PMC Twenty.21 Bookshelf Speaker Review

[Vindermere]

In this video, you can see the cheap drivers of the twenty 5.24. It's unjustifiable at the asking price.

 

[gr-e]

In this video, you can see the cheap drivers of the twenty 5.24. It's unjustifiable at the asking price.

Doesn't look cheap to me

 

[DSJR]

When I bought my BC1s from Audio T in West Hampstead in 1976, they were using Crown/Amcron as their reference amp.

I don't think they were in 1975, but back then, six months was a long time (the JVC Z1 had just come out and they were raving about it I remember). Naim all but took over the UK market a year or two later (sadly now, when I look back).

 

[Frank Dernie]

I believe those Yamahas were the first to use Beryllium. Troels did an update on the crossover. I recall asking Floyd about them. He said the designer brought them to Canada and realized he should have followed Toole's theories.

They were, and the only ones for a very long time. Dr. Toole has praised them on this forum. They were way ahead of their time in many ways.
I did consider the Troels crossover mod but decided it didn't make enough difference for the aggro and loss of used value, not that I have ever considered selling them, very few speakers I have heard are preferable.

 

[Vindermere]

Doesn't look cheap to me

The price in europe for this speakers is 6 500 euros, you must be more demanding for this price. In comparaison, B&W in the 700 series use more qualitative drivers and mundorf caps.

 

[sergeauckland]

You are assuming that:

a) customers can recognise an accurate speaker,

and/or

b) that customers don't like the sound of less accurate speakers.

Besides, if all speakers of identical size and price sounded more or less alike then the only thing differencing them would be the "looks", and this might be counterproductive from a marketing/business perspective.

That people actually like 'boom & tizz' can be seen by the EQ settings they use. How often have we seen the 'smiley' curve in people's cars or home equipment. The irony is that audiophiles won't deign to use tone controls but instead buy loudspeakers with that response.

S

 

[Beave]

In that video for the PMC twenty5.24, the woofer looks to be a Peerless (Tymphany) HDS unit, very similar if not the same as what is used in the SVS Ultra bookshelf and tower speakers. Costs about $50 each.

Peerless woofer at Parts Express

The tweeter appears to be from SEAS, model h1773-06, which might be a customized version of this:

https://www.madisoundspeakerstore.c...tbfc/g-h1212-aluminum/magnesium-dome-tweeter/

 

[Archsam]

That people actually like 'boom & tizz' can be seen by the EQ settings they use. How often have we seen the 'smiley' curve in people's cars or home equipment. The irony is that audiophiles won't deign to use tone controls but instead buy loudspeakers with that response.

S

It's part of the audiophile culture that DSP and tone controls are BAD - I am one of those who were told / influenced long ago that signal processing will degrade the 'purity' of the sound.

Until recently I am sitting on my Yamaha amp that offers treble and bass control without realising it is ok to use them. I am glad I have finally turned that knob!

 

[bobbooo]

That people actually like 'boom & tizz' can be seen by the EQ settings they use. How often have we seen the 'smiley' curve in people's cars or home equipment.

This could well be explained by the sighted cognitive bias that 'more equals better' (more bass, more treble). It could also partially be a subconscious rudimentary loudness compensation curve, resulting from a preference for music that seemingly sounds louder (again, more bass, more treble, due to the equal loudness contours). You can't really conclude anything about actual frequency response preference without blind, level-matched listening tests.

 

[AudioSceptic]

I so wanted one of them!
Luckily for me in my 2nd year at Imperial College (1970) the guy in the next door room was a very wealthy Persian, Iranian now I suppose, and he was a hifi fanatic. Not a music fanatic - a hifi fanatic. He bought whatever was well recommensed in the magazines at the time.
He had several setup records, almost no music and a Transcriptors Hydraulic Reference with ADC 26 cartridge.
I had a shed load of LPs and he invited me in to listen to them often, since he didn't know much about music. It was a good fit!

Didn't we all?! I remember watching 'A Clockwork Orange' and mentioning to a friend what the TT was, and how much it cost. A bit later on I found out that it wasn't that special in performance, and of course the physical support of the disc was poor, so I learnt one of those lessons: looks aren't everything.;-)

 

[Koeitje]

In this video, you can see the cheap drivers of the twenty 5.24. It's unjustifiable at the asking price.

The drivers in something like the M106 are also very cheap. The woofer is like €60,-.

 

[Archsam]

Didn't we all?! I remember watching 'A Clockwork Orange' and mentioning to a friend what the TT was, and how much it cost. A bit later on I found out that it wasn't that special in performance, and of course the physical support of the disc was poor, so I learnt one of those lessons: looks aren't everything.;-)

For us 'younger' folks you guys really should fill us in on what you are on about!
I mean, OMG...... and I'm not into TT......

 

[AudioSceptic]

I don't think they were in 1975, but back then, six months was a long time (the JVC Z1 had just come out and they were raving about it I remember). Naim all but took over the UK market a year or two later (sadly now, when I look back).

I was also considering upgrading my Cambridge Audio P50II amplifier at the time. There were lots of interesting options, such as Cambridge P100, Lustraphone, and the Lecsons. There was also Naim, which were very new and they were considering stocking them as they claimed high SQ. I didn't find them anything special, and I don't think Audio T did either. I ended up keeping the P50 for a lot longer because the only amp I really wanted was the Lecson, which was too much money.

Did Naim really take over the market, though? There was a lot of choice at all price levels from UK, Japanese, and even US brands, and even the cheapest Naim was expensive with a limited market. I'd really like to see sales figures at the different price levels.

 

[Vindermere]

Avforums has released a review of the twenty 5.21 with no measurements . Perhaps the new version is better.
https://www.avforums.com/reviews/pmc-twenty5-21i-loudspeaker-review.17565
i love this extract :
This new found airiness complements the low end heft that the PMC brings over from its predecessor. Listening to Public Service Broadcasting’s live performance of Sputnik on the PMC is uncommonly satisfying for a small speaker. There is an effortlessness to the heft that it can bring to music like this and it genuinely helps the feeling of scale. There is a low end weight from the lower midrange that helps the scale and realism of what you are hearing. What is also deeply impressive is that they can continue to generate this perceived scale and heft at low levels and this is very handy with late evening TV viewing.

 

[AudioSceptic]

For us 'younger' folks you guys really should fill us in on what you are on about!
I mean, OMG...... and I'm not into TT......

View attachment 71480

You will also like the Michell Gyrodec, which came out in the 80s and is still being made now https://www.michell-engineering.co.uk/michell-gyrodec-turntable

Edit: the Lecson amps looked fantastic too. http://www.thevintageknob.org/lecson-Lecson.html They were made by Boothroyd-Stuart, who went on to found Meridian.

 

[Archsam]

You will also like the Michell Gyrodec, which came out in the 80s and is still being made now https://www.michell-engineering.co.uk/michell-gyrodec-turntable

Edit: the Lecson amps looked fantastic too. http://www.thevintageknob.org/lecson-Lecson.html They were made by Boothroyd-Stuart, who went on to found Meridian.

The Michell Gyrodec in clear acrylic.... oh my.
The Lecson amps - I dig the design, is the casing one continuous heat sink? It is unfortunate that they look just like an Amazon Echo though.

 

[AudioSceptic]

The Michell Gyrodec in clear acrylic.... oh my.
The Lecson amps - I dig the design, is the casing one continuous heat sink? It is unfortunate that they look just like an Amazon Echo though.

Yes, the whole outside of the cylinder was a heatsink. These turned out to be unreliable, but I still like the looks, completely unlike the usual rectangular boxes with knobs on the front. They predate the Echo by about 40 years ;-)

 

[sergeauckland]

The Michell Gyrodec in clear acrylic.... oh my.
The Lecson amps - I dig the design, is the casing one continuous heat sink? It is unfortunate that they look just like an Amazon Echo though.

I prefer to think that an Amazon Echo looks like a Lecson amplifier.

S.

 

[Sgt. Ear Ache]

Avforums has released a review of the twenty 5.21 with no measurements . Perhaps the new version is better.
https://www.avforums.com/reviews/pmc-twenty5-21i-loudspeaker-review.17565
i love this extract :
This new found airiness complements the low end heft that the PMC brings over from its predecessor. Listening to Public Service Broadcasting’s live performance of Sputnik on the PMC is uncommonly satisfying for a small speaker. There is an effortlessness to the heft that it can bring to music like this and it genuinely helps the feeling of scale. There is a low end weight from the lower midrange that helps the scale and realism of what you are hearing. What is also deeply impressive is that they can continue to generate this perceived scale and heft at low levels and this is very handy with late evening TV viewing.

lol. Oh my...

 

[Sonny1]

In this video, you can see the cheap drivers of the twenty 5.24. It's unjustifiable at the asking price.

those look like Seas and Peerless drivers. I wouldn’t call them cheap. About what I’d expect in this range. Not esoteric but solid. These drivers are capable of good sound and flat measurements in the right hands.