IQ is intermediate: I have listen enough to come to an opinion about: quad63s, 57s, custom double stacked quads, little maggies (?model), Tympani IVs, Sound Labs R1, Dalquist dq1(inital model), Fried G3, Rodgers LS3/5a, shanihan oblisks, mbl 111e, proac tablettes
I really like my quads. Within their limits I find them the least fatiguing speaker to listen to hour after hour. They only go so loud but are really good at realistic or low volumes. 57s are popular, excellent midrange but didn't have enough 'oomph' for me. 63s are better, best is the stacked 63s I am now running. Haven't heard the new ones but I will soon. Careful amp matching is in order. Very very good value for the money.
Maggies are nice but they do take room. I loved my tympani's. Louder than quads and better bass but not as lucid as quads. I was sorry to see them go but the wife was not.
Sound labs sounded nice but i had trouble with the transformers. Perhaps a bad bit of luck for me... I just gave up on 'em. These were a very early venture for Sound Labs the R1s I believe. They likely have improved quality control.
Dalquist 'phase array' speakers were my first foray into hi end audio. You never forget your first love.
I recall fondly listening to a friends Oblisks from Mr. Shanihan (sp?) A really great speaker, particularly with orchestral music as my recollection serves. One of these days I'm going to grab up a pair..... A truely excellent speaker.
LS3/5a are the speakers in my living room system. If you are space limited and thinking about getting small speakers you could do worse than grab a pair of these babies on the used market. Driving with a tube amp they make remarkable music. Ok, not the last word in bass, HF extension, soundstage etc..... but a non fatiging speaker that can approach the best at a low price. Believe me, after listening all day/night to my fancy quad setup I am constantly surprised just how good these little guys can sound.
Proac Supertablets. I still have a pair -blown tweet in one. I might repair someday. They are nice but no LS3/5a. The midrange magic just isn't there. If you can get 'em cheap they could make a nice office or dorm room system with a high quality reciever. Not for a high res system IMO.
Fried G3's are in my excercise room. And they boom boom boom. Punch out the bass. Shake the house. Shake the ground outside the house (I kid you not). They don't sound too bad, a lot of fun actually, but fatiguing for prolonged listening. Of course, not high res (by todays' standard)I've heard that some have changed the tweets and substantially improved the speaker thereby. Might do this one day.
MBL 111e. This one I have only heard in showrooms and shows. Agree with the comments of others here. This is the speaker I now lust after. I was shocked at the coherency, power and realism of the sound. The best of my quads with all the missing elements. Mind you these were the big boys. The smaller mbls just didn't have it for me - at least in the very limited listening sessions I was in. I'm saving my pennies so I can get a used pair someday. Need a big room though.
One of the best things about this very nice thread is that I can see I'm not the only maniac who runs multiple systems. It's nice to not be insane alone. : )
cjs
I really like my quads. Within their limits I find them the least fatiguing speaker to listen to hour after hour. They only go so loud but are really good at realistic or low volumes. 57s are popular, excellent midrange but didn't have enough 'oomph' for me. 63s are better, best is the stacked 63s I am now running. Haven't heard the new ones but I will soon. Careful amp matching is in order. Very very good value for the money.
Maggies are nice but they do take room. I loved my tympani's. Louder than quads and better bass but not as lucid as quads. I was sorry to see them go but the wife was not.
Sound labs sounded nice but i had trouble with the transformers. Perhaps a bad bit of luck for me... I just gave up on 'em. These were a very early venture for Sound Labs the R1s I believe. They likely have improved quality control.
Dalquist 'phase array' speakers were my first foray into hi end audio. You never forget your first love.
I recall fondly listening to a friends Oblisks from Mr. Shanihan (sp?) A really great speaker, particularly with orchestral music as my recollection serves. One of these days I'm going to grab up a pair..... A truely excellent speaker.
LS3/5a are the speakers in my living room system. If you are space limited and thinking about getting small speakers you could do worse than grab a pair of these babies on the used market. Driving with a tube amp they make remarkable music. Ok, not the last word in bass, HF extension, soundstage etc..... but a non fatiging speaker that can approach the best at a low price. Believe me, after listening all day/night to my fancy quad setup I am constantly surprised just how good these little guys can sound.
Proac Supertablets. I still have a pair -blown tweet in one. I might repair someday. They are nice but no LS3/5a. The midrange magic just isn't there. If you can get 'em cheap they could make a nice office or dorm room system with a high quality reciever. Not for a high res system IMO.
Fried G3's are in my excercise room. And they boom boom boom. Punch out the bass. Shake the house. Shake the ground outside the house (I kid you not). They don't sound too bad, a lot of fun actually, but fatiguing for prolonged listening. Of course, not high res (by todays' standard)I've heard that some have changed the tweets and substantially improved the speaker thereby. Might do this one day.
MBL 111e. This one I have only heard in showrooms and shows. Agree with the comments of others here. This is the speaker I now lust after. I was shocked at the coherency, power and realism of the sound. The best of my quads with all the missing elements. Mind you these were the big boys. The smaller mbls just didn't have it for me - at least in the very limited listening sessions I was in. I'm saving my pennies so I can get a used pair someday. Need a big room though.
One of the best things about this very nice thread is that I can see I'm not the only maniac who runs multiple systems. It's nice to not be insane alone. : )
cjs