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Is It Possible?

Help!!!

Is it possible for a pair of Quad63 sounds better than a pair of Focal Utopia Scala I?  I am was using the Scala in my system and was very happy with the overall result, except for an occasionally bright sound on certain recordings.  I recently bought a pair of non-working Quad63 at a garage sale for $250, had them serviced for about $650.  I was going to use the quad in my office for background music, but I decided to have a A/B test against my beloved Scala.  I almost fell of my chair when heard what came out of the Quad. The vocals and the instruments just came alive, especially the female's voice.  The only advantage I gave to the Scala was the soundstage, which is wider and a little deeper than the Quad.  How can this be?  What am I doing wrong with the Scala?  How can a pair of $900 speakers sounds much better, in my opinion, than a pair of speakers that cost me almost $25,000?

myaudio168
firstnot's avatar
firstnot
115 posts
 
There are only two people in the US currently authorized to perform Quad Repairs per the US distributor. One on the East Coast in PA as I recall and the second is in San Jose, CA. Scott Frankland and Associates.
I have been told that Quad 2805/2905s were made with less than
perfect panels. 989's are also said to be problematic. $550 per each panel replacement, freight two ways and multiple panels-therein lies the rub. 
You may in fact need to sets of speakers as the expression "Have Quad will Travel" may apply. After I fell in love with the sound of a 2905 at a fellow club members home, I started hearing from the only two
people I know who owned them about the issues they were having. When Scott told me about the issues he deals with on this model,
I decided I need to look in another direction for new speakers.  The good news is that Scott says the new panels are much better now. He has yet to see any issues with the next generation 2912s. I hope this helps some
readers.
michaelgreenaudio's avatar
michaelgreenaudio
643 posts
 

Hi inna

The last time I was playing with the 57's was in one of our Tunable Rooms that a good friend of mine has, about 5 years ago. I didn't have the Chameleons there, but did have a sweet pair of the Rev 60's. The 60's ate the Quads for lunch and then some. But set the Revs aside I enjoyed the Quads as I always have.

The Scala doesn't hit my taste buds right. Body is something very important to me and the Focal fell short. I've always wanted to like Focal but they leave me empty and fatigued. The Quads on the other hand have all kinds of tweaking potential. But compared to your Chameleons you would get bored quickly I think. The 57s and 63s are classics and a ton of fun but they have their own thing going on no matter what someone does and it's either going to hit you right or can leave you wanting more.

Always makes me happy to hear you enjoying the Chameleons.

Michael Green

geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
14,147 posts
 
Quad 57s shine if, and that’s a big if, you’re willing to remove the heavy metal grills, remove the plastic dust covers, place the Quads on Arcicci stands and replace the stock power cords. Removing the entire electronics package in each speaker and placing it on a dedicated isolation stand is also recommended. Then you will have dynamics, bass, body and imaging up the wazoo.
michaelgreenaudio's avatar
michaelgreenaudio
643 posts
 
I love that man, Ray! One of the coolest guys I have ever worked with or known. Ray was the original RoomTune Rep. I flew back from meeting with TAS for the first time, and when I got home I had orders for over 100 stores. Ray, out of the blue, put on the first RoomTune dealers. I didn't even have a factory yet. I had no idea how to start a production run. I can still remember that thick fedex envelope full of computer print out order forms. I looked at my friends and said "looks like I won't be doing any recordings for a while". What a classy Classy MAN!
richopp
88 posts
 
Quads have/had their place in audio history. I mean, no other than Mark Levinson hisself (sorry, Honest Charlie) chose them to be in his famous HQD system back in the day. 

https://www.stereophile.com/content/mark-levinson-hqd-loudspeaker-system

https://www.google.com/search?q=levinson+hqd+system&rlz=1C1CHFX_enUS563US563&tbm=isch&so...:

Full Disclosure: We made a few pair of stands for this system (the ones in this picture, I think), and it was not bad when not driven by Levinson hardware.  They were one of the first to realize that imaging size was important, and electrostatics have their aficionados. 

Even the great Bob Fulton used a pair of RTR electrostatics in his Modular J system back in the day. (His 80 and 100 boxes are about the best I ever heard from a box back in the day...)

https://www.stereophile.com/content/fulton-musical-industries-model-80-j-modular-loudspeakers-fmi-cu...

http://fultonmusicalindustries.com/

Unfortunately, they are not as accurate as some other designs (Magneplaners) that provide better imaging and more accurate reproduction.  BUT, they were and are pretty cool speakers.  Enjoy them!
Cheers!


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