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Forward sounding speakers that Rock

I sold my Revel Salons1 recently due to space issues after a house move. I really liked the speakers a lot and was sad to sell them. I had them for 5 years in a perfectly proportioned room. I t has been 1 year now since I moved and I have changed from the Salons (170 lbs) to the Audioengine2 (5 lbs). Such is life :).

I listen to lots of genres of music but Rock is my mainstay. I use Rush's Moving Pictures CD as my reference to see if a speaker can get to me emotionally. One deficiency with the Salons, for me, was the feeling that it was a little laid back for Rock music, but it was over the top brilliant for others (Reggae, Folk, Jazz). At that time I was willing to live with it.

I am also extremely happy with the audio gear that I have. My goal was to create a clean clear neutral chain of audio gear. I think I have accomplished this to my satisfaction and I will not pull any hair over any minor deficiencies. My audio chain is as follows:

Bryston 7B-SST monoblock amps (with filter choke upgrade) | BAT VK-42SE Solid State Pre-amp | Sony SCD-1 SACD player with VSEI Level 5+ mod |Au24 balanced interconnects from pre to amps | AudioQuest Volcano speaker wire| Virtual Dynamics power chords and interconnect from SACD to pre

It looks like there could be a return to audio bliss again in 12-18 month timeframe (move to a house) so I started investigating some new speakers. First I went and heard the Usher Tiny Dancer and was sold on its sound from such a small package. It was also laid back and may not be the best Rock speakers but I felt it was a very high quality speaker. I may buy these to tie me over until move into a house with more space.

Next stop was a store in Santa Barbara, CA that only carried B&W gear (I was initially disappointed at that prospect). I went through the lineup and stopped at the 802D floor standing. I cued by my standard CD and was really emotionally moved by the sounds. It was forward, clean and got my energy levels pumped up. This was the way I want to listen to Rock. The speaker was smaller than the Salon1 and it likely won’t have the same level of bass, but the forward presentation was really very attractive to me. It was also in a smaller package so that was a huge benefit. The gear used was all Classe and we used an integrated Amp that was underpowered to really bring out all the best qualities of those speakers.

After I left I walked across the street and went to a Revel shop. I wanted to hear the Sudio2. It was setup with all Mark Levinson gear with enough power. I cued up the same music (3 CD’s) and I heard the same sound I had at my old house. It had a little more detail but the presentation was laid back. I was surprised how much more I liked the B&W over the Revels for Rock. So I decided no more Revels in my future. The B&W 802D is the current top contender for my dream house.

So I wanted to ask fellow A’Gon members their opinions on what they would consider a competitor to the B&W 802D. I would be willing to have a bit of top end coloration since I think I have a clean audio chain. I want that forward (non-laid back) sound that I now think works best for Rock. My price range is 12-14K for new speakers. I would also like to keep the height less than 4 feet due to potential WAF.

Thanks for reading this long post.
yyz
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shadorne
7,333 posts
 
As John suggests horns are a great idea for rock. Le Studio (Andre Perry & Nick Blagona) in Quebec was where many Rush albums were done including Moving Pictures. In the early 80's, bands like Police and Rush would have heard themselves played back on Westlake monitors at Le Studio, which was rated number 1 along with Air Studios Montserrat at that time.

I am sure you can find something more aesthetic but horns may be worth investigating especially for rock. These Westlakes are in your price range - used of course. They can look kinda cool though in a home system - a real conversation piece.
yyz OP
98 posts
 
Lots of great new information in this thread for me. I have a lots of different paths to investigate. I hope the journey takes me to the enlightented path :)

Thanks for the time and effort involved in the responses.
xiekitchen
819 posts
 
"Forward Sounding Speakers that Rock"

Immediate response is of course JBL. From the 70's of course:
L-166 Horizons, L-300 Summits if you have space and $$$, L-65 Jubals, L-150 various versions tall ones with the passive radiators.
These will rock and make your ears bleed. Yes they suffer from Listener fatique. Yes they are not Hi-end. Yes they are FUN!
xiekitchen
819 posts
 
Also above post on Westlake is good advice.
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shadorne
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There is a world of difference between "sound reinforcement" pro speakers and those used for mastering or main monitoring.

It is a valid concern (raised above) that most pro rock speakers are only "fun" and not High-end. Generally this is true.

The way to identify a high end speaker with high quality sound (lowest possible distortion) is to ask about the drivers.

Are the drivers "Long Coil in Short Magnet Gap" or "Short Coil in Long Magnetic Gap"?

Cheaper lower quality drivers made for sound reinforcement will always be Long Coil in Short Gap. This means you get a continuous rise in distortion with excursion as the voice coil sees less magnetic field. These drivers run much hotter too and therefore they compress at typical rock SPL's, as well as drifting in the crossover region as voice coil impedance rises with temerature. These drivers will quickly lose their "punch" from Neil Pearts kick drum (sound noticeably better at the beginining of a track and then turn dull). The major advantage is that for little cost they play loudly and they are a bit harder to "blow up" as less and less amplifier power reaches the driver at higher SPL.

High quality "audiophile" type drivers will always be "Short Coil in Long Gap". This type design means the distortion remains extremely low throughout the drivers excursion as the coil sees the same magnetic field. These drivers will not compress thermally nearly as much and are very expensive to construct - they also distort badly whe over driven and the voice coil exceeds the gap - therefore the preference is to use several massive drivers like you see in the link I gave above.

Most high end consumer speakers are long coil in short gap - so don't simply assume that most high end audiophile speaker will necessarily be better quality than a pro "fun" rock speaker.

Thiel often use short coil in long gap on their speakers. Someone mentioned Thiel above. Another good option.

I am sure Duke can add to this as Duke uses the higher quality type pro drivers in his designs ....another great option might be to check one of his designs out! (As a plus, I bet they look much nicer than anything I have suggested)

Note that the pro drivers alone in some of the designs I have suggested would set you back more than $5,000. You would be lucky to find more than $500 devoted to drivers in most high end audiophile designs. You may ask why high end pro and high end audiophile are often similar in price? The difference will be mostly in high quality wood work and finish that you get with a high end audiophile design (wood work is extremely expensive as anyone who buys high quality furniture will know). This is where something designed and built by Duke might be attractive as it straddles both camps.
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