Revel M16 Speaker Review

[flexy123]

Same here . I replaced Dali Spektor 2’s with M16’s and loving them. The Dali’s are very good by the way. Using them with a Cambridge CXA61

Would you say the Dali Spektor 2 are adequate, even for a somewhat larger room? (I will be using a sub!!). Asking because I had some people saying for larger room I should go with at least 5" speakers, but the Dali Spektor 2 is 13cm, so they could be somewhat under-dimensioned. How do the Dalis subjectively compare to the Revels? Ty!

 

[Sal1950]

Would you say the Dali Spektor 2 are adequate, even for a somewhat larger room? (I will be using a sub!!). Asking because I had some people saying for larger room I should go with at least 5" speakers, but the Dali Spektor 2 is 13cm, so they could be somewhat under-dimensioned. How do the Dalis subjectively compare to the Revels? Ty!

Depends on your room size and listening (SPL) level desired.
But if you want a realistic playback of movie soundtracks I would say Yes, you should get a bigger speaker.
Stand mounts offer very little "advantages" over larger, integrated self powered type.
You can't change the laws of physics.

 

[Ageve]

I don't know if it's interesting (it's probably been done many times before on this speaker), but here are some nearfield measurements:

The peak at ~19 kHz is probably a measurement error (I don't think the acoustic lens was designed for 3 mm listening distance ).

I wonder if the small on-axis peak at ~5 kHz is caused by the woofer- and/or cabinet resonance below. Maybe it's just a coincidence, as it disappears off-axis. The tweeter by itself is very smooth.

Doesn't really matter if it's not audible, but still interesting.

Green: Quasi-anechoic using near-field measurements of port and woofer (corrected for baffle diffraction) + 1m gated in-room measurement (5ms).

 

[56suited]

Are these suitable for near-field use (about 1.5-2m), at say 65-80db? Or am I better off with Kali IN-5 or Adam A7V?

 

[AVKS]

Are these suitable for near-field use (about 1.5-2m), at say 65-80db? Or am I better off with Kali IN-5 or Adam A7V?

Absolutely. Had a pair on my desk for years, roughly 2 ft from each ear and 3 ft apart, for years before upgrading to Sierra LXs.

 

[56suited]

Absolutely. Had a pair on my desk for years, roughly 2 ft from each ear and 3 ft apart, for years before upgrading to Sierra LXs.

Well THAT complicates my life (in a good way I think). Now I may want to rethink my initial set-up plan:

Turntable --> WiiM Ultra --> Kali IN-5 or Adam A7V

...if I entertain the M16s, I need to figure out an alternative setup within the same budget (~2.5K to 3K EUR, and the TT is likely going to eat 1K of that)...so I'm probably looking for an integrated amp with the right impedance in the 600-700EUR range that has HDMI eARC. I'll also likely need a phono stage, unless the amp has one, or I get a Technics SL-1500, but I could then downgrade to the WiiM Pro Plus for streamer and save a bit.

So the question before I start that research is...Are the M16s a better speaker option than the active monitors I listed? The Kalis come in at 700 for a pair, and the A7Vs are comparable in price to the M16s.

I have no room treatments, other than furniture, and a rug, and the office is very small (~2m x 3m).

 

[ironhorse128]

@56suited: I would go with the Kali IN-5 or Adam A7V option to remove the cable clutter and the number of devices on/ at the desk.

Also one of the main benefits of the M16 are their wide dispersion which you might not benefit from in near field.

That said. I use the m16 at my desk and enjoy them. Nevertheless, this equipment and cables takes a lot of space.

 

[56suited]

It won't be on my desk...the equipment will be in a Kallax shelf that the TV sits on. This was graphed out on freeware who's trial expired, so disregard the dumbass speaker placement. The speakers will be on either side of the TV.

 

[AVKS]

It won't be on my desk...the equipment will be in a Kallax shelf that the TV sits on. This was graphed out on freeware who's trial expired, so disregard the dumbass speaker placement. The speakers will be on either side of the TV.

Oh yeah, they'll be great in that application. I used mine in my home theater setup at a distance of 8 ft or so before putting them on my desk and it was a quality experience. Buy and enjoy.

 

[A Surfer]

Still the case for active speakers seems extremely clear and compelling

 

[56suited]

I feel like such an idiot when it comes to impedance. These are 6 ohms at 50-120W of recommended power. Will they work well with a WiiM amp?

 

[dominikz]

These are 6 ohms at 50-120W of recommended power. Will they work well with a WiiM amp?

Yes.

Note also that the updated WiiM Amp Pro should be released soon (main difference compared to current version will be inclusion of PFFB - i.e. its frequency response will be invariant of connected loudspeaker impedance).

By the way, I also own the M16 - great speakers too! Currently I power mine with a Denon integrated amp, but have vague plans to switch to a WiiM Amp Pro once it is released.
Subjectively I find the tonality of my Neumanns perhaps a bit more "correct", but the wider dispersion of M16 (combined with a longer listening distance) seems to offer a wider and more diffuse sounstage - which I find very enjoyable! Note however that these subjective observations are mainly from sighted uncontrolled listening so could be biased!

 

[56suited]

Yes.

Note also that the updated WiiM Amp Pro should be released soon (main difference compared to current version will be inclusion of PFFB - i.e. its frequency response will be invariant of connected loudspeaker impedance).

By the way, I also own the M16 - great speakers too! Currently I power mine with a Denon integrated amp, but have vague plans to switch to a WiiM Amp Pro once it is released.
Subjectively I find the tonality of my Neumanns perhaps a bit more "correct", but the wider dispersion of M16 (combined with a longer listening distance) seems to offer a wider and more diffuse sounstage - which I find very enjoyable! Note however that these subjective observations are mainly from sighted uncontrolled listening so could be biased!

"PFFB - i.e. its frequency response will be invariant of connected loudspeaker impedance" - meaning I could lose top or bottom end without PFFB, depending on the impedance of the speakers, right?

I am wondering if Neumanns will be too "correct". Then again, my listening distance of 1.0-1.5m doesn't give much opportunity for Revel's soundstage...and I have no idea how long I would have to wait for the Pro to be released.

 

[dominikz]

"PFFB - i.e. its frequency response will be invariant of connected loudspeaker impedance" - meaning I could lose top or bottom end without PFFB, depending on the impedance of the speakers, right?

I am wondering if Neumanns will be too "correct". Then again, my listening distance of 1.0-1.5m doesn't give much opportunity for Revel's soundstage...and I have no idea how long I would have to wait for the Pro to be released.

TBH both M16 and KH120 are both great choices, even if they have slightly different strengths - it is basically splitting hairs by this stage. IMHO you can't go wrong choosing either!

Lack of the PFFB in the current version of WiiM Amp will introduce less than 1dB of frequency response variation to high frequencies. Not something to lose sleep over, at least in my experience - though I'd rather avoid it if possible!
Still, I'd personally rather choose the current WiiM Amp over any alternative currently available due to the all-in-one format and amazing set of features.

 

[56suited]

TBH both M16 and KH120 are both great choices, even if they have slightly different strengths - it is basically splitting hairs by this stage. IMHO you can't go wrong choosing either!

Lack of the PFFB in the current version of WiiM Amp will introduce less than 1dB of frequency response variation to high frequencies. Not something to lose sleep over, at least in my experience - though I'd rather avoid it if possible!
Still, I'd personally rather choose the current WiiM Amp over any alternative currently available due to the all-in-one format and amazing set of features.

There's also the topic of improved DAC in the Pro (it's the same as the Ultra) but my idiot ears likely wouldn't be able to tell a difference. Also this is a M16 thread, not a WiiM thread

 

[dominikz]

There's also the topic of improved DAC in the Pro (it's the same as the Ultra) but my idiot ears likely wouldn't be able to tell a difference. Also this is a M16 thread, not a WiiM thread

More likely: no one's ears would be able to tell the difference between the DACs.
Difference due to PFFB introduction on the other hand is most likely audible (but probably subtle).

 

[MarkS]

There's also the topic of improved DAC in the Pro (it's the same as the Ultra) but my idiot ears likely wouldn't be able to tell a difference.

NOBODY's ears can tell a difference!

 

[Ktacos]

More likely: no one's ears would be able to tell the difference between the DACs.
Difference due to PFFB introduction on the other hand is most likely audible (but probably subtle).

It depends, sometimes load dependency can be really bad. My a07 amp was unusable with the c note speaker kit because it caused this.

 

[MarkS]

Do you have a similar graph with the same speaker but a different amp?

 

[Ktacos]

Do you have a similar graph with the same speaker but a different amp?

Yup, but it's a cnote so you shouldn't need my info, because it's been measured here. This is the first measurement I took once I got a class A/B amp to test. After this finding I've been getting rid of all my load dependent cheap amps. The amp used here was a friends, whom also has an a07 and we measured with his a07 and got a very similar rise. I went through quite a bit of hassle trying to figure out what was causing the problem.