For the price I would pick up a pair of used Khorus's and enjoy. I have owned their orig Perrigrines for 3 yrs and I won't give them up, they use the same drivers and design of the Khorus. I can imagine that the Ravens sound nice but what you can pick up a used pair of the Khorus for You can't go wrong I'd love to have a pair but I love my Perrigrines.
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I own a pair of`original Khorus's, & a pair of original Peregrines on Sound Anchor stands. The Khorus's have a better frequency response on both ends, compared to the Ravens. Both are great speakers, but when listening to hi-rez the Khorus's top end of 35,000 will be appreciated!The Peregrines, & the Ravens sound very similar to previous auditions. Honestly I don't think you could go wrong with either, if you can however stretch the budget, the low end of the Khorus's will continually suprize you. Good Luck! |
. I agree with Bigkidz. (Hi Peter!) I had set of Raven 2002's, but traded up to Raven C's and a Falcon C center channel. The 'C' version is VASTLY better then all earlier versions of the Raven, so any comparisons involving an early Raven design really does not apply since he asked about a Raven C. The amplification you intend to use also affects which generation of Talon will work best. Early-model Talons are very lush and warm, and respond best to very articulate and transparent amps. Later models, with the ceramic tweeter, revised internal chassis structure and CMRC crossovers are extremely neutral, clear and detailed. So amps that worked perfectly with the older models may sound too bright with these newer designs. I guess it's all in what you are looking for and the rest of the system that you are starting with. But, if you focus your system's synergy around the speakers' needs effectively, you can't really go wrong with either. |
BTW - My comments in the above response come from actual experience with the older & newer Raven designs, because I had the unique opportunity when I traded my Raven 2002's for the Raven C's to compare them TOGETHER at the same time in my room with my equipment before shipping the 02's back. The C's came directly from the factory brand-new, with Bybee filters installed and all the latest updates. BUT - they had ZERO hours on them, so the comparison 'should' have heavily favored my 1-year old 02's. I expected it to be a close fight, but it only took 10 minutes of A/B'ing and shaking my head to come to the obvious conclusion --> There was NO comparison - the C's were devastatingly better in ALL areas, especially treble extension AND smoothness. The ceramic tweeter used in the C models is just superb. Another big difference between early and late models is the design of the rear-firing port that is common to both Khorus & Raven. The older ones utilized a small, round aluminum insert. For the newer models, Talon designed a much larger slot cut-out with NO insert. The round port on my 02's would make noticeable rattling and chuffing noises when there were long, weighty bass notes. It drove me crazy, and definitely helped justify the cost to upgrade to the C's. The new, larger slot-loaded port has more area to disperse the fast-moving escaping air, so it doesn't chuff. And since there is no metal insert used anymore, there is no way for it to rattle. Just some more info to consider, but YMMV...... . |
With the ceramic tweeter, the matching of associated equipment is critical IMO. I tried a few different amps before I found a few that really made my Raven C speakers really sing. They are extremely fast, dynamic, with extended bass and detail. The bybee filters also took clarity up a notch as well as the large cone spikes. I have heard from a few people that the Raven Cs are so close to the current Khorus that the price difference is not worth the extra money. But I have not heard them side by side. |
Again, Bigkidz' description of the characteristics of the Raven C's is spot-on. I have navigated through 4 different amps myself with these speakers, 3 solid-state and 1 tube design. I have learned alot about the different sonic characteristics and how particular speakers can really dictate what you need an amp to do. You also have to remember that Talon is a very young company, but has gone through 4 major revisions of the Khorus alone in only so many years. These were wholesale design changes that made dramatic improvements each time. Having dealt with Talon through two versions of the same model, my recommendation would be to go with the latest version of a Raven vs. one of the earliest versions of the Khorus. If you do a good job of system matching, I predict that you will not be disappointed. |
Really appreciate the thoughts and advice. Let me add a little detail: I currently run Bel Canto Evo2 amps as monoblocks...any thoughts on compatibility with Raven Cs? Secondly, I'm very excited about Talon's reputation for outstanding bass extension and slam (coming from slightly anaemic Silverline Sonatas). Would I give up a lot in the bass department by going with single driver Raven C vs. dual driver Khorus? Thanks again. |
Surprise! the Raven is A DUAL WOOFER speaker - always has been! You can thank Talon for their TERRIBLY inaccurate website that does not clearly state that. I have complained about this mis-information to Mike Farnsworth 10 times, but he is just too busy to get it fixed. It uses an isobaric (back-to-back) design, where the second driver is aimed into the cabinet in a push-pull configuration. Like this: >< The biggest difference between Khorus & Raven is the 3-way crossover and corresponding extra mid driver. This may allow the bass drivers in the Khorus to extend a little deeper, cause they aren't having to deal with frequencies quite as far up into the mids. That's the good part about the Khorus, but 3-way designs don't tend to have as good of a reputation for linearity as 2-ways, because the extra crossover point happens in a frequency range where some people can clearly hear when the tweeter stops and the mid starts. You may or may not be able to detect it or even care, but some professional reviewers I have read articles by can't stand 3-ways because of this, so YMMV... As for the Bel Canto eVo's - well, you just hit on an important synergy situation. These amps are well-documented natural partners with the early (warmer) Talon models. Check out the StereoTimes.com reviews about the eVo's - they were all written using early-model Khorus'es. I JUST bought another round of amps to try with my Raven C's, and the eVo Gen 2's were seriously on my short list. But, Stewart at Sanctuary of Sound (Current Talon dealer and ex-Bel Canto dealer) indicated that my C's would probably not work best with the eVo's for the exact reasons I described in my earlier post. Instead, I went with Electocompaniet AW220 monoblocks, and -so far- feel that they are a terrific match. I will be doing some critical listening this weekend (if Hurricane Ivan doesn't mess up my power!), so we'll see... Hope that helps... . |
Bhouser is correct. There was a reviewer who didn't know that and I told him that there was no way to get that kind of bass with a single 10" woofer. He found out I was correct after the review. The Khorus has a larger cab and is heavier so that can help with deep bass. The Khorus has a super tweeter and the other driver is what I would call sort of a mid range as it is smaller then other mfgs mid range drivers. The Raven Cs are very coherent and extremely fast. Clarity is a strong point and I also think that they are pretty easy to place. Here is a link to a unbiased review that compares a few different speakers: http://www.thatslifemag.com/audiovideo/ancillaryspeakercomponents2.asp Happy Listening. |