bryston’s 4B SST. I thought the Focal electra were large floorsatnders. As I see there is bookshelf version that maybe ok. You know they have metal tweeters? They are not said to be warm either. Can you get a home demo? Or return if not happy after butying?

 

[Cycleman]

B&w 685 s2 have 580e.the manual says that wants 120w max but i real life they want 200 for solid clear sound. The tweeter amazing roll off with the power and the drum very good tight image. With bryston or krell they are good choice.

My bad electra have the bookshelf and the floorstand. I was saying about bookshelf with the 6.5inch mid bass. Yes they have metal tweeter also but for some reason are involving and warm..... The b&w are from the top ten hard-cold-clinical speakers in the world. Also i play them into 7mx7m room and the room was full off music. Id the site also writes that id for minimum 20m2 and max 30m2.

I can't take demo the electra to my place......

 

[hybridauth_Facebook_100004211376004]

It could be possible that you are demoing speakers with amplifiers that just aren't good enough for that particular speaker..hence the dissatisfaction of the speakers performance and the difference of opinions to other peoples findings with said speakers ...a rotel with B&W 800's eg?....oh and maybe no one has told you cycle man.....the perfect speaker does not exist..as yet....I'm afraid compromises must be made in some area....for example..my pmc twenty 21's are lacking in the bass department compared to other standmount speakers....but they excel in tight tuneful bass and excellent speed and timing for their price level....also they work very well in my 3.6x4.8 mtr room sited close (10-15cm's)to the wall....they are not perfect...I have had to compromise in the amount of bass that ideally I'd like to achieve...but I don't get any boom or bloated bass in my room.....if I go with a speaker with larger drivers and near wall siting....it's not going to be very bearable.

 

[Cycleman]

Mark a big thanx mate for your answer.

I had listened b&w rotel.

Well i am not trying to find the paradise. Just the speakers that does fit to my room and also to my taste.

Your room is like mine 4.5x3.7 but i have space enough. I can put the speaker 1. 5m from the front wall.

Well pmc is good speaker but it doesn't have earthier voices. Maybe is that you saying about amp. I listen them with bryston. Was cold and clinical. Speed very good as you say. I don't know if with another amp it will be like i want. For example luxman.

Electra bookshelf in demo listening had 2-3meters distance from the front wall.. i imagine it in my room. Maybe it will be a Chaos.

As i told you before i don't know for sure if the electra bookshelf does fit to my 16m2 room. The company says from 20m2 to 30m2....so maybe i must trust it.

On the other hand harbeth is near field speaker... I like it but for a differrent reason. And you can put it anywhere.... Its easy to set up.

Focal aria 906 i don't think so that is competitive with 2000e speakers.

Let me know if anyone knows something similar with focal speakers. As you say mark.... There isn't perfect speaker. So harbeth is a solution that i think i can live with it.

Finally dali menuet, rubicon 2 is good enough but for sure doesn't have better spaeakers unit from harbeth's.

 

[rainsoothe]

Don't look at the specs, and let your ears decide. Just because Dali or B&W have lowed budget speakers than Harbeth's cheapest, doesnt' mean their similarly priced speakers are not competitive. In fact that's exactly what they are, direct competition. Also, at 2000 euro, you'll only find the Harbeth P3esr, which, even if they sound fantastic, completely lack enough bass (because of their size) to give music enough body to be enjoyable. I'd take any "budget" speaker (with midrange and highs that fit my tastes) that goes lower over them for that reason alone. This is MY preference, for MY ears.

Also, try to audition Naim (either XS, Supernait 1, XS2 or Nac202 or NacN172XS + Nap200) with the new Spendor A2 or A4 or even A5R. Or Dynaudio stuff.