What speaker brands would you consider better than Revel?

[Pjetrof]

I would buy the Sopra 3 for its looks alone lol
Obviously they probably sound amazing too
View attachment 98984

Very beautifull to look at!
I had the 2, sound bright,harsch

 

[Pearljam5000]

Very beautifull to look at!
I had the 2, sound bright,harsch

The beryllium tweeter is not for everyone

 

[Pjetrof]

I'm not saying they're bad, I'm saying they're amazing but i prefer the Genelec house sound. It's purely a personal preference, i doubt that there's any other 5 inch speaker in the world that sounds that big and has that much tight bass as the KH120, the highs are little off for me, that's it, on the other hand i always liked extremely bright sound.

Did you compared genelec vs neumann?
i m looking for active speaker sound sig of harbeth.
don t like bright sound like focal sopra.
or are there other active speaker who dont sound bright

 

[Pearljam5000]

Did you compared genelec vs neumann?
i m looking for active speaker sound sig of harbeth.
don t like bright sound like focal sopra.
or are there other active speaker who dont sound bright

Genelec is much brighter than Neumann if not fhe brightest.
You can try Focal(models without the beryllium tweeter)
Also Dynaudio which are the smoothest of all the monitors I've heard.
I suggest you go to a store and listen to different brands side by side, it's the only way to know ahat you'll like.
I didn't like at all PMC tweeter, was super harsh for me.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

The beryllium tweeter is not for everyone

Their implementation of the beryllium tweeter is not for everyone.

 

[Stephan]

The measurements I've seen show them to be excellent loudspeakers, though not quite as good as the best active speakers(Genelec, Neumann, Barefoot, D&D, Kii, GGNTKT, Mesanovic, etc.). I do think Meridian deserves mention though for their early adoption of active designs, even if there are better sounding active alternatives that exist today .

Sorry, I'm late to the game, but I'm wondering... your first statements are based on measurements alone? Is that for the legacy speakers, SL, .2, SE or CI series? What do you mean when you say best active speakers? For Genelec the 1236? Or do you generally mean any speaker from these brands?

What is your second statement "better sounding active alternatives" based on? Measurements or listening? And what models are you referring to? And if you don't mind explaining, what exactly is it that the brands you listed do better than Meridian when it comes to sound quality?

 

[paddycrow]

If I refrained from buying audio gear that had detractors, I'd be spending my time in an empty, silent room. I've learned to make judicious use of room correction and just enjoy the music.

 

[avanti1960]

pls define "Better".

All passive speakers have inherent limitations.
you cannot correct frequency and impulse response at the same time.
you have to use expensive and intrusive coils and caps in the signal path...
Xo filters typically are 2nd order.. 12db-octave while digitally you can easily go 48db.
you cannot apply time delay to each driver to have better integration of the sound wave at listening position.
It's more or less that was possible 50-70 years ago, refined...

(IMHO) no passive speaker equal in technology what is possible today with wise use of DSP.

listen to Kii three, D&D, B&O Beolab 90 but also Genelec or the Germans: Geithain, Neumann, Adam audio in the pro audio industry
it might help answering the question...
L.

in addition an active speaker can be voiced, tested, auditioned and iterated in real time to ensure the best possible amplifier to speaker synergy.
however active speakers are not a silver bullet.
many high quality drivers need notch filters to significantly curtail break up modes and peaks in certain frequencies beyond the crossover point. 48db per octave may not be enough. also many drivers require a electrical "zobel" circuit for proper impedance equalization.
finally you still need testing and listening tests to determine the best crossover points and slopes - this requires a talented set of ears and there is no substitute for this.
active speakers do have the potential to be superior sounding and often are but it is not a shortcut to success.

 

[avanti1960]

I have listened to revel speakers and they are possibly one of the most underwhelming, disappointing brands I have ever heard. I know many people love them but they are not for me.
among the brands i prefer listening to are Harbeth, Spendor, Joseph Audio, B & W. I do like the non ceramic driver Revels better than many acclaimed speakers including Focal, ATC, Goldenear, KEF R-series and REF series.

 

[Lorenzo74]

Genelec is much brighter than Neumann if not fhe brightest.
You can try Focal(models without the beryllium tweeter)
Also Dynaudio which are the smoothest of all the monitors I've heard.
I suggest you go to a store and listen to different brands side by side, it's the only way to know ahat you'll like.
I didn't like at all PMC tweeter, was super harsh for me.

...or you might choose any speakers with very good directivity, low frequency extension and adjust the tonality with EQ... Minidsp add Diraclive on top of the cake.

 

[steve59]

I have listened to revel speakers and they are possibly one of the most underwhelming, disappointing brands I have ever heard. I know many people love them but they are not for me.
among the brands i prefer listening to are Harbeth, Spendor, Joseph Audio, B & W. I do like the non ceramic driver Revels better than many acclaimed speakers including Focal, ATC, Goldenear, KEF R-series and REF series.

I try not to mention specific brands when I’m being less than complimentary, well on this thread anyhow. The interesting thing or not very interesting thing about the measurements first brands is that their models tend to sound lifeless in comparison. My list of speakers includes multiple KEFs with a couple reference ful range models, revel salons and performas, the salon 2 I hesitate to dismiss because of my components but I sold my VA beethovens and replaced them with all the speakers listed above before repurchasing another pair of beethovens and reselling all the others. I haven’t given up. The Va’s presentation cant be eq’d but a revel lover wouldn’t want to anyhow.

A speaker designer that goes all in on their idea of musical will appeal to their audience. Neutral speakers are to me, a crescent wrench, not particularly good at a specific task, but handy to have around. Let me try again. After owning multiple ’neutral’ speakers I went back to the speakers that got me interested in music. or Thank America we don’t all have to drive tan toyota corollas.

 

[Luminous White]

Wisdom Audio Sage L75
Totem Acoustic Element Metal V2
Sonus Faber Homage Tradition

Especially the Wisdom. Active crossover, and bi amped line source true planar. Unbelievable performance.

 

[dped90]

Well, you are not wrong - I get your point.

The difference is that any vented design will add "SPL for free" but under the drawbacks of possible air turbulence/port noise and likely a higher corrective requirement for time-alignment with (ported) main loudspeakers.

Rythmik Audio's servo mechanism actively stops each driver impulse almost instantly through amplifier feedback, to allow for what often is referred to as "fast bass". Inertia would otherwise be quite high on the relatively big 12" to 18" woofers and certainly manifest in terms of [additional] distortion - no matter if a sealed or vented type enclosure was chosen. Following, their website's output comparison at 20 Hz:

Spoiler

Just wondering if you've ever had occasion to hear any Rythmik subs, especially the F12. Do you think that one or two pairs would work well with any kind of speaker? Even most open baffle designs? If not, can you explain why some circles claim that even "fast" subs like the servoed Rythmik F12 won't necessarily sound as good with OB speakers as would properly designed OB subs?

And speaking of distortion, designer Brian Ding does concede that "all op-amps have coloration to some degree"; that is, the op-amps used in the plate amp in his subs. Thus, especially if one wanted to use two pairs of subs, wouldn't there be substantially less audible distortion if only one standalone (1 kilowatt) power amp were used to drive all four subs; sort of like this system? https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/audiokinesis-swarm-subwoofer-system/

However, I've never heard those subs either.

 

[Tangband]

Linn exakt , Genelec , Neumann, ATC, Grimm audio, Kii and Kefs more expensive speakers are better sounding in my subjective opinion .

 

[RobL]

The Genelec 1237/8 are also beasts and don't get mentioned a lot around here for some reason
View attachment 98974View attachment 98975View attachment 98976

Wow, that 1238 makes that O410 look like a pipsqueak, lol.

 

[sarumbear]

Genelec and Neumann are hands down better than Revel but they're pricy. KEF is the only passive speaker that is up there with Revel, I've found them to be better than Revel in my comparisons but others prefer Revel so I'd say they are fairly close. One thing that doesn't have to do with sound quality but I like about KEF is their cabinets are very solid, that's one area I wish Revel would put a bit more of the budget into improving.

As a Salon2 owner who had demoed Blade, 801D, 8361, etc. I disagree. Besides, better is subjective, maybe if you qualify objectively we can argue