A Tribute to the Sequerra MET 7


I've been preaching the virtues of this speaker for years. I bought my pair around 2001 here on Agon... they were already a few years old. I think I have the Mk 2. I replaced some Vandersteen 2Ces...but man I didn't look back!

They are small, extremely dynamic and have amazing imaging. The tone is wonderful if the range is somewhat limited (as many monitors are). I have often gone to audio stores and listened to monitors many times their price. Almost without exception i end up thinking that they just don't sound as good as my Sequerras. I suspect that these are one of the great secrets of high end audio.

I've been waiting for years for someone to send me a tear filled email saying "thank god that I listened to you...I bought a pair and my life is now fulfilled." But I think they are just too unknown to really draw people unless they know Dick Sequerra himself. Also, you can't find them at stores...I think Dick only does factory direct sales. Oh well.

But truly. I now have a speaker that is 5x as expensive and 10x as large. I just hooked up my old Sequerras again and I'm still stunned with them. They are simply beautiful to listen to and I'm so glad that I never sold them.

Ok, I guess I need to end on a question...Has anyone compared the newer versions of the speaker (MK vi or the earlier versions like my Mk II? I believe that the later versions are slightly larger. I wondered if they retain all of their magic. I know Dick stills sells them direct for a pittance.
issabre

I bought a pair of Altec Lansing Satana, 15 woofer with horn about 1977.  I made a trip to Atlanta and listened to the original Met 7 a few years later.  They were $305. I sat these tiny speakers on top of the Altecs and went back and forth for a while but after a while I only listened to the Sequerras.  I still have these Met 7s and they still sound great. I bought one of the subs later to give them a little bottom. I recently bought the Elac UB 5 and also bought a pair of Met 7.7s. They all sound good and I have been swapping the 7.7s and UB 5s for a while and it seems one sounds better one day and the other another day. I had the old little7s in the bedroom and brought them back in the main room and I think they sound better than either one maybe by a lot.  The original 7s seem like there is more space between the instruments. They are inefficient and maybe it accentuates the loud sounds in a realistic way. I would like to hear the ribbons but have never seen a pair in person, I think they just parallel the Mets and it seems like they would have a problem interfering with one another but I’m sure Dick knew what he was doing. The Met 7s were the best money I ever spent in hifi. I am surprised that the guy that sold them new didn’t like them. I also tried but didn’t buy some Spendors, they were nice but harsh next the 7s. I use tube amplifiers, I don’t know how they would work with solid state amplifiers. The original 7s look pitiful, vinyl wood grain and they don’t weigh much at all and those ugly metal grills, but they sing. Maybe I should find a nice looking larger cabinet and mount those little ugly things inside.

I have a question about the finish material used on the Sequerra 7.7 Mk I (not the Pyramid Met 7). I originally posted it in a separate topic/thread, and then realized I should have posted it here. Any thoughts?

Also, as mentioned in the original thread, I am going to sell my 4 7.7 Mk 1’s, probably on ebay because I’ve sold things there before (as dhs910) and haven’t bought/sold anything here, although I did use to buy/sell/trade a lot on Audiomart, back in the days when Walt and Lennice (sp?) ran it. But if anyone here is interested, let me know.

 

I just picked up a pair of the originals, owned by a guy who's had them since they were new(he was 13 then). Just for shits and giggles I replaced my Spendor S3/5's with them and am listening to them now. One hour playing loudly and they are already showing improvement in the lower mids. Great for clear dialogue and Foley effects...
Hi, I have the MET 7 mark 2 version. Anyone know the prefer height for speaker stands? Some folks said it's 32", some said it shall be 28"? Thanks.
I Have a had a pair of MET 7 ‘s  since 1985 or so ....wnd they are wonders ...recently bought a pair of Boenicke w5 ‘s ...and they have all the same atributes as the Met 7’s  ease of placement .soundstage and musicality ...they have been in use since 1985 and still are in A+ state no deterioration of speaker surrounds etc
And they still are able to bring a smile to my face  
They should be wired in parallel. Everything inside should be left just as they are. Don't fuss with anything. If they work you have a wonderful system. The drivers are no long available.  The metal that is place where the dust cap is is called a phase plug. If you want to talk with Dick you need to call the number and leave your name and phone number. he is 87 or 88 years old now, but still very busy. Oh! Those speakers used to play very loud, but I wouldn't push them to hard.  MSM Pro - do you mean Near Field Monitor Pro? 
I just pick up a couple of pairs of Sequerra's at an auction. They are the Signature 1 pyramid woofers with the smaller midrange/tweeter boxes sitting on top. They are very early versions, serial numbers 19 and 20. I also picked up an early pair of NSM-PRO's. These sound fantastic and were a steal.  I can't believe that I hadn't heard of these before. I have some questions. I emailed Dick Sequerra from the link on his website but haven't gotten an answer.  Does anyone know....Are the top and bottom boxes meant to be wired in parallel or were they meant to use an external crossover? Does anyone have an idea of minimum and maximum power to use? What is the sensitivity?  What the heck are the cabinets made of? They seem industrial as the pyramids weight far north of 100 pounds each.  The bottom woofer has a standard dust cap but the top ones have a metal structure that sticks out an inch or so where a dustcap normally is. What is the purpose of this? Finally, what might these be worth, (although I can't imagine selling them). Any help would be appreciated.
I have a pair that I bought a few years ago second-hand at a flea market for the price of a large pizza. S/N 0207 and 0208. In very well-loved condition. I emailed DS about them, asked when they were made and told him they were incredible. I never got a response. Can someone tell me how the green/red LEDs work. The greens light up when pushed and everything is good, I suppose. The red is "Danger Will Robinson!" and come on when REALLY pushed.  I'm running a Pioneer SA-7800 with 65wpc right now. and am not pushing. But I could ;).
I have, for no reason I can explain, Mr. Sequerra’s very own Met7 MK6 BGEX speakers. He only made 2 pair of these. They were his reference speakers. Why he picked me to sell them to I will never know. I also have his T1 tweeters and a pair of of NFM Pro Minis. The only speakers that come close to the Met7 BGEX version are Eminent Technology 16b which I also own. The Sequerras are better, better than Golden Ear, better than KEF LS50. The BG EX stands for Bob Grodinsky Experiment. The little eMEt7 MK1 are good, but nothing compared with The MK4, 5 and 6. The stereo Mojo review of the MK6 is ridiculous, ignore it.  See the speakers here https://www.facebook.com/deutsch2



I bought an original pair of the Met 7s in 1982. Was really impressed with them. Would like to hear a more recent pair. What do they go for used?
I've owned Sequerra Met-7 speakers since the early '80s.  They were part of my introduction to high-end audio.  I've owned several sets of these over the years -- I bought them to compare, test, polish as needed, and then resell.   I find the tonality, the sound staging, and the imaging of these beauties to be simply lovely.  I think they're very revealing, so if the other components of your system aren't so good, the result doesn't work.  (I felt they worked particularly well when I owned conrad-johnson tube gear).

I finally parted with my original pair of Met-7s last year, replaced by a pair of Met 7.7 Mk V, which to my ear is slightly sweeter in the mids and slightly more authoritative overall.  I've paired these with my Met-8 subs, which provide just enough foundation.  (They don't steal the show).  It's perfect for me

As to the size, I calculate that the later Sequerra designs are about 30% larger.  The Met 7 original ("Mk I's") are 8" tall , 5.25" wide and 10" deep. each w/ a time-aligned 4-1/2" woofer and a 1-1/2" coaxial tweeter.  The Met 7 Mk II 's and later measure 11.125" x 7.875" x 11.125" each w/ a time-aligned 6” woofer and 2" coaxial tweeter.

For the near future, I'll keep a few pictures up on Photobucket if anyone would like to view them:
http://s300.photobucket.com/user/pbartoo/slideshow/Audio/Sequerra%20Met-7%20Mk%20I%20%20%20%20Mk%20I...

Enjoy.
I have one of the more recent pairs of Met 7's, black cabinets, no grills and I am using them for my office system, as in they literally sit at each corner of my desk. I have them coupled with the 47 Labs Shigaraki Integrated/Wavelength Audio Proton and laptop. They are amazing.
I have the full set Met 7 Mk2, Met 8, Met 9 Mk2, Met 10/8 and think they are great too. I have heard a lot of the real kilobuck systems at shows and still think the Sequerras hold their own. Need some room for them to shine. I am considering moving on because I have a small room but love the full range and great dynamics.
I have the new version. They are amazing. Different than the originals. I also run Monitor Audio RX2 and MHI Eveidence. the new Mets are th eclear winner!
While I do not have the ribbons, I have the subs and the line stages. I love them too. I was unhappy with the met 7's alone, strongly preferring other mini's. But coupling them with the 8's and the sticks/ribbons is a whole different ball game.
I think the thing about these speakers that knocks my socks off is they DON'T knock my socks off. They just show you what your source is doing. Very much like my Tab's did...if in a different flavor.
I loved my Tablettes.
Heard vandersteens that were nice.
The old Energy line, B&W 802, 801 and the harbeth ls35a setups with a Nait made sweet music too.

But none of these were invisible like the Sequerras.

The thing that really does stand out about Dicks speakers is how DYNAMIC they are at low volumes.
Few people listen at high levels, where most speakers are able to convey a dynamic message. These do it at a whisper. I have never heard another speaker at any price that could be dynamic at such low volumes.
Here it is almost 2012 and I'm still listening to my Met 7, 8, 9, and 8 speaker line stage set up.

Amps and pre amps and turntables and cartridges and DACs get up grades...and thes tall, ugly speakers sound more and more like real music with every new/better input they get.

Sounds like real people with chests and real instruments.

I'd love to talk with someone else who has a full set up. I run mine with atma sphere MP1 and M 60.
The Met-7 MKIIs do nothing extraordinarily well, and nothing extraordinarily poorly. What they are, is extraordinarily balanced, conveying the heart and soul of music in a very non-audiophile way. I bought a pair in 1989, and still have them, 20 years on. Along with the TC-50 and LS3/5A, the Met 7s deserve a well-earned place on the all-time classic budget speaker list.

Issabre, the MkIIs came with a rectangular foam grill; no surround or hardware needed, it's a simple press fit. Dick still sells the grills (after 18 years, I finally got a new pair from him, as the old ones were getting pretty funky), or you could simply find some nice open-cell foam and cut your own to fit. Helps keep the dust and such away from the drivers when you're not listening to them.
It is interesting... Mine do not have any grills whatsoever... I think that the grilled versions were the very first ones...rather crude in presentation from what I see on Ebay..etc. The cabinet looks much more low brow on those earlier models. The Mark II that I have has no grill and a rather nice cabinet...if simple.
The diversity of opinion re. these speakers is fascinating. I own a pair of the early version with the metal grills. I use them for nearfield listening with my computer, with a Nuforce Icon integrated amp, and I think they sound fantastic. I have substituted a number of other speakers and always go back to the Sequerras.
I still regret selling my pair. Forget which version, but it was NOT one of the early metal grill deals.
I was a dealer for them in the 80s when they first established their reputation. I could not believe how awful they sounded. The only speaker with a perforated metal grill I ever saw. People would come in and ask for them and I would insist that they take one of the British speakers in the same price range that I carried home as well. The Met 7s always came back. I finally dumped them at my cost through Audio Mart. I still cannot understand what anyone saw in them.
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