This is my first post here. I currently have a pair of 8361s set up in my listening room for an in home demo. I have owned and heard many excellent speakers over the years. I have a different perspective from many members here in that I have a soft spot for bbc inspired speakers as well as quad es. I listen mostly to classical music. I agree that 8361s have a remarkable amount of clean, excellent, well integrated bass. astounding really for a speaker of their size. They can play much louder than I would ever care to listen. They certainly appear to have no distortion and to be exceptionally clear at all volumes. The detail presented is amazing. I really can hear things on recordings that I had missed before. I have no doubt that they are everything Amir says and that their designers wanted. Nevertheless, my experience is that the speakers are poorly suited for classical or other acoustic music. I think that strings sound harsh and piano brittle. Depsite the excellent measurements and clear virtues of the speaker, the e string on a violin is artificial sounding to me, harsh, unpleasant and cold. I find myself dreading the high notes. The beauty of live acoustical music is just not conveyed by these speakers In my room. The speakers are incredibly impressive, but do not companionable.
Now, all of this is without equalization. I have a GLS system arriving today, and it may improve things. I understand that I am posting a contrary view here. I do not doubt that these speakers are surely all they are intended to be for non-acoustic music, but they produce a sound, at least without eq, that is little like real acoustic instruments. I also understand that most here will take me to be an out of touch subjectivist ignoring the objective measurements. I do not intend to be anti-scientific or disrespectful in any way, but merely to report my short experience experience listening to the speakers. I hope that eq will fix the problems, for the many virturpes of the speakers are obvious, but I would not call them musical speakers, at least for classical music. Do others here who listen to classical music disagree?