Usher CP-6381

Jack,

Still have the 71's..both the 71 and 81 are similar in their sound..the 81's can bass punch a bit better IMO. I used a range of amps from a 250W Plinius SA-250 down to the Manley Stingray at 40W..both will drive the 81's without a sweat.You have more than enough amp to drive the 81's IMO

I have a 19x22x8 room which opens into the rest of the house. Because the best sonics in my system put the speakers almost 4ft from the front wall...My listening seat is roughly 10' from the speakers..not really near field..but would have liked a few more feet.

What I found is that the 8" woofer of the 81's was not as integrated with the mid/tweeter at that distance...The 71's have a more coherent presentation in my room with little sacrifice in the bass...Both are extraordinary speakers..If you can place them where you can be further back..I'm sure they Will not disappoint. FWIW..I heard the 81's at a dealer and auditioned both the 71's and 81's..In his room, the 81's were killer..listening seat was more than 10'( I would estimate ~14-15 ft)..But, in my room the 71's do better.

hope that helps you.

Ken

Kehut, thanks for the response. I bought the 81's today, but the seller is waiting for new boxes to arrive so it will be a couple of weeks before I get them. Enough time to sell some stuff to help pay for them. :-)

My seating distance is ~14' from the speakers. I'm more concerned about the distance from the rear wall as these speakers are rear ported. Haven't tried a rear ported speaker in this room.

Good to hear they're not that hard to drive. I really like my Veritas' so I have high hopes indeed for the 81's.

I'll do a follow-up post and let everyone know how the two speakers compare once I've had them in my system for awhile.

I'm going to be like a kid waiting for Christmas the next couple of weeks/ :-)

Jack,

Congrats. I think you'll like the Ushers. Play with the speaker positions and seat/rear wall distance if you can.The speakers are pretty heavy, but will slide well on carpet on their iron bases. Then mount your spikes at the end. I found that a modest toe-in is best..not directly at you..but not straight ahead either.

If these are used and already broken in...you may want to fill the rear cavities with shot or sand after getting used to their sound. I used #9 lead shot and 3/4 filled the cavity in my 71's. This really deepend the bass and provided authority.

Ken

Kehut, thanks for the advise. I just made a deal on a Stratos amp with redboard and cap upgrade. Hopefully this will be a good match.

What speakers cables are you folks using?

Audio Art SC-5 Bi-wire and the IC-3 with Eichmanns