Gallo Reference 3.1 questions...

I have a few useful hints on how to properly set-up Gallo 3.1s.
- do not point them straight ahead. The tweeters have excellent dispersion and really do not need toe-in, however, to achieve proper focus on the midrange you will need to adjust toe-in, paying attention to well-centered and fleshed-out vocals. I prefer a slight toe-in, so that i can see the speaker grille's internal sides.

-To avoid plummy bass (not a Gallo problem BTW), toe-in at least 20 degrees, to avoid paralell room boundaries and adjust the distance to the back wall until there is the right amount of bass. The woofers work only up to 150 Hz, so do not worry about reflections on your rack...

There are two options to further adjust bass:
-woofers facing each other: more bass.
-woofers facing away from each other: less bass. Season to taste.

-Also, adjust the front spikes/feet to achieve good midrange focus at the listening height and a slightly elevated soundstage.
In summary, there are 3 ways to adjust bass weight and evenness and two ways to adjust midrange focus, making this a very flexible speaker.
Do not worry about treble focus, the Gallo tweeter is good for 300 degrees dispersion, you will hear great soundstaging even if you sit way off-center.

-100W is plenty of power to drive them, though the best sound I got from them was from a Mac Mc402 amp (between 10 and 40W on McIntosh's calibrated VU/power meters). They also love high-power tube amps with 4 ohm taps.

-Lastly, if you do not listen to movie soundtracks and have a smal to medium-sized room, there is no need for the SA amplifier (I bought one to experiment). It sure looks utilitarian but it has an auto-on feature (powers up 10 seconds after receiving an input signal), therefore you can hide it if you want.

I hope this helps

I purchased 2 pair of gallo 3.1's. First speakers Ive sold within 2 months of buying. What a disapointment. They wouldnt be bad for a office, but just dont cut it in a med to large room for me. I didnt find the tweeter as smooth as others, maybe I had the wrong equipment at the time(all bryston with ayre cx-7 cd player.)

I moved to a pair of legacy focus 20/20's and the difference was huge. But as usual for me, big speaker ends up as better sound. At least the speakers Ive had this has been the case.

If you sold them within 2 months, they were probably not even broken in at that time. I was unimpressed with the Gallos when I first bought them. They were nasilly and constrained on the top end and mid-range. The bottom end was too lean. I thought, how can these be the same speakers I heard at the dealers? Approx 200 hours later of powerful break in (Krell), they are wonderful. A different speaker. I do not think you gave them enough time. All positive reviews are usually post break in, negatives I find are from people who sell the Gallos in the first few months.
Steel

I would have agreed with the break in, but one of the pairs I bought used and they were a few years old. I thought they were better then the new pair but still just didnt do it for me. As I mentioned, I just tend to like big speakers that throw big sound. The gallos to me sounded small although they did image nicely and had a decent wide soundstage. I did feel like the soundstage height seamed low. This could have just been in my head from looking at the low to the floor speakers.

The Gallo's do image wide but not very high. I use Sound Anchor stands with mine to get the image at the right height. The extra mass also helps the bass tighten. They may just not have been for you. I find that they tend to put the image behind them more than previous B&W's that were forward. That may be the weakness you could not live with. Or your room. Only you can decide as we cannot listen to your room.
Steel