B & W N802's Vs Revel Studios Vs. Mezzo Utopias

Hi, I'v heard both speakers. To me the JM Lab Mezzo Utopias are better. I heard them on an unbelievable system, Krell Amps, Pass O1 preamp, Jadis JS 1 tube dac, with a separate tube power supply. There are like 4 tubes in the Jadis power supply, along with 2 tubes in the dac. Jadis JD 1 transport, MIT 850 speaker cables and MIT interconnects. The JM Lab sounded so articulate. The bass was fast and tight. What I really liked about these speakers was the crossover, the bass blended in so perfectly with the midbase driver. The midrange on these speakers is top notch. That Jadis dac is unbelievable sounding to. I heard the BW Nautilus 802 on an all Proceed system, Proceed 250 watt amp, Proceed preamp processor, Proceed CD Player. The Nautilus 802s have a nice articulate sound to. I just felt they lacked alittle bass. The bass response on the JM Lab Mezzo Utopias was so much better then the Nautilus 802s. I heard the Montana XP speakers. Personally, I dont like that Scanspeak Kelvar Midbase driver they use. The Montana's just sounded to edgy. I emailed the designer of Montana and told him to use the new Scanspeak 5 inch Revelator midbase drivers. Those drivers are light years better then the Scanspeak Kelvar drivers. The Kelvar midbase on the Nautilus speakers sounds really good. It has a warm articulate sound. I just think the Nautilus 802s lack bass.

I've listened to all 3 speakers before but only listened to the Studio's and Mezzo Utopia's extensively. The Studio's have a polite/laid-back midrange. They can play fairly loudly but represent a more difficult load than the Mezzo Utopia's. The studio's have excellent soundstage and imaging qualities (except in the treble). The studio's are accurate but harmonically lean, they'll reproduce the beginning of the note but not the decay. I describe the studios as clinical (as in dead), they get the notes right yet fail to present the essence of the music. The big problem that I have with the studios is that they are not coherent from the upper-midrange through the treble. They sound a little bright or tipped-up inspite of their laid-back nature. High-hats image in front of the band instead of behind. Careful component matching is a must with these speakers. Front and rear tweeters can be adjusted to some degree.

Mezzo Utopias on the other hand present a more musical/editorialized sound. The note decay seems to go on forever. Soundstage and imaging are at least up to the standards of the Studios. Coherency is excellent, with none of the problems the Studio's have. Bass is a little loose for my tastes, even when mated with an amp that has a high damping factor (800+). Microdynamics are excellent.
This speaker sounds best when reproducing acoustic instruments or cleanly amplified (no distortion) instruments where the listener can appreciate the big hall sound presented by the Mezzo Utopia's and the extended note decay/harmonics. Some good examples are Jesse Cook, Al Di Meola, Branford Marsalis, Miles Davis etc. With amplified instruments the sound will tend to sound smeared. This is true with most rock and pop recordings.

To sum it up. The studio's annoy me because of their lack of coherency. I enjoy listening to the Mezzo Utopia's with the proper source material, however their extended decay colors the sound and while I enjoy listening to them I would never buy them for their lack of accuracy.

Which one is warmer mezzo or 802?

Jazzdude,

So what are we to gleen from what you said? Don't buy either the Revels or the JM labs and keep the N802's. I am not sure what conclusion to draw from you statements. You seem to say that the Revels and the JM Labs suck in different ways. What speaker do you have and what are you suggesting that I do about my situation?

What I tried to do is give you an objective and incisive describion of the character of these speakers. Each of these speakers have strengths and weaknesses that should be taken into consideration before making a purchase. However, I think the best thing for you to do is take these comments and listen for yourself. If you like either of these speakers then your opinion and your money are the only two that need to be in agreement.