Wilson Sophia

"Anyone mentioning the Sophia being better than the WP7 hasn't listened to them correctly setup."

Speak for yourself! They are a different sounding pair of speakers. No doubt the WP7 are the more dynamic speakers - They are like thunder in a box. I like the way the Sophias do midrange better though. They sound more organic through the midrange.

Medium time lurker here - you flushed me out describing the sophias as "trashcans" - thanks - I love to laugh out loud!

I have heard a pair of ex demos, but there was something wrong with the system - even in this situation they sounded good.

I can empathise with an earlier post about stretching your budget. However "quality is remembered long after price is forgotten" does spring to mind - as and when you can afford them - go for it - you don't often read about people downgrading do you? Just don't give yourself a heart attack doing it!

Thanks dmurfet...I laughed too when she called them trash cans. It was quite a shock to see the way she changed her POV once she heard them!

Regarding the comments from everyone about stretching my budget...This is just such an addictive hobby. A year ago I was using a surround sound receiver and a dvd player as my source for cds. I would never have even thought about spending 10K+ on a system let alone a pair of speakers!

Clearly I have come along way in a year...Buying the Sophias is not going to break me but it is a choice and something else is going to be cut if this is the route we are going to go. I have listened to just about everything that is out there and really have decided it is the Sophias or nothing. Everything else just seems to be spending a lot of money for not much more in terms of performance over the 704s. So it is either now, or wait and buy the Sophias later.

Again, many thanks to everyone for their input. Will keep everyone up to date with whatever we decide to do.

All the best,
John

This thread confirms what I have always believed about Audiogon threads posed around questions like "should I buy this or...", which is that a significant percentage of the posters are seeking validation of decisions already made. In two years, I have yet to see one Audiogon member change their buying decision despite receiving valid alternatives presented in the answers. Fascinating.

No offense to you Jhorton19, many threads have the same intent and the same outcome. It's just that yours really crystallized it for me.

Enjoy the Sophias...and the journey.

One of the reviewers in an audio magazine, I believe John Marks, had great advice on this subject. He said to buy the speaker that you fall in love with, even if you have to sacrifice in other areas for now, because that will determine the basic quality of the sound.

I would do the same. Buy the speakers you love. Then buy other parts that complement it. In particular, the speaker-amp interaction is so critical and hard to predict, so I cannot imaginge not selecting an amp for a specific speaker.