Revel F35 Speaker Review

[jimmyjames8]

I just got a pair of F35's for my shop system. Also own a pair of Performa's and Performa Be's. The Performas came with "bungs" (port plugs). None came with the F35's despite having 2 ports per speaker. Is that right? I needed bungs for the F35's because of the corners they had to go in. Used my Performa ones as i don't need them in that installation.

 

[AVKS]

I just got a pair of F35's for my shop system. Also own a pair of Performa's and Performa Be's. The Performas came with "bungs" (port plugs). None came with the F35's despite having 2 ports per speaker. Is that right? I needed bungs for the F35's because of the corners they had to go in. Used my Performa ones as i don't need them in that installation.

It's been a few years since I bought them, but neither my M16s nor my F35s came with plugs.

 

[Ruckus]

Been on the fence about these F35's for a while now for my bedroom HT and have seen them on sale before. It's been between this and the Dali Oberon 5 but that one in US has been full price for better part of 6 mo,even refirb ones are $1200. Just called Crutchfield to check on stock and they said they are discontinued as of Jan,only had 3 pairs left. At the sale price of $900 for the pair I went ahead and ordered them. If I don't like them even though I'm sure I will it's only $12 to ship them back. My budget was about $1500 so this leaves me lots of room for a second sub now YAY!

 

[Refrigeneer]

Hello everybody!
I ask you advise regarding changing my Revel Performa M20 to floorstand speakers. I can't chose between F35 and F36. The listening roon is 18 m2. Now positioning of speakers is follow. What is your suggestions about these floorstanding speakers? I like my M20 but it's old enough. however i've never heard floorstanding Revels. Amp is Audiolab Omnia, quite good for me. Mostly i listening to Hard rock, heavy metal, less often Jazz, Blues. Thank you in advance.

I have a chance to purchase Performa F30 but I think it will be too much for my room ........

 

[2Sunny]

Hello everybody!
I ask you advise regarding changing my Revel Performa M20 to floorstand speakers. I can't chose between F35 and F36. The listening roon is 18 m2. Now positioning of speakers is follow. What is your suggestions about these floorstanding speakers? I like my M20 but it's old enough. however i've never heard floorstanding Revels. Amp is Audiolab Omnia, quite good for me. Mostly i listening to Hard rock, heavy metal, less often Jazz, Blues. Thank you in advance.

First nice room!

But as to F35 vs F36 it simply depends on whether or not you have a subwoofer. If you do then an F35 is plenty in my estimation, but if you do not have a subwoofer than I think you will find the F36 a little more enjoyable. Anyways, just my opinion. I do, however, own both so I can speak from experience

 

[Refrigeneer]

2Sunny, thank you.
No subwoofer and I will not intend to purchase it in future. I don't watch movies (I have no TV ) only music.

 

[kyuu]

2Sunny, thank you.
No subwoofer and I will not intend to purchase it in future. I don't watch movies (I have no TV ) only music.

In that case, concur with 2Sunny above. Go for the F36 if you can.

I don't know what your budget is, but another option to consider is the JBL HDI-3800. Good deals on those, tonality is nearly as good as the Revels, and they get all the way down to 30Hz. One thing to keep in mind with any of these floorstanders that can put a lot more energy into the bass frequencies is that you may encounter more issues with room modes causing the low end to sound "muddy", so you may want to set aside part of your budget for some method of room correction.

 

[EL_PW]

If Revel follows the JBL or Infinity marketing "model", might as well sell them at Ollie's.

Ouch.

 

[EL_PW]

F36 good enough. I’m 73 with impaired hearing

Right on.

 

[EL_PW]

Concerta2 is a decade old now. I have absolutely no problem with deep discounts. Cars, tech, most consumer devices depreciate. These aren't in the price bracket where they promise rarity, exclusivity or luxury.

For me this bracket is the sweet spot for Harmon value. Also not sure anyone has mentioned yet, the F35's are made in China, so the deep discount is not terribly surprising, and in keeping with Harmon's sales policies to clear the decks of the sweet spot, make people wait a few years and then hit them with the improved thing. Meanwhile you can always buy the top of the line made in Northridge for top dollar if you can't wait.

Me? I'm still rocking in a corner waiting for the Studio 590's to go into production again. It'll happen! You'll see. You'll all see!

But you gotta believe!

 

[EL_PW]

I bought the F36 for my GF. Didn't expect much but the reviews were good. Blew me away. I'm sure the f206 and f208 measure better but in a real world imperfect room, I was shocked how good they were. Paid $1200 less a discount.

"Paid $1200 less a discount."

Behold, Dionysus smiles upon you!

 

[jimmyjames8]

Samsung is doing everything they can to ruin Revel and Mark Levinson...IMO of course.

 

[tw 2022]

Samsung is doing everything they can to ruin Revel and Mark Levinson...IMO of course.

they tend to ruin everything they control eventually , even samsung tv's are trending towards "crap"... this of course excludes the samsung board members bank accounts: afaik they keep getting bigger all the time...

 

[Astoneroad]

Samsung is doing everything they can to ruin Revel and Mark Levinson...IMO of course.

... add my dishwasher and microwave to the list of Samsung appliances in decline.

 

[tw 2022]

Me? I'm still rocking in a corner waiting for the Studio 590's to go into production again. It'll happen! You'll see. You'll all see!

i'm currently listening to 530's in my system... they certainly are fun , i suspect they are a small step down from m16's , but hey i had them sitting on a shelf waiting to be used...

 

[rsc1]

... add my dishwasher and microwave to the list of Samsung appliances in decline.

Don’t forget their fridges.

 

[Astoneroad]

Don’t forget their fridges.

I've got one of their fridges also... but hasn't needed repair like the others... YET.

 

[Alice of Old Vincennes]

Korean appliances have never been reliable. Speed Queen washer and dryer 20 years old. Parts readily available because interchangeable with commercial. Easy to repair and built like a tank. And, built in USA.

 

[AVKS]

Samsung is doing everything they can to ruin Revel and Mark Levinson...IMO of course.

I'm not super familiar with Mark Levinson brand but I think the competition for what Revel offers has ratcheted up in recent years with brands like Philharmonic, Ascend, and others now offering that type of sonic performance at lower pricepoints along with other values such as wood options (Philharmonic) and upgradability (Ascend). Reviewers like Amir and Erin have brought the science of audio into the spotlight and played a role in educating consumers and this has caught manufacturer attention as well, with shops like Power Sound Audio now even offering Klippel-tuned models. Brands like Buckeye may be taking a bite out of Levinson in similar fashion but I'm not as familiar with the amplifier side of things.

IMO Revel and other Harman luxury brands need to continue to evolve their offering and business model to retain their position and perhaps that is where the Samsung influence/limitation may come into play.

 

[a4eaudio]

Korean appliances have never been reliable. Speed Queen washer and dryer 20 years old. Parts readily available because interchangeable with commercial. Easy to repair and built like a tank. And, built in USA.

In a few ratings I could find, Speed Queen (a premium brand) ranked #1 in reliability followed by LG (a Korean company).