Quads 57 -

I agree with Weseixas.
And stands are important.

A word of caution though...
Wayne's '57's are sooooo good that they will reveal any flaws in the equipment feeding them.
So they have IMMENSE sound quality and will accurately reproduce the good and the bad.
So basically they are a "demanding mistress" in that regard.
They like vacuum tubes, great vinyl, proper cables, proper interconnects, etc. So do not worry that they "top out" at some point as the rest of your system becomes upgraded.
This is NOT the case with most speaker systems!
At some point, they are what they are and they can not sound any better no matter is done. Perhaps that is what is happening with your present speakers.
Also...57's MUST be set up properly in the room in terms of placement to the listener. They need to be precisely placed as "close enough" (as in box speakers) just won't cut it.

I do not know your room but let's say that for you a rough start would be 6-7 feet back from the speaker and the '57's are 3-5 feet (center to center) apart.
they would be 2-3 feet from the back wall and a foot or so from the side walls. They need to be pointed in so that they are each exactly equidistant from the center listening chair.

Quads are as close to a massless driver as you can come other than the Ionovac tweeters and the Ribbons but those are far less efficient than the Quads.

As a result Quads are so quick, so utterly transparent and life-like that they make all other speakers seem veiled.

btw Jarraa,

your discription of soul is exactly what the Quads have in spades. You get right into ALL nuances in the music.

Also fwiw, I never missed high end information, some people think they need a super tweeter, but you hear everything so well, I do not think you need one, even if they are a tad rolled off on top.

We've had a lot of customers with Quads over the years. In the last 35 years, one thing has been apparent in that time: Quad owners are often very loyal to the product. Given the span of time involved, the 57 and 63 have seemed to enjoy a loyalty that may well be number one in the business (the 57 is a product that has been around for over 50 years!). I can't think of any other speaker where I have met so many people that have held on to the speaker for as long as many Quad owners often do- literally decades.

The newer Quads have not been around that long and so comparatively, like most speakers, don't really have a track record, so these comments apply specifically to the 57 and 63.

A PK modified quad does not have any top end issues. I have heard his single, double and triple. The power is immense on the triple and does require a pretty big room to make them work, the double is the best compromise to me and the single is a hugh improvement over the standard single.

regards,

Thanks for the responses and the advice on watching placements etc. Out of curiosity, what speaker cables do you guys run with your Quads.

thanks
assad