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I've owned speakers by.....

Chaconne

Active Member
Joined
Oct 26, 2021
Messages
152
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266
EPI 120
DCM Time Windows
DCM CX-07
Magneplanar MG-2.5R
Magneplanar MG-2.6R II
JM Labs Megane
NHT Super One
NHT Super Two (a REAL sleeper)
Phase Technology PC-80
B&W Matrix 805
B&W Matrix 804
Infinity Primus floorstanders
Spendor SP-3/1P
PSB Stratus Mini
Harbeth Compact 7ES-3
Pioneer SP-BS21-LR
Omega Hoyt-Bedford Type 1 (Returned)
Energy RC-10
KEF Q700
Vienna Haydn Grand
Pioneer SP-BS22-LR
KEF LS50
Rega RS1
Sony SS-CS5
B&W 706 S2
Graham Chartwell LS6
Harbeth P3ESR
Triangle BR02
Falcon LS3/5a Gold Badge
 

Hart

Active Member
Joined
Jan 18, 2021
Messages
152
Likes
348
Location
Bay area
AR 4
Boston Acoustic A-400
ADS 200
PSB Silver I
Aerial Acoustic 7B
HSU TN 1220
JL Fathom f113
Von Schweikert VR-4
Era D4
Acoustic Energy Aego P5
PSB Image 4
Kef Q100
Kef LS-50
Magnepan 1.6
Velodyne Minivee
Q Acoustic Concept 20
JL E110
Revel F35
Magnepan .7

The AR-4 were my fathers, 1965, one of the first real attempts at high fidelity. I don't think the tweeters could do over 12k or so. Stand outs? The A-400s were really great for the time, JL Subwoofers, the little Era speakers were great, the minivee was very potent for it's size. Revel F35 on sale was a great bang for the buck.
 
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Ciobi69

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 27, 2022
Messages
399
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254
in order
behringer 3030a (in use with my pc)
canton karat l800DC
kef R3
teufel s1000 (for my 5.1)
vintage klipschorn

the kef r3 were the most precise , with a subwoofer they were a really nice sistem

now i got the klipschorn equalized with dirac live, and its a masterpiece, linear and crazy dynamic
 

garyrc

Active Member
Joined
Nov 4, 2021
Messages
107
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115
in order
behringer 3030a (in use with my pc)
canton karat l800DC
kef R3
teufel s1000 (for my 5.1)
vintage klipschorn

the kef r3 were the most precise , with a subwoofer they were a really nice sistem

now i got the klipschorn equalized with dirac live, and its a masterpiece, linear and crazy dynamic
Your Dirac is better than my Audyssey, but after quite a bit of fooling around, my Klipschorns, too, are masterpieces, were always crazy dynamic, and can be made to be "linear" (by ear) with different settings. But I don't always want linear. The trace below is typical to use with recordings with rolled-off bass (one result of the "loudness wars"-- sometimes). My ears told me that certain recordings needed this bass boost; it turned out to be 10 dB boost below about 125 Hz! The Klipschorns cross over to a sub at 40 Hz. The boosted bass through the sub is not as marvelously clean & tight as the above 40 Hz range through the Khorns, but since most orchestras & scores don't have much below 40 Hz, I don't hear it often.
RMS avg, psych, Aud Flat.jpg
 

KPlourde

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Apr 29, 2023
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Alphabetical since I can no longer remember the precise order in those middle years.....(~45 years represented here). Models shown for those I remember or could find via Google search. Various end uses: desktop, spare rooms, kitchen, surround sound, soundbar, as well as dedicated 2 channel.

Acoustic Research (AR 28BX)
Boston Scientific
Cambridge Soundworks (Microworks sub/sat)
Definitive Technology (ProCinema 60 System)
EPI
Focal (Naim MuSo 2) Curently in use
Genesis (IM5200 Sub/Sat)
Kenwood
Perlisten (S5m+R212s) Currently in use
Rythmik (F12G-SE)
Snell Acoustics (Type M. Paired w/Velodyne)
System Audio (3070)
System Audio (Comet+SE200 sub/sat) Currently in use
Vandersteen (2Ce)
Velodyne (F-1200)
Verity Audio (Parsifal Ovation)
ZVOX (SB500) Currently in use
 

Ciobi69

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 27, 2022
Messages
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254
Your Dirac is better than my Audyssey, but after quite a bit of fooling around, my Klipschorns, too, are masterpieces, were always crazy dynamic, and can be made to be "linear" (by ear) with different settings. But I don't always want linear. The trace below is typical to use with recordings with rolled-off bass (one result of the "loudness wars"-- sometimes). My ears told me that certain recordings needed this bass boost; it turned out to be 10 dB boost below about 125 Hz! The Klipschorns cross over to a sub at 40 Hz. The boosted bass through the sub is not as marvelously clean & tight as the above 40 Hz range through the Khorns, but since most orchestras & scores don't have much below 40 Hz, I don't hear it often.
View attachment 282177
Looks good man!,you know what i am talking about the crazy dynamic
 

Jp_nh

Member
Joined
Apr 30, 2023
Messages
15
Likes
8
Boston Acoustics
Bozak (Current)
A/D/S (Current)
Polk
Bic America
Elac
Teledyne Acoustic Research
Yamaha
Criterion(Lafayette)
Cerwin Vega
Realistic
Altec Lansing (Current)
HH Scott
Micro Acoustics
Sony
ElectroVoice
Urei (Current)
Pioneer
Cambridge Soundworks
PSB

Wheww! I think all of them since I got into audio around 1999ish.

Edit: I knew I forgot one! EPI

Edit: Forgot two others. A pair of Coral and a pair of Monarchs. In my defense they were easy to forget.
 
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Jp_nh

Member
Joined
Apr 30, 2023
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8
This covers my audio journey from 1978 to present day
Leak 3050
ESS AMT-1
Dali Skyline 2000
Martin Logan Quest
Thiel Cs 3.6
Martin Logan Ascent
Thiel Cs 7
Floating Systems Synthese 1
Marten Django XL
Grimm Audio Ls1
Someone not too far from me has had a pair of ESS AMT-1s up for sale on FB Marketplace for about three months now. I need another pair of speakers like I need a hole in my head, but I'm curious as to how they sound. Been thinking about making an offer to see how desperate they are to unload them.
 

pvanosta

Member
Joined
Feb 22, 2021
Messages
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22
Location
Amsterdam area, Netherlands
I really enjoyed them. They were the first 'high end' speakers I ever heard, as a teenager. When my uncle was ready to let them go, I snapped them up and had the woofer surrounds replaced. They were in my system the longest, of all the speakers I have owned. If they are in good condition (audition them thoroughly) and the price is friendly, your risk is low. Prices have been stable over the past few years and spare parts are readily available.
 

Jp_nh

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Joined
Apr 30, 2023
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8
I really enjoyed them. They were the first 'high end' speakers I ever heard, as a teenager. When my uncle was ready to let them go, I snapped them up and had the woofer surrounds replaced. They were in my system the longest, of all the speakers I have owned. If they are in good condition (audition them thoroughly) and the price is friendly, your risk is low. Prices have been stable over the past few years and spare parts are readily available.
Thanks! Maybe I'll check them out this weekend.
 

serlv

Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2023
Messages
12
Likes
11
Solid
Dahlquist
Infinity
B&W
Polk
Bose
Cerwin Vega
Altec
Paradigm
Corsair
 

direwolf08

Member
Joined
Aug 31, 2020
Messages
63
Likes
53
KLH
Polk
Pioneer
Sony
Bose
Altec Lansing
ELAC
Emotiva
Monoprice
Hsu
SVS
Emotiva
HiVi/Swans
 

tmtomh

Major Contributor
Forum Donor
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Aug 14, 2018
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Radio Shack
Boston Acoustics
B&W
Pioneer
Infinity
Genelec
 

quattro98

Active Member
Forum Donor
Joined
Jun 14, 2018
Messages
143
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116
Location
Chicago, IL
AR Powered Partners 570
NEAR 10M (New England Audio Research)
Infinity Compositions Overture 1
Unity Audio Signature 1 & Signature 3
ADS subwoofer
Polk LSi15, LSiC, & LSiFX
Aerial Acoustics 7B & CC3B
Revel W563
Focal Dome Flax
Rythmik L22
KEF Reference 3 Meta & Reference 2 Meta
 

GXAlan

Major Contributor
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Jan 15, 2020
Messages
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5,953
*JBL / JBL Synthesis
Polk LSi
Revel
NHT
*Magnepan
SB Acoustics
*Bose 901
Sony / Sony ES
Onkyo
Canon
Rogers
*Infinity
Devialet
*Sonos
Pioneer
JL Audio
Velodyne
Outlaw
SVS

* = multiple generations
 

Waxx

Major Contributor
Joined
Dec 12, 2021
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Location
Wodecq, Hainaut, Belgium
I excluded the ones that passed trough my house to trade or repair.

Warfdale (vintage)
Grundig (vintage)
Dyanco (vintage)
Goodman (vintage)
Philips (vintage)
Akai (bought new)
Tannoy (bought new)
Harbeth (stayed in my house for 3 years altough i did not own them)


And many diy, only the Goodmans are still here of those branded speakers. The rest is sold or given away when there was no sale value worth the effort and time.
 

MattHooper

Master Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Jan 27, 2019
Messages
7,195
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11,808
Radio Shack
Boston Acoustics
B&W
Pioneer
Infinity
Genelec

Hi tmtomh,

Which B&Ws did you own?

And how are you enjoying the Genelec (especially in comparison with your old speakers like the B&W?)
 

MattHooper

Master Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Jan 27, 2019
Messages
7,195
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11,808
*JBL / JBL Synthesis
Polk LSi
Revel
NHT
*Magnepan
SB Acoustics
*Bose 901
Sony / Sony ES
Onkyo
Canon
Rogers
*Infinity
Devialet
*Sonos
Pioneer
JL Audio
Velodyne
Outlaw
SVS

* = multiple generations
GXAlan,

Do you ever miss the Maggies?

I excluded the ones that passed trough my house to trade or repair.

Warfdale (vintage)
Grundig (vintage)
Dyanco (vintage)
Goodman (vintage)
Philips (vintage)
Akai (bought new)
Tannoy (bought new)
Harbeth (stayed in my house for 3 years altough i did not own them)


And many diy, only the Goodmans are still here of those branded speakers. The rest is sold or given away when there was no sale value worth the effort and time.

Waxx,

Which Harbeth did you own and what did you think of them?

I had the Harbeth SuperHL5+ for a while. I really like Harbeth speakers and thought maybe I could downsize from my floor standing Thiel 3.7 speakers to the Harbeth. Turned out, though I liked the Harbeth, I felt the Thiels were better in *almost* every way. (Harbeth still had that vocal-range magic). So I sold them. But if I were in my speaker hoarder phase, rather than trying to pair down, I'd enjoy having something like a pair of Harbeth Monitor 30s around.
 

Waxx

Major Contributor
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Dec 12, 2021
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Location
Wodecq, Hainaut, Belgium
GXAlan,

Do you ever miss the Maggies?



Waxx,

Which Harbeth did you own and what did you think of them?

I had the Harbeth SuperHL5+ for a while. I really like Harbeth speakers and thought maybe I could downsize from my floor standing Thiel 3.7 speakers to the Harbeth. Turned out, though I liked the Harbeth, I felt the Thiels were better in *almost* every way. (Harbeth still had that vocal-range magic). So I sold them. But if I were in my speaker hoarder phase, rather than trying to pair down, I'd enjoy having something like a pair of Harbeth Monitor 30s around.
M30.1 and i liked it, it's not a clean neutral speaker, it's a speaker with a voice (=certain colouration due to house curve), but it works very well and is never disturbing. It was owned by my ex, and she left it in my house for years when she had to move to foreign for her job. I off course used it...
 

tmtomh

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Hi tmtomh,

Which B&Ws did you own?

And how are you enjoying the Genelec (especially in comparison with your old speakers like the B&W?)

Hi Matt! Thanks for asking, and good questions.

B&Ws: DM330s handed down from my father; then CDM1SEs I bought myself, followed by CDM1NTs I found used for a great price, and finally original-gen 705s, used for an even better deal. DM330 to CDM1SE was biggest single step up, but 705s were easily the best of the bunch (cleaner mids, much better tweeter, better imaging), and I loved them. Their limitations were obvious, but they have decent directivity so it was easy to EQ down their treble boost, and their room reinforced bass was good enough for enjoyable listening. They were a bit flat-sounding and underwhelming with some material, but never sounded bad or "off" with anything, so really easy to live with once I got them placed and EQ'd to my liking.

Genelecs: 8351s, best speakers I've ever had (and they damn well should be given the price - yikes). Frequency response: more linear than the 705s, and their bass F3 is an octave lower. More energy, impact, and control around the 50Hz kick drum area, and no excess energy around the 80-150Hz area. (Probably why some folks say Genelecs sound lean/bright - they have no mid-bass hump.) Imaging: strongest suit of the 705s, especially the phantom center. But the Genelecs clearly exceed them even there - super-strong phantom center, and at all image locations the Genelecs provide enhanced perception of air/ambience if it's in the recording, or more in-your-face flatness or presence if that's what's in the recording. Soundstage: more or less same width as the 705s, but the Genelecs throw out a modestly taller image, even though I'm pretty sure their concentric drivers are physically lower than the 705s' tweeters. Depth is superior on the Genelecs, mostly because the superior imaging cues enhance the illusion. Distortion: Genelecs very obviously cleaner - that air/presence at different image locations must be at least in part from lower distortion, as is the tighter, more linear-sounding bass. Plus physics, measurements, and common sense tell us there's no way a 20 year-old, 2-way design with a single 6.5" midwoofer built to a $1500 price point is going to compete with the 8351s on distortion performance, especially below a few hundred Hz.

Between the 705s and the 8351s, I had my father's Infinity Kappa 9s as my main speakers for a couple of months. So...

Genelecs vs Kappa 9s: Much more apples and oranges. Frequency response: Kappas have more potential (2x12" woofers per speaker vs two 4x8.5" for each Genelec), but in-room measurements show the 8351s getting to within about 5Hz of the Kappas. Perceptually, bass is different in a way I find hard to describe, but functionally the same/as good at my 75-85dB @3M (aka 85-95dB @1M) typical listening levels. Midrange - both are excellent but Genelecs sound cleaner and smoother. Treble - the Kappas are excellent in some respects but suffer from sibilance, and I've struggled mightily to EQ that down while preserving satisfying perception of treble detail/energy/air. So the Genelecs stomp all over the Kappas in this area, as the Genelecs are smooth and detailed throughout. Imaging: Kappas are less precise than the Genelecs (and that's with Dirac correcting speaker gain and impulse response for the Kappas), but I would not describe the Kappas as deficient, and one can clearly identify the locations of everything with the Kappas. Soundstage: Same width for both, but Kappas win on height, which makes sense since at least 3 of their drivers, covering upper-mid and treble frequencies, are positioned up to a foot higher than the Genelecs' drivers. However, the Kappas' image height it not a foot taller - this stuff is hyper subjective but I'd say maybe 6" taller. Still noticeable though. Depth is similar for both. Distortion: I have less confidence in my subjective impressions on this, but that said the Genelecs just sound cleaner and smoother overall, especially above 1kHz. Speaking of which, the Genelecs sound more cohesive: 4x concentric drivers in a 3-way design seem to work better than 7x drivers arrayed as far as 3 feet apart from each other, even at 3M listening distance.

Overall I'd describe the Kappas as dramatic and the Genelecs as accurate. If you give me uniformly well-recorded music that specifically has no vocal sibilance, no prominent brass, and no prominent electric guitar harmonics, and ask me to listen for 15-20 minutes at fairly high volume - like for example putting on the first couple of tracks from Dark Side of the Moon and just cranking it - I'll probably pick the Kappas.

But if you give me my full music library, with lots of different genres and lots of well-recorded but sonically varying material, and you ask me to listen for 30, 60, or 120 minutes at a time, at a variety of of low, medium and high volume levels, day in and day out, then I'm picking the Genelecs, no contest.

Finally, I should note that I prefer slightly narrower dispersion, and I prefer precision over envelopment to the extent that I have to choose. I love the drama of wide dispersion and a huge image, but for me it's like dessert: I always think about it and always look forward to it, but I can only actually enjoy it in limited portions, and after that the same qualities that I loved become excessive and unappealing to me.
 
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