Revel M106 Bookshelf Speaker Review

[StefanSweden]

How does this speaker perform at lower (apartment) volumes? I currently have Dali Oberon 1's which are much smaller but sound pretty darn good at low levels.

I also have the Oberon 1´s and also thought of this. The Dalis are really good, but eventually there is an upgrade happening

 

[witwald]

I currently have Dali Oberon 1's which are much smaller but sound pretty darn good at low levels.

I'm wondering why the Oberon 1 loudspeakers have such a specific sound signature at low levels. Maybe they have a loudness-contour style of frequency response tailoring built into them?

 

[thewas]

I'm wondering why the Oberon 1 loudspeakers have such a specific sound signature at low levels. Maybe they have a loudness-contour style of frequency response tailoring built into them?

Most Dali loudspeakers definitely have a treble boost and so does the Oberon 1 https://www.i-fidelity.net/testberichte/hifi/dali-oberon-1/seite-5.html

 

[Rosenbloom]

I am in the UK. There is a shop (“Ninxxxxx) selling a new pair for £999 while others are over £2000. Has anyone have shopping experience with that shop? I wonder why there is such a big price difference. Too good to be true?

 

[supersecretjim]

Thanks so much for the review, @amirm. I have owned my M106's for about a year and really enjoy them. I do find that they are senstive to placement to the front and side walls. I read on another review that Revel suggest a minumum of 1.1m from any of those walls. I tested this, subjectively only, and it made a significant difference to me. Just interested in how they were setup for your testing.

Also, my good friend has a set of Salon 2's, like yourself, and I find that the M106 is quite similar apart from the low bass. What are your thoughts in this regard? I added a SVS SB-2000 sub to help in that respect.

I love that!
I just got my M106 pair in Walnut, along with the C205 and really love them.
Replaced a 20 year old Def-Tech BP3000 pair and CLR2000 center which I really loved, but needed to go the bookshelf route for our new built-in wall. I havent had new speakers since the Definitives, and deserved something special.

Using the Revels with SVS SB16 sealed sub. Its a monster, and seems to blend with the Revels really well at 60 or 80hz.
Its just the first couple of weeks and havent done final tweeking, but really impressed with the Revels and the combo as a whole.

Ive had a huge thing for the Salon since I first demod them after initial release. Couldnt afford them then... still cant!
Im thrilled to finally have my slice of Revel goodness.

 

[truwarrior22]

I love that!
I just got my M106 pair in Walnut, along with the C205 and really love them.
Replaced a 20 year old Def-Tech BP3000 pair and CLR2000 center which I really loved, but needed to go the bookshelf route for our new built-in wall. I havent had new speakers since the Definitives, and deserved something special.

Using the Revels with SVS SB16 sealed sub. Its a monster, and seems to blend with the Revels really well at 60 or 80hz.
Its just the first couple of weeks and havent done final tweeking, but really impressed with the Revels and the combo as a whole.

Ive had a huge thing for the Salon since I first demod them after initial release. Couldnt afford them then... still cant!
Im thrilled to finally have my slice of Revel goodness.

Congrats!

 

[audioje]

Is PA5ii (non-plus) enough to drive m106? I mostly don't go over than 50%.

 

[Laserjock]

Is PA5ii (non-plus) enough to drive m106? I mostly don't go over than 50%.

How big is the room? Closed or open space?

 

[audioje]

How big is the room? Closed or open space?

Medium sized room I would say.

 

[norman bates]

40 watts would be plenty.

 

[MediumRare]

Is PA5ii (non-plus) enough to drive m106? I mostly don't go over than 50%.

Depends what you mean by "enough". My answer is "no". You need to have 10x headroom to properly handle transients. If you never listen to "loud" music, then it's barely ok. You'll run at 2-5 watts with peaks to 20-50. On the other hand, for "loud" music you'll be running at 10-20 watts and want to handle transients 100-200 watts. The PA5ii clips at 53 watts into 8 ohms. Unless it's just casual, quiet listening, you'll be much happier in the long run moving up a size to the PA7 Plus or something similar.

 

[Yorkshire Mouth]

Hi everyone, a quick question.

Would the WiiM amp be able to drive a pair of Revel M106 speakers? Used in a room 3m x 5m, but at a distance of around 1.25m. I never listen at ear-bleeding loud levels.

WiiM Amp spec:

Specs for WiiM Pro and Pro Plus | WiiM

www.wiimhome.com

Revel M106 spec:

M106 | 2-Way Bookshelf Monitor Loudspeaker

Performa3 bookshelf loudspeakers are true full-range loudspeakers that blend-in easily with your existing décor. They deliver an impressive combination of wide frequency range, uncompressed dynamic range and low distortion across the entire audible spectrum.

www.revelspeakers.com

Many thanks.

 

[gino1961]

I think you should look at
Minimum speaker impedance in the low range
Speaker efficiency
How many dB you want and at what distance
Also the room acoustic can play a role
The more reflecting the more reverberant

 

[Yorkshire Mouth]

I think you should look at
Minimum speaker impedance in the low range
Speaker efficiency
How many dB you want and at what distance
Also the room acoustic can play a role
The more reflecting the more reverberant

As I said in my post, listening distance 1.25m, speaker efficiency is in the linked specs, and I’m guessing 86db (as this is the lower point if which reviewers appear to take measurements).

 

[MediumRare]

Hi everyone, a quick question.

Would the WiiM amp be able to drive a pair of Revel M106 speakers? Used in a room 3m x 5m, but at a distance of around 1.25m. I never listen at ear-bleeding loud levels.

WiiM Amp spec:

Specs for WiiM Pro and Pro Plus | WiiM

www.wiimhome.com

Revel M106 spec:

M106 | 2-Way Bookshelf Monitor Loudspeaker

Performa3 bookshelf loudspeakers are true full-range loudspeakers that blend-in easily with your existing décor. They deliver an impressive combination of wide frequency range, uncompressed dynamic range and low distortion across the entire audible spectrum.

www.revelspeakers.com

Many thanks.

I believe yes. If you are listening at 2 Watts, which should be rather loud at nearfield in a bedroom-sized room, you have plenty of headroom for dynamics (need 20W but have 60w at 8 ohms).

 

[gino1961]

As I said in my post, listening distance 1.25m, speaker efficiency is in the linked specs, and I’m guessing 86db (as this is the lower point if which reviewers appear to take measurements).

you know the amp directly ? the power should be quite enough
clearly it is not easy to try before buy
imhe it is a situation when to have friends could be very helpful
I had a friend with a lot of experience with many amps
I took my speakers to his place and left them there for a week for him to listen
he approved the solution i loved the sound and bought the very same amp he was using

 

[Yorkshire Mouth]

A quick question on @amirm’s first and third graphs.

The third (estimated in-room) is quite excellent. However, I sit c.120cm from my speakers, so that’s nearfield. I suspect that’ll make the black on-axis measurements from graph 1 more applicable. So first, is that right?

If I look at graph 1 (on-axis), I’m looking at the black line, as I have my speakers toed in to face me, creating a perfect equilateral triangle, with the speakers pointing at me at 60°. This line is great, but not as good as the estimated in-room graph.

But then there’s the green ‘listening window’ line. I understand this is the response just off-axis. It looks as good as graph 3, and better than on-axis.

Does this suggest that, in nearfield (as per my set up), I’d be better off toeing the speakers in or out very slightly from 60°, so they’re not pointing absolutely directly at me? Maybe slightly out, or slightly in?

Many thanks.

 

[tw 2022]

A quick question on @amirm’s first and third graphs.

The third (estimated in-room) is quite excellent. However, I sit c.120cm from my speakers, so that’s nearfield. I suspect that’ll make the black on-axis measurements from graph 1 more applicable. So first, is that right?

If I look at graph 1 (on-axis), I’m looking at the black line, as I have my speakers toed in to face me, creating a perfect equilateral triangle, with the speakers pointing at me at 60°. This line is great, but not as good as the estimated in-room graph.

But then there’s the green ‘listening window’ line. I understand this is the response just off-axis. It looks as good as graph 3, and better than on-axis.

Does this suggest that, in nearfield (as per my set up), I’d be better off toeing the speakers in or out very slightly from 60°, so they’re not pointing absolutely directly at me? Maybe slightly out, or slightly in?

Many thanks.

lots of newer speakers are as good/ better about ten to twenty deg. (horizontal)off axis , this is also slightly room dependent , so results will vary...

 

[MediumRare]

A quick question on @amirm’s first and third graphs.

The third (estimated in-room) is quite excellent. However, I sit c.120cm from my speakers, so that’s nearfield. I suspect that’ll make the black on-axis measurements from graph 1 more applicable. So first, is that right?

If I look at graph 1 (on-axis), I’m looking at the black line, as I have my speakers toed in to face me, creating a perfect equilateral triangle, with the speakers pointing at me at 60°. This line is great, but not as good as the estimated in-room graph.

But then there’s the green ‘listening window’ line. I understand this is the response just off-axis. It looks as good as graph 3, and better than on-axis.

Does this suggest that, in nearfield (as per my set up), I’d be better off toeing the speakers in or out very slightly from 60°, so they’re not pointing absolutely directly at me? Maybe slightly out, or slightly in?

Many thanks.

Yes, you want to have the response at the listening position to be a downward sloping line. That will happen naturally as reflections from your desk, the ceiling,the walls, etc. are all added up. But, as you mentioned, with nearfield, the reflections (other than from the desk, if there is one) have a much smaller effect than in farfield. Why not do some casual measurements, at least, with a phone app. It won't be "accurate" but you be able to compare positions. You know it's perfect when the soundstage is both wide and laser-sharp, which these speakers are fully capable of delivering.

 

[Yorkshire Mouth]

As per my previous questions, to be specific - my room is 5m x 3m x 2.4m (16' x 10' x 7.9').

Seating distance would be nearfield at 1.2m, speakers 10cm from the front wall.

Is this a complete waste of time and money, this room size, nearfield?

I'd love to hear @amirm comment, as I believe he sometimes has a listen at nearfield before moving to his main room.

Many thanks.