Verity Parsifal or Magico V3 or Wilson Benesch ACT

For point source soundstaging and cohesiveness across the spectrum, it would be hard to beat Merlin VSM-MXe (30 watts should be enought), but they are -2b at 33Hz, full-range enough for me and my musical taste, but maybe less than you would get with the Verity. But a very easy speaker to drive with tubes, and my choice after hearing a lot out there. That being said, the Verity and WB were defintiely on my short list - you considerations are in good company.

Magico V3! But as mentioned in post above, will take slightly more than 50-100watts (I would say a minimum of 150 'quality' watts), to do them justice and fully extract their mesmerizing capabilities..

However, as all three are serious contenders, in the end, as always, it boils down to taste, preferences and synergy with partnering equipments. Best if you can do some auditioning prior to decision. Would love to hear your comparative notes on them too.

I had the opportunity to hear the Verity Sarastro's. I am a Wilson benesch dealer and am always on the lookout for really good sounding speakers and not simply big brands. I thought the Verity's were nice sounding, a little laid back, with good sound stage. I don't think they are as convincing as the ACT's or as musically involving or as transparent. One thing you should consider is the Verity has a rear facing woofer. This means you may need to bring it out into the room a ways as well as providing acoustically treatment for the room.

In regards to power requirements at the RMAF we drive the ACT's with a 50 watt single ended deHavilland GM-70's with rock music volume when needed so no problem there. The ACT's are made from carbon fiber so there is no cabinet design that is more technologically advanced, not even the Magico's.

Well that is my two cents worth and don't forget I am a dealer so there must be some bias there. Of course my bias just could be for equipment that sounds good!

Sounds real audio,

Did you hear the Sarastros at the RMAF? I heard them there too, several times over the three day period. They sounded a little better than last year, but I don't think those Artemis tube amps were up to the task for a room that size. I had heard them before in L.A. driven by all Nagra equipment and they sounded fantastic. That led me to begin looking into the Parsifals as an upgrade from my previous speakers.

Virtual Dynamics had a pair of Parsifal Ovations at the RMAF. Rick Schultz got really good sound out of them. I suggested to the guys from Artemis to visit the Virtual Dynamics room to get a reference of what those speakers were capable of.
-------------------------

I had heard the V3 at a local dealer last year with Alon Wolf present. Dealer was using Metronome front end + VAC amplification. I believe the V3 was paired with more expensive system than the Mini. But about 60% of the people thought the Mini sounded better. (Supposedly, the vote went the other way the week before) The problem with that setup, I thought, was that the amp used was just not powerful enough to really drive the V3.

FrankC

..from carbon fiber so there is no cabinet design that is more technologically advanced...

What a silly thing to say. Where do you get such nonsense from? Just because the word Carbon is in the sentence, it does not make it automatically ” technologically advanced”. In your ACT case, it is actually a cheaper way to make a curved box. And actually, not a very good one.